45 Mobile Resources Every Freelancer Needs to Have

While working remotely can be a great experience, lugging around your laptop can put quite a damper on your fun. Why not just take your cell phone instead? Here are 45 resources that will let you do your work wherever you are, as long as there’s a cell phone signal. No Laptop or Broadband required!

Money/Finance: Cash is King – monitor finances anywhere you get a signal.

1.      Quickbooks Mobile – The GrandDaddy of accounting now has a mobile interface that shows you cash in, cash out and the general state of your books.

2.      Freshbooks - Online invoicing service that lets you send bills to customers. Offers an iPhone interface so you can keep the money rolling in.

3.      PayPal Mobile – send, receive and check your PayPal balance from anywhere.

4.      Mobile Banking – most major banks now let you do all your banking from your cell phone, so you can check balances, pay bills and accept payments.

5.      Xpenser – track expenses in real time via SMS or mobile browsing

6.      myHours – track your time and billing with myHours.

7.      TSheets – update timesheets via text, iPhone App and mobile browsing.

8.      Pocket PC Invoice – Invoicing software designed specifically for the Pocket PC.

9.      Tip Calculator – Easily calculate total tip amount and how much everyone must contribute.

Remote Access and File Storage: Log in to your computer from anywhere, and get easy access to files whenever you need them

10.  GoToMyPC - Use your computer from anywhere. Just log in from a cell phone and it will automatically connect you to your computer in the office.

11.  iPhone VPN – Connect your iPhone to your company Virtual Private Network with these handy instructions from Apple.

12.   OpenVPN for PocketPC – Use OpenVPN to connect to any VPN that supports the Open VPN Standard.

13.  Files Anywhere – Use Files Anywhere to share, backup and keep files you need when you’re on the go.

14.  MobileMe – online storage and syncing from Apple for iPhone, PC and Mac.

15.  iZoho – Access your Zoho material from the iPhone. Only allows read access for now.

Communication and Contact Management: Stay in touch with employees and customers while on the go.

16.  Salesforce - access the SalesForce interface from a Blackberry, Windows PC, and Palm.

17.  SugarCRM -access your customer information with the Open Source Sugar CRM mobile module.

18.  Highrise – online customer management tool from the folks at 37 Signals.

19.  Free ConferenceCall.com – Set up a free conference call from anywhere and dial in with your cell phone.

20.  Gmail – the Gmail we all know and love is probably the most mobile compatible email service out there. You can use it from a web service or use the IMAP feature to sync natively to your phone.

21.  Loopt – share your status and even create a mobile network just for your company.

22.  eFax – get your faxes sent to your email, and send from your cell phone as well.

23.  Twitter – send short messages without having to use up your SMS allowance.

24.  MyFax.com – similar to efax, except you can send and receive faxes directly from the web.

25.  Meebo – Connect to most Instant Messaging services via the web.

26.  Campfire – Group messaging service that is mobile and iPhone compatible.

27.  BeeJive – native application for instant messaging on iPhone, Blackberry and Windows Mobile.

28.  Fring – integrates instant messaging, Skype and actual telephones to provide an all-in-one-communications tool.

29.  Skype – make cheaper or free calls when you’re in WiFi zone with Skype.

Project Management: Manage ongoing projects from wherever you may be.

30.    Base Camp – manage teams and projects collaboratively via web based interface.

31.  Wrike – project management tool that works well via email

32.  Tempo – A cross between project management and time tracking, keeps track via SMS, Mobile Web, and even twitter.

Documents, Spreadsheets and Media: Access and create new document for clients and co-workers.

33.  Google Docs – Viewing only of any documents you have in your Google Docs account

34.  Adobe PDF Reader – custom PDF viewer for Blackberry, Windows Mobile and Pocket PC.

35.  Foxit PDF Mobile – our favorite PDF tool, now in a convenient smart phone package.

36.  Mobile Zoho – You can both access and create new spreadsheets, documents and presentations with Zoho.

37.  Flickr – keep track of important pictures and access them anywhere with Flickr for mobile.

38.  Photoshop Mobile – do basic image editing on the go with Photoshop mobile. Works with Windows Mobile only.

39.  Shozu – use Shozu to upload, browse and edit pictures.

Travel : Manage itineraries, book flights and find where you need to go.

40.  TripIt – organizes your itinerary as you email it confirmation and changes.

41.  Flight Stats – find out if your plane is delayed or cancelled.

42.  Orbitz – book tickets and hotels from most major airlines and chains.

43.  Google Maps – get directions and find attractions.

44.  Traffic.com – keep an eye on traffic and snarl ups as you go.

45.  Taxis – call 1800-TAXI-CAB or 1-800-TAXI-USA and they will connect you with a local taxi service.