Best for Gaming: Pen Pilot
Due to a phablet’s awkward screen size and the level of modification required to alter games to fit them, developers tend to solely focus on tablets and phones. With this in mind, there’s a distinct lack of games solely available for phablet users, but we have managed to track down one that does warrant a download. Pen Pilot is a cross between an action and puzzle game that sees you needing to guide a pilot through different obstacle courses. Each course has different targets you need to navigate and you control this by simply moving your finger or stylus. Although the 30 levels on offer won’t take you long to get through, there are also set times to beat. If you want more, then there’s also plenty of in-app purchases you can buy to add more levels and courses to this already brilliant game.
Best for Kids: Little Picasso
Little Picasso combines both a game and colouring aspects to create a fun and enjoyable experience for young children. They can choose to use a stylus or their finger to colour in different characters using the palette of colours available in the app and also learn about what they’re currently colouring in. Alongside the colouring aspect of things, Little Picasso also includes an engaging story with a variety of characters that your children can follow along with and learn about the world around us.
Best for Photo Editing: Makeup
Makeup claims to be the world’s most advanced virtual makeover application and in many cases it’s justified in thinking just this. You can perform a wide variety of tweaks to any photos stored on your phablet and also correct any errors that you come across. On a recent update, a new freehand feature was added that lets you create your own shades of makeup to apply to your favourite images. After you have completed the necessary edits, Makeup will then show you the before and after images – spot the difference!
Best for Solving Equations: Math Pimp
Use this clever application to calculate numeric, symbolic or geometric data and gather all the information in one easy-to fathom place. The app’s annotation feature means others can send their work to you on which you can make changes by using a stylus. You will also find great cloud integration that enables you to send your finished equations and graphs straight to the cloud. For those on a Galaxy Note II there’s also a dedicated S Pen menu that helps provide an intuitive work flow.
Best for Creating Images: LayerPaint
Although it is not as thorough as Adobe Photoshop, Layer Paint provides a decent solution for those who want to create images on their phablet. By stacking layers on a blank canvas you can begin to piece an image together, and then once finished, you can share it with whoever you want. The best feature of LayerPaint has to be the range of tools that are available to you as soon as you open up the app. Whether you’re a beginner or advanced user, there’s something here for everyone.
Best for Education: iAnatomy
iAnatomy provides one of the best app experiences if you’re using a phablet with a stylus attached. The app gives you a virtual tour of the human body, enabling you to interact with its different parts and find out more about them. Each major organ is covered in a lot of detail and you can find a series of images that show different variations of each. Within each picture are several annotations which offer a selection of further information for you to read about, but you can also add your own and email them to a friend directly through the app. The Draw feature enables you to use your stylus to draw on a particular image and add your own notes and other information to it. All your changes can be saved within the app and accessed whenever you like.
Best for Signing Documents: SignDoc Mobile
This is one for those who are lucky enough to have a phablet with an included stylus. SignDoc offers users a simple way of signing digital copies of contracts and business documents without needing to go through the hassle of printing the document out. Before signing anything, the app requires you to input your signature a few times so it can tell if someone is attempting to forge your signature on a document. After signing something, the SignDoc will then return the document back to the original sender.
Best for Making Videos: FlipaClip
Despite the lack of video editing apps that are available to phablet users, one app that is a viable solution is FlipaClip. Although you don’t directly take videos through the app, you can piece together various photos on your phablet into a video. One of its best uses is being able to put your various drawings into a film strip to create a stop-motion effect. For a free app, FlipaClip is definitely something you need to check out on your phablet right now.
Best for Hacking: GMD SPen Control
You won’t find too many hacking apps made for phablets, but GMD SPen Control is a superb app for those who have rooted their Galaxy Note device. Through this app you can fully customise how your S Pen performs when using it with your phablet and also create your own unique gestures that are for sole use on your device. As well as customising your S Pen experience, you can also use GMD to remove finger input completely from your phablet and fully rely on the S Pen for your phablet input.
Best for Writing: Papyrus Beta
One of the advantages of having a bigger screen is being able to have a great writing and drawing experience. The Play store is awash with various writing apps, but the one best suited for phablets is Papyrus Beta. All your standard writing features are included with the app, as well as an assortment of tools and additional features for you to explore. There’s a good handwriting indicator that helps improve your style of writing and plenty of stylus-exclusive features to help you master writing with a virtual pen. If you create multiple notes through Papyrus, you can also export them into a PDF, PNG or JPEG file for printing or sharing with your friends and family.
