App-solute Necessities
Eight must-have apps for smartphone savvy CPAs.
By Derrick Lilly and Jabari Jones | Winter 2015
Bigger, better, faster is the name of the game. So start playing it. If you’re never without your smartphone, tablet or laptop, make the most of them—for business of course. Here we highlight eight proven apps that will help to make you more efficient and productive—and a positively tech-savvy accounting and finance pro.
1). 1Password
If you have too many passwords to remember— and really, who doesn’t?—the 1Password app has cracked the “forgot your password” code. From email logins to bank and credit card access codes, this productivity app securely stores and organizes all your passwords, and makes them accessible through a single master password. 1Password can even log you into your favorite websites right from the app, so you can skip the typical username/password entry steps altogether. The 1Password app is available for Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices and offers a free 30-day trial before a paid licensed version is required.
2). Expensify
Whether you’re tracking time and mileage, recording business receipts, importing all your credit card statements, or trying to make sense of your foreign travel transactions, Expensify means you can stop dreading expense reporting altogether. Don’t believe us? With over 2.5 million users and 300,000 companies around the world using Expensify, the tech community regards it as today’s leading expense reporting app. Expensify is available for Android and iOS devices and offers a free 30-day trial before a paid subscription is required.
3). Dropbox
Every finance and accounting pro needs a secure portal for sending or sharing important files and documents with clients and colleagues, right? Dropbox allows users to store their digital forms, files, photos, videos and more in a secure cloud storage space that’s accessible via any Internet-connected device, like your laptop, tablet or smartphone. Dropbox offers desktop and mobile solutions that automatically sync together, and there are free and subscriptionbased solutions for all.
4). Notability
Used by Apple’s own pros, at a mere $5.99 Notability is arguably one of the best note-taking apps for iOS devices (iPhone, iPad, Mac). Annotate documents, sketch out illustrations, record lectures, write notes, edit images and more with this intuitive app that’s intended as a productivity powerhouse. Notability has a variety of text, voice and graphic tools that make creating notes and documents simple, collaborative, and easy to share via email, Dropbox (hint, hint), Google Drive and AirDrop.
5). Scanner Pro
Scanners are pretty handy, but they’re not exactly portable. Thankfully the Scanner Pro app makes scanning on the go quick and easy with nothing more than your iPhone or iPad camera. Scanner Pro converts all sorts of paper documents into professional-looking PDF files—paper documents, receipts, checks, contracts…whatever it is that you need to digitize. Scanner Pro also integrates with your email, Dropbox (you’re using this now, right?), Evernote, Google Drive and iCloud to make saving and sharing your files even easier. For $2.99, this may be one of the best-value apps you can buy for your iOS devices.
6). PowerOne Finance Pro Calculator
Counting on your fingers does nothing for your image. Thankfully, the PowerOne Finance Pro Calculator puts the pro back in professional with its algebraic calculator that allows you to calculate complex formulas for mortgages, real estate, financial investments and much, much more. It even allows you to create custom templates for equations you use over and over. The PowerOne Finance Pro Calculator app is free to try and cheap to buy, so get it for your Android and iOS devices now.
7). Focus Lock
Simply can’t keep away from your smartphone? Focus Lock is your best option if you love your social, game-playing and shopping apps a little too much. Simply select the apps that are distracting you most and Focus Lock physically locks you out of them for a set amount of time. You can then reward all of your hard work with scheduled breaks that unlock those productivity-stealing apps. When your break time runs out, your apps are locked and it’s back to being a productive professional. Best yet, this is a free app for Android devices.
8). CNN News Source
Every pro needs to stay in the know. Here then is a free app that doesn’t disappoint. CNN Mobile has you covered when you’re on the go with an app that streams the latest stories and breaking news from around the world. Displayed in a mobile-friendly layout, from business and politics to entertainment, it’s easy to find the headlines that matter most from any Android or iOS device.