Time and time again, over hundreds of dinners and parties with friends, the topic “what if you got stuck on a desert island…” pops up. Who would you take, what would you take, what would you do, it’s an almost endless (if silly) conversation. So what apps for your Lumia would keep you entertained on said island? Here’s my list of apps that I just couldn’t manage without.

The first thing you’ll probably notice is that all but one of the apps are free. There’s a couple of reasons behind this. First, I don’t like paying for things if I can avoid it. Second, if I’m stranded on a desert island I’ve probably left my credit card at home (although you can also pay via your mobile phone bill), and third, there really are some great free apps out there.

Legimi, FREE

Island life will no doubt be blissful, but lets fact it, unless you’re surrounded by people it will probably also get dull pretty quickly. So it’s all about entertainment. Legimi is one of the apps I use the most, and one I get the most enjoyment out of.

It’s easy to buy and download books to read on the Lumia, and it’s also easy to copy over your own collection of eBooks. Just don’t forget to upload your favourites to SkyDrive before you go, and then you can access them using Legimi whether you are.

Toggle, FREE

When it comes to smartphones, I can’t help but fiddle with settings to try and get the best out of it depending what I’m doing. If I’m not using Wi-Fi, I like it to be turned off, and if I’m just making a voice call I’ll probably switch back to EDGE rather than 3G.

Toggle makes it easy to swap settings from the Start screen, without having to delve into the menu. All this results in a battery life of days on my Lumia 900, which will presumably be pretty important when stuck on an island!

Nokia Drive, FREE

Wherever I end up in the world, there’s a good chance that Nokia has been there and done that when it comes to mapping. I’m hoping my own personal desert island will have a car (or at the very least a bicycle!), and I’d like to explore it using Nokia Drive.

It’s amazing how accustomed we’ve become to using satellite navigation on phones like the Lumia 900, but now I have it, I couldn’t do without. Especially as it’ll also tell me where the nearest restaurants are!

Connected Golfers, FREE

When I’m not playing with phones, I find more and more of my life is being dedicated to golf. I’m rubbish, and the more I practice the worse I get, but I can’t stop trying. A desert island will obviously be the perfect place to hone my talent.

Connected Golfers makes it easy to keep track of your scores, and it’s also possible to find local golf courses and details for all the holes. And if I have to make my own golf course on the beach, I can enter all the details into Connected Golfers.

Flashlight-X, FREE

It would be silly to go to an unknown desert island without a torch, but the chances are I’ll forget. Thankfully there are plenty of free options for the Lumia, such as Flashlight-X. Tap a button and it turns the Lumia’s flash into a flashlight.

There’s even an SOS mode, so I can call for help once I get bored of the glorious weather and deep blue see.

AccuWeather, FREE

Fingers crossed that if I’m stuck on a desert island, it’ll be somewhere tropical and warm – rather than somewhere off the north coast of Scotland – but none-the-less I still want to know what the weather will be like.

I love AccuWeather – the Start page tile looks great, the app is easy to use, and it does exactly what it says on the tin.

Nokia Music, FREE

 

As with most people, I can’t imagine life without music, so my Lumia 900, a pair of headphones and Nokia Music will help to complete my stay at the tropical island of mystery. I’ve already got hours of my own music stored on there, with access to more via SkyDrive.

And if I’m in it for the long haul, I can also access new and interesting music thanks to Nokia Music’s Mix Radio function.

Angry Birds, 79p

Angry Birds has made a splash like no other game over the past few years, and it’s absurdly addictive. I’m not even much of a gamer, but once I’ve started with Angry Birds I can’t leave it alone. So I’ll be taking that along with me as well. Even though I have better things to do with my time!