Android Articles Subscribe to this category

All Android articles can be found here. If you can’t find a topic in here, use the Search box!

BlackBerry Z10 Glimpse Lets You Try Out BB10 OS In Any Mobile Browser

by on
Leave a comment
BlackBerry-Z10-Glimpse._Home.png
BlackBerry Z10 - the latest incarnation of the Canadian phone maker and arguably their last chance of surviving in the smartphone industry - recently crossed the 10 million units sold mark, which is a great achievement for an ailing company. Although BlackBerry has never been as auspicious as Android and iOS – or even Windows Phone – in terms of sales and popularity ever since its decline a few years back, that doesn't mean the latest revision isn't any good at all compared to the competition. If you want to take the new OS for a test drive without first paying for the device itself, BlackBerry has now launched a new Glimpse webpage that emulates the OS in form of an interactive demo, and allows you to run it on Android and iOS devices. The web page - as its name implies - gives a you glimpse into some of BlackBerry 10's awesome new features such as gestures, BlackBerry Hub, BBM, Time Shift Camera, BBM Video, Keyboard and a few others. Read More

Tiny Apps For Android Combines Five Handy Floating Tools In One Package

by on
Leave a comment
Tiny-Apps-floating-notes-music-player-and-more
There are quite a few computer users out there who have sticky notes stuck across their monitor’s border - and why not, since that information is always available at a glance. These notes made their way to computer users in form of note widgets for their desktops as well as apps for their smartphones and tablets. However, why stop at merely taking notes? Enter Tiny Apps – a package that contains five floating apps that act like omnipresent widgets. This reminds me of Small Apps for the newer Sony Xperia devices, but Tiny Apps has quite a few extra tricks up its sleeve. You get quick access to a sound recorder, music player, painting canvas, calculator, and of course, notes from anywhere across the OS, floating atop all other apps. Read More

Espier Screen Locker Is An Accurate iOS Lock Screen Clone For Android

by on
1
Espier-Screen-Locker-Android-iOS-lockscreen
From the creators of Espier Launcher – the iOS SpringBoard replica for Android, comes Espier Screen Locker, an excellent iOS lockscreen clone for Android that doesn't just replicate basic UI elements. It shows you all incoming notifications, be they incoming messages, missed calls or notifications from third-party apps, has a camera grabber that can be swiped upward to unlock into the camera app, just like in iOS 6. Read on after the break as we take a closer look at how close Espier Screen Locker is to the real deal. Read More

Add Stylized Weather Info To Photos With CamWeather For Android

by on
1
CamWeather-3_
We have seen countless weather apps with several different approaches, but CamWeather delivers on what has crossed my mind quite a few times, and I’m sure there would be others out there too who have wanted something like this. The app works on a simple yet novel idea - it fuses local weather and social elements together, enabling users to share not just the weather for their location with others, but also add a picture to it for their friends to see. In short, let's say you're out on a vacation and want to share with others how it is there; you run CamWeather, take a photo, overlay your location and weather information on it, and share away via Instagram, Facebook and more. With several weather layout presets and an interface that even a child can easily understand and use, the app gives a whole new dimension to weather info sharing. Read More

Get Android 4.2 Jelly Bean Style Toggles On Any Device With AnTek Quick Settings

by on
Leave a comment
AnTek-Quick-Settings-Android-Jelly-Bean-toggles
There are plenty of Android devices out there running Android 2.3 Gingerbread or Android 4.0 ICS, and ever since Android 4.2 Jelly Bean was released, users have been trying hard to get those sweet looking Quick Toggles on their devices. Needless to mention, even Jelly Bean 4.1 users had to ask around for some developer support to get the feature working on their devices as it did in 4.2. Though in a short while, quite a few apps surfaced mimicking the Jelly Bean 4.2 Quick Toggles. All was well till AnTek Quick Settings arrived on the scene. Forget all you know about Jelly Bean style quick toggles; this app takes the concept to an entirely new level with customizations that will definitely make any other Quick Toggles app feel primitive. Read on after the break to learn more about the various features of this app. Read More

Remotely Manage Your Android Gallery From Chrome With SnapPea Photos

by on
1
SnapPea-Photos-Android-Chrome
We've covered quite a few tools that let you move files between your phone and your desktop. What most of these apps do is let you transfer photos over the same Wi-Fi connection. The point is to be able to transfer files without needing to connect your phone to your computer via a USB cable or Bluetooth. SnapPea Photos is a Chrome extension with an Android app that collectively work to let you manage the photos on your Android device right from your browser. The operative word here is ‘manage’, since you won't just be copying files from your phone to your computer, but will also be able to rotate and delete them. Read More

Advanced Mobile Care For Android Gets Anti-Theft, Call Blocking & More

by on
1
Advanced-Mobile-Care-1.jpg
Some time back, we covered an Android optimization app named Advanced Mobile Care that houses a plethora of mobile maintenance features wrapped in a fancy and intuitive UI. Originally sporting features such as 1-tap performance boost, virus protection, privacy protector and more, the app later received an update bringing in support for cloud backup, a very slick privacy adviser, and a revamped App manager. The app's development team seems to be a serious believer in there always being room for improvement, as  Advanced Mobile Care has just received another major update, bringing in newer features and some improvements to existing ones. The app now houses a new Anti-theft system, call blocker, and improved battery saver, and adds supports for Android tablets including the Nexus 7. Let's take a look at all that's new in Advanced Mobile Care after the break! Read More

Easily Manage Or Delete WhatsApp Data On Android With WCleaner

by on
1
WCleaner-Beta-Android
WhatsApp has become ubiquitous as the free mobile texting solution of choice for millions of users around the world. The service enables you to not only send and receive text messages but also images as well as audio and video clips. The messages are stored on your SD card in an encrypted format that isn't directly readable in general purpose file viewers or text editors. Over time, all this content can keep on accumulating over your device, consuming significant amount of space and not serving a purpose for those who don't care about keeping all their old conversations. Therefore, it may be desirable for many to periodically delete it. Also, if you are selling or giving your device away to someone else (lets say a family member) without performing a full factory reset, you'll likely want to manually remove your personal content from it, including all those Whatsapp conversations. WPCleaner Beta is a free app that lets you view all the content sent and received over Whatsapp categorically, and allows you to quickly delete any or all of it. Let's find out how after the jump. Read More

Copy Offers File Sharing, Cloud Storage & Sync With 12GB+ Free Space

by on
5
Copy-Windows-OS-X-Linux-web-Android-iOS_th
File sharing has become immensely easy over the past few years, thanks to the fast internet availability in many parts of the world, and services like Jumpshare and Dropbox. The aforementioned file sharing solutions help users share files with much more ease than they could just a few years ago. In addition, such services also provides them with virtual cloud storage to back up their content as well as access it remotely over the internet. Copy is a great new file sharing and cloud storage service that I recently discovered and took for a spin. Available for desktop, mobile and web, the service makes file sharing as well as collaboration simple and intuitive. Read More

[Ask The Readers] What’s The Size Of Your Smartphone’s Display?

by on
7
Smartphone-display-size-th
Smartphone displays seem to be getting bigger and bigger lately, don’t they? Consider Samsung’s flagship smartphone series – the Galaxy S: it started out in 2010 at 4-inches, expanded to a reasonable 4.3-inches in 2011 with the Galaxy S II, blew up to a massive 4.8-inches in 2012 with the Galaxy S III, before settling on a 5-inch full HD display that dominates the front of the recently announced Galaxy S4. Apart from this, there's also the Galaxy Note 'phablet' line that started in late 2011 with a 5.3" screen, which was bumped up to 5.5" in 2012 with the Note II. Read More

Play Starcraft: Brood War & Caesar III On Android With Winulator

by on
1
Starcraft-Caesar-III-on-Android-Winulator_th
The concept of emulation, particularly for game consoles is not exactly a new one on Android. We've seen emulators for Super Nintendo, Nintendo 64, Play Station, Game Boy Advance and many more gaming systems since the advent of smartphones running this open-source OS. Now, the PC has been added to the list as well, and while it may not be a console, PC games have their own charm at times. Smartphones have become powerful enough to emulate many old classics, and Winulator proves just that point. To show things off, the Windows 95/98 app emulator supports the famous classic Starcraft: Brood War from Blizzard Entertainment. Not only that; Impression Games’ Caesar III has also made the cut. So if you're a fan of the classic RTS genre, we're sure you must be excited, so read on after the break for more on Winulator and how you can use it to start playing these games on your Android device. Read More

System Monitor Offers A Graphical Summary For All Resource Usage Stats On Android

by on
Leave a comment
System-Monitor-Android
Easily one of the most beautiful apps I have come across in a while, System Monitor is a simple, effective, holo-themed tool for users who want to monitor their Android device's critical statistics such as CPU, RAM, I/O, Network and Apps (according to RAM or CPU usage). Sporting a choice of two themes and employing an elegant graph system, the app has just the right amount of settings and tweaks to help you quickly set it up according to your needs. For more on the app and a quick look at its aesthetics as well as features, read on after the jump. Read More

Root AT&T Galaxy S III I747 In One Click On Windows, Linux & Mac With CASUAL

by on
Leave a comment
Root-Galaxy-S3-one-click-CASUAL
Yes, the Galaxy S III from AT&T has been rooted for quite some time now, but for anyone who has just purchased the device and is looking for a simple and foolproof way of rooting it, XDA Elite Recognized Developer AdamOutler has just released his famous CASUAL root tool for AT&T’s S III. Short for Cross-platform ADB Scripting, Universal Android Loader, CASUAL works as a one-click root method and it’s massive appeal lies in its ability to run on Windows, Mac and Linux. To take it one step further, there's support for even Raspberry Pi. The tool uses the famous CFAutoRoot by Chainfire to achieve root access on the device. Read More

Run Android Apps In Full-Screen Mode With Access To Notifications & Navigation

by on
2
Full-screen-mode-for-Android-apps
Accessing notifications, options and navigation controls can be a daunting task on an Android device when you’re using an app in full screen mode like watching a movie or playing game. This is most problematic in case of tablets and large phones. Also, there are occasions when you wish the status bar could just disappear so that an app can gain some more screen estate. full!screen is an app that takes all of these scenarios into consideration and delivers functions that will be hard to let go of, once you get used to them. The app will not simply hide the status bar, but will also provide you with two translucent, configurable on-screen buttons that remain available whether you’re watching a video, surfing the web, or just using the phone normally with the status bar hidden. The buttons can also be configured to your liking. Let's take a closer look at how the app functions and what else it has to offer. Read More

Hands-On With Google Keep: Notes & To-Do Lists For Web & Android

by on
2
Google-Keep
Google’s new note-taking web service Keep is now live, along with its Android app. Keep lets you create notes and to-do lists that sync over Google Drive. Notes may contain text, voice or images. Notes and lists can be color-coded, and are searchable. With Keep, Google aims to let you collect and consolidate all your thoughts, ideas and useful information together that will be synced and accessible across all your computers through your browser, and across all your Android devices using the Keep app. Let's take both the web service and its Android app for a spin and see what it's all about. Read More

Intelligent Ringer Dynamically Tweaks Android Ring Volume Based On Ambient Noise

by on
Leave a comment
Intelligent-Ringer-Android
So you’re driving, listening to your favorite tracks and have just reached your destination. You pick up the phone and realize you have a bunch of unattended calls, consequently realizing the phone was on silent and the vibrator buzz was just not loud enough in all that music. This has happened to me a lot, and there are plenty of other moments it skips one's mind to turn of the silent mode, or even turn it on – which can be embarrassing at times. Enter Intelligent Ringer - the app that adjusts your phone’s ring volume based on the ambient noise level, and uses the proximity sensor to detect a pocketed phone to enable the maximum ring volume. The app is a breeze to set up as well, and you wont get lost in a heap of complicated settings. Read on after the jump to see how well the app fares and what more it has to offer. Read More

Vonage Mobile For Android Updated With Video Calling

by on
Leave a comment
Vonage-video-calling-Android
Skype has always been the top VoIP choice for many when it comes to making voice and video calls over WiFi, 3G and the recently introduced LTE. The service has provided an unparalleled medium of communication that enables us to get in touch with friends, family, coworkers and clients no matter where they are. Though that doesn't make Skype the only player in the game fighting to claim the top VoIP service crown, with apps like Viber and Tango giving it a run for its money on smartphone platforms. Previously, we covered a powerful VoIP app for Android called Vonage Mobile by Vonage, which we found to be one of best VoIP apps out there after Skype. For those unfamiliar with Vonage, it's one of the top VoIP and SIP service provider in US, Canada and UK. When we first reviewed it, the app only allowed to make voice calls, but today Vonage has updated their app to a new beta version that includes a video call option as well. Let's take a closer look at this new feature. Read More

Robird Is A Balanced, Holo-Themed Twitter Client For Android

by on
Leave a comment
Robird-for-Android-Twitter
Holo themed Twitter clients for Android have been around for some time now. Robird is another such app aspiring to make its mark in that area with the developer giving the app a very minimal and clean look. The simple and clutter-free nature of the app's design is well complimented by the intuitive and simple interface for navigation and using the various functions it has to offer. While it falls short of extensive customizations and settings that the competition may offer, you have to keep in mind that not all users are comfortable with such fancy settings, and many just want to keep things simple and effective. However, Robird does sport the basic must-have settings any casual twitter user would like to make use of. We take a look at how the app fairs, after the jump. Read More

How To Install HTC Sense 5 ROM On DROID DNA [Guide]

by on
2
Sense-5.0-on-Droid-DNA
Running Sense 5 UI on the HTC Droid DNA is something not many users would've been expecting, or at least not this quickly. Having been ported from HTC One, this Sense 5 ROM is proof that third-party development for the DROID DNA has started to pick up pace. Sense 5 made its debut with the HTC ONE and offers a fresh redesigned interface to the UI that most HTC users are familiar with. A fancy but slightly complicated app drawer, HTC BlinkFeed and HTC Zoe are some of the key new features of Sense 5, with a focus on minimalism and content this time rather than on heavy graphics - a design philosophy pioneered by Metro design language of Windows Phone OS. The port comes in from XDA Recognized Developer newtoroot in the form of a functional ROM. Installing it on your DROID DNA is a breeze, especially if the bootloader of your device is already unlocked. If not, don't fret as I will walk you through the procedure step-by-step to get this Sense 5 based ROM up and running on your DROID DNA! Read More

Thread For Android Shows Recent SMS, Mail & Social Updates With Caller ID

by on
Leave a comment
Thread-for-Android_th
Countless phone dialer and contacts replacement apps have come and gone since Android first came to light. Though there haven’t been many apps to break away from the fairly standard features in this regard to produce something innovative – something that is more than just eye candy. Enter Thread - the app that gives you more control and information about your contact during an incoming call. It consolidates all your communication with your contacts in Messages, Gmail, Facebook and Twitter, and neatly brings up the latest feed from each medium when receiving a call. Read on after the break for more on this one-of-a-kind app. Read More