Testbirds Holiday Apps: Christmas

For many, Christmas is a time to celebrate with your family. Days are spent in front of a crackling fire while fresh snow wraps the world in a unique blanket just outside your window. There’s a sense of secretive serenity as you sit with hot chocolate in one hand, Christmas songs hanging softly in the air… and the white light of your smartphone assaulting your eyes as you frantically search for last minute gift ideas. Let’s face it, technology is everywhere today. In fact, I’m convinced Santa’s workshop now consists solely of entire dev teams with an extensive QA department. After all, how else would he ensure that Rudolph’s GPS is calibrated? For this reason, we’re today bringing you a way to digitally enhance your holidays with: Testbirds’ Favourite Christmas Apps as recommended by our own employees

Skyscanner – Sahil Deva, Marketing & PR

For many of us, Christmas involves travelling home to family. For others, it’s all about getting out of the cold harsh weather to sunny beaches on the other side of the world. Either way, one thing’s for sure, with all the presents and parties; everyone’s wallet is already light enough without paying for overpriced plane tickets. Skyscanner becomes my best friend as Christmas approaches. Perhaps it’s because I lack the discipline to plan my trips well in advance or perhaps it’s because no matter when you try to book prices are four times more expensive in December. Searching for cheap flights almost becomes an addiction. You get a rush as you check days surrounding your planned dates with hopes of finding the deal to beat all deals. Finally, you book, you’re broker than ever before, but at least you feel like you accomplished something. Therefore, my recommendation to you all is get the Skyscanner app. It’s an intuitive way to search for the cheapest flights by comparing all airlines and combinations of them for your travels. And hopefully it will get you to your family this Christmas. Get it on iOS and Android.

Dojo – Louis Wilkinsons, Project Management

Dojo is described as THE hand book to one of the world’s most vibrant cities – London. The app provides a magazine style guide to a huge range of events around London, on a daily and weekly basis. Dojo’s mantra is taken from a famous quote by Samuel Johnson, a famous English writer amongst other things, “If a man is tired of London, he is tired of life”. Dojo is one of my favourite apps on an average day, but as the year draws thin and the city descends in to some sort of eggnog induced madness, the app for me, is promoted to the status of a Christmas miracle! I can view the ‘Winter things’ category and browse the best options for Christmas events and nights out. Maybe even more importantly, the app will check my location and recommend the best Christmas markets near me. Perfect for avoiding multiple trips on the crowded tube and buying last minute presents at my local petrol station.Get it on iOS and Android.

Shopsavvy – Sanjuna Budhani, Business Development

Christmas is undoubtedly the most expensive time of year and if you’re like me and are constantly searching for the best price on something, this app is a godsend. By scanning the item’s barcode, Shopsavvy shows both physical and online retailers selling the same product and allows you to compare prices and check reviews. What’s even better is that you can set up notifications of when a product goes on sale, which my purse highly appreciates!Get it on iOS and Android.

Spotify – Christopher Muelhausen, Business Development

If there’s one thing that defines Christmas, it’s all the songs that everyone knows, loves and gets tired of after the first day. However, what’s a Christmas party without Christmas music? From carols to pop anthems, music has been is a definitive part of Christmas. Therefore, my favourite Christmas app is Spotify. Allowing you to stream music online and offline, it ensures that you can enjoy your holidays with some of the classics. My personal favourite is without a doubt “Let it snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!” by Dean Martin.Get it on iOS and Android.