- 23 Jan, 2026 *
I’m a fan of newsletters like Dense Discovery or hiro.report for the sake of app discovery. I’ve always mentioned recommendations via my Weekly rewinds, but for some time, I’ve been toying with the idea of giving it its own entry. And as I stumbled on a few last week, I thought of giving it a go.
Last week, I started looking into all my subscriptions and found it to be eye-opening. Whether you do it via the app store or directly via credit card, it’s easy to start, similarly, easy forgotten. If you’re in the Apple ecosystem you can navigate to your profile and view all [subscriptions](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/see-your-purchases-and-subscription…
- 23 Jan, 2026 *
I’m a fan of newsletters like Dense Discovery or hiro.report for the sake of app discovery. I’ve always mentioned recommendations via my Weekly rewinds, but for some time, I’ve been toying with the idea of giving it its own entry. And as I stumbled on a few last week, I thought of giving it a go.
Last week, I started looking into all my subscriptions and found it to be eye-opening. Whether you do it via the app store or directly via credit card, it’s easy to start, similarly, easy forgotten. If you’re in the Apple ecosystem you can navigate to your profile and view all subscriptions, or use a shortcut by Matthew Cassinelli for immediate access.
However, for credit card subscriptions, it’s a bit more difficult to keep track. I recommend using some kind of subscription tracker. You can use an excel, but if you have too many or easily forget, you can use Orbit (iOS), Submanager (macOS&IOS) (both a 1-time purchase) or even Todoist to remind you when renewal is due.
By making it visual, I became aware of tools I no longer use, some I use too little, or others which are duplication efforts and costs.
I ditched Brain.fm for FlowTunes (free) as focus music. Not that Brain.fm is a bad app, but I started using it as a way to be more productive, however, as I learned, much of my productivity starts with a good mindset, and not with apps. And I’ve also not used Brain.fm enough to justify extending the subscription.
I’ve also looked into meditation apps. I’ve been using Headspace for more than 10 years, but it’s also one of the more expensive running subscriptions, so I set out to look for alternatives. I found Medito and Smiling Mind, both free. They offer a nice, yet limited set of meditations which can be a good starting point. Smiling mind also has a mood tracker, if you would be into that. However, time duration of meditations of both apps is fixed, where I look for a bit more flexibility, so I can adjust depending on the time I have available. For that matter, I did a bit more digging and found Insight timer. It’s recommended by a lot of people and it has a lot to offer. Mood tracker, journal, intentions, and lot for free. Sessions are also fixed on time, however, you have a lot to choose from. And maybe that’s my issue with this one. If you want something shorter or longer, it is available, however, you’ll end up with a different trainer or method. Diversity is not bad, but I like familiarity. For now, I’m staying with Headspace, but if you’re on the lookout for a meditation app with a lot for free, have a look at these I mentioned.
That’s it for this week. Stay tuned for next week for more apps in focus.
And if you’re already curious, visit my ever-growing App library.
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