Long time no see, this share is about the domestic apps that are still commonly used in Australia.

Recently going back to China, one of the preparations is to check the apps to avoid not being able to use them. Some have entered the state of waiting to be downloaded, such as Meituan, Didi, Dianping, Metro App, etc. Redownloading and logging in gives me a sense of long-lost feeling. While cleaning up the electronic room, I am also reviewing the old life.

Of course, there are some that are still commonly used in Australia, here is our respective list (with subjective experience):

From Se7en:

Basically, it's Bilibili, XiaoHongShu (Little Red Book), Jike, and WeChat, ranked by frequency of use.

Since I don't follow series on Bilibili, it doesn't affect my video watching at all.

XiaoHongShu is basically used as a search engine, occasionally to follow what's happening with the Chinese community around.

Jike is also brushed daily to see what Jiyou (friends on Jike) are up to, and occasionally post some photos from here.

The frequency of using WeChat has significantly decreased, because opening videos and pictures on WeChat is a bit slow, and official accounts are getting more and more boring. Basically, I use it to chat with friends in China.

Additionally, TickTick as a utility app also has a high frequency of use.

From Xue:

XiaoHongShu, WeChat, Jike, Xiaoyuzhou, Tencent Video, iQiyi, Bilibili, Douban, WeChat Reading, Taobao

XiaoHongShu: The most unexpected for me. I rarely used it back in China, but in Australia, it has become a must-have for practical living. Supermarket discounts, travel, food, renting, etc., all sorts of things, plus some Chinese community services, like finding our driving school instructor and moving van on XHS. I also like to look at recipes for cooking inspiration because XHS photos are especially appetizing.

WeChat: Still the daily app, video calls with family and friends in China are also quite stable, having used other video call services, WeChat's stability is really up there.

Video category: I use it more frequently than when I was in China. Perhaps it's because of being in a foreign country, I clearly feel a stronger desire to watch domestic dramas to comfort my soul. Tencent has more copyrights in overseas regions than other domestic video services, and its own copyrights don't need to be turned back to the country. The dramas released this year, "The Long Season", "Under the Prosperous City" are all good. Also caught up with the movie "The Long Journey of Chang'an". As a newly minted fan of ancient dramas, I'm following "Longing for You", and iQiyi's "Lotus Building" I also really like. My Bilibili membership still has 5 years to go haha. Finally caught up with "Summer Again" recently! Really liked "The Funeral of Franny".

Heads up: Youku is the only one that requires an additional purchase of a premium membership for screen casting. Overseas users don't buy a TV membership, you can't use it. If you're following mystery dramas, definitely don't scroll through XiaoHongShu, even the titles are spoiling the plot...

Jike: Daily necessities, brush it every day, some familiar Jike friends are all on it.

Xiaoyuzhou: Podcast is a must-listen, and I absolutely love the design. Because I'm deliberately listening to English podcasts, and also shifting more towards using the computer, Spotify has taken up 70% of my podcast time. But some of my favourite podcasts like Tokyo Offtrack, Culture Limited, Steve Talks, UX Coffee, and Hua Xiantao are always preferred listening on Xiaoyuzhou.

Douban: A loyal user of books, films, and music, I get itchy if I don't mark something every now and then.

WeChat Reading: Using it in Australia is no different from in China. Chinese paper books are a luxury in a foreign land, hard to buy, so WeChat Reading is almost the only Chinese reading channel. The most comfortable reading experience this year was Yasunari Kawabata's "Snow Country" & "The Old Capital", classic and beautiful.

Taobao: I used to find it too fancy, now I must say it's really nice. The design of Australia's e-commerce is very restrained, and shopping is also calm and rational. Moreover, shops mostly use separate websites, which is very fragmented, making it hard to make impulse purchases. In comparison, Taobao's colorful world is particularly enchanting and tempting, and the prices are also attractive. Our dashcam was bought from Taobao and shipped here by sea.