My previous attempt at an Android-exclusive apps was short and there have been some changes since it was released, including the release of an iOS version of the outstanding Field Trip app. With that in mind, here’s a new list of the 11 best (usable) Android-only applications. As with the last list, we are focusing on apps that appeal to a wide consumer base and not necessarily to hardcore modders and tinkerers.
PAUL the App
PAUL from Inmobly saves video and audio from sources such as Facebook, Twitter, Last.fm, YouTube, CNN, and ESPN. It does all of its caching over Wi-Fi, so you don’t have to worry about data overages and can watch your videos without delay or buffering while on the subway or mobile.
PushBullet by PushBullet, Inc.
This app has really been growing on me. It’s a simple but novel concept. By using the PushBullet website or its handy Chrome extension, you can push links, files, notes, and/or lists directly to your Android device. The rich Jelly Bean notifications then let you go directly to that file/link or (in the case of a list or note) views its contents.
Falcon Pro by Joaquim Verges
This is a beautiful, richly-featured Twitter client with easy search and organization, as well as a built-in media browser that lets you read articles, view photos, and watch videos from within the app.
Friday by Dexetra
Friday does a bit of everything. It serves mainly as a journal of all your activity: phone calls, SMS, Facebook updates, Tweets, Last.fm scrobbles, and Foursquare checkins. You can also document activity using any of its templates (movies you’re watching, books you’re reading, etc.) or write from scratch. A plugin called Trails lets you also track your activity via GPS, so that you can see info like “At the corner or State and Madison, you listened to ‘Salamander’ by Zomby.” It then uses this information to suggest new activities to you.
AirDroid by Sand Studio
AirDroid is a device management tool that pairs your Android device with a Web app. Simply launch AirDroid and then enter the given code into its Web app and you can then view all of your phone’s contents from your browser. You can send SMS from your desktop, delete and add files, manage your device’s clipboard, and browse your photos/videos. I wrote a short review of it earlier.
A sample Dashcock Widget.
One of my favorites. It displays lots of custom info (unread Gmail/SMS, weather, Calendar) on your lockscreen, plus it’s highly customizable with lots of cool extensions that provide other info and tasks.
Notif Pro by Eric Carboni
This is a minimalist reminders/notifications app that is much easier to use and more lightweight than most to-do apps. It lets you create rich Jelly Bean notifications with lists, photos, and Holo icons.
Flipster Pro displaying a Facebook NewsFeed
The official Facebook app is a battery-drainer that has the added annoyance of being unstable. Flipster Pro is a Facebook client that has a sleek, customizable aesthetic and all of the functionality (messages, chat, news) that you expect from Facebook.
Beautiful Widgets Pro working on an Android 4.2.2 Daydream.
Android’s ability to display widgets is often cited as one of its strong-suits, but one really needs to use Beautiful Widgets Pro to see just how much can be done with widgets. BW Pro can display weather, time, battery and date widgets, and it can display them on the homescreen, lockscreen, or the Android 4.2+ Daydream/screensaver.
Press RSS client.
I don’t dabble much in RSS on mobile, but when I did, I loved this dead-simple but reliable RSS client. Fortunately, it shall survive the Google Reader apocalypse as it transitions over to some other backends.
Mr. Number’s settings menu
Mr. Number uses deep access to your phone to block unwanted calls and texts. You can lookup numbers you don’t know to see if they are suspected spammers or telemarketers, and then reroute them to voicemail or hang up on them automatically.
-The ScreenGrab Team
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