10 Glastonbury Apps you should check out

Going to Glastonbury? Wickerman? T in the Park? Boardmasters? You’ll need to take your smartphone to help capture the adventure for Facebook. You might even use it as a phone too, maybe. There are lots more you can do with your smartphone while you’re out so let’s take a look at 10 apps to consider for Glastonbury or festival of your choice.

1. Shazam.

No, really. You wouldn’t want this suggestion to be obvious in hindsight. Shazam is an app that helps you identify music by listening to just a few seconds of it. You don’t want to be that person at the festival, or the car trip there, who’s always asking “What’s this song?”.

Tempted by Shazam for your festival trip? Check it out here.

2. Jott

Jott is a message app that does not need a data plan and does not need WiFi. This is especially helpful at festivals where the data signal gets jammed or you can’t afford one. It works by taking advance of mesh networks that can be formed on Bluetooth low energy signals (or even a router). Unlike competitor FireChat, Jott allows you to send messages to individuals in your network not just the group.

Ready to give Jott a try? You can find out more about it here.

3. VSCO Cam

We mentioned the take lots of photographs part of festival going, right? You might as well make those photos as good looking as you can and with as little effort as possible. VSCO Cam is way to pimp the quality of your snaps.

Smartphone camera upgrade? Learn more about VSCO Cam at their site.

4. Swarm

Swarm, from the team that invented Foursquare, is an app that lets you check into to locations so friends know when you’re arrived. It’s pretty clever; you don’t have to press buttons if you don’t want as the app can be configured to give the people you trust your rough location automatically. The latest versions of Swarm let you message friends (and friends of friends) in your location easily too.

The perfect location app for festivals? Check out Swarm.

5. Periscope

The latest wonder app from the Twitter team. Periscope lets you broadcast, as a video, what you’re up to at the festival. This means you can share clips of the performances, you mucking around or the fireside chat in real-time to whoever wants to watch and you can do so without spamming everyone on your Facebook. Periscope will be a big hit at festivals this year.

Tempted? Discover Periscope here.

6. AccuWeather

Some of the forecasts aren’t great. Want to know whether it’s worth staying up late and sleeping in all day (or trying too, anyway) or whether you’d be better off crawling back into your tent and waiting the storm out? A good weather app is a must and AccuWeather will give you a great second opinion to whatever default integration your smartphone came bundled with.

Check out the AccuWeather downloads site.

7. Google Hangouts

Want an app that can send messages over a data connection, can handle your SMS, manage video chat and set up groups too? Google’s Hangout app is the way to go. Create a group hangout as you set out to the festival and you’ll stay in touch with your friends throughout. The bonus feature? If someone asks “Where are you?” Hangouts automatically gives you the option of sharing your GPS location as a map pin to everyone else in the hangout.

Not got Google Hangouts on your phone yet? start here.

8. Festival Buddy

here’s a wild card entry from us. Dave Lavelle’s Festival Buddy hasn’t had many reviews yet but the idea is a good one. The app helps you remember where you parked the car, where you put the tent and where you think the best toilets are.

Android user? Check out Festival Buddy.

9. Red Cross

Ooops. Ouch. We don’t really want to bring this up but sometimes accidents happen at festivals and while there’s usually medical support nearby it can be a reassurance to have some first aid wisdom in your pocket. We like the Red Cross first aid app for this.

Worth being prepared? Download the Red Cross app today.

10. Glastonbury 2015 app

There’s an official app. Are official festival apps any good? Some of them are! Besides, you don’t want to end up looking out-of-place by not knowing about the festival’s own toys. We reckon if you’re going to Glastonbury then the app is worth a pop.

Ready to install? Glastonbury are all about their app.

Wait… is there one more?

Hold up! What about getting to the festival in the first place? What about getting back from the festival if your best buddy runs off on you on a whirlwind romance?

Download Liftshare for iOS or Android and you’ll be able to chat to people in the festival who have spare seats in their car.