It’s almost December, which means all the major apps and tech companies are wrapping up the year with an attempt at reflection. As tradition calls, the annual Google Play Best of App Awards have been announced for 2023. Sure, there are a few notable new titles on the list, and I’ll point them out in a bit. But first, let’s take a closer look at the Play Store’s vastly underplayed hit of the year, which comes from its competition.
ChatGPT is Android’s users’ choice app. It also appears as the runner-up “Best with AI” app of the year, and it makes sense if you think about where we were with AI at the beginning of the year. The buzz around it made everyone want to try out the thing that would be replacing us all. It made companies that didn’t have a consumer-facing AI in the pipeline quiver, fearing they’d be left behind the trend. Google then refocused its plan around bulking up its competitor in the AI realm, Bard, a month after OpenAI released ChatGPT. You can now interact with it through Google Search and other parts of the Google empire.
The Play Store’s annual app roundup also clarified that Android users are still the bonafide nerds of the mobile world. As an Android user, I can attest to this firsthand, though I haven’t played this year’s favourite game, Honkai: Star Rail. It’s billed as a Genshin Impact-like game that’s more forgiving for adults with busy lives, and it’s mentioned several times in this year’s Play Store awards. Also, the Android Users’ favourite book of the year is a manga series called That Time I Got Reincarnated By Slime, specifically volume 21. Compare that to Apple’s list of top-selling books of the year, which are much more mainstream.
Android users were also keen on getting emotionally in touch with themselves and tending to virtual spaces of calm. Some top apps include Voidpet Garden, which helps you tend to your garden of emotions, and Longleaf Valley, which promises to plant real trees in the world as it corresponds with your gameplay. Garden Joy also received an honorable mention.
The Android app of the year is one that I haven’t used yet. Imprint: Learn Visually shares “bite-sized lessons” with you each day. You log in, you learn something, you log out. It’s like getting on TikTok hoping to learn something, except without the problematic nature of logging onto a social network that has a bad habit of circulating misinformation. It’s fun times we’re living in, folks.
Anyway, there are plenty of ideas on the official list for new apps you might want to try. The list of Apple’s apps of the year for iOS and iPadOS also has some gems. Take a look; maybe there’s a new app for you to add to your rotation. I will check out Stippl, also on the Play Store’s list, to help me plan a family vacation.