When was the last time you downloaded a really magnificent HD wallpaper on your Android smartphone only to find out that you would have to crop it to fit it on your device’s limited resolution?
Don’t like Android’s stock messaging app? We aren’t too affectionate about it either. It has its share of shortcomings; shortcomings that can be made up for by a. getting a completely new messaging app such as Powow or b. installing plugin-like apps. We’ve covered a bit of both lately, such as the excellent Powow and SMS Enhancer. Today, we’ll be covering yet another app that enhances the messaging app on Android. It’s called SMS Popup and you check it out after the jump!
In the past few days, we’ve seen multiple simple-to-use file-transferring apps released for Android. First, we saw EZ Drop, then came DropSpot (which we couldn’t cover) and today we’ll be talking about X-Link.
GO Dev Team is one of the most respected developers of third-party alternatives to stock first-party apps already included on Android. Apps like GO SMS Pro, GO Keyboard, GO Contacts and GO Launcher EX are popular choices among enthusiasts. Now, GO has released another app today: it’s called GO Launcher HD and it is essentially a tablet-ready version of GO Launcher EX. Check it out after the jump!
Because of the FUD-creating information spread around by security companies such as McAfee, Android is thought of as a virus-prone mobile operating system which, like Windows, needs an antivirus. If you read my editorial on Android Security from 3 months ago, you’ll know that I believe that Android devices do not need any sort of anti-malware app provided that you follow a handful of common sense tips.
In the past few days, we here at Redmond Pie have (generally) been reviewing apps that replace pre-included, first-party apps; apps that replace the stock launcher, music, gallery, browser etc. etc.
The guys over at OnLive Inc. have been a busy bunch of individuals, bringing us the iPad launch of their OnLive Desktop application a few days ago, and today releasing the Android version of the software which is now available in the Android Market. A lot of you may hear OnLive and relate it to the ability to stream video games without the need for a PlayStation 3 or an Xbox 360, and you'd be right. The company are also responsible for that gaming platform but have also extended their cloud services further in recent months.
Although I am personally not a regular user of an Android device, I was shocked to read some statistics which showed that only one device currently ships with the latest version of Android, which is 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich installed, and that only approximately one percent of Android devices in existence actually have ICS installed. With a Google Executive hinting that Jelly Bean could be ready for prime time this fall, it seems that Android 4.0 may not even make it onto the majority of devices.
Instagram singlehandedly set the trend of photography apps that allow users to take a quick photograph, apply a “filter” and then share it on social networks. It launched back in late-2010 on the iPhone 4 and has, since then, gained over 10 million users; it is one of the most popular iPhone apps today and is strongly awaited on Android.
When Android users take their phone out of the box for the first time, things gnenerally work; average users don’t really customize their Android experience but enthusiasts like to hunt for the perfect third-party alternatives to things that they think don’t work. The browser on Gingerbread and below is a good case in point: it’s a lackluster offering that is slow and not customizable at all. Searching for the best alternative browser on Android through Market can be gargantuan task, but if you do your homework you’ll find that Dolphin Browser and Opera Mobile are fan-favorites.
