Sameed Khan

Executive Editor
Electronics engineer | Writer/Blogger | Technology & Graphic design enthusiast | Avid PC gamer | Twitter | Google+

Get The iOS Springboard On Your Android Homescreen With Espier Launcher

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While most die-hard Android fans would cringe at the thought of iPhone-izing their devices’ UI, there is quite a majority of Android users who would actually prefer doing so. The iOS-inspired interface of the MIUI custom ROM and GO Launcher EX homescreen replacement for Android is one of the major reasons the two have such vast fanbases. Now, where the aforementioned only mirror certain elements of the iOS UI, there have been quite a few attempts to clone it entirely, the newest (and by far, the best) of the lot being Espier Launcher. Espier Launcher is probably the most accurate clone of the iOS Springboard yet. The launcher replicates everything from the look of the icons and folders to the App Switcher tray, Jiggle Mode and Spotlight search. Read More

GO Launcher EX Gets Its Own Switch (Power Control) Widget [Android]

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As expected, the GO Launcher Dev Team is back again – barely a couple of weeks after their last endeavor – with yet another handy addition to their acclaimed home screen replacement app. GO Launcher EX now has a downloadable switch (power control) widget. And it’s not one of those run-of-the-mill toggle widgets. Switch GOWidget sports a total of 12 toggles, out of which it allows you to select 4 toggles to appear on the home screen. The widget takes after Tencent Switcher and QQLauncher’s native Quick switch widget in the way it looks and works but it does have a greater number of toggles and additional sliders for adjusting ringer and media volume levels. More after the break. Read More

Dolphin Browser Brings Webzines & Chrome-Like Tabbed Browsing To iPhone [Review]

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Just when we began wondering when one of the smartest, fastest and most elegant third-party browsers on the Android Market would make a (much-requested) transition to Android’s rival platform, the developers delivered. MoboTap released the smartphone variant of Dolphin Browser to the iTunes App Store (for iPhone & iPod Touch) roughly five days ago. From the looks of it, the browser is rapidly growing in popularity. No surprises there. Dolphin Browser is a comprehensive package of functionality, looks and perks and deserves all the acclaim it has received so far across both platforms. It’s not just the Chrome-inspired tabbed browsing, that impresses users. Dolphin Browser comes with a smart URL bar, gesture-based control and navigation, a Speed Dial home page and a Webzine feature with impressive social network (Facebook and Twitter) integration. Read More

Smart Lyrics Auto-Fetches Lyrics When A Song Is Played [Android]

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Unlike its (arguably superior) iOS counterpart, the stock Android music player does not auto-fetch lyrics for songs. There are a few third-party audio players for the platform that sport said feature (MIUI’s iOS-inspired native music player, for instance). But if you prefer the stock music player for its simplicity or, like me, fancy a third-party music player that doesn’t have support for lyrics (Ubermusic), then Smart Lyrics has got your need to sing along covered. While it is activated, the app automatically fetches lyrics from the web whenever a song is played – be it using the stock player or any other third-party music player – and displays a shortcut to viewing said lyrics within the notification drawer. That is the app’s primary function but that’s not all it does. Join us after the break for a rundown of its other features. Read More

Free Version Of Electronic Arts’ Tetris Now Available In Android Market

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Some games are just eternal. Years over years pass by and people never seem to get tired of playing them. Tetris is one such game. It never gets old. If you’re a Tetris fan and own an Android device, you’ll be happy to know that EA very recently released a free version for their best-selling Android variant of the game. If you’re reading this then you probably haven’t tried the original (paid) version of the game and its fluid controls yet. The free version contains ads (displayed at the top of the screen in-game) and features the Marathon (classic) gameplay mode only. The alternate power-up based Magic Mode has been reserved for the full version. Read More

Say Cheese Camera Lets You Snap Photos Via Voice Commands! [Android]

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We won’t lie to you. We’re fond of collecting camera replacement apps. After testing countless such applications on the Android Market, we thought developers had run out of ideas. Well, we were wrong. Say hello to Say Cheese Camera for Android – a free yet comprehensive camera replacement app that, along with a plethora of other handy features, comes packed with the option to snap photos via voice recognition. Other noteworthy features include the option to toggle talk-back (voice confirmation), a Stealth mode for capturing photos, a built-in gallery, batch uploading to Facebook and rainSlides – a Facebook app that lets you convert a group of photos into a slideshow. We delve into these and a few other components of the app after the break. Read More

Connect To WiFi Networks By Scanning QR Codes With Barcode Scanner [Android]

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A couple of months back, we covered WiFi Joiner – an Android app that allows you to create QR codes for WiFi access points and share them with your friends, colleagues or customers so that they may simply scan these codes to connect to the affiliated networks – eliminating the need to share long access keys. However, to scan said codes, they would need to have the same app installed on their devices. Not to undermine the functionality that WiFi Joiner provides (they were there first, after all), but it’s highly unlikely for all your Android-wielding friends to have the app on their devices. Relatively new to the Android Market, WiFi QR Code Generator works roughly the same way but, however, the QR codes it generates can be scanned with Barcode Scanner – a free app that, owing to its simplicity and effectiveness, has grown to become the default QR code scanner for a vast majority of Android users. More than 10 million downloads and counting (as of this writing) are proof positive of its popularity. Read More

TS3 Remote For Android – Monitor TeamSpeak 3 Desktop Client Over WLAN

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In the beginning of the current month, the guys over at TeamSpeak Inc. released the Android variant of their group VoIP chat client in beta. Apparently, that wasn’t all they had in mind for the platform. Released to the Android Market roughly a week ago, TS3 Remote is a handy little Android tool that lets you connect to the TeamSpeak 3 client running on your computer over local WiFi and monitor whatever channel you are currently in. The app simply displays all users in the channel along with their nationality and status (mute, speaking etc.). It does not stream audio. So what’s the point? Join us after the break to find out. Read More

Get The iPhone Lockscreen (And Others) On Android With MagicLocker

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If find the stock Android lock screen somewhat bland or are bored of your custom lock screen, worry not, since there are plenty of quality alternatives present in the market that can satiate your appetite for an visually appealing and functional lock screen. If you don't fancy taking the tedious route of installing and trying various different options one by one, and are looking for one comprehensive lock screen package, then you might want to take MagicLocker for a spin. As of this writing, the lock screen replacement application comes packed with two different skins – a convincing clone of the iPhone lock screen and a grungy 3-point lock screen named Robot Lost. The quality that the themes present is impressive and, if the developers hold true to their promise, you should soon have a greater variety of lock screens to choose from. The app is available for free in the Android Market. Read More

22 Awesome ADW Launcher Themes [Android]

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Bring one of the oldest and most popular home screen replacement apps on the Android Market, ADW.Launcher has been adopted as the base for many other home screen replacement apps and as the stock launcher for the popular series of custom ROMs called CyanogenMod. The opensource launcher probably has the most active lot of theme developers out there. No surprise there. ADW.Launcher has a humongous fan-base - at least 63000+ strong as of this writing – all of whom are constantly looking to spice up their home screens with new themes, dock backgrounds and/or icon packs. If you’re one of the aforementioned lot, join us after the break our compilation of 22 of the best (free) ADW themes on the Android Market. Read More

MIUI Launcher Clone Brings The MIUI Home Screen To All Android Devices

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The iOS-inspired MIUI custom ROM for Android is known for its cosmetic flexibility and an impressive assortment of native apps. Android users with root access on their devices are often found yearning for said apps when an unstable build of the ROM (or a certain preference) forces them to shift to another one. Apparently, once you get used to the ROM, it’s hard to let go. Roughly a day ago, MIUI's native music player was extracted from the ROM and made available for all Android devices. And now, users without rooted / MIUI-supported devices or those using other custom ROMs can enjoy the ROM’s native launcher – well, actually, the next best thing – a clone of the launcher. XDA-Devleopers member Vipitus has modified the free home screen replacement app QQLauncher (AKA TencentDesktop) to a remarkably accurate replica of the MIUI native launcher. Read More

Create GIF Animations On The Go With Gifinator For Android

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One of the first (if not the first) of its kind on the Android Market, Gifinator is a well-crafted, easy-to-use GIF animation creator for Android. The app allows you to take multiple snaps from your device’s camera, then chains them together in a GIF sequence with a user-defined resolution and frame rate. With enough creativity (and a few taps) you can create awesome stop-motion animations with your Android smartphone’s camera. You may then save these GIF files to your device or share them with your friends. The free version of the app lets you string up to 10 snaps only while the full version sports no such limitation. Also, the free variant only allows you to save GIFs in the lowest of the three available resolutions (160x120, 320x480 and 640x480). Read More

GO Launcher EX Gets Skinnable Analog/Flip Clock Widget [Android]

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Another week, another GO Launcher EX update. This time, the GO Launcher Dev Team has released a clock widget for their home screen replacement app. Like all the other widgets, Clock GOWidget, too, is skinnable, though it seems to have a separate set of skins designed specifically for the widget. The Transparency GOWidget skin does not apply to it. The home screen widget comes in two forms – a 2x2 simple analog clock widget and a 4x2 MIUI-style flip clock widget. The former sports three built-in skins while the latter comes packed with two. Additional skins can be downloaded from the Android Market or from within the launcher itself. Read More

HBO Releases Android, iPhone & iPad App For Cinemax’s MAX GO

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Encouraged, no doubt, by the huge success of their Android and iOS mobile clients for HBO GO (over 1 million downloads within the first week of release), Home Box Office Inc. has rolled out a mobile app for Cinemax’s (US-only) MAX GO online streaming service. The app provides on-demand streaming of 700+ hours of programming including popular Hollywood movies and series as well as Cinemax’s first original series Strike Back. The app itself can be downloaded free of cost from the Android Market Google Play Store and iTunes App Store while the service, too, is free for MAX GO subscribers.

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How To Share GPS From An Android Phone To An iPad [Guide]

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The absence of GPS capability in the WiFi-only iPad was termed a dealbreaker by some when it was released and again when its 2nd generation counterpart hit the market. With either of the two devices, the only time the OS allows you to view your location on a map or, say, geotag a photo is while you’re connected to a WiFi hotspot. Furthermore, location data returned via WiFi triangulation is only as accurate as the number of WiFi access points in range, that is, usually not that accurate. Looking for a workaround? Look no further. If you’re one of those tech enthusiasts who own both a jailbroken iPad and an Android phone, then the following workaround should make your GPS-deprived iPad whole. It involves a Cydia Store application by the name of BTstack GPS and a GPS-over-bluetooth sharing Android app. As of this writing, BTstack only works with select GPS units and, as you will see in the guide that follows, Android phones. The developers behind the app are still working to find a an iPhone-to-iPad GPS forwarding solution. Read More

12 Awesome CyanogenMod 7 Themes [Android]

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If you’re an avid Android user or, like many of us here at AddictiveTips, a power-user with ORD (Obsessive ROM-updating Disorder), then you’re probably aware of the CyanogenMod series of custom ROMs for select Android devices. The ROM is, after all, among the most feature-rich, fast and flexible ones out there. It may not have been even close to as cosmetically flexible as, say, MIUI up until the sixth version in the series (CM6), but that changed with the addition of the T-Mobile Theme Chooser application in CyanogenMod 7. Now, instead of flashing ZIP files through recovery, you can simply install themes that come in APK format and apply them from within Theme Chooser. For CM7 fans who love everything about the ROM but its stock Android look, following are 12 of the best CyanogenMod 7 themes out there (as of this writing). All of the following themes are free and can be applied from within Theme Chooser (no flashing required). Read More

Erase Unwanted Content From Photos With TouchRetouch Free For Android

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TouchRetouch is an acclaimed multiplatform (iOS and Android) photo editing tool and undoubtedly one of the very best in its sub-genre. The app allows you to erase unwanted content from photos without leaving a trace (for instance, a few weeds from within the photo of a garden or a people from within a landscape picture), save the results to your device and/or share them with your friends, all for a meager price of $0.99. And now, if you own an Android device, you can enjoy the app with (almost) all its features for free. TouchRetouch Free, a free (ad-supported) variant of the original, is now available on the Android Market. In addition to ads, the free version comes with a few limitations. A few minor settings and the Clone Stamp tool has been reserved for the full version and Images are saved in a lower (640x480) resolution. Read More

Cut The Rope: Experiments Released For iPhone, iPad & iPod Touch

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The sequel to ZeptoLab’s smash hit, multiplatform mobile game (yes, the one that everyone has been talking about for the past one day and a half) is finally out. Cut the Rope: Experiments has hit the iTunes App Store and with it come 75 new challenging levels spread across 3 tiers (or level packs, as they are called), new gameplay elements and of course, the ever-adorable Om Nom who seems to have learned a few new tricks (does a handstand when tapped or idle). The sequel introduces a new character - a mad scientist who finds the little green alien in a carton on his doorstep and begins to run experiment after experiment to test the creature’s apparent lust for candy. Join us after the break for more. Read More

Skype For iPad – Calls, Video Chat, Instant Messaging & Web SMS

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The much awaited iPad variant of the official Skype client for iOS appeared in the iTunes App Store early yesterday morning but was pulled from the store shortly afterwards for reasons unknown. Well, the app has now returned to the App Store and this time, apparently, it is here to stay. Skype for iPad is essentially a tablet-optimized version of its iPhone counterpart. Making excellent use of the iPad’s greater screen real-estate, the app brings the option to chat from within ongoing video calls, quick switching between multiple conversations and an interface that makes the whole Skype experience faster and much more convenient. Read More

GO Launcher EX Gets Widget Skins & A Twitter Home Screen Widget

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After the GO Launcher EX Dev Team released a Facebook widget for their popular home screen replacement app, we knew it was only a matter of time before they released one for Twitter. Twitter GOWidget for GO Launcher EX is now available in the Android Market for free, like every other GO product. With the addition of the Twitter widget, GO Launcher EX now has a total of 8 skinnable widgets. These include Calendar, Messages, Task Manager, Contacts, Search, Facebook, GO Store and the freshly released Twitter GOWidget. But that’s not all. The famed dev team has made another addition – one that we’ve been prattling about for quite some time now – skinnable widgets. That’s right. The first GOWidget skin has hit the Market. The new GOWidget Theme - Transparency replicates the Sense look, much like LauncherPro’s default widget skin does. Read More