Eight Awesome Games for Android

 

 

There is a wide variety of games for the Android platform, a lot of them from EA Mobile division. Whether you are looking for fun games to spend hours on or just a viral one to waste a few minutes, there is probably something for you. Do NOT waste your Money on CRAP Apps and Lets hit play!

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Angry Birds

Angry Birds made a huge splash when it launched as an ad-supported, free version of the viral iPhone game. This is the projectile-bird-based third-person shooter (well, it is one really) where you have to kill pigs because they stole your eggs. Who thought an animal cruelty game would be so popular?

Also Check Out: Angry Birds Seasons, the Hallowe’en/holiday-themed spin off game. Its very similar to its iPhone version so check out my review of that over on iPhone.AppStorm.

Price: Free (ad-supported)

Need for Speed Shift

Need for Speed is one of the top choices if you want to kick back and enjoy some virtual driving. Its had success on multiple platforms, most notably on high-definition consoles like the PlayStation 3, but also runs on Android. Strangely, there are several versions you can choose from so you will have to play about a bit on the online marketplace to work out which one your device supports.

Also Check Out: Reckless Racing  Another driving game that takes a slightly different spin on things

Price: €3.77

DoodleJump

While Angry Birds has continued fanfare on Android, the other viral game that came across from iOS, DoodleJump, does not. This very popular game acts just like its iPhone counterpart, where you move an avatar up a never-ending screen themed in one of several ways. It hasn’t had as many installs as Angry birds, but that’s probably due to it being a paid app.

Also Check Out: Mega Jump  not exactly a rip-off of DoodleJump, but it is free.

Price: $0.99 (USD)

 

Fruit Ninja

Fruit Ninja is yet another iPhone-convert that has seen success on the Android platform. In this game, you slice fruit in order to avoid losing. Like Angry Birds, it’s a time-waster app that provides no constant gameplay but is fun nonetheless.

Price: $1.19 (AUD)

 

The Sims 3

The blockbuster PC game hit mobile back in 2009 and brings a mobile-optimized gameplay experience. If you have ever played The Sims for PC, you will know the scenario: you have a Sim person and you guide it through life. The gameplay is not quite the same as the full-blown desktop game but at a 12th of the price, you cannot expect much else.

Price: €3.77

 

Uno

Uno is one of Gameloft successes on Android. It brings the classic card game to your phone and allows you to play multiplayer against both local contacts and over the net.

Price: $2.99

 

Tetris

Tetris is EA’s Android-optimized version of the highly-popular retro game. This version brings EA’s high quality gameplay and graphics to Android devices and can provide hours of fun with several different game modes.

Also Check Out: Classic Tetris A slightly worse, but still okay game, available for free

Price: €2.15

Game Dev Story

A game about developing games, who would have thought it? Game Dev Story is the pixel-art game that’s already sold tens of thousands of copies on Android. The idea is you are trying to develop a hit game and manage all aspects of its development from hiring staff to developing your own games console.

Price: ¥400 (charged at £3.03 in the UK)

These are just the start!

 

 

Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, gives us light on the new version of Android, the one to follow Gingerbread. This happened at the MWC 2011 today, during his keynote speech.

According to him the next Android iteration will be a combination of Honeycomb (for tablets) and Gingerbread (for phones). Whether it will be compatible with both types of devices, or only bring the tablet features to the smartphones.

 

Schmidt did, however, say that the second version will begin with the letter "i" and that it will be named after a dessert. No surprise there, but still a confirmation from the CEO is much appreciated.

 

Now Ice Cream Sandwiches, Ice Cream Cakes or Ice Cream Sherbet aside we are hopping for it to be released soon and to have that dual-core support built right in.

 

Eugene Kaspersky has been ruffling some feathers, mostly amongst those without a vested interest in Android, by suggesting that Google mobile OS will eventually own some 80-percent of the market.

The other 20% that Android did not control would be split between the likes of Apple, RIM and Microsoft. Kaspersky, the man behind the eponymous anti-virus software, likened the situation to the desktop computer market:

"I believe that if Apple, BlackBerry, Microsoft do not change their strategy very soon we will soon have the same mobile operating system landscape as we have with computers"

Microsoft and IBM famously dominated the home computer market in the 80s and now it seems, according to Kaspersky at least, Qualcomm and Google will do the same thing with smartphones. Of course this is all just speculation and pie in the sky at the moment. However, one thing is true enough, Android continues to rise in popularity, and thus marketshare, with each passing day.

 

 

You did not think the Nook Color would be having all the fun did you? The Honeycomb SDK preview has been ported over to the EVO 4G, Desire HD and Droid Incredible and there are three videos to show the progress of the builds. While the ROMs are in no way fully functional, its exciting to see that Honeycomb can run on phones and may be on it’s way before the official update.

 

We know that Ice Cream Sandwich will be the bridge between Android Gingerbread and Honeycomb but that hasn’t stopped the awesome devs from getting it up and running on phones. These builds are hardly ready for daily use but it is nice to see Honeycomb running on something other than a tablet. Since all three devices are made by HTC, we’re hoping to see support for other handsets in the future.

 

After watching the videos Below, I have to say that fragments, at least in the way they are implemented in Honeycomb, do not really work for smaller displays. Even with the spacious 4.3 inch screen on the Desire HD and EVO, fragment panels are just too small to be useful. Still, this isn’t something that would make me avoid trying this out, but I bet Ice Cream Sandwich will add fragments in different ways. Functional or not, this is still exciting to see Honeycomb up and running before any official devices are available.

 

While Honeycomb is designed for tablets, it looks like it will get a long just fine with smartphones. These projects are being actively worked on by the devs at the T3HH4XX0R blog, and hopefully we’ll see a decent build in the near future.

 

2 Video Below!

 

 

Dell roadmap of their 2011 portfolio of products has leaked courtesy of Windows Phone Centraland there is an impressive mix of Android powered smartphones and tablets in there, along with a few Windows Phones coming out towards the middle and end of this year.

 

Lets start with smartphones: the Venue Pro, which rocks a 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor and 8 megapixel camera, is going to get the latest version of Windows Phone. Not the one that has IE9 and multitasking, but the minor update that features copy/paste and a bunch of other small enhancements. In Q3 there’s the "Wrigley", and thats supposed to be updated version of to Venue Pro, but with the major update to Windows Phone preinstalled. Why release a new device all together? There is probably an updated processor in there, but thats just speculation on our part. In September "Hancock" is supposed to come out, and it will be running Android 2.4 codename Ice Cream. Inside it will have a 4 inch screen with a 960 x 540, dual core processor, 8 megapixel camera that also does 1080p video recording, a 1.3 megapixel front facing camera, and a QWERTY keyboard. If Dell manages to push something like that out to market, expect everyone else to do the same. And finally there is "Millennium", which is a 4.3 inch version of "Hancock" and drops the keyboard.

 

On the tablet side there is Gallo, which should be Dells first Honeycomb running tablet. The Streak 7, which is already out, is going to get an upgrade to Honeycomb at some point in July. "Sterling" will replace the Streak 7 in October, but we do not know whats actually going to get updated. And finally towards the end of this year we can look forward to the "Opus One" and "Silver Oak", both running Android Honeycomb.

 

 

Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, gives us light on the new version of Android, the one to follow Gingerbread. This happened at the MWC 2011 today, during his keynote speech.

According to him the next Android iteration will be a combination of Honeycomb (for tablets) and Gingerbread (for phones). Whether it will be compatible with both types of devices, or only bring the tablet features to the smartphones.

Schmidt did, however, say that the second version will begin with the letter "i" and that it will be named after a dessert, No surprise there, but still a confirmation from the CEO is much appreciated.

Now Ice Cream Sandwiches, Ice Cream Cakes or Ice Cream Sherbet aside we're hopping for it to be released soon and to have that dual-core support built right in.

 

 

 

Some interesting statistics coming out of GfK Network Intelligence show some surprising trends in browsing habits amongst smartphone users.

Many may have assumed that iPhone users were the most frequent broswers, but it seems that its the Android crowd that doing the most surfing, visiting, on average 9.1 websites per day on their device. The iPhone comes in second with 8 websites per day and Blackberry brings up the rear in third place with 5.7 websites per day. Symbian, the proverbial dinosaur in the room, manages to clock up just 5.2 websites per day. That's so low in fact that GfK commented on how it seemed more akin to dumbphone usage than smartphone usage.

Social networks proved illuminating too because the positions were reversed. Symbian users were the most likely to be visiting Facebook, for example, with a 24% chance of Facebook being the current website they were looking at. That chance falls to 17% for iPhone users, 16% for Blackberry users and just 13% for Android users. The discrepancy of course comes from the fact that the likes of Android et al have good Facebook apps available and thus users don't have to use the browser to access it.

 

Symbian on the other hand relies more on third party Facebook apps and they aren't as polished.

 

 

 

The new MiCoach application acts as your personal coach, guiding you through your daily exercises and fitness routines by speaking to you. Literally.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Since its release, the app has been downloaded over 1 million times. The new version of the MiCoach application will offer you goodies like pace triggered voice coaching, personalized and sports specific training plans, route planning and tracking, as well as workout calendar and detailed feedback on your workout.

 

 

The app will be available in the Android market some time in April this year, which is perfect timing for you to get your lazy ass up and get fitter. For free!

 

 

Marvell announced a cool new chip the Marvell PXA978 is a single chip but combines all the functionality needed for a phone. A fast 1.2GHz application processor, GPU, video decoder/encoder and so on. The chip also works as a 3G modem and it supports both UMTS, TD-SCDMA and HSPA speeds too.

 

 

Marvell claims that the PXA978 chip is the first in the world to support both UMTS and TD-SCDMA, which might be so but TD-SCDMA is pretty much limited to China and they have forgotten about those CDMA networks around the world. Anyway, the chip has a 1.2GHz processor, "advanced 3D graphics" and also 1080p media. Dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11n is supported with multiple antennas for faster data rates. The chip supports all leading OSes.

Marvell also showcased the Kinoma open source software platform. The first product built on Kinoma is Kinoma Play and they will be showing a beta version for Android.

Kinoma Play fully replaces the user interface and has some really cool up its sleeve like the unified search from different platforms or how video plays seamlessly even when you minimize the video player to a menu icon.

 

 

Video Below!

 

 

ZTE, the Chinese company which sold more devices worldwide than RIM for 2010, announced today at MWC two brand new Android running smartphones the QWERTY sideways slider Amigo and the Skate.

 

Powered by a 800Mhz processor and the Adreno 200, the ZTE Skate is running Android 2.3 Gingerbread, which is not too bad, for a manufacturer you have probably never heard of. It also features a big 4.3-inch capacitive touchscreen, and a 5MP camera at the back. It all adds up to a total weight of 120 grams. As connectivity goes, the Skate is fully packed up supporting multimedia Bluetooth, A-GPS and Wi-Fi.

 

 

Its brother, on the other hand the ZTE Amigo is a side QWERTY slider, which according to ZTE is aimed at "young and fashionable users". I guess that makes it perfect for our regular readers.

 

The Amigo runs Android 2.2 Froyo and packs a 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen.

 

 

Adobe keeps pushing improvements to their Flash platform and its good to hear that the Flash development on mobile platforms is keeping pace with the computer platform.

Adobe is showing off Flash 10.2 for mobile devices, which improves performance over v10.1. Flash 10.2 for mobile devices supports Stage Video we first saw this in the beta for the desktop Flash 10.2 and Adobe claimed 1080p video playback with hugely reduced CPU usage.

Stage Video is essential for performance on mobile devices it reduces CPU and memory usage, which should enable higher frame rates. Flash 10.2 is fully compatible with current videos, so you will only need to update the software.

For now, Flash 10.2 for mobile devices will be available only on Android 3.0 Honeycomb and BlackBerry Tablet OS. There is no word on when/if Flash 10.2 will be available on other mobile OSes and if it will hit phones too. Meanwhile, Flash 10.1 is spreading at a fast pace in six months since its launch, it has shipped or installed on over 20 million smartphones. Adobe is aiming for 132 million devices running Flash 10.1 in 2011.

Adobe AIR is growing fast too. In fact, they say Flash and AIR have exceeded their own expectations. Anyway, Adobe expects over 200 million smartphones and tablets to support AIR applications. Its even possible to develop iOS apps using AIR.

 

The Acer Iconia Smart is part tablet, part phone, all droid. The tablet/phone has an extra-wide screen with aspirations of portable multimedia perfection. Also, the Acer Liquid Metal changed its name but not its specs.

The Acer Iconia Smart features a 21:9 widescreen display, 4.8-inch big with 1024x480 pixels resolution - now thats downright impressive. Dolby surround sound technology enhances viewing movies even further.

 

The Iconia Smart runs Android 2.3.2 Gingerbread covered with the latest Acer UI version 4.0, also called "Breeze". The whole thing is powered by a 1GHz Snapdragon chipset, which has enough power to drive Flash 10.1 in the web browser.

There are two cameras an 8MP main camera with LED flash and 720p video recording and a secondary 1.3MP camera for video calling. The Acer Iconia Smart has a unibody metal casing and it will be available in Silver. A gyroscope and an accelerometer will enable high-precision motion-controlled gaming.

 

 

Developer of wireless multi-room music systems for the home Sonos announced its Controller app for Android, to allow the lucky few with Sonos expensive gear to control music around the house from their smartphone.

 

The pitch goes like this:

With the award-winning Sonos S5 in any room and an Android phone in hand, music lovers will enjoy an unmatched wireless music experience in the home. You will be able to access and play a multitude of music and playlists from the Internet to your personal music library – all throughout the home, wirelessly. And with the free Sonos Controller for Android app, you can control all your music in every room instantly, all from the palm of your hand. In addition, the Sonos Controller for Android features Sonos latest innovation in the home music experience – music voice search – allowing users to find any artist, album or track by simply speaking into the phone.

 

In order to use the Sonos Controller app, you will also need one of Sonos ZonePlayer devices such as the Sonos S5, which is an all-in-one wireless music system you can plug in anywhere. Of course, you will still need to wait for the Sonos app to hit the Android Market and that should happen at some point in March.

 

 

When Google gave the world an in-depth look at Android Honeycomb, it announced someexciting new tools for developers. One of these tools is a new graphics engine called Renderscript and the search giant just detailed what this will mean for developers in a blog post.

The demo video demonstrated is a series of balls bouncing around, which may not be the most exciting way of showing off Renderscript power, but it does give you a sense of just how many individual operations it can handle at the same time. The video is a simple physic simulation of about 900 balls and, as you can see, it runs rather well. This video was taken from an Android tablet that was connected through a HDMI and we can only assume that the tablet is theMotorola Xoom, as it’s really the only Honeycomb tablet that’s close to launching.

The video below is short and sweet and it barely touches on the great things that will come from Renderscript. The new YouTube and Google Books apps for Honeycomb were made using the engine and we definitely love the new 3D carousal look to them. Once the full Android 3.0 Honeycomb SDK is released, we’ll be seeing all sorts of great apps coming our way and lets not even get started about when the source code is released for 3.0.

As we patiently await the Xoom official debut on Verizon, we are glad that Google is keeping us somewhat occupied by releasing videos like this. The Xoom is not far away, so we suggest taking a look at our hands-on with the thing to tide you over after you are sick of the video below.

 

 

Twitter official app for Android has been receiving some love in the form of an update. The new version brings with it a new look, gone is a lot of the blue anyone who has used previous versions will be familiar with and there are also some spiffy search features.

You can now use what Twitter are calling 'Universal Search', which lets you search for a term either in a broad fashion or by specifying it down to something a little more focused, such as limiting your search term to those in your locality or those mentioning the term in their tweets.

Another new feature is the option to use the service without having to sign in. Obviously you will not be able to tweet, but you can still view trending topics.

Commenting on the the new version Twitter described the new version:

"When you first sign in, you will see your timeline, along with icons along the top that let you view @mentions, messages, and lists. This layout makes it fast and simple to navigate Twitter on your Android device. Also, the @mentions tab now includes Retweets; seeing replies and Retweets in one place offers a quick way to better understand which Tweets are sparking interest and engagement. In addition, we introduced auto-complete for usernames."

 

 

 

 

 

Hold your excitement, this is not the next Android version. The 2.3.3 is a minor feature update adding new NFC APIs for developers that we are going to see implemented in the NFC-enabled apps and devices later.

 

NFC (Near Field Communication) is a technology thats been implemented in several mobile phones by Nokia through the years, but it seems it will only take off in 2011 as some new, and hopefully popular smartphones get support for it.

 

On the other side, the developers should be interested in some of the new APIs:

• A comprehensive NFC reader/writer API that lets apps read and write to almost any standard NFC tag in use today
• Advanced Intent dispatching that gives apps more control over how/when they are launched when an NFC tag comes into range
• Some limited support for peer-to-peer connection with other NFC devices

According to Google , Android 2.3.3 should land on the most devices shipping with Gingerbread (2.3) or later. Make sure that the phones have to have NFC tech built-in to make use of any NFC functionality.

 

According to Opera State of the Web report, Opera Mini has about 90.4 million users every month, while the Opera Mobile handles approximately 15 million more. That makes for a total of 105 million people, which is a really impressive number.

The Opera browsers are among the best in the mobile world, along with Mozilla and the first-party ones, like Safari and Android. Opera Mini has the advantage of compressing web pages before sending them to the phone minimizing data usage and improving load times.

The only thing missing in those browsers is flash support. Luckily Opera says, in the same Press Release, that come MWC 2011, in just under a week, it will announce new browsers. Opera had this to say: "new versions of the Opera Mini browser on Android, iPhone, J2ME, BlackBerry, Symbian and even the iPad will appear. The Opera Mobile browser will not be left behind either, with the latest version for Android and Symbian making their debut." Maybe Flash will be part of the upcoming improvements.

How to change your keyboard

To change your keyboard after installing a new one, go to settings > Language and Keyboard, and then check your desired keyboard to enable it to be used.

Once you have any desired keyboards selected, you can then choose it as your default keyboard for input, you can also choose what keyboard to use whenever you are writing by pressing and holding your finger on the text box for a few seconds.

15 Awesome Keyboards for Android

8Pen

Without a doubt the most innovative keyboard app out for Android; instead of conventional keys, the app features a small wheel which is used by dragging your finger around the different segments to select each letter. 8Pen uses the notion that keyboards on a small mobile screen are well too small to comfortably type on. Being so innovative, 8Pen is hard to use, and will take a good amount of work to get up to speed with.

8pen

Price: free

MessagEase

Coined "the fastest keyboard for the Android," MessagEase boasts keys 3.5 times larger than most regular Android QWERTY keyboards. Its an interesting app which, quite like 8Pen, aims to make typing on a small screen easier by using swipes to select lesser used letters, while keeping the interface simpler than that of 8pen. The learning curve isn’t that steep, as the layout is very intuitive and it’s clear where they letters are. Its only a matter of getting used to MessagEase and building up speed with it.

Exideas

Price: Free (in beta)

HexBoard Keyboard

This is stylish, using hexagon shaped keys and a layout designed for easy single finger typing. The change from the usual square shaped keys is interesting, but the change from the standard QWERTY layout hinders fast typing.

One point which may put people off is the lack of a dictionary or predictive text.

Ridiculousx

Price: Free

Smart Keyboard

As this app name suggests, its a smarter keyboard than most others, boasting a high amount of advanced settings enabling you to tweak the keyboard to suit your exact way and preference of typing.

It uses a normal QWERTY layout, and gives you an amazing amount of different settings  including a smart dictionary, which learns the frequency of words you type to improve suggestions and will even add new words to your dictionary if you so wish.

Dexilog

Price: €1.99 (with free trial available)

SwiftKey

On first using SwiftKey it’s clear the amount of development that has gone into this app; the design is superb. The true magic of this keyboard is in its text prediction, whose accuracy improves at an incredible speed the more you use it. When you first run it, it scans your previously sent texts to get an idea of how you type, and from that point on it uses artificial intelligence to guess what words you are likely to be entering.

Despite using a normal QWERTY keyboard it’s quite easy to type on whether using one or two hands.

Swiftkey

Price: $1.99 – January offer (free trial available)

 

Better Keyboard

Using a QWERTY layout this is a simple but easy to use keyboard. It also includes a compact layout which you can easily switch to by swiping to the right; swipe left to get back to the normal QWERTY layout.

Better Keyboard also allows you to download and use different fonts to use for your keyboard — some nice personalisation!

Better Android

Price: €2.24 (with a free version available)

Gingerbread Keyboard

The keyboard to be shipped with stock Gingerbread (Android version 2.3), its a finely tweaked keyboard, honed to near perfection and efficiency within the limits a normal QWERTY keyboard has on a small phone screen.

Price:  Free

Wifi Keyboard

Differs from the other keyboards mentioned in this post. Wifi Keyboard, as you’re probably guessing from the title, allows you to connect your phone to your PC through Wifi (there’s a USB option too) to let you use your computer’s keyboard to type on your handset. An interesting idea, which works quite well!

Wifikeyboard

Price: Free

Flit Keyboard

Much like 8Pen and MessagEase, Flit Keyboard does not use a conventional keyboard layout. Instead it has 8 main keys, each with up to 8 different characters which you can type by swiping in its direction from the centre of the key. It aims to help improve typing accuracy without relying on auto-correction, something some users will miss.

Flitkeyboard

Price: Lite version available

Tswipe-Pro

Has a mountain of different options available, which include Math Symbols, fast words, fast messages, setting up of emotions, different themes and swiping, which I found very easy to use. Tswipe also features a wifi keyboard much like the earlier Wifi Keyboard app!

Supports English and Thai.

Tswipe

Price: $3.99; free version available

Dasher

Possibly the weirdest app you’ve ever tried to use, and even when you get used to it… it’s still weird! It’s a highly experimental interface, and though quite interesting, it’s not really cut out for daily use.

Dasher works by sliding your finger and aiming it at the next desired letter, for example in the below seenshot I’m just after writing "Hello" and I am about to select the space (the square icon). Once I have scrolled right enough to select the space, I will then decide to choose the next letter. Dasher thinks I want an m, t or i the most so they get the middle, priority spot. Its really something you have to try to userstand fully!

The Dasher Project

Price: Free

Swype

Despite being in closed beta, Swype is a highly polished keyboard, with a great user interface and text predication. As the name Swype suggests you can swipe your finger across the screen as a method of typing something which works quite well. You can also type normally if you so wish as Swype uses a standard QWERTY keyboard. Swype is also shipped on some phones, you could be lucky!

Swype

Price: In closed beta with limited numbers

AnySoftKeyboard

AnySoftKeyboard uses a pretty standard QWERTY keyboard, though one which is well laid out for Android-sized screens. The shortcuts to emoticons, numbers and symbols are easy to use too.

SoftKeyboard

Price: Free, BETA

HTC Keyboard (HTC IME)

Owners of HTC Androids love to boast of their superior HTC Sense and keyboard. Theres no need to be envious any longer as the great guys over at the XDA forums have built a port of the keyboard with a few of their own added tweaks.

XDA Developers

Price:  Free

Google Voice

Though not a keyboard as such, it is a surprisingly accurate way to input information into your phone! Google Voice allows you to use your voice as the input method, although its not always right it is getting better and is already at a usable level of quality.

Price: Free

myTextSpeed

Not actually a keyboard, but a cool way to put them through their paces: myTextSpeed is a great app for tracking the speed of your typing. Giving results in WPM and CPM (words/characters per minute), it also shows your accuracy.

mydroidsoft

Price: Free (with a donate version without adverts €0.74)

ViewSonic have confirmed to Pocket-lint that their ViewPad 4 smartphone will be launching in April, but also that it will be shipping with Android 2.4. Yes that does mean there will be a new version of Android come April, but it won't be Ice Cream.

Version 2.4 will in fact be called Gingerbread, just like the current 2.3 version. The only real difference between versions 2.3 and 2.4 will be that 2.4 brings support for apps designed to take advantage of multi-core processors to devices with a single core. According to Pocket-lint the launch of 2.4 has been brought forward to take advantage of apps written for Honeycomb (Android 3.0).

So in essence 2.4 is not really a new version of Android, more like a quick update to ensure compatability with apps. Ice Cream, the next major update for Android smarphones will still likely launch some time later in the year with some estimates placing it as early as the summer.

 

 

Must-Have Apps

Now you have got your Android phone setup with all your data being synced over, you want some apps. Here is our list of about fourteen apps that we think should have been included on your phone.

Twitter

Not everyone tweets, but a lot of us do. Twitter put out an official Android app with most of the functionality of the site. You can check your tweets, mentions and messages as you would on any platform, but also check lists and edit your profile.

Twitter integrates quite nicely into the notification bar showing when you have new mentions.

Price: Free

Requirements: Android 2.1 and above

Barcode Scanner

The strange, black and white square images at the side are QR codes. Just like a barcode, these store information to be read in a scanner.

Zxing’s Barcode Scanner not only scans QR codes (particularly useful for easily accessing websites or app links on a computer) but also regular barcodes.

Price: Free

Requirements: Android 1.5 and above

Chrome to Phone/Android2Cloud

Chome to Phone was the product of a Google I/O demo during the unveiling of Froyo. Basically, it communicates with a browser on your desktop and send a webpage to the phone. Similarly, you can open YouTube videos in the YouTube app or directions in Google Maps. This is a lot less cumbersome than manually writing the link in the phone or emailing it to yourself.

Android2Cloud is the “other half” of the relationship between the browser and the phone. It instead allows you to send webpages from your phone via the Share menu.

Price: Free

Shazam

Ever hear a song but cannot match it with a title? Shazam is here to fix that. It listens to a short clip of a playing song and identifies it, then allows you to buy on Amazon, share it, view it on YouTube, or view the lyrics.

Like the iPhone app, there is a risk it won’t find your song so don ot expect 100% accuracy. Whilst a free, five-tag version is available, there’s also a premium version with unlimited tags.

Price: Free (premium Encore version is $4.99)

Requirements: Android 1.6 or above

WinAmp

WinAmp is a media player for Android that works in unison with the accompanying desktop app. The app, however, is not just a player but rather a media management solution.

In conjunction with the desktop app, you can sync your media library to your phone including tracks from iTunes! The desktop app is an sickening example of UI, but the functionality makes up for it.

Price: Free

Requirements: WinAmp desktop app

Phonalyzr

Phonalyzr takes your usage data and displays it in an alternative set of views. For example, you can view more in-depth details of your calling usage and take some data (for example, number of minutes per time) into graph view.

If you are a heavy, intensive user who often goes over their allowance, Phonalyzr provides a slick way of identifying the biggest culprits.

Price: Free

The Missing Sync

Just as WinAmp syncs your media, The Missing Sync keeps your data up-to-date. Alongside its desktop app (just like WinAmp), this app allows you to synchronize photos, data, media, documents and more.

The app requires the accompanying desktop app for Mac or PC, at an additional cost from $39.95.

Price: Free (required desktop app from $39.95)

Requirements: Android 1.5 or above (more features at 2.0 and later)

Google Goggles

Google Goggles main aim is to search by photo. Take a photo of something and Google can (sometimes) identify it and search. Its a novelty at best, and it wouldn’t recognise anything on my desk.

However, it does have a somewhat higher success rate with paintings and translating foreign text, and can also work as an alternative QR reader to Barcode Scanner (above).

Price: Free

Opera Mini & Mobile Browsers

The Opera Mini and Mobile web browsers are alternatives to Android’s built-in browser. Not only do they provide a better interface with more options, but they sync with the Opera browser on your computer.

Opera Mini relies on Opera servers too, which compress web pages apparently speeding up loading times and therefore, also reducing your data usage.

Both Mini and Mobile do pretty much the same thing but with different uses of Opera’s rendering engines. Faster phones should opt for Mobile whilst slower ones should opt for Mini.

Price: Free

WordPress

WordPress has an offering for iOS, BlackBerry and, of course, Android users on the relevant app markets. Android version offers us a visual editor, in addition to the HTML version, which is a feature over iOS.

If you run a blog, then its probably powered by WordPress. In fact, WordPress is Envato blogging tool of choice. And the app will communicate with both WordPress.com and self-hosted packages.

Price: Free

Requirements: Android 1.5 or above

Skype

Im on a pay-as-you-go plan for my phone. For a £10 topup, I get a fairly generous 500mb of internet and 3000 texts, but only 100 minutes. Therefore, my calling ability is limited. However, I can (kind-of) convert my data allowance to minutes via Skype.

Skype’s Android app acts just like any other on rival platforms. They have confirmed plans to bring front-facing video calling to devices.

Price: Free

Requirements: Android 2.1 or above

If you are into Angry Birds or Angry Birds HD, I have a little bit of sweet pig-smashing news for you this morning. The game has just received an update that brings 15 new levels, a new golden egg… and wait for it there is more.

During Super Bowl XLV this Sunday, Rovio will run their very own movie commercial. In the commercial will be a clue to help you unlock a very new, very special level. How cool is that? If you want to take advantage, go ahead and grab the update, and then plunk yourself down in front of the TV to catch the Super Bowl this Sunday.

Another to the Rovio team for coming up with a one-of-a-kind promotion here. I have a feeling there will be a whole whackload of folks watching the game with their iPhones and iPads on their lap. Actually, that said, I have a feeling many of them will not be paying attention to the football game at all…

 

Google announced their new web-based Android Market. It allows you to browse, buy and download apps for your Android device entirely through a website, available both on your phone and on your computer. After some technical difficulties preventing me, and a selection of other users, from logging in, I was able to bring my whole Android Market experience to the web.

The release of a desktop-based Android Market is something users have wanted for a long time and is part of a package of updates coming to the store. Google will also be rolling out currency-specific pricing so developers can set specific prices for certain territories to keep them in line with their overall strategy.

Your Market Account

As your Market account is linked with your Google account, your handsets and purchases are already set up on the web store. Your account is managed in your "My Account" page accessible via a link in the top bar. This page has two tabs: Orders and Settings.

The orders tab allows you to see your recent purchases from the Market, showing their name, thumbnail, price and status. This list is dynamic and changes whenever you download apps, both from the website and from a handset.

The Settings tab lets you view all your handsets that are linked to your Google account. My HTC Wildfire showed up complete with information on carrier and registration/last used date. Here you can also set a nickname for your device, so that if you have multiple ones its easier to choose which one to download an app too.

Browsing

Browsing the Market is easy and done entirely through the web. The homepage displays a slider with feature apps being brought centrestage. Then there is the option to refine listings by category, or by their price status.

The top apps are split up into free and paid, just like on the mobile Market, and offer the same apps. As on the phone, the Market recognizes when you already have the app installed and when you don’t.

Single App View

This is where this how-to comes into play. The single-app view allows you to view all the details on a specific app. Google allows developers to bring across the description, app screenshots and embedded YouTube videos across for a beautiful experience on any platform you want to browse on. The technical stuff such as release date, version and size is on the right, as well as the install count.

On the left are related apps, both from the developer and from others. You can write and view reviews about an app which will most certainly encourage longer feedback due to the relief of not using a small keyboard. You also get the option to view permissions that the app will request, and version history.

Then you get to doing what you came here to do: over-the-air installation. Hitting the rather large blue button brings up an installation dialog.

The dialog once again informs you of the permissions this app has and highlights the price. In this case, the app, Angry Birds, is free. You also need to select your device from the dropdown menu. Remember how I talked about the nicknames you can set your handsets to have? They are displayed in the aforementioned dropdown list, so you can recognize your devices.

Once you hit Install, the app immediately starts downloading to your handset in a timely fashion. No need for you to plug your phone in via USB. its all done over the air.

After its downloaded and installed, it acts just like a regular app and there is no difference than if it had been downloaded via the handset Market application.

Purchasing Apps

In order to buy a paid app, you have to follow the same steps as to download a free one. However, this time round, when the modal appears, you will have to confirm payment details. Most apps still use the "best estimate" system for judging international pricing, but Google also announced the possibility to set specific prices for each of the supported territories.

You will need to sign in again, for security reasons. Then, you can either set up a new payment method, or choose an existing one. All these payments are still managed through Google Checkout but with no PayPal support yet. This is a disadvantage to me, personally. I do not know about you, but I do not like associating my card with services like this. Its so easy to "accidentally" download an app and they are a prime target for hackers. I am probably being too cautious, but I’d love for Google to integrate PayPal or offer a gift card system like iTunes does.

 

 

 

Whilst a lot of the attention at today Google event was given over to Honeycomb there were some more important developments taking place in the Android Market.

For one thing Google are implementing in-app purchases. I cannot begin to describe just how great this will be for the Android Market because it has the potential to breathe a whole new lease of life into the system. The Android Market might be the second biggest app store with over 200,000 apps, but it has been the notoriously poor relation to Apple App Store when it comes to customers buying lots of apps. To put it another way, if devs are earning more from Apple's platform why focus on Android? In-app purchases could help to re-address that imbalance and give devs more reason to pay Android some attention.

 

Payment options listed include VISA and American Express. Neither PayPal or Google Checkout were listed, but it would seem like sheer madness if they weren't included too.

Why is this important? Well think about it, browsing through the Market on your device to find apps isn't exactly a satisfying experience, you have hundreds of thousands of apps to get through on a relatively small screen. Sure it works when you know the app you're looking for, but for general browsing its not ideal. Enter the web based store, which lends itself to more general browsing and app discovery on a nice big desktop display.

Its another avenue for devs to promote their apps through and like in-app purchases makes Android that wee bit more appealing for them. Each app listed on the web store will have a barcode for you to scan with your phone or you can just purchase it straight from the web store if you prefer and the app automatically whizzes along to your phone.

Android versions can be hard to follow at times, especially now that Honeycomb (Android 3.0) is intended for tablet devices whilst Gingerbread (Android 2.3) is the latest incarnation of the OS for smartphones. I am not even going to get into how that fits in context with Chrome OS.

The next version of Android for smartphones is widely expected to be called Ice Cream Sandwich and launch some time later this year. Now Phandroid is running a piece citing a 'trusted source' as saying that Ice Cream will feature certain elements from Honeycomb, just to add to the confusion. To be fair Honeycomb does have some nice stuff that would be great to see brought over to smartphones e.g. UI elements and hardware acceleration.

The actual release date for Ice Cream is not known yet, but Google has been attempting to space out the intervals between major releases, no doubt to help with fragmentation, which has been something of an annoyance in the past.

 

 

Google published their monthly report on the Android platform versions distribution and revealed that 90% of all droids now run 2.1 Eclair or later. January saw 2.2 Froyo rise to 57.6%, while 2.3 Gingerbread still struggles to make an impact.

 

Compared to December, Froyo gained another 5.8% of market share, which also makes it the currently fastest growing version. The Google Nexus S-exclusive Gingerbread doubled its market share, but that only took the OS version up to a share of 0.8%.

It was Android 2.1 Eclair that took the biggest hit in the first month of 2011, slipping by 3.8% to a market share of 31.4%. The long outdated 1.5 Cupcake and 1.6 Donut too lost some ground and now account for 3.9% and 6.3% of Android devices respectively.

 

We are expecting the Android 2.2 Froyo share to reach its peak in February, after which will probably start shrinking to make way for the Gingerbread that should hopefully hit more and more devices.

 

 

Based on current rates 1.5 Cupcake and 1.6 Donut should become extinct in about 3 months. we highly doubt they will fully go extinct as Motorola and T-Mobile US just canceled the promised Motorola CLIQ XT 2.1 update, which leaves it stuck at v1.5. You can follow Motorola's software upgrade path here but we would take it with a pinch of salt from now on.

 

Google just went through their dedicated Andoird event, officially announcing and showcasing Android 3.0 Honeycomb. Android is definitely branching in two directions and Honeycomb will not be available for smartphones. Another new thing that came off the press conference was this little cutie the blue Android bee.

With the XOOM in hand, Android product manager at Google demonstrated the homescreens and the new functionality in Honeycomb. The new user interface is obviously meant for tablets. The good thing is that Honeycomb will be backwards compatible with older apps. The well-known game Fruit Ninja was demonstrated on stage running on the Motorola XOOM.

An interesting novelty in Honeycomb is the implementation of the so called Application Fragments. Basically those represent different panes on the screen that allow the user to do different actions. Instead of new windows popping up and consuming memory, if new information within an app is requested, one of the two Fragments simply slides away and the new fragment comes in its way.

Speaking of performance and optimization, Hugo Barra made it very clear that they have put a lot of effort into taking full advantage of 3D graphics. Hardware acceleration will be supported in Honeycomb, which alongside the new Animation framework that is going to be present in the new SDK will allow developers to introduce new and, hopefully, nicer animations in their apps.

Some exciting apps were showcased, too. Google Body, for example, is the "Google maps for the human body", as Barra described it. It will allow you to kind of make a quick diagnostics of your body and if you feel pain somewhere, you could search for the medical terminology and give your doctor a better idea of your condition.

The Music, Camera and Video recording apps were presented as well. Their refreshed UI certainly looks cool and very user-friendly. The Android design team has definitely done a great job of making it tablet-friendly, while keeping functionality to a top level.

One of the biggest announcements in the presentation was the new Android Web Market and the new way of how apps are going to be purchased. You can check out our news about that.

We will certainly try and embed some demo Honeycomb videos for you to check out since still images can hardly convey the new stuff.

Video Below!

 

 

 

One of the biggest announcements of today Google Android press conference is new online-accessible Android Market website and the new way of how apps are going to be purchased.

 

The idea behind the new Android Market website is to allow people to browse apps from anywhere and not be limited only to the Market app on their phones. In other words, Google is getting up to speed with Apple's own AppStore.

 

Check it out @ market.android.com

The entire Android market is available online and the process of purchasing an app is made pretty simple and straight forward. After an app is purchased or simply picked for installing, and within seconds your phone would automatically start the download process. Now that's pretty cool and beats Apple system hand down.

 

Also you can now share a link from the Web Market to a friend of an application you have liked via twitter or email, which is also neat. With the latest SDK, which will be available sometime in the end of March, developers can add in-app payments, allowing them to offer new app features or new game levels directly from the app.

Google has some good news and some bad news. The good news is that Google Shopper will be available for the iPhone. If you have not heard of it, its a must-have tool for shopping on the go. The bad news is that Google Latitude now allows users to check into places.

 

 

Google Latitude

 

Google Latitude will still allow real-time location sharing but the new features give more meaning to your location.

 

You can "check in" somewhere say a restaurant and see its Place page to read reviews. Better still, you can see when someone checks in somewhere and look at its Place page and if you like what you read, Google Maps Navigation will guide you there. Three features help you with the check in notifications remind you to check in as you arrive, or you can have Latitude check in automatically. Check outs are automatic, so your friends will know you’re no longer there.

 

Check into a place enough times and you can earn a status Regular, VIP or Guru. If you have used Foursquare, you will notice that’s pretty much the same thing they do let you check in somewhere, share your check-ins with friends and become the "Mayor" of a place you frequent. Anyway, to use check-ins you need Android 1.6+ then update Google Maps from the Market and join Latitude. You can share check-ins with everyone, your friends or just keep them to yourself.

Google Shopper for iPhone

 

As for Google Shopper, its a simple and very useful tool enter a search for a product and shopper will instantly provide you with user reviews, let you compare prices for online retailers and even find stores that carry a product in near your location. You can also bookmark a product to consider later.

 

If you are already in a store, looking at something, you can just scan its barcode or a book cover and Google Shopper will provide the same info Google Shopper for iPhone is now available for the 3GS and the iPhone 4, only in English in the US and UK. There is has been an Android version for some time.

The successor to the tablet-phone Dell Streak 5, the Dell Streak number 7 is set to launch for T-Mobile USA TODAY 2-FEB-2011 and this HSPA device can be yours for just 199.99 US dollars on a 2-year contract with T-Mobile USA or 450 bucks if you want to save yourself the monthly fees and get it no strings attached. Just as a comparison, the Galaxy Tab contract-free price is still around $600.

Information on specs seems to be certain on the dual-core Tegra2 1GHz CPU, front facing 1.3 megapixel camera, Android 2.2 and fast HSPA connectivity. Sadly, there is no word on a Euro-spec version.

With upcoming tablets such as the rumored iPad 2, the Blackberry PlayBook, the Motorola Xoom and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 just around the corner, the Streak 7 should not exactly feel safe, and may be Dell should seriously consider a version for the European market if they want to stand a chance against such dense competition.

 

Google is shedding some light on whats to come with the tablet-oriented Android 3.0 Honeycomb. There are new elements on the screen, designed to improve usability and also better utilize that extra screen real-estate. Google calls this "holographic UI design".

Two new bars have been placed on the screen and they will play key roles in the user interface. The first bar is the System Bar on the bottom of the screen. Its akin to the current Android notification area but it will also provide soft navigation buttons, including multitasking control.

Switching between apps will be done using the Recent Apps list accessible from the System Bar. The System Bar is always visible so that its all-important functionality is always accessible, but a "lights out" mode will hide it.

The second bar, the Action Bar will be controlled by the individual apps instead of the OS. For example, when you select text, the cut, copy, etc. buttons will be placed on the Action Bar.

Speaking of text, the keyboard keys have been redesigned and repositioned to improve accuracy. Connectivity has also been updated USB and Bluetooth keyboards can be used on Android 3.0. Sharing the network connection over Bluetooth will be possible too.

The standard apps have been updated too for the new tablet playground. Here are a couple of screenshots along with a list of changes:

• Browser: tabs look very Chrome-like, private browsing mode, unified history and bookmarks view, automatic login to Google services and bookmark sync with Chrome, and interestingly, multi-touch support for JavaScript and plug-ins.
• Camera: more controls on the screen for quicker access to most functions
• Contacts: two-pane UI, Fast Scroll, contact info presented in card-like UI
• Email: two-pane UI, bulk operation shortcuts in Action Bar

 

Google has a couple of interesting updates Cloud Print, a service that lets you send documents from any device to your printer, and an improved weather display for search pages on mobile devices…

 

Here is the deal with cloud print you can print a Google Docs document or, say, a .DOC or .PDF attachment from an email by just tapping "Print" from the dropdown menu. You can do it from any browser, even the one on your mobile phone Google cloud services will make sure that the doc finds its way to your printer.

 

 

The example they give sounds pretty cool on your way to work, you find an important document on your phone and you use Cloud Print to have the printer at work print it out and have it waiting for you when you arrive.

 

There are a couple of issues I see with this. For one, they open their post by saying Cloud Print works "without the need to install any software" except that… It only works for printers connected to Windows PC computers, which have a special beta version of Chrome web browser installed. Now how about that? And what if your work computer is off in the morning while you’re still on your way to the office? Guess what, I bet it will not print anything.

 

There are other quirks too. The Google Cloud Print requires that your specific make of printer be compatible with the the service. Cloud Print should be available right now in the US for English speaking users only. You will need a device that supports HTML5 and a Windows PC.

 

Disney Mobile, which is enjoying a new lease of life in Japan after a short stint in the US, will be launching its first smartphone. You might be thinking of a Mickey Mouse shaped plastic gadget but it turns out its a very serious Android smartphone made by Sharp…

 

The Disney Mobile smartphone is a re-branded Sharp 003SH and it boasts some impressive features. There is a 1GHz CPU ticking on the inside, running Android 2.2 Froyo with Flash in the web browser.

 

The screen is a surprise too a 3.8-inch WVGA screen with glasses-free 3D. The camera on the back of the Disney droid has the unusual 9.6MP resolution and records HD videos.

 

 

Speaking of the back, it will be customizable with selection of six custom back covers. There will be other Disney-related content too Mickey and Minnie emoticons, some apps and widgets and a @disney.ne.jp email address.

 

The Disney Mobile smartphone will be available in February. More info will be available at the end of this month!

Last year Google I/O event titillated us with the possibility of some cloud based music action for Android, but sice then there's been next to no advancement on that prospect. Well GizmoFusion have gotten their paws on a screenshot of a music sync option in Android.

They claim the screenshot comes from a device running Gingerbread, presumably some updated version not publicly available yet, and it clearly shows a music sync option embedded within Android's settings alongside the likes of the more familiar Gmail and Contacts syncing options.

Obviously one screenshot does not a rumour confirm, but nevertheless this could be a feature of Android 2.4. If so it looks like music will be as much a part of Android as other Google services.

Everybody loves sci-fi technology, but its awesome to see it happen for real. Thats the case with the new Google Translate for Android, which is on the verge of breaking the language barrier and change our world forever.

 

Ok, the case is surely exaggerated, but imagine a world where everyone speaks its native language and the others understand him perfectly. This is not what the current Google Translate does, but its the first step to that technology, so its important.

The latest version of Google Translate for Android includes the experimental Conversation Mode, which currently works only between English and Spanish. You hit the English microphone icon and speak, then your words are translated and spoken in Spanish.

Google Translate has a new look too, but we are sure the most interesting part will be the Conversation Mode. In a previous demonstration, Google showed it working between English and German, so we guess other language updates will follow soon.

The updated app is available for Android 2.1 (HTC Hero and above) and above devices and you can get it from the Market right away

 

Everybody loves sci-fi technology, but its awesome to see it happen for real. Thats the case with the new Google Translate for Android, which is on the verge of breaking the language barrier and change our world forever.

 

Ok, the case is surely exaggerated, but imagine a world where everyone speaks its native language and the others understand him perfectly. This is not what the current Google Translate does, but its the first step to that technology, so its important.

The latest version of Google Translate for Android includes the experimental Conversation Mode, which currently works only between English and Spanish. You hit the English microphone icon and speak, then your words are translated and spoken in Spanish (or vice versa).

 

Google Translate has a new look too, but we are sure the most interesting part will be the Conversation Mode. In a previous demonstration, Google showed it working between English and German, so we guess other language updates will follow soon.

 

According to 27-percent of the people that took part in the latest Nielsen survey 4G is what the latest iPhone is called.

With American carriers all keen to boast about their 4G networks to anyone who would listen, Nielsen decided to check how much people really know about 4G wireless tech. As it turned out 17-percent of the participants have never heard of it, while only 51-percent of the rest claimed to know what it means. Now that speaks volumes of the efficiency of those multi-million ad campaigns,

 

And back to where we started, some 27-percent of the interviewed claimed that it was the name of the current iteration of the Apple iPhone. A new Android phone from T-Mobile was the answer of every 7th participant. Another 43-percent thought 4G stands for new devices that process data faster.

Still there were 54-percent that said 4G was a network supposed to allow data transfer speeds of at least 100 Mbps, while 16-percent went for either LTE or WiMax. The other answers that I am willing to rate as close enough are wireless internet at broadband speeds and mobile network upgrade for high-quality video streaming.

 

 

I know all the excitement about the Android names is so overrated, but still we going to pass you the news. The next Android version will not be called Ice Cream… but Ice Cream Sandwich. The word comes directly from the Android chief Andy Rubin.

 

The name change was probably necessary because the Ice Cream sculpture would have been too similar with the Froyo one. Sounds like a real mouth-full.

 

Meanwhile Google released the Native Development Kit for Android, which allows the programmers to make Android apps without Java, using C/C++ only. This way the app quality and performance will be much better as most big titles already have C++ versions.

 

 

Its been over a year and a half since we heard that INQ was working on an Android phone, but now, finally, Bluetooth certifications for INQ Cloud Touch droid heavy with Facebook integration bring some validity to that age old rumor.

The Bluetooth specifications do not reveal much save for a short description of the INQ Cloud Touch. Its an Android device, maybe with a custom UI it has Facebook integrated into its core. There will be a wide selection of widgets for the various Facebook functions, like status updates, albums, photos and videos. The only other spec on the INQ Cloud Touch available is Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP support.

I also checked the Wi-Fi certification page, but there is nothing up there yet. Note that it does not mean that the Cloud Touch will not have Wi-Fi Android phones without Wi-Fi are quite rare 

 

Google Goggles is a great tool for on-the-spot product research just scan the barcode and Google will find reviews, prices and even check in-store availability for you. A new version of the Goggles app improves performance and lets you use print ads for quick searches too and Goggles 1.3 for Android has one more tick up its sleeve, something you probably did not expect Sudoku mastery…

For a start, barcode scanning is speedier with the new version just hover over a barcode and the phone will bring up the relevant search results in a second, vibrating to notify you when its done. Ads in major US magazines and newspapers can now be scanned too snap a photo and Google Goggles will return search results for the product and the brand.

The final trick that Goggles 1.3 has to offer is pretty impressive indeed it solves Sudoku puzzles. All you have to do is take a photo of the puzzle and Goggles will have the solution in seconds. It will take away from the fun if you use it on every Sudoku puzzle out there but it will sure save you a lot of frustration if you get stuck on one of the hard ones.

One of every two Android smartphones out there now runs the version 2.2 of the operating system. And while Froyo already accounts for 51.8% of all droids, 2.3 Gingerbread has the miniscule market share of 0.4%.

Of course, we should have in mind that the statistics are based on data collected in the two weeks ending on 4 January. At that time there was only one handset running Gingerbread available and it has only been selling for a few weeks in just a couple of countries. We are expecting this percentage to increase rapidly as the reach of Android 2.3 extends over the coming weeks.

The 8.4% percent of market share that Froyo gained over the past month are mostly at the expense of Android 2.1 Eclair, which slipped 4.4% compared to last month and now runs on 35.2% of all droids.

 

Android has come a long way since the days of the G1, and since then has taken the mobile space by storm and is now on hundreds of devices around the world. The newest version of the popular OS, Android 3.0 Honeycomb was developed for devices with larger screens in mind, namely tablets. From the recent video that leaked just hours before the Motorola event, to the actual demo unit of the Xoom that showed yet another video, Honeycomb may just be what Google needs to overtake the entire space.

Decked out in a holographic UI, Honeycomb brings many revamped applications specifically for tablets, as well as some great new features that will take the OS to the next level. With scrollable widget support and cool 3D transition effects, Honeycomb brings a lot of eye-candy to the tablet. While Gingerbread may spruce up the Android phone up in many ways, 3.0 looks to be a truly sexy and engaging experience never seen on any tablet device before.

Honeycomb updates many of the applications that are available on Android phones today, but has revamped them to fit a tablet. Much like the implementations that Samsung and Notion Inkhave put into their devices, Google gives the user panels that display their own specific information. For example, the Gmail application shows your inbox on the left side of the screen, and when you select an email to view, instead of changing the screen completely, a second screen will appear right next to it. This will allow you to have access to your inbox even if you are in the middle of reading an email already. This use of panels is not only extremely useful, but allows you to get to the content faster. Plus, how else would Google take advantage of the extra real estate?

Another application that has seen a massive makeover is YouTube. Judging from the video, the app is 3D in almost every way. Not unlike the CoolIris-made 3D photo gallery introduced in Android 2.1, but the videos are displayed in a concave UI. We are sure there are more goodies within the app, but we need something more than a short video to see all of the app’s new features. Other apps demoed were a revamped version of Google Books, which looks equally as sexy. Google Maps is packaged with  Honeycomb, and no upgrades  have been seen from the video, but there is just no need. Its great as it is, and it looks like it was made for Honeycomb.

Widgets are brought to life like never before. There are now more of them, getting them on your homescreen is implemented in a different way, and they are now scrollable. I was very happy to see a Gmail widget finally, as the alternatives in the Android Market just do not do it for me. The short video also shows a zoomed out view of your homescreen, and along the bottom you will find your widgets. It looks pretty similar to the MIUI custom ROM, and we are definitely not complaining about that.

Finally Android will see an official video chat client, and its all done through Gtalk. This is very smart of Google, as many use Gtalk as it is, and it looks like its been implemented beautifully. Hopefully we will see this feature work its way down into older versions of the OS, but for now, you will have to wait for Honeycomb to get this feature.

Video Below!

 

 

Lets give a warm welcome to the Dell Streak 7. The follow-up to the original 5-inch-screen Streak features a dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor ticking at 1Ghz. The device will be running on Android 2.2 Froyo with Dell custom Stage interface, until Honeycomb is launched later this year when it will be updated.

As the name suggests, the Streak 7 packs a 7-inch capacitive multi-touch display with WVGA resolution of 800×480 and Gorilla Glass for protection. Weighing about 450 grams, the tablet features up to 32GB of internal storage expandable via a MicroSD card slot, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR and GPS. Standard front and rear cameras are on board, 1.3 MP and 5MP auto focus with flash with respectively.

 

T-Mobile will launch the slate on its "HSPA+ 42" network in the coming weeks, although its still a mystery when exactly and how much it’s going to cost you is still a mystery.

 

After the Streak 7 was presented, on the stage appeared its bigger brother, the Dell Streak 10. The 10-inch tablet is targeted mostly towards business users and will feature built-in VPN support. Expect more news on the device soon.

 

 

 

We already knew Android 3.0 Honeycomb is designed specifically with tablets in mind, but until today I have never seen a detailed demo from up-close. At this year CES, Google has published a short video demo of the upcoming Honeycomb tablet version and its awesome.

Android 3.0 Honeycomb has a completely new user interface based around 3D desktops and various interactive widgets. The multi-tasking and its UI, the notifications and menus, the Gmail and YouTube looks have also been redesigned for bigger screens.

Honeycomb also packs the new Google Maps 5 version the first with 3D vector graphics and brings along a new web browser capable of tabs, Flash, auto-fill, private browsing and bookmark sync with Chrome. In fact the Android 3.0 web browser looks, feels and behaves just like a desktop one.

There is no info how this version will fit in mobile phones, but I guess we should get more info soon.

Android has always ben something of a wild west when it came to establishing minimum standards for the hardware. Basically Android would run on pretty much anything that was not using punch cards or valves.

Other platforms have taken a different route, Apple of course does not license its iOS platform to anyone else and strictly controls its own hardware. Microsoft have taken a sort of middle path, licensing Windows Phone 7 to third parties, but mandating that there be minimum hardware specifications to keep some consistency.

The current chatter is that Honeycomb, the version of Android after Gingerbread, will be following a similar route to Windows Phone 7 and be available only to devices that meet certain requirements.

NVIDIA Tegra 2 dual core chip is rumoured to be the reference point for Honeycomb and as such it might very well become a requirement to actually run it. The knock-on effect of such a move is that existing tablets and devices that do not use that chip would be left out in the cold in terms of an upgrade.

The Tegra 2 requirement was confirmed by Bobby Cha, the head honcho at South Korean electronics firm Enspert. Of course Mr Cha isn't an official spokesman for Google so we will have to wait for full confirmation. Mr Cha did go on to say that Motorola would be the first manufacturer out of the door with a Honeycomb powered tablet, which is pretty much what many people were expecting.

If Honeycomb does indeed ship with minimum spec requirements it might cause a bit of upset amongst those who have just bought a shiny new device e.g. a Galaxy Tab and found out their Android upgrade path has been cut short. Of course the boffins will no doubt be working on hacks and ports to get around any such limitations ...

 

 

LTE devices for Verizon will be here soon! And of course, the first of many we will see are the HTC Thunderbolt, which we have been hearing plenty about, and the Samsung SCH-i520 not so popular for now. These Android devices are pretty promising, especially the sexy Thunderbolt we have seen so much of, and they will also be speedy demons on Verizon LTE network.

 

We are hoping to see some of these handsets at CES in just a few days, but for now we can rest assured that they are coming very soon. Both the HTC Thunderbolt and the Samsung SCH-i520 SKUs have popped up in Verizon system, along with dummy phones, too.

 

I am getting pretty excited for the coming Android devices Android 2.3, Tegra 2 dual-core processors, better hardware and the ever-expanding 4G networks that are rolling out. Its going to be a really good year for smartphones.

 

 

There is a new threat in town. And by town, I mean China. Malware authors have created a bit of code called Geinimi that hitchhikes on existing apps when they are redistributed on third-party markets. At the moment it does not do much but lurk, but its capabilities resemble that of a botnet server, according to Lookout, a company that makes antivirus software for Android.

So far the code has been identified as being able to send out your location, IMEI, app list, and to download apps. There could be more, and it likely has the ability to modify itself. Users outside of China are apparently at little risk, and at any rate your security is in your own hands if you are downloading a to-do list app and it wants access to your GPS and calling functions, that’s probably bogus.

Maxthon, which you may know for their desktop web browser, updated its mobile app allowing users to sync data between Maxthon on their computer and Maxton Mobile (For Android Devices e.g. Galaxy S, Nexus S... etc). In addition, this version also introduces finger gestures to let users control their mobile browsing without having to search for tiny buttons.

 

Thanks to the synchronization feature, users can manage contacts and favorites from either their PC or an Android phone. For instance, you can use Maxthon on your PC to sort contacts by phone area code and then access the same contacts in the same order on your Android device.

 

As for the gestures, with the new version of Maxthon Mobile you can close a page tab by drawing a "c", reopen an inadvertently closed tab by drawing a reverse "c" or create a new tab by drawing an "n."

 

Download BETA For Android

With the rumors that Honeycomb will be Android 2.4instead of 3.0, there is even more evidence to confirm this now. While this can be, and has been faked, is beginning to look a whole new shade of real.

 

With their Honeycomb tablet expected to debut at CES 2011, we are wondering if Motorola will just be showing off the hardware or not. The new OS version is expected to be announced the following month, so it’s possible Motorola could show off the Android Honeycomb OS . Nonetheless, Android 2.4 has been pinging sites for some time now, but we have no idea if these visits are by the real deal, or someone who has edited the file on their device to say otherwise.

 

Android 2.4 began hitting up some sites server logs, but along with those pings were Android 3.0 visits as well. We are not too sure, but the evidence that Honeycomb will be 2.4 seems to get stronger by the day. What we are wondering is if Honeycomb is indeed Android 2.4 with its all-new UI, what would deserve the Android 3.0 name? Is Google already working on Ice Cream to floor us after the release of Honeycomb?

 

Hopefully we will be seeing more than just the hardware of Motorola tablet during CES. Since Gingerbread is not as impressive as it was thought to be, even though its still a nice update, people may be clamoring for something a bit better, and that will be Honeycomb. We are already starting to see pieces of Honeycomb beginning to trickle down the pipeline, so to speak, and hopefully this means we will see the official announcement at CES.

 

As possible as it would be to fake these visits, we imagine that a good chunk of them are the real deal. Whether the device being used is the Motorola Xoom, or a completely different device we’ve never seen before, Honeycomb is closer than ever. Google can give it whatever version number it wants, we just want it on our devices pronto.

A new piece of Android malware has raised its ugly head in China and it looks to be a rather nasty sort. The trojan, called Gemini, has the potential to "compromise a significant amount of personal date on a user phone and send it to remote servers" according to Lookout Mobile Security.

The company goes on to explain that "Gemini is the first Android malware in the wild that displays botnet-like capabilities". So what exactly does it do? Well once the malware is installed on your device it can receive commands from a remote server and allow whomever controls that server to control your phone.

When first installed the malware will request that the user grant is access to more permissions than the original application asked for. With such permissions it can start sending your information back to its controllers, information such as IMEI number, location information and also request that the user install further applications.

There is got to be some ray of hope here right? Well sort of. For the moment Gemini is restricted to third party app stores in China. However, given how these things get around that is by no means a guarantee that it will stay confined to the Middle Kingdom.

Checking for a new update is all part of the fun of owning an Android device, but it seems that the familiar method of requesting a check via your handset's settings menu does not always bring up an update that might actually be available for your handset.

Not to fear though because there is another method of checking for updates, via your handset keypad. You enter the following code [*#*#2432546#*#] excluding the brackets, and it should checkin and see if there is an update waiting for you. Note that the numbers in the code spell out the word ''Checkin" on your phone keypad.

A few caveats though this method seems to work for some, but not others. I have tried it a few times myself on an HTC Desire and it did not work at all. If the checkin procedure is successful it should bring up a message saying "Checkin succeeded". If successful you can then go into settings and check for an update as normal and if one is indeed there it should now show up.

The other point to note is that this procedure, whilst forcing any waiting updates to make themselves available, will not magically creat an update out of thin air. If there is no update for your phone then there is no update for you phone.

More than half a year ago Google demonstrated a new Android music player. It had completely new interface, a software menu key and was capable of wireless iTunes streaming.

 

This particular player has now leaked and is available on the XDA Developers. Bear in mind that the app is in early stage of development and is probably full of bugs. The leaked music player seems to be a part of the upcoming Android 3.0 Honeycomb, which is expected in the summer 2011.

 

Just as a refresher, here is the demo video from the Google I/O 2010 where we saw it first. Back then we did not pay much attention to the software menu key. After watching carefully the video of the mysterious Motorola tablet running Android 3.0 Honeycomb, where this menu button appears everywhere, it seems Google may replace the hardware key with a software one.

 

2 Video Below!

 

Guess what, the voice search functionality has just arrived to the Chrome web browser and similarly to the Android voice search functionality you can input text in the search box and even text fields. Thanks to the Voice Search extension you are now capable of voice input on every search box in the web. Just click on the mic icon and speak in your microphone.

There are a few preloaded services into the Voice Search Google, Wikipedia, YouTube, Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo and Wolfram Alpha. But you can always add your custom commands in the list.

The Voice Search is experimental so it might have bugs or not recognize some words properly, but most of the comments are quite positive at this time. The add-on is free and is available at the Chrome Extensions page and at the Chrome Web Store.

 

 

Android has certainly come along way since that first handset, the G1, debuted all those years ago. One thing that has remained stubbornly poor though is the inbuilt music  app that ships with Android. Most Android users start looking for a replacement right away and thats fine, after all thats part of the beauty of Android. Well back at the Google I/O event earlier this year we caught a glimpse of a rather snazzy looking music app that had all sorts of great features like allowing you to browse your PC music library straight from the handset.

Some expected that new improved app to show up in Gingerbread, but alas it was not to be. However, a new Android music player has leaked out, albeit sans those spiffy wireless access features we saw at I/O, but its still causing some excitement and the current thinking is that it might ship with Android 3.0 (Honeycomb).

There are some nice aesthetic changes that help to make the app a bit more appealling over the current offering. You might notice in the video below that there is a menu button present in the app at the top right hand corner. That would seem to indicate a move away from the reliance on the hardware buttons of the handset to access such options.

 

 

Videos Below!

 

VLC, already a staple of the iOS app store, is about to hit the Android Market according to the project lead developer, Jean-Baptiste Kempf.

Android users can expect the release within just a few weeks. The release was made possible by improvements in the NDK that were released with Gingerbread.

The initial release of VLC for Android will be a beta release so the usual caveats will apply its probably going to have bugs and it will almost certainly not work on all Android devices. It also will not support every codec. Even so its good to see another top name media player making its way to the Market and no doubt, given VLC open source nature, it will improve with time.

 

An interesting under-the-hood change has come with Android 2.3 Gingerbread a new file system called ext4. You may have heard of it, its fairly common among Linux distributions. Ext4 is already running in Google massive data centers and it will slowly be making its way to their mobile OS, starting with the Google Nexus S…

 

The reason why Google chose ext4 for their data centers has mostly to do with the file system improved support and performance when dealing with large files and large storage drives. That is not a problem on mobile phones but there are other benefits for the mobile.

 

Most Android devices out there are using YAFFS, which is a file system specifically designed for flash storage. Its problem is that its single-threaded that is, it will not see a performance boost on those rumored dual-core droids that so often grace our news section lately. Ext4 will offer a performance boost even on single core CPUs but with two cores the difference will be even more pronounced.

 

On the bad side, there are some concerns that ext4 will increase the chances of data loss. However, vendors do extensive testing before shipping a product and a well programmed app should not have problems anyway.

 

 

A Taiwanese tech rumours, has slipped into an article the suggestion that Honeycomb, the next iteration of Android after Gingerbread, should be released this coming March.

The Rumors was talking about tablet plans from various manufacturers, contained the following comment:

"On the other hand, MSI is set to display its 10-inch Wintel-based tablet PC as well as engineering samples of its ARM-based Google Android model. MSI is also prepared to sell an Nvidia Tegra 2-based model in April or May after Google releases Android 3.0 in March."

Of course this is not an official announcement so as ever be wary of taking it at afce value, but the timing does feel right at least it has to be said.

 

Someone got their hands on the script for a Dell Streak 7 commercial. The planned ad is one long list of features of the Dell yet unannouned 7-inch tablet and stars the Android mascot…

The commercial does not reveal much detail on the Dell Streak 7 in terms of specs or any potential launch date or price but it does present it as an all-in-one device from gaming, to working with spreadsheets, multimedia, navigation, social networking and an eBook reading.

The Dell Streak 7 will run Android with a Stage UI skin and its screen will be protected by Gorilla Glass. The ad does not mention voice-calling but its a likely feature the smaller Streak has it and having a SIM card inside the device is a requirement for access to the Android Market. Not that voice calls are the most important feature for a tablet.

Its possible that the Dell Streak will make an appearance during CES, which is about to set off in early January, and then we’ll have all the details we want maybe even see the pages of this script in a finished, animated form.

 

 

The price of the 5-inch Android-powered tablet Dell Streak in the US has just been seriously reduced. Froyo-loving Android-junkies can now purchase it without signing any contracts for as low as $400.

This is $180 lower than what Dell USA were previously charging for the 16GB version of the SIM-free Dell Streak. The bad news is shipping will take quite some time: the cheap Streaks will not be knocking on your door until 11 January 2011.

Interestingly, the 16GB version of the thing will arrive with the Android 1.6 Donut on board, but getting rid of it is as easy as pie thanks to the available update to update to Android 2.2 Froyo which comes Over-the-Air. As for the 500-dollar 32GB version of the 5-incher, it will be serving Froyo out of the box.

As our review revealed, the Dell Streak is not the ultimate Android-driven tablet or smartphone out there, but with the Froyo update that followed shortly after that and the new, lower price it seems like a much better deal.

 

 

Sending Android phones into space seems to be the thing to do these days and its happening more and more frequently. You may remember just the other week we posted about Google sending some of their new Nexus S handsets to the final frontier, well they've been getting some pretty decent results from their experiment.

For one thing the Nexus S managed to stay fully functional even at -50 celsius and the GPS chip managed to function accurately at a height of 60,000 feet. It obviously stopped working as the handset soared higher and higher, but regained functionality on the way back to Earth.

All in all the balloon carrying the handset reached an altitude of over 100,000 feet and travelled at speeds of up to 139mph. You can see the moment the balloon, which was filled with helium, popped as it expanded at maximum altitude.

 

Videos Below!

 

The first tablets based on the rumored Android 3.0 Honeycomb are expected to see daylight for the first time at the CES 2011. However, rumor is the first Honeycomb-powered devices will not hit the market until March next year.

This is when the upcoming version of the Android platform should be officially released by Google. By the way, Samsung is not the only company working on a Honecomb-driven tablet like the Galaxy Tab2 (Galaxy Tab HD)...

 

Apparently, companies such as Asustek, Elitegroup Computer Systems, and MSI are about to unveil some Android-based tablets too. And some of them might have a dual-core Tegra2 processor on board.

 

But we are Really Exited for Samsung as its gonna Make something New, Fast and Amazing like the Nexus S and the Galaxy Sm Lets Hope!

 

The Android Market just got another update and now supports carrier billing in addition to the regular credit card payments. At this stage it only works for ATT customers, but others are promised to follow shortly.

Of course, the lack of carrier billing is not the biggest problem of the Android Market by some distance. The fact that paid applications are still available in only a handful of countries is where Google really should focus their effort right now.

 

The Dell Venue droid is celebrating its official worldwide launch just a week after its Korea-only launch. The Snapdragon powered droid couples Android 2.2 Froyo and Dell own Stage UI along with a 4.1-inch AMOLED screen.

The Dell Venue looks similar to the Venue Pro but its only superficial it dropped the keyboard and Microsoft OS in favor of a slimmer frame and Android. It uses the same Gorilla Glass protected 4.1-inch WVGA AMOLED screen and ups the camera resolution to 8MP.

The Dell Venue is available immediately in Hong Kong for HK$3,999 ($514 or €390) though there is no info on when it will hit the stores in other regions.

 

 

A few days ago the Google dev team officially unveiled the latest version of their Maps mobile application. Later on they have decided to shed some light on the engine that powers the whole thing and have released a lengthy post about it.

For example, did you know that the new vector graphics consume more than 100 times less data than the previously used stitched images. Its also the reason why offline navigation was made possible its just that far less caching is required now.

 

 

Today Swype announced that they are releasing a new beta for Android and, unlike the previous one its publicly available for download. The input solution is as good as virtual QWERTY keyboards go, but has so far been unavailable to the general public.

 

With the first beta of Swype for Android you either had to have a handset that has it preinstalled or you needed to be lucky enough to get into the private beta program to test it. Yet now that the final release is nearing all you need to do is register on Swype website and you get to download the keyboard.

 

 

It takes less than a minute, but you do need to open the email through your phone and start the download from there as the app checks your hardware compatibility. Mind you, if your handset does come with Swype preinstalled, you should NOT try to install the beta.

 

This second Swype beta supports devices with HVGA (320 x 480 pixels), WVGA (800 x 480 pixels) like the Galaxy S Display and FWVGA (854 x 480 pixels) screens.

 

 

Get the BETA

 

 

Want to dig through 2.3 and see what all the fuss is about for yourself?

 

Well, you are in luck, becauseGingerbread has just hit the Android Open Source Projects repository, which means you can set up your machine to download the code. Its great news for hardware companies that do not care to get Google certification to include Android Market access but its also great news for casual and serious hackers alike who are looking to craft some seriously wild, wacky custom ROMs.

 

A major update to Google Maps has just hit the Android market. Version 5.0 of the Google digital map software brings in vector graphics, cool new 3D features and offline navigation.

So starting today instead of a series of small stitched together image tiles, Google Maps will be dynamically drawing vector graphics. This means that instead of pre-rendered images, Maps are rendered on the device itself, making scaling and transitions way smoother.

 

Next come the 3D interactions that are possible thanks to the two newly implemented multi-touch gestures. Dragging down with two fingers will tilt the map and switch between 2D and 3D view, while twisting your fingers will rotate the map. There is also compass mode enabled in Google Maps 5.0 allowing you to look around by simply panning around with your phone.

 

Finally there is the offline navigation or as the Google dev team calls it offline reliability. It allows Google Maps to reroute you if you leave your initially calculated track even if you don’t have internet access during navigation. You still need internet access before you start navigating though.

 

Google Maps 5.0 is available to Android devices running version 1.6 (Donut) or later but the 3D features and offline navigation are only accessible on 2.0+ (Eclair) handsets. Now start updating!

 

 

Remember that awesome new build of Google Maps for Android that Google started teasing us with last week? Its now available!

The new build, creatively dubbed Google Maps 5, packs at least three big features: 3D building rendering, Dynamic, Vector-based map drawing, and Offline reliability. While that first feature is perhaps the most flashy, the last two are what really seal the deal. If it were not already, Maps for Android is now quite certainly the best mapping experience in mobile.

You see, up until this point, Google Maps used image tiles for all of their street maps on Android. Images are big, and take a ton of memory, Google is instead using vectors. You can pass many thousands of vector coordinates in the same bit of bandwidth that would be required for a single image tile by Google estimate, these new vector-based maps required 70% less data overall as opposed to their old image-based counterparts. As a result, maps will load much faster, you will be able to zoom in and out without that nasty blurry lag and the app can store much, much bigger chunks of the map in memory.

 

 

 

Consoles of yesteryear often find a new following through emulators for other platforms, certainly old Nintendo games are alive and well through emulators. In that very spirit of resurrecting the deceased it looks like the Dreamcast may yet live again through Android.

Drk||Raziel has posted up some footage showing nullDCe for Android, a Dreamcast emulator. The videos range from "Soul Caliber", which is buggy to "Crazy Taxi", which is a lot smoother. Check them out below.

 

 

3 Video Below!

 

 

 

Android has gone from strength to strength over the past few years. the operating system has quickly become a dominant force in the mobile industry today. The open-source platform is free from restrictions that come with other devices, and this has lead to the development of some really fantastic software.

In this Article I am gonna Show you Some Tips for Android OS and Also Some Applications that you Really Need on your Android phone if this is your First Time on Android!

 

 

Article Updated Daily with Latest Apps and Tips!

PART 3

 

 

 

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Best Utility App

 

 

Remote Desktop Client

Along the same lines as LogMeIn Ignition, Remote Desktop Client lets you control your Windows computer from your Android device. However, its based on the RDP protocol, which comes as standard with most versions of Windows, rather than LogMeIn own technology, this might be a benefit if you do not have much control over what you can install on the client computer.

Price: $24.95

 

 

TweetDeck

TweetDeck is not just for Twitter! It also supports Facebook, Foursquare and Buzz. The developers have tried something different here, going for a design that’s different to both their desktop application and their iPhone app. It shows a lot of promise, but it will probably take a while to grow on you. Definitely worth checking out, especially if you already use TweetDeck Desktop.

Price: Free

---

Best Tasks App

 

ASTRO File Manager

This is the best file manager I have used on Android. It has a decent UI for navigation, built in zip managers, image and text viewers, and can even generate a breakdown of folder sizes. Plus, plugins are available that add Bluetooth and SMB networking capabilities. In short, it’s exactly what you need from a file manager.

Price: Free ($3.99 ad-free version available)

 

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Best   

Launcher

   App

 

 

Open Home

Open Home gives you access to hundred of free skins and icons packs, and adds a lot of customization options for fonts, colors, and so on. Download it, then search the Market for Open Home to see just how many skins are available. A couple are pictured in the screenshots below.

Price: $3.99

 

Swype

Swype is how I expected touchscreen keyboards to work before I got my Android. Instead of tapping at letters, you drag your finger over the letters in one continuous motion, and Swype figures out what you want to type. In the image below, we are typing "quick".

When Swype works, its remarkably fast and remarkably cool. More importantly, it feels right, scribbling across the surface of your phone. For now, Swype is not available on the Market, but it comes bundled with some handsets, and there’s a closed beta you can apply to which allows a few new users in every once in a while. The beta version is not perfect, but its definitely worth trying, if you can get it.

Price: Free (Beta)

---

Best Widget

 

JuicePlotter widget

JuicePlotter charts your battery usage over time. The graph is well presented, with the ability to overlay data from previous days and so on, but lets be honest: thats really geeky.

The real reason for downloading this application is the widget thats bundled with it. Rather than displaying a percentage of charge, it displays how many hours of battery power you have left. And because its tied in to all the data recorded about your battery usage that the graph uses, its remarkably accurate.

Price: Free

 

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Android Tips and Tricks

 

Lock Your Phone With a Pattern

With a touchscreen, you do not need to lock your keyboard to stop yourself accidentally making a phone call by hitting random numbers while your phone in your pocket… But its still a good idea to lock the phone with some sort of code to prevent other people from using it.

You can use a password or PIN code for this, though I think a join-the-dots pattern is more fun. In your phone Settings, select the Security options, then tap "Set up screen lock" to choose one of these methods.

 

Get a Refund

If you buy an application from the Market, but it does not work or you are unhappy for some other reason, you can request a refund within 24 hours of purchase. Simply open the Market, tap My Downloads, select the application you wish to return, and press Uninstall & Refund.

 

Use Keyboard Shortcuts

If you have an Android phone with a physical keyboard, like the T-Mobile G2, you can assign keyboard shortcuts to load different applications. In Settings, tap Applications > Quick Launch to view or modify the current shortcuts. Many of the built-in applications have their own set of keyboard shortcuts, too.

 

Turn Off Email Notification Sounds

I get a lot of email, so the little chirrup noises that notify my of a new one quickly change from amusing to annoying. You can turn these off without putting your phone on silent inside the Gmail application: press MENU, then More, then Settings, scroll down to "Select ringtone" and choose the Silent option.

You will still see the notifications in the status bar, but will not be constantly disturbed by them. Peace at last!

 

Edit Google Docs on Your Phone

Up until mid-November, Google Docs was read-only on mobile devices. Now Google are rolling out an update that will allow Android 2.2 users to edit documents and spreadsheets. Head to https://docs.google.com/, open a document, and click Edit.

 

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Article Updated Daily with Latest Apps and Tips!

PART 3

 

 

The Google dev team just announced an update to their Voice search application for Android. Available for devices running version 2.2 (Froyo) or later the new version introduces personalized voice recognition, which should rapidly improve the number of successfully recognized search queries. What that means is that Google will pre-record your own voice so the service gets better in recognizing your voice commands.

To activate personalized search for Google Voice you need to make the update and tick the check-box in the settings menu. One started, personalized recognition associates the recordings of the words that you want to search with your Google account. Google then builds a custom speech model for you that should allow it to deliver greater recognition accuracy. According to the developers improvements begin fairly quickly and will build over time.

The new app should also offer improvements to name recognition and overall speed, especially when you’re using a 3G or an EDGE connection.

 

 

 

Android has gone from strength to strength over the past few years. the operating system has quickly become a dominant force in the mobile industry today. The open-source platform is free from restrictions that come with other devices, and this has lead to the development of some really fantastic software.

In this Article I am gonna Show you Some Tips for Android OS and Also Some Applications that you Really Need on your Android phone if this is your First Time on Android!

 

 

Article Updated Daily with Latest Apps and Tips!

PART 2

 

 

---

 

 

 

Best Utility App

 

 

Sleep Now!

Gentle Alarm helps you wake up; Sleep Now!, by the same team, helps you fall asleep. It plays relaxing music or white noise to help you drift off, and uses Android accelerometer and touch screen to detect when you’ve fallen asleep. It will then let you sleep for as long as you’ve specified in the settings before playing an alarm of your choice to wake you up.

Sleep Now! is great for power napping, and the built-in automated sleep logger is interesting. The only downside is that it doesn’t integrate with Gentle Alarm. Perhaps in the future…

Price: $1 (free trial available, which works for three days in a row, then skips a day)

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Best Tasks App

 

SMS Backup +

My last phone refused to sync to my computer. One day it turned itself off, and when I turned it back on again it had deleted all of my text messages. Dang.

SMS Backup automatically copies all your SMS messages to a folder on your Gmail account, as soon as you receive them. So not only do you keep a backup of every text you’ve ever written or received, but you also gain the ability to search all your messages within Gmail. And it’s all done in the background, so you do not even have to think about it.

Price: Free

 

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Best  

Launcher

  App

 

 

Slidescreen

This home replacement application has a different slant to the others we’ve looked at so far; it’s focused on your information: text messages, email, phone calls, agenda, RSS feeds, and social networks.

Price: $6.99 (FREE ad-supported version available)

 

 

TeamViewer

TeamViewer is another "remote control" application, aimed at the higher end of the market. (The Android application is free while its in beta, but the iPhone app costs $99.99)

It does justify this with a more elegant design and a host of advanced features, try it out before you buy it to make sure you need the extras.

Price: Free for beta use; full pricing will be announced in Feb 2011

---

 

 

Best Widget

 

Open Home

Open Home gives you access to hundred of free skins and icons packs, and adds a lot of customization options for fonts, colors, and so on. Download it, then search the Market for Open Home to see just how many skins are available. A couple are pictured in the screenshots below.

Price: $3.99

 

 

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Android Tips and Tricks

 

Add More to Your Home Screen

So you know that you can add applications and widgets to the home screen. Have you ever looked at the different kinds of shortcuts that can be added, though?

You can add contact cards, so that you can call people in a hurry; bookmarks, for websites you absolutely need to have at your fingertips, geographical locations, for fast navigation; and music playlists, perhaps for different moods.

 

Streamline Your Application Updates

Android Market 2.2 introduced two new features to improve application updates: Update Automatically and Update All. Open Market, navigate to your Downloads, and tap any application to reveal an "Allow automatic updating" checkbox; tick this and the application will be updated whenever there’s a new version available.

That is, unless the new version requests some new permissions that way, a simple widget cannot suddenly gain control of your contact lists and emails without your allowing it to.

In the Downloads section, an Update All button will be visible if any of your applications have new versions available; tap it to install them all.

 

Quickly Search Using Your Voice

Hold down the Search button for a second or so, and a "Speak now" dialog will appear. Say something, and Google will search the web for it.

It does more than that: try saying, "navigate to [place]" or "call [business]". This YouTube videogives a great rundown of the different voice commands.

 

Take Screenshots Without Rooting

If you have rooted your device, you have a wide range of screenshot-taking applications to choose from: just Google screenshot android application rooted for a selection. If you have not, the procedure is surprisingly complex:

1. Download and install the Android SDK.
2. On your device, go to Settings > Application > Development. Check the "Enable USB Debugging" box.
3. Plug your device in to your computer via USB.
4. Run the DDMS.bat file inside the \tools\ directory, in the folder where you installed the Android SDK.
5. A program called Dalvik Debug Monitor Service should appear, with your device listed in a panel on the left-hand side.
6. Click the name of your device in the list.
7. Click Device > Screen Capture in the window menu to open another window, Device Screen Capture.
8. Press Refresh in this window to grab the current screen from the device.
9. Press Save to save the screenshot to disk.

 

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Article Updated Daily with Latest Apps and Tips!

PART 2

 

 

 

O2 UK is wrapping up a gift for Dell Streak owners an update to Android 2.2 Froyo. The Streak, which launched in June running 1.6 Donut, has made the jump to 2.1 Eclair and now, its getting ready for another update.

Unlocked Dell Streak tablet/phones have been running Froyo for almost a month now, but carrier-branded devices had to wait till December. And while munching on frozen treats are probably not the best you could do in the cold weather, we're sure Streak owners will enjoy Froyo and that new Stage UI that comes with it.

If you have missed it, the previous 2.1 Eclair update has added 720p video recording to the Dell Streak and it also brings compatibility for many apps, improved keyboard, pinch zooming and live wallpapers.

Anyway, the Froyo update for the Streak should come out this week and it will give apps a performance boost and enable Flash in the browser as well.

 

 

 

Android has gone from strength to strength over the past few years. the operating system has quickly become a dominant force in the mobile industry today. The open-source platform is free from restrictions that come with other devices, and this has lead to the development of some really fantastic software.

In this Article I am gonna Show you Some Tips for Android OS and Also Some Applications that you Really Need on your Android phone if this is your First Time on Android!

 

 

Article Updated Daily with Latest Apps and Tips!

 

 

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Best Utility App

 

 

Barcode Scanner

That weird, black and white, pixelly square to the right is called a QR-Code, and it stores text in the same way that a supermarket barcode stores numbers. In this case, it stores the URL of the Android Market page for the Barcode Scanner application.

Barcode Scanner lets you hold your phone camera up to any of these QR-Codes, quickly decode the contents, and open the URL either in your phones browser or using the Market application. Unfortunately you will have to download the Barcode Scanner application itself using the old-fashioned method of typing the name into the search box, but after that you will be able to grab any of the other application URLs from this page in a couple of seconds.

Price: Free

 

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Best Tasks App

 

Google Tasks Organizer

We use a lot of Google products at Envato: Calendar, Docs, Mail. If you are the same, you will like this application: its based around your Google Tasks. I particularly like that it syncs with multiple Gmail and Google Apps accounts, since I have one for work and another for personal use.

Price: $2.85 (free Trial available)

 

 

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Best 

Launcher

 App

 

 

 

LauncherPro

Another launcher taking cues from HTC Sense, with up to seven home screens and animated screen previews. Its completely down to personal preference as to which one of these works best for your particular needs.

Price: Free

Quickoffice Mobile Suite

Like it or loathe it, Microsoft Office is everywhere. With Quickoffice, you can view and edit Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files from your mobile. It also integrates with Google Docs, Dropbox, Box.net, and MobileMe. its the Best Office Editor available for Android as Microsoft Office is not Available for Android yet.

Price: $9.99

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Best Widget

 

 

Power Control Plus

Sometimes you want to switch off your GPS to save battery, or your Wi-Fi to force the phone to use its 3G connection. The built-in Power Control widget lets you toggle either of those things with a single press, as well as bluetooth, automatic syncs, and the screen’s backlight.

Power Control Plus takes this even further, allowing you to toggle Airplane mode, Silent mode, Auto-screen rotation, screen lock, and many other options. You can also modify the color, size, and orientation of the widget to better fit your screen.

Price: $1.99

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Android Tips and Tricks

 

Multi-Task

This is not a hidden feature, but its surprising how many Android users are not aware of it. Hold the HOME button to pop-up a list of all open applications. Tap any of them to switch to it.

 

Do NOT Bother With Task Killers

As explained by Android software engineer Dianne Hackborn and expanded upon by Lifehacker, the way that the Android platform is designed means that task killers applications that force other applications to stop running are unnecessary. Do not bother choosing and installing one, then monitoring your running applications obsessively to stop them as soon as they’re no longer needed, its a waste of your time.

 

Enable Labs in Google Maps

The Maps application has a few experimental features that can be enabled. To do so, open Maps and press MENU. Select More, then Labs. You will see a list of features, tap any to turn it on.

 

Connect Your Computer to the Internet Through Your Phone Data Plan

Away from home and need to get online with your notebook? If you are running Froyo, you can use your Android phone as a portable Wi-Fi hotspot, connected to the Internet through its data plan.

Press MENU, then tap Settings > Wireless & Networks, and tick the Portable Wi-Fi Hotspot option. If you want to save your battery, plug your phone into your computer and tick USB Tethering instead  this will not require the phone Wi-Fi to be on.

 

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Article Updated Daily with Latest Apps and Tips!

 

 

Parallel app markets are beginning to spring up all over the Android platform, what with special app packs and stores for carriers and manufacturers, and devices like the Nook Color coming out that specifically limit functionality. But if you’re on a plain ol’ Android phone, you are generally going to be going to the plain ol’ Android Market for your apps. And although the newly-announced changes to the interface make it more attractive, it’s still not the best for discoverability.

I have found AppShopper to be a useful tool on my iPad for seeing a random sample of weird and price-shifted apps, and Appsfire might might  be the equivalent of that on Android, if they can get their interface under control.

The main screen is a constantly shifting set of app conveyor belts ostensibly showing off whats new, whats popular, and so on. But without names or descriptions, the icons are almost meaningless, except for ones whose graphics you recognize, and in that case you probably already know about the app. The Discover tab shows much of the same stuff but in a list format, and is similarly information-rich, with many controls and arrows and instructions. My impression is that the casual Android user will be mystified by the busy UI.

For the seasoned user, though, there is a lot of handy information. Being able to favorite a few apps to wait for a price drop, or bulk install/uninstall a few to try out are great, and quite easy to do.