The ultimate Android apps

Navigating the virtual shelves of the Android Market online app store is becoming increasingly time-consuming because up to 10,000 new apps are added each month.

This Mobilechoices.co.uk Android Market app guide sorts the wheat from the chaff, picking out and describing some of the very best Android apps currently available.

What is an app?

Apps define smartphones by letting you customise the device with a unique mix of programs for everything from finding nearby restaurants to reading the news and playing games.

Android Market features free and paid for apps, with each app’s publisher allowed to set the currency. So you may find yourself paying in US $ for one app and in European € for others.

Apps are periodically updated with new features, but you shouldn’t be charged for future updates once you have bought an app.

Communication apps

The GBlocker Android app helps rid you of telephone calls from unknown numbers, silent callers (link to Becca story) and annoying numbers.

The app has several settings and can be easily configured to automatically block any call which doesn’t display a telephone number. Calls from numbers not in your contacts list can also be blocked.

You can even use the app to block specific telephone numbers, such as those starting ‘0800’, and set it to send a custom text message in reply to blocked telephone numbers.

GBlocker can be downloaded from Android Market for €1.99 (£1.66).

Entertainment apps

Android Market’s Solo app is handy for anyone learning the guitar because it turns your Android smartphone into a virtual pocket guitar.

The app lets you strum a huge range of pre-defined chords and includes diagrams of where to put your fingers on the virtual strings.

You can even choose between three guitar types: classic, acoustic and electric.

Solo costs £1.50 to download from Android Market.

Health apps

Deep breathing is important for your health and spiritual development, apparently, so the Deeper Breathing app teaches you how to do it properly.

The app guides you through breathing “cycles” using vision and sound, allowing you to define how many seconds to hold your breath for and how many to breath out for.

A trip timer relays your breaths per minute and, hopefully, also helps induce a relaxed state of mind.

The Deeper Breathing app costs 50p to download from Android Market.

News apps

BBC Sport has created its own Android app to deliver the very latest BBC sports headlines directly to your smartphone.

The app’s frontpage offers click-though headlines to the latest news stories on a range of sports, while the app’s Sections tab lets you drill down and read headlines from specific sports, including Rugby Union and World Cup 2010.

BBC Sport headlines can also be shared via SMS and email using the app.

The BBC Sport News app is free to download from Android Market.

Productivity apps

Remembering countless online passwords is always tough, so Tiny Password provides a secure place to store them all in.

Access is granted by an unlock pattern (shown below) which then displays the passwords for each website you use.

You can either copy the password and paste it into webpages yourself or press and hold your finger on the password and the app will log you in automatically.

Tiny Password can be downloaded from Android Market for $1.99 (£1.36).

Themes

Android is highly customisable, so apps have been created to let you simultaneously change the phone’s background wallpaper and colours (known as ‘themes’).

Hundreds of theme apps are available to download from Android Market. Some that caught our eye included Strange Flowers – which overlays your phone with pretty flowers – and HD Theme: 007 – which gives your phone a James Bond feel.

Multimedia apps

Photoshop.com Mobile is a mobile phone-based version of the popular PC image editing software. It lets you edit and transform images directly from your Android smartphone’s touchscreen.

The app features tools for cropping, rotating and blurring images. You can also add effects and then wirelessly share your manipulated images with others.

Photoshop.com Mobile can be downloaded for free from Android Market.

Galaxy S3(blue) £0.00	300 min Unlimited texts	£32.00
Galaxy S2(black) £0.00	100 min Unlimited texts	£18.50
iPhone 4S (16GB)(black) £0.00	Unlimited min Unlimited texts	£36.00
Galaxy S3(white) £0.00	300 min Unlimited texts	£32.00

Shopping apps

The aptly named Barcode Scanner helps you find the cheapest prices for goods.

Say you see an interesting book for sale in a shop but think it’s very expensive. Simply scan the book’s barcode using your phone’s camera and the app then scans the internet to find you the cheapest price available online.

Various barcode scanner apps are available to download from the Android Market, but Barcode Scanner is free.

Travel apps

Google Maps – the popular mapping software from Google – is also available on Android Market.

The app offers all the standard Google Maps navigational information, including satellite views of cities, but also voice-based searching, real-time traffic jam updates and local business listings.

Recent additions to Google Maps have also included the option to share places via email and SMS.

Google Maps can be downloaded from Android Market for free.

Gaming apps

A whole plethora of apps are available on Android Market.

Some that caught our eye included PixPong – a new take on arcade classic Ping Pong, Asphalt – a fast-paced car racing game, and Slot Machine – which claims to offer the real Las Vegas experience on your Android smartphone.

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