textPlus is the easy way to stay in phone contact after crossing a border. All textPlus users can call or text each other for free anywhere in the world. What’s more, the app can be used to place international calls to any phone at rates lower than even Skype’s. All that’s needed is a Wi-Fi connection. (Free, iOS or Android)
XE Currency provides a calculator linked to real-time currency rates—“so you know just how many euros that gelato is costing you.” (Free, iOS or Android)
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Book reviews: 'The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World’s Most Coveted Microchip' and 'Who Is Government? The Untold Story of Public Service'Feature The tech titan behind Nvidia's success and the secret stories of government workers
-
Mario Vargas Llosa: The novelist who lectured Latin AmericaFeature The Peruvian novelist wove tales of political corruption and moral compromise
-
How to see the Lyrid meteor showerThe explainer A nice time to look to the skies
