Top 20 Android apps – August 2011

Google’s Android operating system has come a long way since it’s commercial inception at the end of 2008. They now (July 2011) report having more than 550,000 device activations per day. The number of total devices running Android is believed to have surpassed 100 million. Another area for exceptional growth for the OS is the number off apps currently available which amounts to more than 200,000. Keep in mind that this is the number of apps available in the official Google Market and adding the number of unsupported apps we get more than 350,000. All of the apps in this list are free unless stated otherwise.
Here are what I consider to be the top 20 Android apps available: 

1. Gmail

Gmail needs no introduction. Google’s webmail service is also available on Android allowing you to use most of the service’s functions.

2. Youtube

The latest version of Google’s Youtube app, 2.1.6, brings a redesigned UI, new player controls, in-page playback and the ability to rotate the device in order to activate fullscreen video playback.

3. Facebook for Android

Share photos and stay connected to all of your friends with this easy to use app. Some of the new features included in this version are: improved pages support, the ability to post as a page you admin, view a list of pages that you like or pages that you admin, some bug fixes.

4. Twitter

This is the official Twitter app. The new version allows multiple accounts, push notifications, updated home screen widgets and improvements and bug fixes.

5. Shazam

This app will help you discover the tune that is currently playing. All you have to do is to point your phone to the direction of the music source and tap the Shazam icon. The app will then record a sample of the song and upload it automatically to their servers in order to compare it to their databases. In a few seconds the name of the track and artist will appear. You will also have the possibility to buy the track from Amazon or go to a Youtube page and see the video.

6. Advanced Task Killer Free

ATK is simillar to the task manager included with Windows but a lot more simple. After launching the app you get a list of running programs (each one with a radio check box) and you can select wich ones to close so that you can free some memory. That’s about it.

7. Fast Reboot

Fast Reboot is an easy to use app that is designed to help you better manage the hardware resources of your Android phone. By simply opening the app it will restart all of your apps and processes in a few seconds so that you don’t have to actually reboot your phone (waiting for it to load and having to enter your PIN code). The most importand thing about this app is the fact that after running it your phone will be a lot more snappier.

8. Google Sky Map

Have you ever gazed upon the night sky, looking at the stars, asking yourself which one is which? Google comes to the rescue with Sky Map. With the app running, you can point the phone at the sky and it will give you information about each celestial object wether it’s a planet, star or natural sattelite. Dont’t forget to activate the GPS or set your exact location (city).

9. Evernote

Evernote helps you stay organized by allowing you to create notes, photos, to-do lists, audio recordings and memos and storing all of this information in the cloud so that you don’t have to worry about losing a thing. Evernote is cross-platform and you can also use it on your PC or tablet.

10. Barcode Scanner

This app lets you scan many types of barcodes including Data Matrix and QR Codes that contain contacts or URLs. You can also use the app to transfer a contact or a bookmark to another phone using barcodes.If you want to, let’s say, transfer a contact to a friend, Barcode Scanner will generate an onscreen barcode that you can scan using the other phone.

11. Net Counter

Net Counter is a great tool for monitoring the data traffic trough EDGE/3G and/or wireless. It allows you to set alerts that you can use in order to prevent exceeding your data plan. The single negative aspect that I’ve discovered regarding this app was the lack of a widget. Hopefully this functionality will be introduced in one of the future versions.

12. Angry Birds and Angry Birds Rio

Angry Bids took the casual gaming scene by storm since it’s launch on iPhone and it’s now available on multiple platforms. Help the birds destroy the greedy pigs that are responsible for stealing their eggs!

13. Lookout Mobile Security

The security of your data should not be taken lightly regardless of the device that you use. As one of the best security suites for Android, Lookout Mobile Security is quite feature packed. It offers protection from spyware and malware. It also helps you prevent phishing schemes and the infection of your PC with viruses when connecting your phone to it. Other features include online backup and restore of your contacts ( and the ability to access them in your account at myLookout.com ) and Find My Phone, which let’s you remotely activate GPS and see your device on a Google map or allows you to activate a loud alarm on your phone so that you can locate it more easily. All of these features are available in the free version of the app. Upgrading to Premium (which is paid) will add Remote Lock (the ability to remotely lock your phone), Remote Wipe (which lets you securely destroy all the data in your phone after it was stolen), Privacy Advisor and better support. I’ve been using Lookout since the first day I got an Android device in my hands and never had an issuse with malware.

14. Speed Test

You can measure your 3G and Wi-Fi bandwidth and ping with this Android implementation of the most popular speed test in the world.

15. Adobe Flash

One of the aspects that sets Android apart from iOS is Flash. Be aware that Flash is only useful for those located outside of Apple’s distortion field.

16. Adobe Reader

PDF is one of the most popular document standards available today. Adobe Reader offers you the posibillity of viewing PDF files from your mobile device while on the go. One of the newer features implemented in the latest version lets you convert Microsoft Office documents into PDF’s.

17. Compass

Compass is one of the best app of its kind for Android. It behaves like a magnetic compass but allows you to save geo-tagging data and notes.

18. Google Docs

Normally I wouldn’t have included Google Docs in this list but I belive that Google will massively improve this app in the future. With Docs you can edit, create, upload and manage all of your documents without having to worry about local storage. You can also scan documents and they will be automatically OCR’ed and converted to Google documents. All of your docs will be available from your PC, MAC, phone or tablet.

19. GasBuddy

With the GasBuddy app you can find cheap gas on the go with only one click. The app works only in the USA and Canada. The latest verision fixes UI bugs, updates UI colors and icons and extends the list of supported devices.

20. Dropbox

Dropbox lets you upload music, videos, documents and photos that are available from every device you use (PC, phone, tablet and others) regardless of your location. The latest version of the app lets you delete folders, adds photo thumbnails in the file browser and improves security and performance.

 

You can find more applications for your phone by consulting the Top 15 Android Apps list.