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Favorite Android Apps
Last Friday I finally made the switch from an iPhone to an Android phone. I'd taken a lot of flack from people over the past year for representing Google AdWords at industry conferences while brandishing a shiny iPhone instead of the G1 we all got for the holidays last year. My iPhone had gotten really slow though (isn't Apple's controlled app market place supposed to prevent this from happening) and there are a lot of very cool Android phones on the market so I was ready for the switch.
One of the key differentiators is the size of the app marketplaces. True, Apple's App Store may have more apps than the Android Marketplace but ultimately what matters is that you can find the apps you need and I certainly have no need for all 100,000 iPhone apps. I found everything I needed for my new Android and then some. Here's my list of must-have apps for an Android phone:
Locale
This app changes the phone's behavior based on triggers like date, time, location, battery level and more. For example, I can teach my phone to silence my ringer when I am in the office or to lower the ringer volume between 11 pm and 7 am.
Barcode Scanner by Zxing
This one lets you scan 2-D and 3-D barcodes. With regular 2-D barcodes, you can quickly do comparison shopping for an item you found in a brick-and-mortar store. With 3-D barcodes, you can get to websites without typing in the URL, add events to your calendar, receive business card data and much more. Anything that saves me from typing is a win.
Amazon
In addition to giving you a way to browse and shop Amazon on a small screen, it also has a barcode scanner. The coolest thing about it is that if the barcode doesn't work, you can take a picture of the item and within a few minutes they'll analyze it and tell you what similar items are available from Amazon. It worked great for finding a multi-prong power cord while I was shopping at the Home Depot.
Tripit
I travel a lot and this app reminds me when I'm flying and where my hotel is. If flights are delayed, it'll even notify me about that too. The best part is that adding my trips to this app is as simple as forwarding confirmations from airlines, hotels and car rental companies to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and a few seconds later, they've analyzed the email and added it all to my travel schedule.
Google Sky Map
I know how to find Orion in the night sky and that's about it. With this app, simply point your phone up to the sky and as you change the direction and angle, it shows you all the constellations in front of the phone. Amazing!
One of the key differentiators is the size of the app marketplaces. True, Apple's App Store may have more apps than the Android Marketplace but ultimately what matters is that you can find the apps you need and I certainly have no need for all 100,000 iPhone apps. I found everything I needed for my new Android and then some. Here's my list of must-have apps for an Android phone:
Locale
This app changes the phone's behavior based on triggers like date, time, location, battery level and more. For example, I can teach my phone to silence my ringer when I am in the office or to lower the ringer volume between 11 pm and 7 am.
Barcode Scanner by Zxing
This one lets you scan 2-D and 3-D barcodes. With regular 2-D barcodes, you can quickly do comparison shopping for an item you found in a brick-and-mortar store. With 3-D barcodes, you can get to websites without typing in the URL, add events to your calendar, receive business card data and much more. Anything that saves me from typing is a win.
Amazon
In addition to giving you a way to browse and shop Amazon on a small screen, it also has a barcode scanner. The coolest thing about it is that if the barcode doesn't work, you can take a picture of the item and within a few minutes they'll analyze it and tell you what similar items are available from Amazon. It worked great for finding a multi-prong power cord while I was shopping at the Home Depot.
Tripit
I travel a lot and this app reminds me when I'm flying and where my hotel is. If flights are delayed, it'll even notify me about that too. The best part is that adding my trips to this app is as simple as forwarding confirmations from airlines, hotels and car rental companies to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and a few seconds later, they've analyzed the email and added it all to my travel schedule.
Google Sky Map
I know how to find Orion in the night sky and that's about it. With this app, simply point your phone up to the sky and as you change the direction and angle, it shows you all the constellations in front of the phone. Amazing!