How do the apps use your smartphone for science?
The apps allow you to find and contribute your processor to these projects allowing the power of cloud computing to collect data and send it back to the project’s office computer. These apps, however, are not all equal and each has their own sets of benefits and issues.These apps primarily run while your device is plugged into an AC adapter, using your home Wi-Fi when your phone is idle. Your project contributions may vary based on the app and smartphone used. Below are a few apps out there that you can use.BOINC

- PROS
- Safe and provided by Berkeley University
- About 30 science projects use BOINC, including [email protected], IBM World Community Grid and [email protected]
- Various projects that investigate diseases, global warming, pulsars and other types of scientific research
- CONS
- There is no iPhone app and the Android app hasn’t been updated since July 3, 2016, making it very obsolete by app standards
- User reports for how it isn’t very user-friendly to use or navigate the projects
- User reports on the progress for fetching data can stop progressing due to a variety of reasons ranging from Wi-Fi connections (that are still connected), battery issues (while running on AC adapter) and not enough memory.
MyShake

- PROS
- Local data is overwritten on a regular basis to ensure it’s not taking too much storage space
- Uses the sensors in your smartphone to record earthquake shaking
- The data is used to study earthquake processes from the UC Berkeley Seismological Laboratory
- CONS
- MyShake also doesn’t have an app for iPhone
- Some users report the app causes a drain in battery life
Dream Lab

- PROS
- The last update was March 7, 2019
- It has a dark mode functionality
- Only works when connected to Wi-Fi, it’s plugged in, and the battery is over 80%
- CONS
- User reports that despite setting unlimited data, it will cap out at 500mb
- User reports on occurrences where the app can have a difficulty detecting when it’s charging, where no calculations are performed resulting in having to manually enable it yourself