Apps & Websites Topic
Part 1 Questions
Short, personal questions. Answer directly, then add one extra sentence to extend your answer naturally.
1. Which apps do you use most often?
"Messaging apps mainly, and a maps application. Beyond those I use a banking app and something for reading the news."
2. Do you download many new apps?
"Rarely. I install something occasionally when I need it for a specific task, then usually forget about it entirely."
3. Do you prefer using apps or websites?
"Apps, generally, since they tend to be faster. For anything involving detailed reading, though, I would rather use a browser."
4. Are there any apps you would like to try?
"I have been meaning to try a proper habit-tracking app. Several people have recommended one, though I remain slightly sceptical."
5. Do you ever pay for apps?
"Occasionally, if something is genuinely useful. I would rather pay a small amount than have an application filled with advertising."
6. Do people spend too much time on apps?
"Almost certainly. Most applications are designed to hold attention, and I notice myself opening things without any real reason."
Part 2 Cue Card
You get 1 minute to prepare, then speak for up to 2 minutes.
Describe an app or website you use often
You should say:
- What it is
- How you found out about it
- How often you use it
- And explain why it is useful to you
Full model answer
I would like to talk about a language-learning application called Anki, which I have used almost every day for about four years.
I came across it through a colleague who was preparing for a medical examination. She mentioned that she used it to memorise enormous amounts of material, and I was curious enough to try it, initially just for vocabulary.
The principle behind it is quite simple. It shows you a card, you try to recall the answer, and then you tell the application how difficult it was. Anything you find easy appears again in a fortnight, whereas anything you struggle with returns the following day. Over time it works out precisely when you are about to forget something and shows it to you just before that happens.
I use it for roughly ten minutes each morning, usually while having coffee. That is genuinely all it requires, which is why I have managed to keep going for so long. Applications demanding an hour a day tend not to survive contact with a normal week.
What makes it useful is that it removes the decision-making entirely. I never have to work out what to revise, because the algorithm has already decided. All I have to do is open it.
It is not a beautiful application, and I would say the design is fairly dated. But it does one thing extremely well, and it has taught me more vocabulary than any course I have ever taken.
I think that is a reasonable definition of good software.
Part 3 Discussion
Deeper, more abstract questions. Give your opinion and explain your reasoning with an example.
1. Why have apps become so popular?
They solve small problems very efficiently and are usually available instantly at little or no cost. Smartphones also made them permanently accessible, so a task that once required sitting at a computer can now be completed while waiting for a bus.
2. Do people rely too heavily on apps?
In some areas, yes. Navigation is the clearest example, since a great many people can no longer find their way without one. That said, relying on tools is hardly new, and I would not regard the trend as uniformly negative.
3. Should apps be free to use?
Free applications usually carry a hidden cost, most often advertising or the collection of personal data. I would rather see straightforward paid models, since the relationship is much clearer, though that inevitably excludes people who cannot afford them.
4. How have apps changed the way people work?
They have made work considerably more portable, which cuts both ways. People can now work from almost anywhere, but they are also reachable at all hours, and the boundary between working time and personal time has blurred significantly.
5. Are apps useful for education?
Genuinely so, particularly for practice and repetition, which software handles better than a teacher realistically can. What they replace far less well is explanation and feedback, so I would see them as a supplement rather than a substitute.
6. What risks come with using apps?
Privacy is the main one, since many applications collect considerably more information than their function actually requires. There is also a design problem, in that some are deliberately engineered to be difficult to stop using, particularly for younger people.
Useful vocabulary for this topic
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