Seems these days everyone’s got a smart phone, so why not utilise it? After hearing others sing the praises of money-saving phone
apps, I finally decided to trial one for myself. There are plenty of
them on the market many of which are free so in the never-ending quest
to spend less, I thought, why not?
Which App To Save With?
There is a multitude of applications to choose from, it’s hard to
know where to start. After a little quick research online I learnt they
pretty much all serve the same function, so I opted for Droid Wallet, a
simple looking, free app with an easy to use interface. Whenever you are
downloading an app on your smart phone
it is critical to read what “permissions” the service asks for. Some of
these are necessary for the app to run, but others are purely for
information collecting and potentially more sinister purposes. Apps that
ask for internet connectivity, the ability to make phone calls automatically, or access to your SD card need to be assessed with caution.
Enter Your Details
As I said, this is a pretty simple app, so that’s really all you need
to do! You simply enter your income into the “income” column and any
expenses as they arise, into the “expenses” column, selecting categories
such as “accommodation” or “food” for each purchase. As time goes by,
the application creates pie charts showing what you spend most of your
money on.
The Pros
If you’re one of those people who wonders where all their money went,
this app is a good way to keep track of your expenditure. For a long
time, I kept an Excel spreadsheet of all my financial goings-on but it
was hard to keep track of everything I bought when I was out and about,
scrambling to either write every little thing down on a piece of scrap
paper or type it into my phone
calendar to transfer to the spreadsheet later. This app cuts out the
middleman and is good if you’re not likely to sit at a desk for
prolonged periods.
The Cons
Unfortunately, much like the paper/spreadsheet method, this still involves a bit of scrambling. You still need to pull your phone
out every time you buy something and type it in. This can be awkward if
you’re at say, a farmers market with your hands full of turnips or
worse yet, a packed bar and three beers.
And on the subject of bars, there’s that unavoidably human element…
You have to remember to use the app! For me the whole thing fell apart
when I went out for a drink at a friend’s house on Saturday night. A
drink soon turned into dinner at a restaurant, followed by a few more
drinks and a share in a taxi trip home during which time, I’m sure
recording my expenses was the last thing on my mind.
Conclusion
In the end, I uninstalled the app. I am already well aware of where all my money goes, I just need to stop it from going there.
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