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A smartphone is only as good as its apps, and I don’t have time for bad ones. Fortunately, there are red flags that make it easy for me to know which apps I won’t even get the time of day.
4An Outdated Interface
When a new version of Android changes the way our phone interfaces looks, app developers have to take time updating their apps to match. Android has had many such face-lifts over the past decade and a half. Version 4.0 “Ice Cream Sandwich” was the first to give Android an obvious makeover. It introduced the Holo theme, which gave apps a cyberpunk vibe. Apps made for older versions of Android, like “Froyo” and “Gingerbread,” started to stand out like sore thumbs.
This process has repeated with every new theme. Android 4.4 “KitKat” was the next revamp, though 5.0 “Lollipop: followed hot on its heels with Material Design. Material Design has remained Google’s design language, albeit with several overhauls. We’ve since seenthe release of Material Youand, the latest, Material 3 Expressive.
iPhone users face the same situation whenever Apple revamps iOS, though app developers have typically been quicker to update their apps in the past. We’ll see how quick they change up their software to matchApple’s new vision of Liquid Glass.
If I see an app sticking to an old design language, I won’t download it unless I’m in need of a specific function and there are no alternatives. That means old-looking music players, file managers, and note-taking apps don’t stand a chance. There are many of those, and I’m not downloading one that looks like it hasn’t received an update in five years.
3No Option to Remove Ads
Ads have gradually crept into nearly all forms of media and, increasingly, all forms of software. Yet for both media and apps, I don’t abide by ads. I pay for the ad-free tiers of streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and YouTube. Likewise, I only download apps that don’t have ads or those that give me the option to pay to remove them. I’m perfectly fine with the latter. Developers have to eat, after all.
It’s those apps that don’t let you remove ads that grind my gears. I’m not looking at a banner ad at the top or bottom of my screen, regardless of whether this is within a useful utility or a compelling game. Full-screen pop-ups are even worse. And the second an unskippable video starts playing, I can’t close the app fast enough.
I’m someone whoremoves status icons from my screenif given the capability, and those are actually useful. Ads are a distraction that are anything but.
2Requiring an Account for Basic Tasks
I have to juggle so many online accounts that it feels like my password manager needs a password manager. You can’t buy a game console, open a bank account, buy a new car, or purchase a smart thermostat without being prompted to create a new account. The same is true when downloading certain apps.
But there is a genuine distinction to be made between apps that fundamentally require an account and those that don’t. Apps like Instacart and eBay can’t do their thing without storing your address and payment information. Similarly, I fully expect Proton Mail to require an account in order for me to send and receive email.
But I’m not interested in apps that want me to create an account to perform a feature that phones can already do without an internet connection. Samsung Notes can manipulate PDFs directly on my phone. Why does Adobe need an account for that? I want a voice transcription app that transcribes the text within files saved directly to my phone, not one that stores and processes every recording in the cloud. I’m put off by apps like Canva and that require me to create an account to use them for design work.
Those have long been tasks that can be done on-device, even on phones. I prefer not to give up more privacy and control than I have to.
1Doesn’t Support My Phone’s Aspect Ratio
This is an issue you’re most likely to encounter if you happen to be into quirky, unconventional phones. I happen to be that person. I’m writing these words on a book-style foldable with two screens, theSamsung Galaxy Z Fold 6. Its cover display is more narrow than most, and its internal one is closer to a square. Samsung can force all apps to adapt, so there are fewer issues with apps and scaling than you encounter on other foldables like theGoogle Pixel 9 Pro Foldor theOnePlus Open. Such circumstances are a deal-breaker. I’m not dealing with letter boxing in apps.
On my phone, this situation is most encountered with games. Some titles fill the entire screen gorgeously. Others can’t scale from the standard phone resolution, and I rarely want to play them badly enough to stare at three giant black bars above and below.
I’ve always cared about form in addition to function. Plus, I want to reduce distractions, and I care about my privacy. In an app store filled with millions of apps, these guiding values help weed out a majority of them.
