Summer is upon us, so we all have to get prepared for being outside for long periods of time. Rooftop parties, urban exploration, whatever you have on your agenda this summer, you need to get equipped. For the next couple of months you will need to have your phone fully charged to take on any kind of obstacle or situation you may find yourself in this summer. We’re confident you have app that points you free condoms; and we are sure you have a backup plan when you don’t want to feel old by staying in and watching PBS instead.of going out and being cool. But it’s not enough. Thankfully for you, we have eight free apps to download right now to help you survive Brooklyn this summer.
Happy (iPhone & Android)
Not all of us make it to the bar when everything is a buck or two off. It’s those moments when we think we’re going to start off the night with a cold brew for a buck cheaper, only for the bartender telling us that happy hour ended five minutes earlier. The disappointment is enough to make us stay home and hope water will ease the pain of a workday (it never does). We haven’t had one of those moments in months, thanks to Happy, an app that let’s us experience happy hour any time we please. Now it’s only available at participating bars, but with partnerships in various bars around Williamsburg and Fort Greene, it’s probably worth spending the $5.25 if you can save double that on booze.
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NO AD (iPhone & Android)
Waiting for the train is something we will all endure this summer. Service changes, backed up trains and other excuses the MTA makes to explain why they’re never on schedule will happen. While you’re waiting 20 minutes for the G to get to you either to or out of Greenpoint, we have something to make the waiting a little more cultural. NO AD replaces the ads for crappy television shows, crappy food and crappy summer blockbusters with art. You can transform any subway station to your own personal museum with this free app. Just don’t move too far down the G platform, or you’re going to turn the station from a museum to a gym racing for the train.
Transit (iPhone & Android)
Speaking of public transportation, unless you have a car or plenty of money to spend on Uber, you will be spending a lot of time taking the train or bus to get anywhere. So whether it’s finding the bar you and your Tinder date finally agreed on, that new brunch place you have been dying to go to, or your friend of a friends party in the middle of Cobble Hill, you need an app to get you there and back. Transit lets you know every train or bus departing towards your destination. For the cyclist, it give you bike directions and, if you’re the cautious type, it gives you Uber price predictions as well.
Cups (iPhone & Android)
It’s iced coffee season in Brooklyn, which means you will be spending more money since iced coffee costs more than regular, hot coffee. You could put ice cubes in your hot coffee every morning, but that’s gross and a little sad, so please don’t. To help you get your caffeine fix, so you can function like a decent human being, we recommend downloading Cups onto your phone immediately. This is for coffee addicts like, well ,everyone we know really. You pay a monthly subscription fee, but before you throw your phone (or your friends phone, if we’re being honest) hear us out. You pay the fee per month and you can go to many coffee shops in Williamsburg, Bushwick, Greenpoint, Downtown Brooklyn, Park Slope, Crown Heights, and more, and get unlimited coffee. That’s right unlimited. Support your local coffee shop and your bank account at the same time.
Sit or Squat
All that unlimited coffee will sure make you want to visit the little boys (or girls) room. The urge to use the bathroom can come suddenly, without any sign or warning. You could risk it and just let it happen in an alley or behind a parked car. However, you could get caught and that fine is not cheap (not that we know anything about that); you could be a trooper and try to hold it, but one, it can be painful after a while, and two if someone makes a really funny joke, you could end up making a mess. Well with Sit or Squat, you can find a public bathroom in your immediate area. No more having to be ashamed by your weak bladder and no more constant complaining about holding it in; you’re friends will thank you for it.
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Avoid Humans
Imagine spending a summer’s day in contact with the least number of people possible, sounds great doesn’t it? We love people, but sometimes they’re just too many people around and we want to do all we can to get away from them. It’s really hard to concentrate on this new book, or podcast or attractive person you’re trying to get attention from when there’s a crowd of people wanting talking loudly about Orange is The New Black, spoiling everything in episode 9, when you’re only on episode 6. For the anti-social people in your crew, we present Avoid Humans. The app, which is powered by a foursquare engine, looks at all the check ins people have left around your location, when it calculates how many people are in one specific place, it gives you a color code to tell you the number of people around you at any given time. So when you want to just get some peace and quiet while you’re out, this could save you from having a mental breakdown.
Stitcher Radio
You may have avoided any conversations with friends and strangers, but that doesn’t mean you can exclude conversations from your alone time. Right now there are dozens of conversations and stories available to you via the glory that is podcasts. We showed you what it takes to make your own, and now we’re saying to survive a hot Brooklyn summer, you will need to have Stitcher Radio on your phone. The best free podcasting app is your portal to learn about the goings on in the world by the smartest political analysts; what the zeitgest is obsessing about by insightful culture critics; and hilarious stories and interviews done by today’s funniest comedians. For the long train rides, the times spent by yourself cooking dinner or just wanting to hear a good story before bed, Stitcher is your chance to hop on the podcasting craze.
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