Top Android Apps [February 7, 2011]

We know, we know. We’re quite late for our Feb 7 article of this new daily series of ‘Top Android Apps’ but it’s here now. Expect one for the Feb 8 following it soon!

 

APPS

Blogger

Google has released one more of its official app on the android market and this time, it’s users of Google Blogger tool — one which offers creation of websites (those ending with blogspot.com) for free, or for $10 a year if you want to remove blogspot from the website’s address. The application is quite equipped with necessary features one needs publish a post from the android phone. Images can be inserted in to the post, by either using the gallery or directly from the camera, as also labels and location. Save the article as draft or directly publish it, and there is option to list out posts saved or published using mobiles. Yeah, we miss some features like, viewing and replaying to comments, analytics, etc but hey both the blogger and its android app are totally free and you really can’t ask more than that.

Download Blogger

Event Tracker

Fill out the upcoming events — like, dentist appointment, meeting someone on a particular day, repaying borrowed amount or receiving one you lent, etc — and specify the delay time, and the app will make sure that you remain up to date with your events. The app’s concept and implementation are both appealing but the great thing is that it’s now available for Free. Mind you, it used to cost ever since it launched on the January’s first week, with price ranging between $0.99 to $2.99.

Event Tracker’s UI is pleasing too, as it lets you create an event pretty neatly, and options like archiving, auto listing based on event expiry, categories — Favorites, Archives, Expiring and All Events, gestures, etc make it a perfect app for daily use.

Download Event Tracker

15min reminder

Only recently, Google updated the android market with host of features and one of those was a revised time limit of 15 minutes, which was brought down from 2 days, the pre-update time limit. So, now if you purchase an app, you’ve to be quite cautious about the time you’re taking to test it, since it’s very limited now. And that’s where 15min reminder comes into play.

15min reminder tracks your ‘paid’ downloads from the android market and once you’ve downloaded the app, it begins a timer of 1 minutes in the notification bar, so that you can easily track down the remaining time to return the app and claim your refund, if you’re not pleased with the purchase. It would auto alert you only 5 mins, 3 mins and 1 min are left on the timer.

Download 15min reminder

App Cache Cleaner

Well, this is how you can save space on your android phone. App Cache Cleaner will scan all the apps currently installed on your phone to find out memory each one’s consuming to store its data. While every android phone shows it under the default settings, app cache cleaner will get you a single window interface to check out which app’s consuming how much of the precious resources, which is a serious case with low and mid range android phones. You can then do a cost-benefit analysis of space used and app’s use to you, on the outcome of which you can either delete the cache or maybe, even uninstall the very space hungry apps.

Download App Cache Cleaner

Go Launcher EX Notification

Users of Go launcher EX — an excellent free home replacement app, or let’s say, a launcher, that supports themes too — should know that with the Go Launcher EX Notification, they can get the number of missed calls, unread SMS and unread mails in Gmail, right on their dock bar, in the upper right corner of the app’s icons. Go Launcher EX Notification is an independent app from the same developers. It’s free, like the launcher itself, and you must try it if you’re using the launcher too. BTW, it’s meaningless if you’re not using the Go Launcher EX.

Download Go Launcher EX Notification

GAMES

Find The Ball

We told you about a little cute game, aGibbets, in one of the similar article we posted earlier. If you’ve already completed that 30 minute game, there is a new one with same level of goodness. Find The Ball android game is simple and ages-old in concept — you just have to spot which one of the 3 glasses hold the ball after some quick movements here and there of the glasses. No wonder, game begins so easy and allows you to get a feel of it. But as level number goes higher, game difficulty grows from very easy to easy to medium to difficult (Level 19 for me) to very difficult (don’t know what level will get you this difficulty, I’m still not past Level 19) — you get the drill. Little Tip: Don’t blink your eyes once you’ve past level 18 or so — you’re gonna miss the trail straight away.

Find The Ball is a decent game to pass time quickly superbly as it features no instructions, no hints, no difficulty levels selection, in fact, nothing serious of any sorts. One thing that you might hate is that you’ve to start from level One if you fail even in Level 19 — there isn’t anything like restart at the same level you failed or at a starting level of the slab in which you failed, for ex. level 16 for all levels from 16 to 20.

Download Find The Ball

Angry Birds Seasons

If haven’t played it yet for any reason, here’s a new motivation to get started playing the Angry Birds Seasons — it’s been updated to bring the Valentine Day flavors. Yes, it now features new levels you’ve been praying for. So, without much ado, go ahead and download the seasons special version of the most popular game on android, on iOS and in fact, on mobiles.

There are 54 new levels as Valentine special, fitted into the new category “Hogs and Kisses” while you’re old seasons levels are still there under “Season’s Greetings” (Christmas special with 75 levels) and “Trick or Treat” (Halloween special with 135 levels). So, if you’re new to Angry Birds Seasons, you’ll get total of awesome 264 levels — enough to get you past Feb 14, undoubtedly.

Download Angry Birds Seasons

Downhill Bowling 2

Android Market Description:

Face it, anyone can bowl down a straight lane of polished wood. You need bowling raised to the next power, a wild, careening, joy ride kind of bowling. Ready? Go!

Intense bowling action. Race down slopes, charge ramps, and blast through pins while grabbing bombs, coins, speed-ups and more.

Well, the market description says it all, need we say more? Fans of bowling game looking to take the game beyond the normal are best friends to this game. Just be aware that your phone needs to be running android OS version 2.1 or higher in order to be eligible for this one, alright. For android 2.2 users, it does supports apps2sd feature, the godsend feature to low and mid range phones!

Download Downhill Bowling 2

Live Wallpapers

Those of you who still wonder how to use live wallpapers and such android apps, here’s how. On the homescreen, press Menu, select, wallpapers, choose “Live Wallpapers”. You’ll get a list of all live wallpapers available on your phone, choose the one you like. Great!

Pockets™ Live Wallpaper

Whether or not you had enough of chances to grow up a pet or grow with some of them, here’s your chance to play with on right on your android phone’s screen. Pockets is a live wallpaper featuring its first and only character (until updated as promised), Roi, a cheeky and occasionally grumpy Raccoon, as the dev puts it. Pat him, he’ll like it. Pat him more, he’s about to get angry. He will follow you to your current screen and… oh, you can explore the rest of the bits yourself, right?

It’s free and of course, it needs android 2.1 on your phone to entertain you.

Download Pockets Live Wallpaper

Asciiquarium Live Wallpaper

Lovers of ASCII art may find enough joy in the Asciiquarium Live Wallpaper that will install a multicolored fish, a whale and a fish-eating shark — all in ASCII designs — on your phone’s screen. The fishes will keep traversing from one screen to other and though it may not look like the most beautiful of the live wallpapers out there, nerds and geeks (and those who’ve had a life to spend on and with terminals) might very well hang out with this for a week or more. I guess.

Download Asciiquarium Live Wallpaper

Let us know of your favorite and useful apps from the above lot in the comments below and do fill out your recommendations, suggestions (about apps, games, wallpapers, our website or anything, really!) and all that, too!