How Apps Are Impacting On Every Aspect Of Your Life

The newest iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have hit the shelves, but they’ve not been received without controversy. In the latest faux pas by Apple, it was recently revealed that the newest smartphones can ‘bend’ in their wearers’ pockets, making for an altogether very unreliable gadget.

However, despite cosmetic problems, the newest iPhone certainly more than makes up for manufacturing faults with iOS 8, which promises with it a whole new host of apps and upgrades. The newest operating system has been instrumental in showing us just how much of an impact apps can have on our day to day lives, which is more than you might think.

Apps are affecting our health

While UK-based app users are seemingly immune to this, over in the United States, app culture has made its mark on the health insurance scene. As part of Apple’s newest operating system, users can now measure their heart rate, sleep, weight and blood pressure – features which are particularly prevalent on the new Apple Watch. This has not eluded the attentions of life insurers in America. Bradley Shear, a lawyer who works on digital privacy issues, says: “If I’m an insurance company, I’d want access to everything, all the data points, so I can make an informed business decision.” So while we think we might just be adding our jogging personal bests into phones, they do in fact have a far bigger impact for some customers.

Apps are making us money

With smartphones becoming more synonymous with gaming than communication nowadays, it’s no wonder the online gaming, in particular, online gambling industry, has taken off. The latest iPhone is a perfect example of how more and more of us are taking part in wireless gaming, and this is something that modern day bookmakers are using to their advantage. For example, sites like Coral are using affiliate sites which are now fully mobile optimised, helping users to place a bet on their favourite sports in real time and win a few pennies in the process.

Apps are making their mark on the government

As more and more businesses begin to embrace social media, governments around the globe are now beginning to see the power of smartphone apps to put their messages across. Over in Massachusetts, in fact, government agencies are now using smartphones to put out public safety messages. In early September, the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) released a new smartphone app into the iTunes App Store which allows users to receive public safety alerts based on their location. Peter Judge, a spokeman for MEMA, said: “We’re looking for as many ways to touch as many people as possible with messages. These are all tools in our tool belt, and we continually look for new ways to do it.”

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