Dactyl recap: apps worthy of your attention in 2021

A great improvement every year. Well-established projects continie to move forward with more sophisticated updates and new ideas emerge, causing a stir. Last year, we pulled our weight too and kept a close eye on what was going on at the same time. You may remeber our previous article about apps which Dactyl mates enjoy. This one is its sequel.

So what did we think was worth paying attention to last year? Come read on and get your phones ready, there might be an app you want to try! 

1. Clubhouse

category: social network 
At the beginning the most downloaded app on the App store, today a social network where nothing happens. If there was one app that sparked attention last year, it was Clubhouse. Initially an iOS and invite-only app, it gradually declined with the arrival of the Android version. It works on the principle of sharing the spoken word within specific rooms - speakers talk about certain topics, the audience listens and can make request to speak. The unavailability to all was a funny marketing ploy, the appeal of the network concept is for everyone to judge for themselves. 
to download: Android, iOS 

2. Můj Albert

category: shopping 
Almost every retail chain has an app, but the one from Albert stands out. It serves classically as a loyalty programme, a current leaflet, a shopping list and inspiration in the form of healthy recipes. Unconventionally, it motivates you to do shopping, especially healthy products, by awarding credits. The "Eat Better and Get Credits" section contains personalised offers including extra credits and it is a really interesting tool for grocery shopping. You can redeem your credits every time you visit Albert or save them for a rainy day. Thumbs up from us! 
to download: Android, iOS 

3. iRozhlas

category: news
The Czech Radio news website is visited by over 2 million users per month, 75% of them does it via mobile phone. Every reader wants to have the news at hand, so developing a mobile application was a logical step. Our colleagues at Futured have succeeded in creating an app that is fast, clear, reliable and more interesting with every update. In addition to reading the latest news (even in offline mode you can read something new), it also allows you to share and save articles for later, follow your favorite authors, and listen to podcasts and live broadcasts.  
to download: Android, iOS 

4. Rohlik.cz

category: shopping 
The biggest Czech online supermarket? Definitely Rohlik. It's affordable, fast, contains almost everything, in short, it simplifies life, and it's always coming up with some improvements to save us even more time. Last year, it enriched its app with online complaints and an overview of the purchase path and delivery time. It also delivers all the information via notifications. We agreed that it's a clean, functional and reliable app, keeping up with the high pace the whole company is moving at. It intends to make a breakthrough in other countries this year, and we're guessing it will be a success there as well. 
to download: Android, iOS 

5. iKiosek

category: news & magazines
In the past, people used to buy newspapers in the newsagent, nowadays you just have to make a few clicks and take a look at the iKiosk. This app serves as a reader for all 50 print titles published by Czech News Center. You can read the current newspapers Blesk, Aha!, Sport, as well as the social magazine Reflex, the economic daily E15 and specialised magazines including Computer. Its advantage is that any title can be downloaded and read offline, in a night mode and a with settings to make your screen stay on. Innovation is already coming to quite traditional media and we are cheering on! 
to download: Android, iOS 

6. Alza.cz

category: shopping
There are many giants in e-commerce, but Alza is the only one in the Czech Republic. The popularity of this e-shop is still growing and the Alza app is also widely used. We were intrigued by their ability to open AlzaBoxes contactlessly, which was introduced in one of last year's updates. To open the box with the package, you just need to scan the QR code on the AlzaBox display, take your order and then close the box, for example, with your elbow. Every third order from Alza is delivered by AlzaBox, so this is a very smart step that responds to the company's current needs. Great move!
to download: Android, iOS 

7. Meta

category: social network 
Facebook and its Messenger, Instagram, Whatsapp... apps that used to fall under the Facebook banner are now Meta. They were down for several hours in October, allegedly due to a DNS system error. The world seemed to stop for a moment. After a few hours, everything was back to normal, but we were all left thinking - "What would it be like if Facebook went down for good?" In response to the massive outage, the company's shares also fell by 5%. As you can see, mistakes happen everywhere. But the financial implications of the matter must have been almost immeasurable.
to download: well, we all have it downloaded already

8. Reddit

category: social network 
Reddit is a social network based on user created content and its rating throgh a voting system. The name is a pun from the English phrase "I read it", and it is actually something of a discussion forum. At the end of the year, it underwent a major update, which brought 5 new features. These are animations of the number of votes on comments (dynamic real-time representations) and indicators of writing, reading and commenting represented by anonymous avatars. For the lovers of this network, this is certainly a nice touch (that of course can also be turned off, which is also great). 
to download: Android, iOS 

9. Portu

category: finance
You may know Portu as the first investment robo-advisory (financial advice where algorithms work independently of humans) on the Czech market. Very simply, it is an investment platform that allows you to invest money in globally diversified portfolios, tailored to the needs and goals of each investor. Since June, it has been among the investment product offerings of Air Bank and its My Air mobile app. The Portu app is clear, friendly, modern and delivers plenty of financial excitement.
to download: Android, iOS 

10. Fitify

category: health & fitness
If you want to start moving, the Czech Fitify app will help you with that. It combines physiotherapy and sport science knowledge with AI and informatics to provide a customized workout for each user. Last year, the developers started working with Huawei, which launched their app on its smartwatches and sports bracelets (the first time anything in this category has come out of the CEE & Nordic region on a Huawei device). With a database of 900 workouts and 200 million completed trainings, it's already getting more than 10 million users in shape. We applaud! 
to download: Android, iOS

The world is simply full of fascinating apps and they always keep us entertained. 

Would you also like to have a dream app that will enrich the world? Let us know! We'll make sure it shines in 2022 and beyond.