It’s About Time: 5 Major Services That Desperately Need an Android App

You would think that every major popular online tool, especially those from big companies like Google, would have a dedicated mobile app. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Although the Play Store hosts millions of apps, it’s missing a few crucial ones if you ask me.

There are several online tools that I use regularly that don’t have a mobile app for various reasons. That means I have to open them in a browser on my phone to use them, which is less than ideal. It’s not as convenient and I lose the ability to receive notifications that would bring value to my life.

I’m really interested in everything related to finance, especially the stock market. I’ve been investing for years now and always pay attention to what’s happening in the world of stocks, bonds and cryptocurrencies.

Google Finance is one of the tools that can help investors stay on top of the markets. It’s simple, but I like it anyway. Especially now that Google has announced the addition of Deep Search functionality to the tool, which will take it to another level.

The tool doesn’t offer as much data as something like Koyfin or Yahoo Finance, but it has all the major features for someone who just wants to keep up with the latest needs. I can see exactly how the major indices are moving, not only in the United States but also in other regions. I can also create a watchlist with my favorite companies, view pricing charts, view related news, and access basic financial data for each company. I can even set up my wallet so I always see how much money I’m making – or losing – on a specific day.

Google Finance is also free and has no ads, but it lacks a mobile app for some reason. It was available at the time but was removed in 2015. So, to use the tool on my phone, I have to visit the site through a browser, which is a pain since it’s an app that I would use more or less daily, as the market is constantly changing.

I shop a lot on Amazon, and because I consider myself a smart consumer, I frequently use CamelCamelCamel. The problem with retailers – and not just Amazon – is that the discounts they offer can be misleading. Sometimes they raise the price just so they can lower it a week later and put a “sale” sign next to the product. And even if this sale is genuine (without a markup a few days before), it’s not necessarily the lowest price the product has ever been sold for.

This is where CamelCamelCamel comes in. It’s basically a free Amazon price tracker that allows me to see exactly how the price of a specific product has changed over a certain period of time. So whenever I want to buy something on Amazon, whether it’s on sale or not, I simply paste the link into CamelCamelCamel and see if the purchase makes sense at that particular moment.

I have saved money in many cases simply by spotting a price fluctuation pattern that meant I had to wait a bit because a sale might be imminent. What’s great is that I can set up price alerts to be notified when the price drops below a certain amount, so I don’t have to check the sale page every day.

The experience is great on desktop because there is even an extension I can click to see the pricing table without opening the website. On mobile, the experience is bad because there is no app and I have to open the site in a browser then paste the link. Having a dedicated application would be even simpler. Ideally, I could just tap Android’s “Share” button in the Amazon app and select the CamelCamelCamel icon to immediately see a pricing table. We can dream.

Created by a web security expert, this site allows me to check if my data has been exposed during a hack. For example, if a website like Facebook is hacked, I can check HIBP to see if anyone has gained unauthorized access to my email address, username, and other personal information.

It’s really simple to use. I just enter my email address and see exactly which data breaches my accounts were part of. There is a nice timeline that shows everything on one page, going back years. Unfortunately, my accounts have been subject to several hacks over the years, which makes me realize how important it is to have a different password for each account and change it as soon as a breach occurs.

It’s not something I use daily, but an Android app would still make sense. Although the service emails me every time a violation occurs, it’s easy to ignore. With an app, I could simply receive a push notification, which I would be less likely to miss and which would allow me to respond to these hacks more quickly.

Google travels the page is great. I can search for hotels, flights and vacation rentals, covering all my essential travel needs. I really like the Explore tab because I can see general overviews of flight and hotel prices, giving me a rough idea of ​​how much a trip will cost. There’s even a section on the best time to visit a specific city, as well as a general overview of the weather for each month and some popular FAQs about the destination.

Searching for flights is awesome. Very similar to Google with its simple interface, which allows you to easily and quickly obtain the information you need. Many filters are available at the top to refine my options: stops, prices, times, etc. Once I find my flight, I’m given several booking options so I can find the best deal. The hotel booking site works the same way, offering a set of filters and offers from different providers. This often makes it a better choice than something like Booking.com because you can actually get a better deal.

Google used to have a Trips app that pulled all my travel-related documents from Gmail and provided information on specific destinations, although there was no option to book flights or hotels. The app was removed in 2019, with Google integrating the feature into its other services. In addition to using it through google.com/travel, you can also do things like book hotels directly from search. I would much rather see Google create a dedicated app again with everything in one place, as it’s the most streamlined approach, in my opinion.

I was a fan of SeatGuru before TripAdvisor bought it and killed it. Surprisingly, the online tool did not have an app. I’ve now moved to AeroLOPA, which is a similar service that gives me all the data I need, and like SeatGuru it also doesn’t have an app.

AeroLOPA basically it shows me diagrams of airplane seat layouts by airline. This makes it easy for me to find the seat that suits me, ensuring I can choose a seat with more legroom and a nice view out the window, for example.

It’s a must-have tool for anyone who travels, even just a few times a year. It’s a great replacement for SeatGuru, although it doesn’t have the seat color that lets you know which seats are technically “bad” or worse than others. You have to find out for yourself based on legroom, window position and other details. Although this is an app I don’t use very often per year, it would make more sense to save it on my phone as an app because the experience is still better than opening the website in a browser.

These are the five online tools that still don’t have a mobile app, but there are many more that could make this list. Which ones did I miss? Let me know in the comments.