All Sites Best of the Web

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 20220117 top apps 2021 header

Mobile phone apps are revolutionizing the way that we interact with the world.

They are providing a new level of convenience and accessibility to information and services.

But what were the most downloaded apps? Here's what the world was downloading in 2021.

10 - Spotify

10 spotify

Spotify is a music streaming app that was founded in 2006.

It allows users to listen to music online or offline.

It has a library of over 70 million songs and offers a free ad-supported version and a premium subscription.

The app has been downloaded 203 million times.

9 - CapCut

9 capcut

CapCut managed to sneak into this list with 255 million downloads

It comes from the company that bought us TikTok (so you know it has to be good).

CapCut lets you create and edit incredible videos fast and extremely easy.

Not to mention the massive collection of royalty-free music and sound effects.

8 - Messenger

8 messenger

Messenger is one of the most popular messaging apps on the market.

It was created by Facebook in 2011.

It allows users to send messages to each other online or offline.

The app also allows users to make calls, video calls, and send photos and videos.

It's free to download and use and was downloaded 268 million times.

7 - Zoom

7 zoom

With working from home being a massive part of 2021, it's no surprise that Zoom was on the list.

Zoom is a video conferencing app that allows users to have face-to-face meetings with colleagues, clients, and friends.

The app offers HD video and audio, screen sharing, and the ability to record meetings.

It is free to use for up to 40 minutes per meeting, and paid subscriptions are available for longer meetings.

This app was downloaded 300 million times.

6 - SnapChat

6 snapchat

SnapChat is a photo sharing app.

It was very popular in 2019 and continues to be so today.

Snapchat allows users to share photos and videos with their friends.

The app is known for its filters, which allow users to add fun effects to their photos and videos.

In 2021, it was downloaded 327 million times.

5 - Telegram

5 telegram

Telegram is another messaging app that is very popular today.

It's a messaging app with a focus on security.

It encrypts messages with a technique called end-to-end encryption, which means that only the sender and recipient can see the message.

The app also has a feature called "Secret Chats", which allows users to set a self-destruct timer for messages, so that they are automatically deleted after a certain amount of time.

As of 2021, it was downloaded 329million times.

4 - WhatsApp

4 whatsapp

WhatsApp is a communication app and was also very popular in 2019 and 2021.

It's a cross-platform messaging app that was founded in 2009.

WhatsApp allows users to send messages, photos, and videos to other users.

It had 395 million downloads in 2021.

3 - Facebook

3 facebook

Facebook is, of course, one of the top social media apps.

The Facebook app is a social networking app that was founded in 2004.

It was downloaded 444 million times making it the third most downloaded app in 2021.

2 - Instagram

2 instagram

Instagram is a photo-sharing app that was founded in 2010.

In 2012 it was acquired by Facebook.

Today, the platform has an estimated 1 billion users.

The app racked up 545 million downloads in 2021.

1 - TikTok

1 tiktok

TikTok is a social media app that lets you share videos with friends and followers.

This social media app was created in 2016 and has been growing in popularity every year since.

You can also explore content from popular artists and influencers in the app.

TikTok had 656 million downloads in 2021 with it being especially popular with teenagers and young adults.

Making it the most downloaded app on this list!

IMAGE CREDITS: Apple via Apple.com // Photo by Bagus Hernawan on Unsplash

DATA SOURCE: Apptopia

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wordle feature image

What's today's daily word?

That's the phrase on everyone's lips - or should we say fingertips - as the smash hit game Wordle takes the internet by storm.

Even if you haven't played the game yet, you've likely seen the grids of yellow and green boxes on your friends' socials as they share their wins. 

Don't worry - most images don't contain letters so there's no spoilers for those who haven't solved that day's puzzle yet.

But seriously, Wordle is everywhere:

The game is deceptively simple: guess the daily word - which is always five letters long - in only six tries.

It's fun and quick to play, and it's also addictive - but in a way that won't take over your life. There's only one word puzzle to solve each day, so you can play it once every 24 hours. Hardly an addiction really.

And you might learn a new word or two in the process! Or, you know, get inspiration for your crafting:

How do you play Wordle?

One reason the game is so popular is that it's easy to play - just go to the Wordle website and type in your answers. There's no app to download at the moment and no login required. And if you do see a Wordle app, it's likely to be fake, so don't download it!

To play, type in a random word and the empty boxes will hopefully turn different colours to give you clues. A box will turn green if you use the right letter in the right spot, and it will turn yellow if the letter is correct but in the wrong spot. A grey box means the letter is not used at all. Then it's a matter of elimination and strategic guesses: straight away you know to use those two coloured letters in your next guess.

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Image: Wordle website


In fact, the hint system reminds us of this classic game, don't you think?

Once you've had your victory - or defeat - you simply wait for the new word to be released the next day. The game even gives you a handy timer so you can count down to when that will be. Set your alarm!

How to win at Wordle

It helps to have a good vocabulary, but given the daily word is only five letters long, you're not going to be looking for overly complicated words (we've heard Wordle uses everyday, common words). Still, the Free Dictionary says there are nearly 160,000 five-letter words in the English language, so that's a lot of potential words to sift through. 

But don't get your big word brain in a knot! We've got you covered with five tips to help you reach victory on your daily Wordle mission.


Tip 1: The game uses American spellings

This is the most important tip for us Aussies. The biggest challenge for us will be remembering to use American spelling. This means removing the 'u' straight away from many words, such as color and valor. So some six letter words in your brain will instantly convert to five letters once Americanized. It also means you need to use a z instead of an s in some words.


Tip 2. Your first guess should contain five unique letters

When you type in your first guess, you'll want to use as many different letters as possible to increase your hit rate and get those green and yellow hint boxes. Using a word with a double letter is just wasting precious tiles.

You can use this website to find five-letter words with no double-up letters, such as cabin or saute or maybe for that all-important first guess.


Tip 3. Use the most common letters in English language words

Start with words featuring the most commonly used consonants, which are h, n, r, s and t. And the most common vowels are a, e, i and o.

Also, it should help you to know that most words begin with t, a, o, d, and w. And most words end with e, s, d, and t.


Tip 4. Try not to reuse grey letters

Remember, the grey boxes show letters that aren't in the answer, so there's no point guessing words that contain too many of these letters (or any, if you can help it). It's wasting a guess. 


Tip 5. Use online sites to find words

Even if your vocabulary is impressive, part of the challenge is remembering the words you know. WordFinder's list of 5-letter words is a great place to jog your memory and also discover new words.

There's also this Wordle solver tool that lets you put in the letters you have available so you can find relevant words. Some might consider this cheating though.


Bonus tip! Practice previous Wordle games

At the time of writing there's been more than 200 daily Wordles, and one person has created a Wordle archive so you can go back and play previous games for practice. It'll also let you discover old answers so you don't waste your guesses for future games. And if you're slightly addicted and want to play more than one game a day, this is a short-term workaround until you work your way through the back catalogue.


So happy wordling (Is that even a word? It is now!) to you. May your first guesses be strong and your boxes forever green!


Main image: Twitter/@ramkid, Twitter/@KumaYama100 

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After four years of marriage, Jason Momoa and Lisa Bonet have decided to end their relationship.

The couple has been together for almost sixteen years and recently took to social media to share their divorce, saying, “The love between us carries on.”

Momoa says he fell in love with Lisa at an early age, 8 years old in fact when he saw her on the television and said "Mommy I want that one"

While the pair actually met in person many years later when mutual friends introduced the two at a New York City jazz club

12 years later the couple were wed in October of 2017, but now it seems the romance has come to an end.

The pair stated on social media “We have all felt the squeeze and changes of these transformational times…A revolution is unfolding, and our family is no exception.”

“We are parting ways in marriage and sharing the news not because we think it’s newsworthy, but so that we may do so with dignity and honesty.”

You can read the full Instagram post here.

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The crafty creators of UNO have released a new version of the feud-inflicting card game with no colour or number cards.

A brand new version of your favourite card game is now available, and it's called UNO All Wild.

As the name suggests, this slate of cards is in fact ALL wild cards. No blue, green, yellow or red. No numbers. Just fierce wild cards with the traditional Skip, Reverse and +2 stylings.

There's also some new action cards included in the 112-card deck of UNO All Wild.

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"We told you 2022 was going to be wild," says a post on UNO's Twitter.

"Introducing a few new cards: the Wild Target +2, the Wild Swap Hands, the Wild Double Skip, the Wild Skip and the Wild Reverse." 

According to the game manufacturer the revamped version of the old family favourite will be more dynamic.

“In UNO All Wild card game, every single card is wild for a fast-paced, even more unpredictable version of this family favorite! There’s no matching of number or color like regular UNO, but it’s not as easy as it sounds.”

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Our friends at Mattel also confirmed what you might suspect about the new mystical Wild Double Skip and Wild Swap Hands cards.

"When the Wild Forced Swap Hand card is played, you MUST swap hands with another player." 

And yes, if you're playing with just 2 people and the Wild Double Skip card is played, you'll essentially be skipping yourself.

"It skips the next two players, so yes in a 2 player game you would be skippig yourself as well," UNO wrote.

No doubt UNO are fully aware of what they've done. They've released a game that could tear friendships and families apart right across the globe (and to be honest, we're totally cool with that).

One Twitter user wrote, "Just add a "fight the person to your right" card and be done with it."

Another confirmed that, "family game night is about to be WILD."

You can grab UNO All Wild direct from Mattel for USD$5.99. Happy feuding!

Images: UNO All Wild / Mattel