Cover Friends from the Tatlers community reveal which apps they can't live without. (Photo: Getty Images)

Feiping Chang, Calvin Wang, Tiffany Chan and René Chu reveal which apps they can't live without. From astrology, meditation and music to brain teasers and interior design, here are their phone essentials.

Thanks to the coronavirus, many of us have been spending more time glued to our devices. Whether it's posting updates, researching what's happening in other parts of the world, or simply keeping in touch with loved ones, our phones have become even more woven into our daily routines.

As everyone is in the same boat here, we asked some of Hong Kong's cool kids which apps they can't live without.

See also: 5 Apps That Spark Creative Thinking

Calvin Wang

My Aurora Forecast (iOS, Free)

I’m a fan of the night sky. I remember once waking up in the middle of the night on a long-haul flight (remember taking a plane?) from New York to Hong Kong. I looked out of the window and there were these hues of light vaguely glistening in the distance. After manually setting up my camera and catching a long exposure photo of this mysterious light, I finally realised we just flew past the Arctic circle and I had caught Aurora Borealis on my camera. Since then, every time I know I’ll be flying north at night, I’ll turn on this app to check the chances of encountering this natural light show. 

Co-Star Personalised Astrology (iOS/Android, Free)

If you believe in Mercury retrograde, you’ll have fun with this app. It gives a daily forecast based on your birth chart. But most importantly, it gives you a full analysis of the ruling signs for each of your astrological houses. Though I personally take it with a pinch of salt, it’s rather entertaining to check friendship, love and intelligence compatibility with your friends who are on the app too. It offers non-scientific explanations of why, once in a blue moon, you just want to strangle a few of your best friends (don’t deny it!). 

Skyscanner (iOS/Android, Free)

Back when I was travelling frequently, this would be my go to app to check for ticket and hotel prices. I’m very specific with the ways I plan my travel itinerary and usually, I already know almost every detail of my trip. So, manually inputting search criteria on Skyscanner gives me the most precise results at a glance. It’s a very simple-to-use search engine, but if you know how to play with the search criteria, ticket types and itinerary planning, you’d be surprised to find some first class tickets selling at lower prices than business class tickets. 

Slopes: Ski & Snowboard (iOS, Free)

I’ve tested a lot of ski apps. Slopes offers the most comprehensive functions that any skier may want to use. Aside from the usual speed and elevation sensor functions, it has preloaded 2D and 3D maps of most major ski resorts, allowing you to do reruns of where you went to, where your friends were and those who always waiting for you at the bottom of the piste.

René Chu

Evernote (iOS/Android, Free)

I started using Evernote ever since I launched my eyewear brand REVÉ. It helps manage my design process, inspirations, documents and notes. I love it because you can quickly find and search for information from weeks, months and years ago. It's perfect for capturing information, thoughts and ideas on the go. 

Calm Meditation and Sleep (iOS/Android, Free)

Calm is a portal to peace of mind. Once you open the app, the menu allows you to browse through hundreds of soothing podcasts that will guide you through various types of meditation, calming exercises, and breathing techniques to help you relax. It's great for entrepreneurs and times like these. 

Calendar (iOS, Free)
I know. It's a boring answer, but I use Calendar. It’s not fancy but I live by it (I like everything super organised!)

See also: 7 Meditation Apps To Calm And Guide Your Mind

Tiffany Chan

Peak - Brain Training (iOS/Android, Free)

Peak is a gaming app that aims to train and challenge your brain. I like to play this every night when winding down from work. It's fun yet relatively challenging. It really helps improve my focus and mental agility. The app allows you to check your progress by monitoring your peak brain score as well as workout streak. I was introduced to it by one of my best friends and I'm totally in love with it!

Anchor (iOS/Android, Free)

Anchor is an all-in-one platform where you can create, distribute, and monetise your podcast from any device for free. During home quarantine, a friend of mine suggested hosting a podcast channel together, mainly to talk about “behind-the-scenes” moments from fashion industry. We had fun recording the podcast with Anchor. It is very easy to use and gives you options to edit and upload different voice and sound clips with the click of a button. Anchor also allows you to get matched with a sponsor who has a different audience size, with the option to collect listeners' donations. For people who are interested in creating their own podcast channel, this is a gem!

Spotify (iOS/Android, Free)

Music plays a big part in my daily life. I create different playlists for different occasions: for example, for work, working out, long drives, and so on. What I like about Spotify is that it also has podcast channels with various speakers, as well as less well-known musicians. I look forward to Mondays when my “discover weekly” playlist is updated because that's when I get to assemble new music playlists. 

See also: How Elton Yau And Nicholas Cheung Are Making Waves In Hong Kong's Music Scene

Feiping Chang

Magic Plan (iOS/Android, Free)

This is an interiors app that allows you to import or draw your own floor plans, infrastructure and furniture. Having just moved into our new home, this app has been so essential in my interior design process, keeping all my floor plans and furniture measurements in check.

V Live - Global Star Live App (iOS/Android, Free)

All my friends know that I’ve been super into K-pop lately and V Live is a live streaming app that a lot of Korean celebrities use. It also broadcasts live concerts in a way that is as close as can be to the experience of attending a real concert during the pandemic.

YouTube (iOS/Android, Free)

If I could only keep one app on my phone, this would be it. I’ve learnt so many things from YouTube videos—from cooking to new languages. Lately, I’ve been learning embroidery from it, which has been such a fun and therapeutic pastime during social distancing. You can basically pick up any hobby and learn it yourself via YouTube.

See also: 7 Most Popular South Korean Female Celebrities To Follow On Instagram

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