Countdown apps

Vacations, retirement and birthday bashes are all things we look forward to. We look forward to them so much, in fact, that we often have countdowns to keep our spirits up while waiting for the event. In the olden days (or about 15 years ago), we had to do such things by looking at a calendar. Can you imagine? Now, we have our computers and smartphones to do the counting for us. Try one of these countdown apps while you eagerly await your next big event.

Countdown Me: Count down to your events on your home screen with Countdown Me. The app can pull information from your calendar to set up countdown events, or you can create new calendar events for a countdown. You can share your tracker by email, SMS or on Facebook and Twitter. You can run multiple countdowns at once and even set alerts for upcoming events. The app is available for $1.99 in the App Store. Try Countdown Me Lite for free before you buy.

Countdown Widget: This app has had more than 2 million downloads, so you know the developers must be doing something right. It is the number one countdown widget on Google Play. Set countdowns for days you're looking forward to like the arrival of a new baby, Christmas, a vacation or retirement. You can also use it for more ordinary events like that monthly meeting or your dental checkups (though that could create some anxiety if you have a fear of the dentist). This version is free, but you can upgrade to unlock all themes and remove ads.

Countdown Timer: Calculate the time remaining until a special or important event with this app for Blackberry phones. That's right, Blackberry owners, I didn't forget about you this time. The app can help you count down to birthdays, vacations or deadlines. You can create multiple events and switch back and forth between them easily. It is FREE on Blackberry World.

Photo courtesy Stefan via Flickr.