# Recommend some apps (Android)
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [March 5, 2012, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860 "2012-03-05T21:44:58Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)
#### Post date: [March 5, 2012, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/1 "2012-03-05T21:44:58Z")
I’ve joined the 21st century, and just got my first smart phone. I am so hip. 🙂
So what are some cool gizmos, gadgets, games & other cant-live-without timewasters that I should get to add to my new toy?
All I’ve gotten so far are a QR scanner (which I was surprised didn’t come with the phone) and AirSync, to move iTunes playlists from my Mac to phone via Wifi.
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### Author:  [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)
#### Post date: [March 5, 2012, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/2 "2012-03-05T21:57:29Z")
Tapatalk compells me to suggest Tapatalk for reading the Dope. It’s a paid app but I’m almost sure there used to be a free version if you scouted around for it.
I use SMS Backup to keep my SMSs backed up to my Gmail account. Invaluable at the moment as my phone is reaching the end of it’s life and had to be factory reset twice last month. (I have kids - it has been dropped a lot).
StumbleUpon is good for wasting time. Angry Birds is better.
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### Author:  [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)
#### Post date: [March 5, 2012, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/3 "2012-03-05T22:04:12Z")
I quite like Tasker, which allows you to set all manner of conditions under which your phone will do things. For example, when the phone is face down, mute everything. Or when starting up Google Maps, go ahead and turn on the GPS if it isn’t already on.
Dolphin is a good web browser, which I like quite a lot more than the default.
SoundHound is an amazing piece of software that lets you hold up the phone to identity a song playing on the radio / in the background / that your friend is whistling, etc.
Angry Birds is of course a fun little game. I also got something called Gem Miner: Dig Deeper which is oddly engrossing.
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### Author:  [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)
#### Post date: [March 5, 2012, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/4 "2012-03-05T22:11:16Z")
SoundHound sounds a lot like Shazam, identifies music and takes you to a link to buy it if you want.
Pandora or Slacker are great for streaming music. Google Music is great for storing your music in “the cloud” and streaming it to your phone.
K-9 Mail is a good email client for non-Gmail; much better than the native email client.
TweetDeck is a nice app for keeping up with both Twitter and Facebook.
Weatherbug is cool, and even puts the local temp in your notification bar.
GasBuddy is great for finding good gas prices.
[Speedtest.net](http://Speedtest.net) is great for checking your connection speed.
RealCalc is an awesome scientific calculator.
Google Sky (aka Google Skymap) is awesome if you are a star-gazer.
Apps2 SD is great for keeping your internal memory as available as possible.
But IMDb is the app I use the most!
Finally: check Amazon for a “free paid app of the day” - apps that normally cost you, but are free for one day at a time.
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### Author:  [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)
#### Post date: [March 5, 2012, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/5 "2012-03-05T22:13:39Z")
My new game addiction is called Cut the Rope.
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### Author:  [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)
#### Post date: [March 5, 2012, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/6 "2012-03-05T22:18:31Z")
[Folder Organizer](https://market.android.com/details?id=com.abcOrganizer.lite&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5hYmNPcmdhbml6ZXIubGl0ZSJd) will become very useful for when you have a lot of applications that needs organizing.
I will provide another vote for [Tasker](https://market.android.com/details?id=net.dinglisch.android.taskerm&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsIm5ldC5kaW5nbGlzY2guYW5kcm9pZC50YXNrZXJtIl0.).
Another application for when you have a lot installed is [Addons Detector](https://market.android.com/details?id=com.denper.addonsdetector&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5kZW5wZXIuYWRkb25zZGV0ZWN0b3IiXQ..).
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### Author:  [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)
#### Post date: [March 5, 2012, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/7 "2012-03-05T23:27:03Z")
Thanks, everybody! Just got GoogleSky.
(Sitting at my desk, I apparently can only get 2G. The download was poking along…17%…18%…I got up and walked to a window, and got upgraded to 4G, and ka-zang: 83% 100% Done. :eek::D)
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### Author:  [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)
#### Post date: [March 5, 2012, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/8 "2012-03-05T23:30:31Z")
The Amazon free app is great. Just download the app for their marketplace and check it each day. The free app will be featured right on too.
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### Author:  [@crookedteeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crookedteeth)
#### Post date: [March 6, 2012, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/9 "2012-03-06T01:24:26Z")
If you like Pandora, I have a version that is ad-free with unlimited skips. If anyone is interested, send me a pm.
Almost all of the apps that I would recommend require root, but I’ll try to dig out some that don’t.
Tapatalk for forums. It’s free on GetJar.
QuickPic instead of the stock gallery. Tons of extra features and a billion times faster.
Desktop visualizer if you’re into customization. It allows you to use custom icons for apps/shortcuts.
Tiny Call Confirm - keeps me from pocket dialing.
PlayerPro is a great replacement for the stock player.
WidgetLocker lets you customize your lockscreen and put widgets and shortcuts on the lockscreen. There are themes available.
I’m into customization, most of the apps I downloaded when I first got my phone were gimmicky. You’ll eventually get over them and find stuff that actually helps you or improves your experience. Don’t be afraid to pay for apps, they’re generally cheap and the developers work hard to make them what they are.
I’m an Android junkie.
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### Author:  [@FordTaurusSHO94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordTaurusSHO94)
#### Post date: [March 6, 2012, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/10 "2012-03-06T01:30:49Z")
Google Googles
Google Translate
Anything else Google.
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### Author:  [@HookerChemical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HookerChemical)
#### Post date: [March 6, 2012, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/11 "2012-03-06T01:32:03Z")
I prefer Opera for my browser. If you’re on a slow connection Opera Mini is almost essential. Dolphin is good as well.
Dropbox makes file transfers between the phone and computer a piece of cake. It’s also very useful on my desktop and laptop for transferring files, but I first came to it from Android.
Upgrade your camera app to Camera 360 or Camera Zoom FX.
I read my RSS feeds in Google Reader form, so the Reader app is essential.
Waze is my GPS app.
Pandora is good for streaming music on the go.
For games, I like Androminion, an implementation of the Dominion card game.
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### Author:  [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)
#### Post date: [March 6, 2012, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/12 "2012-03-06T23:59:46Z")
Head over to [**the Market**](https://play.google.com/store/apps/collection/promotion_2012_03_06_AppsFavorites?start=0&num=24) (or Google Play as they’re trying to call it now, :rolleyes:) for a selection of $0.49 applications. I suggest Osmos and World of Goo.
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### Author:  [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)
#### Post date: [March 7, 2012, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/13 "2012-03-07T00:16:50Z")
Brightest Flashlight turns your camera flash on as a steady bright light and is quite convenient.
Scanner Radio turns your phone into a police radio scanner. If you see some kind of police or emergency activity in your area you can listen in to what is going on.
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### Author:  [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)
#### Post date: [March 7, 2012, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/14 "2012-03-07T00:19:26Z")
My phone came with Flashlight, and yes, that does seem like it might come in handy.
I just got World of Good (49 cents! why not?! and looks like I’ll be suitable entertained for quite a while.
I think it’s interesting how games these days come with virtually no guidance. Some minor hand-holding, some crude rudimentary instructions, and you’re on your own. I remember when Nintendo games came with manuals.
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### Author:  [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)
#### Post date: [March 7, 2012, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/15 "2012-03-07T21:38:10Z")
[Amazon.com](http://Amazon.com) has a free “paid” app every day. Many are fairly lame, but there are some pretty good ones as well - e.g. I got 3 different 15-dollar Office-emulation apps (Documents To Go, QuickOffice, OfficeSuite Pro), some decent games, etc.
A password vault. As much as I like 1Password (which we got when all we had was iPod Touches), that one isn’t useful for the Android, as it is readonly - you have to enter your passwords on a pricy desktop version, or on an Apple-based handheld. This hasn’t been a problem for me since I still use my iPod Touch.
Dropbox - seconded/thirded/whatevered. We have this running on both our phones (Android and iPhone) as well as both our laptops and our desktop computer.
DropSync - paid app, but works with DropBox to automatically back up files from different folders on the card. DropBox doesn’t automatically back up stuff from other locations, just its own folders, and I have a few apps that do their on-phone backup in specific directories.
A grocery shopping application which can also double as a todo-list manager. I’m using ToMarket because it’s the only one out there that does what I wanted: ability to have a single master list, and associate individual items to multiple stores. So you don’t have to have one list for Safeway, one for Giant etc., you can just check off everything you need and then filter by store (and sort by aisle for that specific store). All the others have separate lists per store.
Medication tracking: I really like Med Helper. It’s missing two features I had on the iPod (the ability to add comments to medication doses, and the ability to record vital signs) but otherwise it’s VERY useful if you take anything on a regular basis. There’s a free version and a paid version, I forget what the difference was but I went ahead and paid.
Sleep logging: Sleep Bot (free) - terrific tool. Much better than the best of the iPhone-based variants.
Widget Locker is good though if you’ve got a passcode on your phone (as you should), many of the widgets require you to put your passcode in anyway. Not all though - e.g. the flashlight, the sleep bot punch-in button.
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### Author:  [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)
#### Post date: [March 7, 2012, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/16 "2012-03-07T22:03:12Z")
Glympse - It works just like a GPS but allows you to send your live GPS screen to someone else. So instead of someone constantly texting or calling you asking where you are or how close you are or when will you be arriving you just send them a Glympse and they can see for themselves where you are.
I’ll have my wife send me one before she leaves work when the weather is really bad so I can track her drive home.
Since it also shows your location (if you have your GPS on) in relation to the person who sent you the Glympse you can also use it as a tracker. I’ve had my wife send me one when we were both at a mall so I could find her when I needed to.
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### Author:  [@randomface](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randomface)
#### Post date: [March 7, 2012, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/17 "2012-03-07T22:21:48Z")
I have downloaded:
Amazon Kindle
Amazon Appstore (have to dowload outside of market)
Box (similar to dropbox but with more space)
Dropbox
Evernote
Google+
Instant Heart Rate
MapMyHike
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>
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MyFitnessPal
Netflix
Pocket Agent (State Farm)
Prey (anti-theft program)
Qik Video (similar to facetime on an iDevice)
Radar Now!
Square (allows me to take credit card payments)
If you have any questions about any of these I would be more than happy to answer them.
What kind did you get?
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### Author:  [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)
#### Post date: [March 8, 2012, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/18 "2012-03-08T15:20:30Z")
FYI, a lot of the apps out there can be linked with Dropbox and probably some of the other online sites - the office suite products can, 1Password (and I think MSecure) can, and I’m sure there are plenty of others. It’s a great way to access files on the go. 1Password in particular, since it’s readonly, you _have_ to have Dropbox (but as noted, I don’t recommend 1Password for Android users because of the readonly).
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### Author:  [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)
#### Post date: [March 8, 2012, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/19 "2012-03-08T15:21:46Z")
> [@randomface](#):
>
> …
> Square (allows me to take credit card payments)
>
> If you have any questions about any of these I would be more than happy to answer them.
Oooh - tell _me_ about Square. I’m in the middle of cookie-pimping season and this would, potentially, help with sales.
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### Author:  [@crookedteeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crookedteeth)
#### Post date: [March 8, 2012, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-apps-android/614860/20 "2012-03-08T15:28:34Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#):
>
> Oooh - tell _me_ about Square. I’m in the middle of cookie-pimping season and this would, potentially, help with sales.
From what I understand, it’s free. When you make a free account, they send you a card reader for free. The catch is that a percentage of your sales (don’t know the exact number) goes to Square. It automatically sends an email receipt to the card holder.
That’s all I know about it, but I haven’t used it.
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