Uses.

What I use daily to build indie apps. Updated regularly.

Hardware

  • MacBook Pro 14" (M3 Pro) - Primary development machine. Plenty fast for Xcode builds and running simulators side by side.
  • iPhone 15 Pro - Testing device for iOS apps. Also my daily driver.
  • Sony WH-1000XM4 - Noise cancelling for deep focus sessions.

Development

  • Xcode - Where I spend most of my time. Swift, SwiftUI, and occasionally dealing with provisioning profiles.
  • VS Code - For web projects (Astro, Tailwind). This site is built with it.
  • Claude Code - AI pair programming in the terminal. Handles research, boilerplate, and helps me think through architecture.
  • GitHub - All repos are private. Push triggers Vercel deployments for web projects.
  • Terminal (zsh) - With minimal customization. I don't spend time configuring shells.

Design

  • Figma - Quick mockups and app icon design.
  • SF Symbols - Apple's icon library. I use it in all my apps.

Web Stack

  • Astro - Static site generator for all landing pages (this site, snapproof.pro, lento.cam).
  • Tailwind CSS - Utility-first CSS. Fast to iterate, easy to maintain.
  • Vercel - Hosting and deployment. Free tier covers everything I need.

Marketing & Analytics

  • Umami - Self-hosted, privacy-friendly analytics. No cookies, no tracking.
  • Google Search Console - SEO monitoring. Track impressions, clicks, and indexing.
  • KeySearch - Keyword research tool ($17/month). Worth it for finding content opportunities.
  • App Store Connect - Sales data, reviews, and app management.

Productivity

  • Things 3 - Task management. Simple, fast, no subscription.
  • Bear - Notes and writing. Markdown, clean UI.
  • 1Password - Password manager for everything.

My Own Apps

I use my own apps daily. That's how they get better:

  • Battery Vitals - Always in my menu bar. Quick glance at battery health and cycles.
  • Storage Peek - Gets a lot of use when Xcode derived data fills up the disk.
  • VPN Peek - Shows VPN status at a glance. I notice disconnections immediately now.
  • Translate Peek - OCR translate for Japanese documentation and articles.