3 Useful Smartphone Features for Students

Although it’s worthwhile, being a student is still often challenging. Whether you’re taking a course on supply chain management or earning a law degree, being a student often means having to balance attending classes, completing assignments, and studying for examinations with participating in extracurricular activities and having a personal life. All this can take a toll, with many students struggling with mental health issues. 

Still, it’s possible to successfully navigate life as a student, especially with the help of tech gadgets. Particularly, your mobile phone alone can be very useful. Here are 3 useful features on your smartphone you don’t have to download. 

Notes 

Most smartphones now come with a notes app. For example, an iPhone has Apple notes, and a Samsung has Samsung notes. 

Here’s how the notes app can be useful to you:

• Taking notes during lectures or while studying to better retain information or for review later
• Creating a list to keep track of classes, assignments, deadlines, etc 
• Jotting down ideas for research papers, projects, or essays 
• Collaborating on group projects by sharing notes 
• Creating flashcards or similar summaries for exams 
• Tracking progress on assignments or projects with notes of areas that need improvement 

Voice Recording 

Next, most smartphones come with a voice recorder, allowing you to record audio using the built-in microphone on the device, then save it as a digital file. 

The voice recorder is similar in usefulness to the notes app. For example, you can: 

• Record lectures and group discussions for later review if you find taking notes distracting 
• Record your thoughts and ideas during a brainstorming session to structure your thoughts  
• Record research interviews for later review 
• Record words and phrases to practice their pronunciation and make learning a new language easier 
• Record audio study aids similar to flashcards for studying on the go 

Health and Fitness 

Being a student can be detrimental to your health for a myriad of reasons; lack of physical activity from hours spent sitting and studying, poor nutrition from limited access to healthy food options, sleep deprivation from irregular sleeping patterns, substance abuse as a coping mechanism, etc. 

Your smartphone likely has a health and fitness feature with: 

• A step tracker to monitor the number of steps you take each day for insight into your daily physical activity 
• A calorie tracker to monitor your food intake and track the number of calories you consume each day for weight management 
• A sleep tracker to monitor the quality and duration of your sleep to help you identify areas for improvement 
• A water tracker to remind you to drink enough water throughout the day to stay hydrated

There are many challenges to being a student – juggling school, relationships, and even work being only one example. Thankfully, there are many aids a student can take advantage of, including your phone. Having a smartphone means having features like a notes app and a recording device for storing pertinent information you can easily access as well as a means of tracking your steps, calorie intake, sleep cycle, and hydration for a better chance at optimal health.