Many uses their Android phone to do lots of things from reading news, entertainment, watching movie, listening to music, chatting etc. Most of these apps requires an internet connection, either using a wi-fi to have access to them or you have your own subscription(Data).
But Guess what? There are some apps that doesn’t require an internet connection to access them immediately you download and install them from play store. in fact, it is a nightmare to some when travelling and they know that the internet connectivity in that place is very poor. In such cases, you need an app that you can access offline that is, without an internet connection. This Apps is an A Must have Apps, which means that its ideal that all Android users must have it on the mobile.
Here are the lists for the best essential offline apps you need to have on your smartphone.
1. Google Maps (iOS/Android)
This is one of the most useful offline app every iOS/Android user needs to have on their mobile phone. it provides a detailed information about geographical regions and sites around the place you are going. It is very useful when you are going to a place you have never been before. You can use this app to navigate your way correctly.
More so, the beautiful thing about the app is that, you can share your map with a friend, there is a voice navigation, you can hear traffic alerts, the picture of the building you are going to, where to turn, which lane to use, save your map and if there’s a better route. So you can do all this without an internet connection. On google map, you can search for petrol station, groceries shops, parks, coffee shops, convenience shops, a restaurant around you, and even limit your search to some preferences like restaurant that is opened at that moment, distance, cuisine etc
2. Offline Dictionary: Merriam-Webster
It is one of the most common app on Android Phone, in fact, it is very rear to see a student without this app on their phone. While we have loads of Dictionary App available for both Android and iOS on play store, most of it requires an internet connection, but this Offline Dictionary: Merriam-Webster does not require an internet connection, if you are looking for a reliable and widely used dictionary with lots of different features to access offline, then Merriam-Webster Dictionary is your best bet.
Fortunately, you can use this app for free, but the only limitation of the free version is that, there are so many ads that will be popping out when in use. If you are the type teat does not mind about the ads, then you can go for the free version. But for some that does not like seeing an ads while using a free version on any app, then you can go for the paid version of this app.
3. Spotify (iOS/Android/PC/Mac)
Spotify is one of the best music-streaming platforms out there. This app will not be new to people who know much about music streaming apps and love listening to music. If you are in a place with no connectivity or you run out of subscription or maybe you just want to go offline , then Spotify is the best app. The music on Sportify cut across the world, with various artists and labels across different language. It is available on both Android and iOS and can be downloaded for free. You can access all the music and listen to podcast offline.
This app is absolutely free but there is imitation to the free version so, you can opt in for the pro version to have full access to all the features.
4. Google Translate (iOS/Android)
Google Translate is an A must have app especially for those travelling to a non English language country. This app is a life saver app. I know that it is easy to just copy and paste word on google for translation which is what almost everyone does, but what will happen in the case of no internet connection? This is why this app is very useful and life saving. With this app, you get the exact translation you will get on google.
There is a way to use this app, the first thing to do is to download the language database to be able to use it offline, with no internet connection. This means that, while you still have an internet connection, you will need to download the languages that you need to translate content from to your native language. Google Translate is available on both Android and iOS, and you can download language databases from the settings.
5. Pocket (iOS/Android)
If you love to read articles, blogs, news on internet, then this app is for you. Many moves from one website to another reading gist, articles and all while using their internet which they can visit those sites over and over again. Some may even forget to bookmark a tab or page they visit often and when they run out of internet, they would not be able to access that page or tab again.
If you are on this table, then Pocket app is the best for you and it come with some extra features and it is available for both iOS and Android users. The main purpose of this app is that you can add any content you came across on any website to your Pocket reading list and access it offline. For example, You might come across a post on social media and you are too busy to read it at that moment, instead of sharing to you wall and think of reading later which the author of the post can remove at any point in time, which would not allow you have access to that post again, you can copy and paste the content on your Pocket app and read later. To use this app, you need to first sign in and then set the reader preferences to your liking
6. Amazon Kindle (iOS/Android/PC/Mac)
Amazon Kindle is a great way to stay entertained with or without an internet connection. You can read from anywhere on Amazon Kindle. The app is available for free and can be downloaded on both Android and iOS. To use this app, just go to play store and download it, then install. After installation, add any book you want to read on your advice, then go to the Library section and tap on the downloaded section to start reading offline. You can also purchase books and download as well then you can read offline. This app will be very useful for those who like reading books while travelling and doesn’t want to travel with a bunch of an hardcopy books.
Another features of this Amazon Kindle app is that you can view meanings for different words, highlight those words and bookmark text. With Amazon Kindle you can even add and edit notes as well.
7. Google Drive and Docs
Google Drive and Docs has been a lifesaving apps for so many. It comes with some Android devices and while some Android users needs to go to play store to download it. Drive is a cloud storage that allows you to store all your different files and documents on the cloud and access them wherever you are. If you have file or document to download on your Gmail, you can save it and download to Drive, this will let you have some space on your phone storage and saving on drive will prevent you from losing the file in case any unforeseen circumstances happens to your phone. Docs is a word processor for your writing needs.
Drive and Docs are essential and must-have apps for your Android or iOS phones. You can also make changes to your files or document on drive offline and later when you have internet connection, it will save automatically. What you need to do is to launch the apps on your phone, you can then go into the document that you want to access offline, be it in Drive or Docs, and click on the ‘Make available offline’ button.
