Smartphones are used all the time inside and outside of school.  People who use their phones use it because of the apps and the social media provided.   However, like all things, there is a fine line between good and bad apps.

They create fun for all ages and it makes things easy to keep track of.  Games, like Candy Crush and the Kim Kardashian game, to social media apps like Snapchat and Instagram are taking the technology world to another level.

Freshman at Blue Valley Southwest, Sierra Wilson, who uses her iPhone a lot for homework, social media, and messaging, may not have a lot of games on her phone but she claims that her phone takes up around 75% of the time.

“Smart phones are easy to use.  They have lots of information and it’s compacted into a layout that’s easy to use and is helpful,” Wilson said.  “An app that I would use a lot is an app where people can visually see people’s faces, search for people, and have their own profile that they can customize in anyway they want to.”

Sophomore, Amira Bajracharya, a user of Samsung Galaxy, said that smart phones make communicating with people better and faster.

“You can always see what their friends are up to.  It’s more efficient.” Bajracharya said. “I like apps that are efficient and does not have a lot of problems.”

Junior Joshua Wu, owner of a Droid, has a strong opinion on what are good apps and bad apps.

“A good app has to be useful, and there has to be a purpose to it,” Wu said.

However, in everyone’s mind there’s a thin line between what makes a good app and what makes a bad app.  Wilson and Bajracharya both state that a bad app is confusing, or one that glitches often.  An app that doesn’t suit one’s needs or one that doesn’t load well is definitely not a good app.  Some common favorites that these three share are that they all enjoy Pandora and Snapchat.

Pandora is an app where the user can create their own music station and listen to it whenever and wherever.  Snapchat is an easy way to communicate with friends in the form of strictly timed pictures.  These two apps are easy to use and they are easy to understand.

Teachers, like technology teacher, Layne Funk, believe that students use their smart phones because they’re bored.  He believes that, in class, they need something in front of them to entertain them.  He uses his phone mostly to check his email and other social media.

Everyone uses their phone at different times and for different things but everyone can agree that apps on the phone have taken a lot of our time and the world couldn’t live without them.