The Android thread

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:23 am

Have an app recommendation so may as well start an Android thread. If people add interesting apps I will compile them in the OP every so often so we have a list. If we keep most of the chat about apps, devices and new versions of Android in here it should become a useful resource over time.

App listing:

Antutu: Mobile benchmark.
Speedtest.net: Test data connection speed, latency etc.
Wifi Analyzer: Find channels with least interference, see SNR etc.
Antennas: See which GSM base station you are connected to and others in your area (with Maps integration) and see signal performance details
Google Sky Map: Find shit in space
Goggles: Picture search, translation, OCR, barcode scanning
Aldiko/Kindle: ereaders
Angry Birds: Addictive games
IMO: Mobile IM, handles MSN, Gtalk, Yahoo, Skype etc.
Google+: Social networking with multi-way free videoconferencing
Skype: Free calls
Whatsapp/Viber: free messaging
Next Train Ireland: Handy Irish train app.
Airdroid: Wirelessly manage and use device from a computer.
Opera Mini/Firefox/Dolphin HD: Alternate browsers.
Astro: File Manager
MoveToSD: Free up internal memory space
Curvefish widgets: Power management and quick toggles
BatteryLife: Good battery meter
Compass: Electronic compass
JuiceDefender: Automate power saving tasks
Shazam/SoundHound: Identify songs.
Vignette: Camera effects etc.
SKy+ - 7 day EPG, remote record etc
BubbleUPnP - DLNA music streaming and control
ES File Explorer - best file browser around, does SMB, LAN, FTP and Cloud. works even better on rooted device
MAME4Droid - MAME video game emulator, brilliant if you know where to find the ROMS
PicSay Pro - photo effects package
SketchBook Mobile - brilliant painting package, would be best on tabs though I think
Paper Camera - real-time camera effects
Sonic CD - old skool
Evernote - multi device note taking and syncing tool
Minecraft Pocket Edition: game, payware, big update next week
World of Goo: game, payware , get if for cheap at the moment with other games at http://www.humblebundle.com
TeslaLED: free flashlight app, and the only one that doesn't require invasive permission (phone calls, full internet access, etc)
Converts: free unit converter, most stuff including clothing size (US/UK/EU), miles per gallon to litre per 100km, gallon to imp gallon to kg, etc...
Droid48: free HP48 emulator, yay.
ColorNote: freee post-it like notes, which you can also stick to the desktop, always handy.
ConnectBot: free ssh client, if you don't know what ssh is, just forget about this, you don't need this app, trust me.
Hailo - For London types, pinpoints and orders a taxi to your location.= - Very very good.
Tube Map - Self explanatory.
Kayak - Holds all your travel details, tells you when your flight might be delayed and suggests alternative options.
Around Me - Restaurants, ATM's, petrol stations etc, tells you where they all out fairly easily.
FilmOn TV - Has more or less every free to air channel stream.
Mp3 Music Download - Want Mp3, Get Mp3 - Free
Unified Remote - Control your laptop through your phone.
Pulse - Aggregates all your favourite news feeds into one panel.
Where's my Droid - If lost or stolen it will lock and locate your phone.
TuneIn: Internet radio, thousands of stations.
Chrome to Phone: Send links from your Chrome browser to your phone instantly.
MapDroyd- Can download maps before you travel so don't have to use roaming data while abroad.
mPass - for Air New Zealand frequent flyers
Key Ring - Save loyalty cards to your phone so you don't have to carry the bloody things everywhere.
ThinkFreeOffice - lets you open office documents. Lite version is free
Ultimate stopwatch- is what it's says
Recordoid - Dictaphone that should have come with the bloody thing in the first place.
Robo Defence - fun turrent defence game

Translate - translate different languages

Ultimate lightsaber - turn your phone in to a lightsaber

Once the list gets really big I will probably sort into games, utilities etc.

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:27 am

This kicks ass. Called Airdroid.

http://www.reghardware.com/2012/01/31/a ... _airdroid/

Install app on phone/tablet. Start app. Start PC/MAC connected to same wifi network. Open browser. Navigate to IP on phone/tablet screen and enter displayed access code.

Voila! You're connected. You can wirelessly transfer music on and off your Android device, send texts and mails from the phone using your computer keyboard, play music wirelessly off the device, browse files etc.

Best app I have seen in a while.

Dryden · Post by **Dryden** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:28 am

The android robot is adorable

Muttonbird · Post by **Muttonbird** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:30 am

Vignette

Fat Old Git · Post by **Fat Old Git** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:38 am

I will have to check that out.

Gesture search is one of my favorite apps. Just write on your screen with your finger to ssearch contacts, menus, and apps.

Apps 2 SD or similar is a must for phones with expandable memory, but only a small internal memory. Moves selected apps from the internal memory to your micro SD card.

Google googles is great for identifying signs, staues, building labels etc.

Shazam is good for identifying music, as long as it's not too new or alternative.

Bubble turns your phone into a spirit level.

whatsapp uses data to send texts to friends who also have whatsapps. So no text message charge.

Openside · Post by **Openside** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:41 am

Very useful app for company mobile phones is "say no to 0845" which converts an 0845 number (chargeable on most mobile phone tariffs) to their normal landline number.

0845 pah Thieving bastards!!

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:57 am

Openside wrote:Very useful app for company mobile phones is "say no to 0845" which converts an 0845 number (chargeable on most mobile phone tariffs) to their normal landline number.

0845 pah Thieving bastards!!

Such a Scot!

odd144 · Post by **odd144** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 9:59 am

Great OS, just waiting for Ice Cream Sandwich now!

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:06 am

odd144 wrote:Great OS, just waiting for Ice Cream Sandwich now!

Yeah, I have two HTC devices so I am debating rooting one of them. Looks like a bit of a pain in the hole though.

Neither of mine are carrier-tied so I should get the OTA update from HTC once they have it ready, later this month apparently. I'll probably wait to see if they make a balls of it, the vanilla version is lovely to use.

Openside · Post by **Openside** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:07 am

odd144 wrote:Great OS, just waiting for Ice Cream Sandwich now!

?????

GigotHaricot · Post by **GigotHaricot** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:10 am

Openside wrote:Very useful app for company mobile phones is "say no to 0845" which converts an 0845 number (chargeable on most mobile phone tariffs) to their normal landline number.

0845 pah Thieving bastards!!

That's brilliant.
Considering the number of lengthy call I had to make as a result of a troublesome house move, this could have saved me quite a bunch.

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:10 am

Openside wrote:
odd144 wrote:Great OS, just waiting for Ice Cream Sandwich now!
?????

Not you ya pillock. OS stands for operating system and Ice Cream Sandwich is the Google name for Android 4.0, the latest version.

Openside · Post by **Openside** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:13 am

Apposite wrote:
Openside wrote:
odd144 wrote:Great OS, just waiting for Ice Cream Sandwich now!
?????
Not you ya pillock. OS stands for operating system and Ice Cream Sandwich is the Google name for Android 4.0, the latest version.

GigotHaricot · Post by **GigotHaricot** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:14 am

Sudoku: as it says.
Tele7: French TV programmes. Full of ads. Don't like it.
Traducteur: French / English translator. Fairly crap.
Taux de change: Currency convert. User friendly.
RATP: Paris transport app. Next bus time. Journey planner. Pretty good
OpenBike: Find the closest Velib' in Paris. Only used it once.

odd144 · Post by **odd144** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:23 am

Openside wrote:
Apposite wrote:
Openside wrote:
odd144 wrote:Great OS, just waiting for Ice Cream Sandwich now!
?????
Not you ya pillock. OS stands for operating system and Ice Cream Sandwich is the Google name for Android 4.0, the latest version.

Munster-fogs · Post by **Munster-fogs** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:29 am

I find Opera to be the best browser. It narrows all the text down so that no matter how much you zoom in, it will always fit the screen.

Tim13 · Post by **Tim13** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:29 am

SKy+ - 7 day EPG, remote record etc
BubbleUPnP - DLNA music streaming and control
Kindle - well duh!
ES File Explorer - best file browser around, does SMB, LAN, FTP and Cloud. works even better on rooted device
MAME4Droid - MAME video game emulator, brilliant if you know where to find the ROMS
PicSay Pro - photo effects package
SketchBook Mobile - brilliant painting package, would be best on tabs though I think
Paper Camera - real-time camera effects
Sonic CD - old skool
Evernote - multi device note taking and syncing tool

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:32 am

Anyone have a recommendation for a decent music app? Don't like the stock Android one or the HTC one really.

Not Spotify, or Last.fm, I just mean a music player. Downloaded Winamp but it doesn't have skip/pause on lockscreen which is a pain.

TB63 · Post by **TB63** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:36 am

Find pubs and bars app...

Toulon's Not Toulouse · Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:38 am

Minecraft Pocket Edition: game, payware, big update next week
World of Goo: game, payware , get if for cheap at the moment with other games at http://www.humblebundle.com

TeslaLED: free flashlight app, and the only one that doesn't require invasive permission (phone calls, full internet access, etc)
Converts: free unit converter, most stuff including clothing size (US/UK/EU), miles per gallon to litre per 100km, gallon to imp gallon to kg, etc...
Droid48: free HP48 emulator, yay.
ColorNote: freee post-it like notes, which you can also stick to the desktop, always handy.
ConnectBot: free ssh client, if you don't know what ssh is, just forget about this, you don't need this app, trust me.

GigotHaricot · Post by **GigotHaricot** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:41 am

fogerty wrote:I find Opera to be the best browser. It narrows all the text down so that no matter how much you zoom in, it will always fit the screen.

The android browser does that to.

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:54 am

GigotHaricot wrote:
fogerty wrote:I find Opera to be the best browser. It narrows all the text down so that no matter how much you zoom in, it will always fit the screen.
The android browser does that to.

I don't think the stock Android browser does it as well as some of the manufacturer modified ones. I find the browser on HTC phones great for text reflow though. I really don't see the appeal of Opera mini at all and I love their desktop browser.

Insane_Homer · Post by **Insane_Homer** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:55 am

Quiet a mixture of apps, some from my old phone, some on my new Nexus and a good portion on the Galaxy Tablet (most of the kids games etc).

Angry Birds *3 - needs no comment great game(s)
Astro - file manager
A* Times Table - to teach my kids math
Adobe Flash
Adobe Photoshop Express
ADWLauncher EX
Amazon Kindle
AirAttack HD Part 1 - decent game
Apparatus - great game, problem solving.
Battery Solo Widget - battery indicator
Beautiful Widgets - very nice and cool widgets
British Gas - manage british gas accounts, send meter readings etc
BW Animation Package
CamScanner - use camera to can documents to PDF
CanonLenses - useful for looking up canon lense details, reviews etc
Dungeon Defenders: Second Wave
DropBox - brilliant share files all over the place 2GB free
EasyScorecard - Golf scorecard
Endomondo Sports Tracker PRO - gps sports tracker for running, cycling etc
English for Smart Keyboard
Facebook
Facebook Messenger
Fancy Drawings
Fieldrunners HD - decent game
Flick Golf! - cool game
Flight Control - cool game
FuelLog - Car Management - track petrol for my car with some useful stats
Fun Math Tricks Lite - kids math
Glow Hockey - kids game
Google Books
Google Goggles
Google Reader - rss reader
Google Search
Google Shopper
Google Voice
Google+
Google Sky Map - check out the night sky
Harry Potter SpellCaster - kids game
Honeycomb ADW Theme
Jewels Delux - addictive game
Juice Defender - battery saving app - very good & free
Kaloer Clock - Night Clock
Livesports24 F1™ Racing
Met Office Weather Application
Mileage
Minecraft - Pocket Edition
Mindjet
NinJump - kids game
Pack for Space Physics - ok game
Pano - take panoramic pics
Paper Camera - cool camera app with lots of effects (see effect in real time)
Paper Toss - decent game
QR BARCODE SCANNER
Recipe Search
Retro Camera
Retro Clock Widget
SetCPU for Root Users
Silent Toggle Widget - widget to easy switch between silent, vibrate and ring
SimCity™ Deluxe - meh ok
SMS backup and restore
SketchBook Mobile - very good drawing app
Sky+ - set recording and reminders
SlideIT Black Licorice skin
SlideIT Keyboard
Smart Keyboard PRO
Space Physics
Star Chart
Star Wars Message Sounds
Starry night Lite
TED Air
TETRIS®
TuneIn Radio - lots of streaming radio from all over the world
The Candy Factory HD - kids interactive book
Titanium Backup - backup app - needs root
Voice Search
Vlingo - voice search and cool in-car controls
When I Get Bigger - kids interactive book
Where's my Droid - find your droid when misplaced
What's app - free texting
Yoo Ninja! Free - kids game
Wifi Analyzer

Mitty · Post by **Mitty** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 11:00 am

Hailo - For London types, pinpoints and orders a taxi to your location.= - Very very good.

Tube Map - Self explanatory.

Kayak - Holds all your travel details, tells you when your flight might be delayed and suggests alternative options.

Around Me - Restaurants, ATM's, petrol stations etc, tells you where they all out fairly easily.

FilmOn TV - Has more or less every free to air channel stream.

Mp3 Music Download - Want Mp3, Get Mp3 - Free

Unified Remote - Control your laptop through your phone.

Pulse - Aggregates all your favourite news feeds into one panel.

Where's my Droid - If lost or stolen it will lock and locate your phone.

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 12:28 pm

Insane_Homer wrote:Quiet a mixture of apps, some from my old phone, some on my new Nexus and a good portion on the Galaxy Tablet (most of the kids games etc).

Angry Birds *3
Astro
A* Times Table
Adobe Flash
Adobe Photoshop Express
ADWLauncher EX
Amazon Kindle
AirAttack HD Part 1
Apparatus
Battery Solo Widget
Beautiful Widgets
British Gas
BW Animation Package
CamScanner - use camera to can documents to PDF
CanonLenses
Dungeon Defenders: Second Wave
DropBox
EasyScorecard (Golf)
Endomondo Sports Tracker PRO
English for Smart Keyboard
Facebook
Facebook Messenger
Fancy Drawings
Fieldrunners HD
Flick Golf!
Flight Control
FuelLog - Car Management
Fun Math Tricks Lite
Glow Hockey
Google Books
Google Goggles
Google Reader
Google Search
Google Shopper
Google Voice
Google+
Google Sky Map
Harry Potter SpellCaster
Honeycomb ADW Theme
Jewels Delux
Juice Defender
Kaloer Clock - Night Clock
Livesports24 F1™ Racing
Met Office Weather Application
Mileage
Minecraft - Pocket Edition
Mindjet
NinJump
Pack for Space Physics
Pano
Paper Camera
Paper Toss
QR BARCODE SCANNER
Recipe Search
Retro Camera
Retro Clock Widget
SetCPU for Root Users
Silent Toggle Widget
SimCity™ Deluxe
SMS backup and restore
SketchBook Mobile
Sky+
SlideIT Black Licorice skin
SlideIT Keyboard
Smart Keyboard PRO
Space Physics
Star Chart
Star Wars Message Sounds
Starry night Lite
TED Air
TETRIS®
TuneIn Radio
The Candy Factory HD
Titanium Backup
Voice Search
Vlingo
When I Get Bigger
Where's my Droid
What's app
Yoo Ninja! Free
Wifi Analyzer

If you want to add a little bit of detail on any ones you particularly like I will add to the OP.

odd144 · Post by **odd144** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 12:32 pm

GigotHaricot wrote:
fogerty wrote:I find Opera to be the best browser. It narrows all the text down so that no matter how much you zoom in, it will always fit the screen.
The android browser does that to.

Firefox on PC and Dolphin HD on Mobiles and Tablets

lucy · Post by **lucy** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:02 pm

thanks apposite
very useful fred

Hova · Post by **Hova** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:18 pm

Juice Defender I highly recommend, my battery lasts 1.7x as long now (apparently) so basically an extra day or two without requiring a charge. Fantastic. JMK posted about it on the old site.

Rocketz · Post by **Rocketz** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:33 pm

Dead Space... but does not work on all Androids just ones with some serious hardware... but its mindblowingly awesome

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:43 pm

JD already listed.

No idea what Dead Space is, a game I presume?

Post by **Thomas** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:51 pm

Muttonbird wrote:Vignette

Agree.

Rocketz · Post by **Rocketz** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:53 pm

Apposite wrote:JD already listed.

No idea what Dead Space is, a game I presume?

Yep its a game

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdK2biuSwss

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:58 pm

Rocketz wrote:
Apposite wrote:JD already listed.

No idea what Dead Space is, a game I presume?
Yep its a game

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdK2biuSwss

That's the most boring looking game clip I have ever seen! Shit quality too.

Post by **Thomas** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 2:05 pm

Just downloaded and installed Airdroid. Thank you so much. What an awesome app.

TB63 · Post by **TB63** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 2:06 pm

Thomas wrote:Just downloaded and installed Airdroid. Thank you so much. What an awesome app.

+1..

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 2:25 pm

Kickass isn't it? Fair fucks to The Register!

Openside · Post by **Openside** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 3:45 pm

Apposite wrote:Kickass isn't it? Fair fucks to The Register!

What does it do??

also how do you delete apps?? I downloaded the cut the rope guide and I can't get rid of it and it keeps trying to add other stuff??

Hova · Post by **Hova** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 3:54 pm

Apposite wrote:JD already listed.

No idea what Dead Space is, a game I presume?

Yeah JD is, but with no f**king explanation of what it does, bro.

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 4:22 pm

Hova wrote:
Apposite wrote:JD already listed.

No idea what Dead Space is, a game I presume?
Yeah JD is, but with no f**king explanation of what it does, bro.

JuiceDefender: Automate power saving tasks

Apposite · Post by **Apposite** » Fri Feb 03, 2012 4:26 pm

Openside wrote:
Apposite wrote:Kickass isn't it? Fair fucks to The Register!
What does it do??

also how do you delete apps?? I downloaded the cut the rope guide and I can't get rid of it and it keeps trying to add other stuff??

What does Airdroid do? As I said in the short description "Airdroid: Wirelessly manage and use device from a computer.". The second post in this thread has more detail. If you don't understand what it does or why it is handy you don't need it.

To get rid of apps, use:
Settings > Applications > Manage Applications. Click into the app you want to zap and there will be an uninstall option.