5 Android and iOS applications to install on your smartphone without hesitation

This top 5 is not like our selections of free applications that we offer you twice a week. Here, we install the applications on our own smartphones and test them. We check if there are not too many in-app purchases, ads and if the applications respect your personal data more or less.

We try to select useful applications, whether for productivity, personalization of your interface or digital well-being. And, our top 5 always includes at least one mobile game. Applications can be free or paid, with or without a subscription. But, it will always be indicated!

We take issues related to in-app purchases and advertisements seriously. This is why we mention them in the descriptions of the affected applications.

Train Station 2: Steam Empire

Does the job of train driver or construction worker seem too boring to you? How about a combination of these two professions? In Train Station 2: Steam Empire, you build infrastructure. In addition to the new routes, it is up to you to set up a complete infrastructure. You build new stations and manage a fleet of steam locomotives that you can increase as the game progresses.

• Price: Free / Advertisement: None / In-app purchases: Yes / Account required: Yes

To get closer to your goal, you set routes for your trains to collect resources. These will allow you to develop your city and improve your steam locomotives. But be careful: depending on the materials you collect with your fleet, you decide which buildings you can build first. Additionally, you can always increase the number of locomotives. To do this, you will receive a daily gift in the form of a box that will provide you with additional resources or an additional locomotive driver.

The game is free and promises long hours of gameplay. As usual in games, you can progress faster in this railway simulation by investing real money. It’s up to you whether you want to use this “boost”.

iScanner (Android & iOS)

Do you know the scene from the movie Rainman in which Raymond, played by Dustin Hoffman, counts a series of spilled toothpicks in the restaurant at a glance? Thanks to artificial intelligence, you can do the same with the iScanner app. This little tool is indeed capable of scanning all kinds of things and evaluating them intelligently, although we are not talking about toothpicks here but texts.

• Price: free / Advertisement: none / In-app purchases: yes (€4.99 per week / €19.99 per year) / Account required: No.

The main function is therefore to photograph documents with your smartphone. The app then extracts them and converts the content into digital text with the press of a button. You can then copy it and send it or summarize it. Thanks to the integrated ChatGPT chatbot, you can even converse with the photographed text. It is even possible to check the spelling.

As we mentioned at the beginning, the application can also do other things, like count objects, solve mathematical equations or calculate photographed areas. Most of these features are unfortunately only available in the Pro version. This costs 4.99 euros per week or 19.99 euros per year if paid weekly. If you have regular use of the app, you will quickly recoup the cost thanks to the time savings. Just try it: You can test iScanner for free for three days.

Return to Monkey Island (Android & iOS)

Guybrush Threepwood – a name that rings like thunder. At least for the older generation of gamers or fans of point and click adventure games. In the 90s, the genre was almost unavoidable and one of its greatest exponents was undoubtedly Monkey Island. With “Return to Monkey Island” you can once again engage in a cerebral duel against LeChuck on your smartphone and finally find the island’s treasure – hopefully.

• Price: €8.99 (Play Store) €9.99 (App Store) / Advertisement: None / In-app purchases: Yes / Account required: No

In addition to the famous acerbic words of the hero, the latest episode, still signed by the icon Ron Gilbert, offers you exciting puzzles, explorations on the open sea, new islands and Stan. The controls are very simple: just tap on an object or person to interact with them. If you don’t know what to do, simply slide your finger across the screen to see the interaction possibilities appear.

The game costs 8.99 euros on Google Play Store and 9.99 euros on the Apple App Store. In return, you do not receive advertising, but according to Apple, in-app purchases are possible, which we have not yet found. Also, no data is collected here, but the game downloads around 3 GB when first launched. If you want to enjoy the nostalgia to the fullest or just want to return to Monkey Island from the comfort of your couch, you should definitely take a look at the app.

Stronglifts (Android, iOS)

Did you enthusiastically sign up for the gym in January, but have no idea what you’re going to do there? In this case, the Stronglift 5×5 app offers you a fitness program for beginners that is simple and proven millions of times. The program is based on just five different dumbbell exercises. Ideally, you train three times a week, always alternating between two different daily workouts. These workouts each consist of three different exercises, which you perform five times in five sets.

You start with very low weights to learn how to do the exercises correctly – videos in the app help you with this. But the trick is that you gradually increase your strength, workout after workout. The app helps you by offering variable breaks if, for example, you can’t do the required number of repetitions during a workout.

• Price: Free / Advertisement: None / In-app purchases: Yes (€44.99 / year) / Account required: No

Besides the main program – Stronglifts 5×5 – there is also a series of other, sometimes more complex workouts for advanced users. These, however, hide behind a paywall – the annual subscription costs 44.99 euros. The entry-level Stronglifts 5×5 program, however, allows you to use the app for free and without advertising. Additionally, the StrongLifts.com app website has really well presented and in-depth information about the workout program. The app is therefore a great recommendation for bodybuilding beginners.

AEW: Rise to the Top (Android, iOS)

I hesitated for a long time to present AEW:Rise to the Top as an app recommendation from me, but as you can see, I finally decided. As its name suggests, it is a wrestling game licensed by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). So you play with wrestlers that you have already seen on television and radio.

• Price: Free / Advertisement: None / In-app purchases: Yes / Account required: No

But before we begin, I must inform you of the reason for my question: AEW:Rise to the Top is a very simple game. It is so simple that you can play it with complete peace of mind. And that’s exactly why I’m introducing this game to you. Because we also need such a change from time to time.

In fact, you don’t have much to do other than collect the money your wrestlers earn from fighting. Because they fight alone. So you don’t need to learn any special moves to use during combat. If you’re a true wrestling fan, you’ll enjoy names like Britt Baker, Kris Statlander, Toni Storm, Ruby Soho, Paul Wight, Taz and Arn Anderson.

By watching small advertising videos, you can significantly accelerate the earning of money. You will also have objectives to complete during the game in order to increase your workforce. Even the collection of money can be automated later by a manager.

As I have just tested the Honor Magic V2 for you, AEW:Rise to the Top was of course played on the big screen. But as you can see, not entirely at the expense of valuable display space, too bad.

Did you discover an interesting app this week that you would like to recommend? We are waiting for your reactions in the comments and hope you have a good weekend!