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Recommend me some Android apps
emp123
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So I just got the HTC Incredible and so far I love it, light years ahead of my previous phone. But now I want to see what apps are out there. So far I've downloaded Pandora and Yelp but I'm sure there are some great apps that Ive never heard of.
I'd prefer free, but if the app is worth it I'm willing to spend some money.
I'd prefer free, but if the app is worth it I'm willing to spend some money.
emp123 on
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HelixLauncher - Amazing function in this app. It makes it so you can have up to 7 home screens (i only use 5 though) and adds 4 quicklaunch icons at the bottom near the drawer icon. If you don't want to flat out root your phone for whatever reason, but still want extra homescreens this is a must have. Definitely install this one first if you use it, since it goes over the default home screen so you'll have to set up anything you might have done to your home screens again.
handsent SMS - An app that makes it so you can easily customize your the Messenger function, among other useful things. The main draw for me using it was the Message Pop-up when you get a new message instead of it going to the notification bar. Easily the best out there.
Movies - It's the best movie showtime/information app there is right now. Has reviews shown by Rotten Tomatoes and a quick press away from the trailer.
Shazam - Answers the question of "man, what is that song playing?" by doing some strange magic when you have the app listen to the song. It's shockingly accurate a lot of the time.
AIM - I used Ebuddy and Meebo for awhile but recently both of them just stopped connecting. Since I only want to ever connect to AIM and Facebook chat I tried the official AIM chat and was surprised to find that it connected and actually works and looks pretty damn good to boot. If you are looking for a more multi chat protocol app the two mentioned earlier are the other good choices (if they can connect now anyway).
CalWidget - This is a highly customizable calendar widget that I find really useful if you are big into using Google Calendar to show what you got to do in the coming week/months. It's also the only calendar widget I found that can have a completely translucent background.
Astrid To Do List - If you need a to do list app, this is without a doubt the one. It just works perfectly. And as of a few days ago, now as a widget.
Weatherbug - I think the only reason I use this weather app over The Weather Channel one is because it has an option to put the weather in the top Notification bar at the right. I can get the weather without even needing to unlock the phone.
I use a few others from time to time for fun but those are the ones I use regularly and often.
Steam: Car1gt // Tumblr // Facebook // Twitter
There are some good suggestions in there.
Barcode Scanner is just so cool
Handcent SMS - Replaces standard SMS software. Pops up and such, very nice.
Opera Mini - Replaces standard browser.
Gmail - Replaces mail
Mileage - Use when you fill up your car, computes all kinds of fun statistics like gas mileage, distance between fill-ups, etc.
Hi Aim - AIM Client for when I'm working outside but talking to someone or whathave you.
Astro - File manager
Pandora - Streaming internet music!
Buddy Runner - Awesome running app that works with Google Maps/your GPS to tell you how far you've gone, as well as calling out useful data like split times, pace, etc
Meridian - Media player
Kayak - Travel planning, if you're into that
USAA - My bank, lets me deposit checks from my phone!
Texas Holdem - For when I'm bored, so I can play some cards with internet strangers.
Thats about all I use, actually.
Mint-Awesome if you use Mint.com, let's you keep track of your finances.
Twitter-The official twitter app is the best
Photobucket-Automatically uploads pics you take from your phone to your photobucket account
Ringdroid-Lets you edit songs to use as ringtones
Doggcatcher-The only app I paid for. Pricey at 7 bucks, but it's easily the best podcast app.
Newsrob-RSS reader.
gtasks - synchs with google's tasks list in gmail
NewsRob - blogs, synchs with google reader
Listen - podcasts
My Tracks - uses GPS to track runs/bikes/hikes and you can upload them to googlemaps or google earth, also has stats on distance/speed/elevation
My Days - only if you are female
Last.fm - music player
Weather channel - weather
Locale used to be my favorite app, it turns on/off your ringer or wi-fi or gps based on time or location or other things, it costs $10 now and I am searching for a free replacement but I haven't found one yet.
Abduction - Fun little accelerometer-only game.
Urbanspoon - Slot-machine style 'where should I eat?' app. Let's you specify distance, type of food, and/or price. I found a really good sushi place with it.
Opera mini - Better than dolphin.
Pandora/Last.fm - Streaming music player.
Astro - File and process manager. I
Whoa, what now?
Other apps to check out:
And for an app recommendation that hasn't been made yet here:
Calorie Counter - tracks calories etc which is handy if you're into that health stuff. It can scan barcodes of food and pulls up all of the info on it so that you don't have to edit it yourself. You can also add foods it does not already have by scanning the barcode and then entering the info.
ConnectBot - SSH client, if you're a fellow technical sort.
Yeah, the Locale beta was better than their release product for some reason. I haven't been impressed since they went pay, either with the price, or with the performance/support.
Try Setting Profiles instead. There's a $3.95 pay Full or a freebie Lite. Although it doesn't have the crazy number of control plug-ins Locale did (which I didn't use), it does do some things Locale doesn't, and I think in general it probably works better and is easier to use.
Type in the check amount, take a picture of the front, take a picture of the back...bam, check deposited.
I've actually made good use of Barcode Scanner and its slightly more useful cousin Shop Savvy while out and about, especially when browsing electronics.
Apps that I don't think have been mentioned yet:
CardioTrainer - I currently use the free version of this, but I'm thinking about shelling out the 3 bucks for the full version because I really like it. It tracks your walking/running workouts via GPS, then calculates pace, distance traveled, calories burned, steps, etc. It keeps a running log of workouts (total miles, hours, calories burned, etc). The real version also has a weight loss planning tool that I really liked during the free trial, but if that's not something you'd use the free version would be just fine.
Where's My Droid - How it works is like this. Imagine that you, like me, are a moron who misplaced your phone somewhere in your house, again. Normally you would gank your roommate's phone, call yours, and marco-polo that bitch down. Unfortunately, you tried to be all courteous and shit during class earlier and it's on uber-silent. This is where your miracle app comes into play. You text a specific phrase (default is "Where's My Droid") to your number. The app then turns on your ringer, cranks it up to full volume, then plays your default ringtone for as long as you set it to, or as long as it takes you to find it lurking under the cat. It can also GPS locate your phone and text you back with your lat/long so that you can get directions to your phone. Voila! Phone returned, normalcy restored.
VLC Remote (Beta) - Essentially turns your phone into a sweet little remote for VLC on your desktop/laptop/wherever so that you can lounge in technology-enabled lard-assery. I believe it works through wireless, and it is a beta, so there is some tinkering that needs to be done on both ends to get it to work right, but oh my sweet jesus it's nice. So far I believe we've gotten it to work on a G1 and my Nexus One.
So far Ive grabbed:
Urbanspoon - this will either replace the Yelp app, or more likely, will be used in conjunction with it
Calorie Counter - I dont see myself using this all that often, but for the past couple of days Ive been interested in seeing my calorie intake (according to what Ive eaten today its not bad.)
Cardio Trainer - Im fat.
Shazam
Ringdroid
Easy Note
Barcode Scanner
XBMC remote (VLC suggestion reminded me of an iPhone app that basically does the same thing but looks a lot prettier)
and Wheres My Droid
Ive been pretty pleased with HTC's default Facebook, calendar and weather widgets, unless the apps do something amazing...
This is the best thing ever.
I'd add Google Sky Map to them, though. It is fascinating.
Also, it's a total knockout on dates.
Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr | Last.fm | Pandora | LibraryThing | formspring | Blue Moon over Seattle (MCFC)
If you like to read I would suggest searching the App store for LaputaII. Has a lot of free books on there. Harry Potter, LotR, Wheel of Time, Sword of Truth, and tons of others. I love it.
MotoTorch - Turns your flash on your camera into a flashlight.
Someone suggested HandCent and I second that. It's awesome. I love it.
USBWebcam - Turns your phone into a webcam. Use it to see boobs on chatroulette.
Slacker - Another good internet radio app. Similar to Pandora, but I like it better than Pandora.
iheartradio - Another internet radio app. I have it mainly for Megadeth Radio which is a good radio station if you're into rock. Plays a lot of Zepplin, Beatles, Metallica, and of course Megadeth.
Google Goggles - Still in beta I believe, but basically it should allow you to take a picture of something then do a Google search on it. There's a cool video with the app that demonstrates it. Looks awesome once it really starts to take off.
That's about all I got for now.
http://www.urbanspoon.com/android
Specifies Droid or Nexus One, so it might be 2.0+ only.
Lookout is a great antivirus that will scan new apps and stuff like that.
WaveSecure is another wonderful app that will actually let you log on to a website and see where your phone is. You can also lock your phone remotely, stuff like that. AND it lets you back up your SMS and contacts to their remote server. I got it while it was still free, but I would willingly pay at least $10 now for it. Where's My Droid is great and I have it, but personally I think WaveSecure is more useful.
Although the GPS locator only goes to about a 600-ft. radius area, so if your phone gets stolen it's not going to allow you to find the actual person who took it. But it's very useful for saying "oh it's at that friend's place" or "oh it's in my house somewhere...".
Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr | Last.fm | Pandora | LibraryThing | formspring | Blue Moon over Seattle (MCFC)