Practice English Listening A2 Exercises – Uses and purposes of technology

✓ packing: to learn about the weather and pack items the app recommends

✓ music: to save new songs we like and add them to a list

✓ attractions: to look at people’s pictures by country, city, or attraction and save them

✓ hotel: to find available rooms for a certain price and get a discount

Transcripts

Jamie:   Hey, Alan, I know you love your phone, but can you play with it later? We have to talk about our trip to Indonesia!

Alan:   Sorry, Jamie. I love this new app I found. It’s perfect for planning our trip.

Jamie:   I found an app too! This one helps me pack for the trip. It looks at the weather and area you’re going to visit and recommends items you need.

Alan:   An app for packing? Wow, they have thought of everything. Well, you can use this app to choose specific attractions in cities. The pictures are amazing.

Jamie:   I would love to see more pictures.

Alan:   I know! So other people use this app to save pictures they’ve taken on trips or just pictures they like. Then they share the pictures and you can search them to get ideas. And the best part is you don’t even need to know the people. If they make the pictures public, you just search by the country, city, or attraction. So I’ve looked at other people’s pictures and saved them.

Jamie:   So what have you found? Show me!

Alan:   Look at these waterfalls! They’re only one hour outside the city.

Jamie:   They look beautiful! I didn’t see those waterfalls in the guide book.

Alan:   I know, this app is better than any guide book. But I wish it recommended more hotels.

Jamie:   Oh, they have a lot of apps for finding good hotels! My sister uses one for finding inexpensive rooms when she’s traveling for work. You put how much money you want to spend and it gives you available options in the area. Sometimes it gives you a discount, too.

Alan:   That’s great!

Jamie:   Now we just need to plan our music.

Alan:   I know the perfect app! If we like new songs on the radio, we can use an app to save them and add them to a list. And we don’t even need to know who sings it! The app tells us.

Jamie:   Perfect! They really have thought of everything!

Justin needs help buying a new tablet computer.

Allie suggests they go to a store together.

Transcripts

Justin:   You know so much about technology. Can you help me with something else?

Allie:   Sure. What do you need?

Justin:   I’m thinking about getting a new tablet computer. Which do you think I should get?

Allie:   I don’t know. That depends on what you want it for.

Justin:   I need it for work. You know, emails, video calls with clients . . . And I also want to use it to read e-books when I travel.

Allie:   Hey, why don’t we go to a store on Saturday and we can compare a few different options.

Justin:   Yeah! Thanks! I’ll buy you lunch afterwards.

Allie:   It’s a deal.