THE GEAR • April 2016
Six things to learn before you land
Just because you’re in the air for eight hours, doesn’t mean you can’t learn a thing or two while winging your way to your destination. With these handy apps, you could master a language or pick up coding. Editor-in-chief of The Next Web, Matt Hussey gives us a lesson in mile-high learning
King of your own castle
If you’ve been meaning to fix something at home or kick-start an early spring clean, BrightNest (iOS, free) is all you need. This app is jam-packed with guides and tips on everything from caulking to creating a pallet garden, each laid out in plain English with plenty of images.
Learn the lingua franca
If the idea of trying to learn a language evokes memories of dusty classrooms and verb tables, Duolingo (iOS and Android, free) will be a revelation. The app breaks down 18 languages into tiny exercises that you can complete within one or two minutes. You specify how quickly you’d like to learn and it will set a minimum score, which you achieve by completing the mini lessons.
Become a better you
Whether your goal is to get fit, learn to play the piano or just be more adventurous, Coach.me (iOS and Android, free) will help you stay on track with some encouragement. It sets you up with a one-on-one pro for whatever area you’re interested in and they will help you devise a plan of action. They’ll check in with you to see how things are going and motivate you along the way.
Master your mind
If you’ve been a meditation sceptic, Headspace founder Andy Puddicombe is so confident his app will change your mind (literally) he offers a free 10-day challenge (iOS and Android, free trial) to anyone willing to give it a go. The app guides you through 10-minute meditation sessions that can help you relax and focus.
Change up your chopsticks
Learn to play the piano on your smartphone? Surely not. But developer Nic Mulvaney has managed to cram hundreds of chords into this beautifully visual dictionary, Cheeky Fingers (iOS, £2.29). There are no confusing menus or terminology, just the chords and an archive of great-sounding progressions you can learn in no time.
Enrol at Stanford
Fancy learning how to code at Princeton or Yale? Well, you can do it all on your phone thanks to Coursera (iOS and Android, free). The app has more than 115 online courses from the world’s greatest institutions. You can watch lectures, sign up for courses and learn alongside students anytime, anywhere. It offers everything from computer programming and finance to music, nutrition and psychology.
This article has been tagged Technology, Culture