11 Apps That Will Change Your Life in 2017
Save money, time and make life easier by downloading these tools
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Every year that passes, more companies are creating helpful and easy-to-use apps. And in 2017, developers are finding ways to help us shop smarter, find our cars faster and remind us to take our medications on time, every time. Click through this slideshow to find the top apps (that can be found for your iPhone or Android) to keep your life in order.
(This article appeared previously on Grandparents.com)
1. Follow My Car
Cost: Free
This classic moment has happened to all of us — you come out of the mall and you just can’t remember where you parked your car. Never forget again with the Follow My Car app for iPhone. After parking, tap the car icon and the app will remember where you parked. When you’re ready to return, the app will calculate the shortest walking route to your spot for you. You can also take notes about the location of your spot, take a picture and use the parking meter timer to remember when your meter expires.
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2. Pillboxie
Cost: $1.99
Created by a registered nurse, Pillboxie is an app that will make sure you never miss a dose of your medication again. Input your medications and when you need to take them, an alert will remind you when it’s time. No network connection is required, and it will always remind you on time, even if your device is asleep.
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3. Magnifying Glass with Light
Cost: Free
If you’ve ever had trouble reading fine print or a menu in a restaurant and your phone’s flashlight just doesn’t cut it, download the Magnifying Glass with Light app. Transform your phone into a magnifying glass and you won’t need to worry about forgetting your glasses or struggling to see. The app allows you to take pictures, and zoom from 1x to 5x.
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4. Fade and Fall Safety
Cost: Free
As we get older, the risk of falling increases. Each year, more than 2.8 million older adults visit the emergency room for fall-related injuries, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These two apps, Fade Fall Detector on Android and Fall Safety on iOS monitor your activity and use sensors that monitor sudden movements that may indicate a fall. Each will alert emergency contacts if a fall is confirmed, and can send your location to them. In case of a false alarm, just tap a button to turn the alarm off. Note that the app can only detect falls when you have your phone on you.
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5. Mint
Cost: Free
Mint, a free app and website, allows you to get your finances in order. You can create budgets for different spending categories, track and pay bills, get your credit score and more. Mint comes from the creators of TurboTax and QuickBooks, and uses multi-factor authentication and other security measures, so you know your financial data is safe.
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6. Substitutions
Cost: $1.99 for iPhone, $.99 for Android
There’s nothing worse than being in the middle of cooking dinner and realizing you’re out of a key ingredient. Enter the Substitutions app, which allows you to search for alternate ingredients you can use in a pinch, and also by dietary preferences, such as allergies, low-fat, low-carb and vegan.
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7. AroundMe
Cost: Free
AroundMe lets you search for banks, gas stations, hotels, hospitals, coffee shops, bars and restaurants and more in your area. Whether you’re at home or traveling, find whatever you need with the click of a button in this simple and smart app.
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8. Military Cost Cutters
Cost: Free
If you're a veteran or active-duty military personnel, you can take advantage of this money-saving app. Just plug in your zip code, and you'll see a list of local and national discounts and deals ( recent examples include 15 percent off at Jiffy Lube and 20 percent off at Texas Roadhouse).
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9. Ebates
Cost: Free
Why not earn some cash for online shopping? If you haven't heard of Ebates, which has been around since 1998, it's worth checking out — earn 1 percent to 10 percent back, and sometimes even more. Use the website or the app to look for your favorite stores, start shopping and earn a percentage of cash back. You can choose to receive a check, have the funds deposited in your PayPal account or have the money sent to a charity of your choosing or a family member. The free apps for iOS and Android also let you find coupons and scan products to compare prices.
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10. RetailMeNot and SnipSnap
Cost: Free
If you love using coupons, look no further than the RetailMeNot app. Simply search a store, retrieve the coupon you want and show it at the register in store to get the discount, You never have to worry about forgetting coupons at home again. Similarly, the app SnipSnap shows mobile coupons, but also allows you to take pictures of printed coupons and turn them into digital ones.
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For iPhone: RetailMeNot and SnipSnap
For Android: RetailMeNot and SnipSnap
11. FastCustomer
Cost: Free
Hate waiting on hold when calling customer service? Us, too. With FastCustomer, a website and app for Android and iOS, you can skip the hold lines and the app will call you when there’s an actual person on the line. In the app, find the company whose customer service line you’d like to reach, tap it, and your phone will ring when a representative is on the line. FastCustomer’s database includes hundreds of companies like Verizon, DirecTV, and many major airlines and banks. In addition to using the app, you can also text the company name you’d like to 936-CALL-PLS and FastCustomer will connect you to a rep.
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