Welcome to What’s On My Phone, a weekly column where we will be snooping in on people’s smartphones and figure out how they use them, what apps they are using, and why plus tips too.
We’ll include new entries with different and notable people about what’s on their smartphones and if they are a reflection of their personalities or not.
This week, we’re featuring Mwirigi.
This Q/A has been edited for length and clarity.
A little intro about yourself
My name is Mwirigi, I drive cars and talk about them. That’s really it in summary.
What smartphone are you using and why?
I am currently using a Samsung Galaxy Note 9. I have always been a fan of the Note within the Samsung Range.
It has great battery life, a dope camera, I use the stylus to take notes and as a remote shutter for the Camera and the Note 9 has a headphone jack which I actively use with a Lapel Microphone when I am shooting videos.
Let’s start with your home screen – how and why have you arranged your apps the way they are?
My homescreen is set up to give me quick access to what I consider important. The S-Health Widget takes the biggest space. It shows me my Step Count and gives me quick access to my Heart Rate Sensor.
The only individual icons I have are for my Calendar, Shazam and Spotify (I listen to a lot of music). Everything else is organized into folders arranged by type.
What’s on your lock screen wallpaper/home screen wallpaper?
I use a default Samsung wallpaper for both my home and lock screens. I do change it occasionally when I get bored. I am on the lookout for any nice abstract wallpapers for AMOLED screens if you have seen any cool ones hit me up!
Are there any platforms or apps you use to help manage your workflow? Do you have any favourite shortcuts or life hacks that make your work/life easier?
I use Google Keep for notes and S-Memo for quick notes I jot down using my S-Pen. I make extensive use of Google Assistant Routines. Stuff like Location-based reminders e.g. Remind me to do X the next time I am here and automated routines like playing news podcasts immediately after my morning alarm.
For video content creation I use InShot (Premium) as my primary tool. VivaCut is also a great tool, I recently switched from KineMaster to VivaCut since it’s that good. I am still trying to figure out Adobe Rush.
How do you handle notifications?
I have notifications switched off for all apps. I periodically check in to see what’s up and reply.
What customisation tweaks have you done on your phone?
The only customization I have done is a volume slider app that allows me to adjust the volume using the edge of the screen (The Note 9 has curved edges) other than that the phone is pretty much stock.
I have a VPN set up and I had a third-party launcher, but I switched back to the default launcher.
What is the app you use to have fun and unwind? What other apps apart from social media apps do you spend the most time on?
Truth be told TikTok is the app I use the most to unwind after a long day.
I was playing a game called Gardenscapes for a while (Yes, I’m an old man) but I got bored. The app I spend the most time on is PocketCasts. I am an avid consumer of Podcasts.
Anything else before we wrap up?
I am looking at switching to an iPhone, so I switched back to the default launcher on the phone and set it up for all the swipe gestures I will be using once I get it.
I will keep the Note because it is a great camera platform. I have shot entire segments that have aired on National TV with the phone and they fit right in with our professionally shot content. Nobody noticed. In good light, you can shoot a surprisingly good piece to camera with this thing.
Who else would you be curious to see next in this column?
Joy Kendi, the fashion blogger. I once had the opportunity to work beside her and her workflow is intense!! I’d love to see what she currently has on her phone and how she uses it for her day-to-day work.
