If you are like most people, you rely on your Android and the internet for almost every task in your life, whether it be personal or business. Regardless of your dependence, there are occasions when you find yourself without internet access, leaving you distraught holding an Android doorstop.
While the details may vary, odds are you have encountered a few Wi-Fi dead zones along the way when traveling. Or, perhaps you are toiling away on your Android gadget and suddenly lose your internet connection. Although it is uncommon to run into areas that lack a web connection these days, it does occur. In addition, issues with one’s home or business internet service are not unusual.
Without racking up some serious data usage, how are you to get anything accomplished with your device during these moments? Expect times of interruption and prepare by downloading apps to ensure you can use your gadget offline. Here are five of them to keeping you going.
Amazon Kindle and Google Play Books
Both of these apps are ideal for using offline if you are looking to catch up on some reading. Downloading either app is free, and both offer features such as night mode and customization.
While Amazon Kindle and Google Play Books offer titles at no cost, a good number of selections must be purchased. Of course, if you are an avid reader you can download and enjoy a world of books offline, providing your device has enough space.
Developed by Read it Later, this free (ads supported) app allows you to capture content you want to read or watch later, even offline. With Pocket, you can save nearly anything from anywhere, including content from over 800 apps like Twitter and Flipboard.
Whether it be the news, images, videos, and webpages, accessing your content is effortless with Pocket as it automatically syncs across your phone, tablet, and desktop. A premium subscription is offered for $4.99 monthly, or $44.99 yearly, and offers additional features including an ad-free experience and personal backup of all articles and webpages you have saved.
Google Drive
No internet, but you need to access your files? No problem!
Syncing ZIP, music or video files, among others to your device from the cloud is easy with Google Drive. Marking documents as ‘available offline’ when you are online, will provide you access and the ability to edit them offline using Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drawings.
Once reconnected, Google Drive will sync your documents. Although you can get 15GB of storage for free, upgrading to Google One offers plenty of storage size options, including 200GB for $2.99 a month, or $29.99 per year.
Evernote
This note-taking app is an ideal place to store notes, images, recordings, and video. Evernote integrates with several third-party apps and allows for note-taking while offline.
The free (offers in-app purchases) basic plan provides 60MB for uploads and is accessible offline via desktop only. However, if you upgrade to Evernote Premium for $7.99 monthly or Business $14.99 monthly, offline access is permitted on both desktop and mobile devices.
Splend Apps
Here is not one app, but a collection of free (contains ads) apps that are designed for offline use. Splend apps offer a variety of tools including a to-do list, flashlight, voice recorder, and file manager.
One advantage of this group is they do not require subscriptions or syncing. Although, you can sync with Google Drive and Dropbox. Splend apps do offer pro versions with pricing that varies.
Streaming Apps
If you have a subscription to Netflix, Hulu, Spotify or other streaming services, you can download content for offline viewing. While there are a few restrictions that differ between apps, most permit downloading material to your Android device.
Check app settings for downloading options. While some streaming apps are free, others require a subscription that will vary.