Applications - 37/252 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Feb

NARR8 Motion Comic Reader Comes To Android, Offers A Unique Take On Indie Art

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Applications, News

I like comics. They're wonderful. While the modern world makes it difficult for local shops to maintain the footprint they once did, online distribution has made it insanely easy (and cheap!) for major and minor artists to gain a following and make money doing it. However, is digitally reproducing static artwork on a powerful, portable computer really the best we can do? Narr8 doesn't think so.

The app functions similarly to most digital comic stores now: you can download individual "episodes" and keep track of all entries in a series. However, the capabilities of each story go far beyond regular graphic novels.

Feb

[New App] Qualcomm Releases Snapdragon BatteryGuru, Aims To Extend Your Device's Battery Life

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

If there's one common issue with smartphones across the board, it's battery life. Rightfully so, we all want more of it without having to sacrifice usage. Thankfully, Qualcomm is looking to help owners of Snapdragon-powered smartphones get just a bit more out of their device's battery with the new Snapdragon BatteryGuru beta.

In a nutshell, it monitors your usage, "learning" what you do with your device. It discovers where you connect to Wi-Fi, what apps you often use, when you sleep, and the like. From there, it automatically configures certain aspects of the device to optimize battery life, like disabling Wi-Fi when you're away from common hotspots, and re-enabling it when you're back in the area.

Feb

Official eBay App Updated With Custom Notifications And A Streamlined Checkout

Posted by Jeremiah Rice in Applications, News

eBay's Android app has left a little to be desired, especially considering that their mobile web app is pretty serviceable in and of itself. Today's update brings a slightly refreshed user interface, a few bells and whistles in the alert system, and a desperately needed revamp of the checkout process. Phones and tablets running Android 2.1 or later can download the app, but don't expect the UI to scale.

The Reminders function is probably the most useful to hard-core eBay users, or at least, those hardcore users who don't already have email alerts set up. The new version allows you to set custom ringtones for buying and selling, as well as new matches for your saved search results.

Feb

[New App] AnyDash Displays Notifications From Any App In DashClock

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Applications, Apps/Games, News

More DashClock extensions? Well, people are pretty excited about the functionality DashClock brings. So yes, more DashClock extensions. The AnyDash extension actually opens up a world of possibilities by piping notifications from any app into DashClock. There are a few caveats, but it looks like everyone's favorite clock widget just got much more useful.

AnyDash has to be registered as an accessibility app before you can use it. This allows it to sweep up notifications from the Android system and display the appropriate icon in DashClock (nothing nefarious going on here). All you have to do is pick the app you want monitored and choose an icon.

Feb

[New App] DashClock Facebook Extension Makes Your Clock More Social

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in Applications, Apps/Games, News

DashClock is definitely the flavor of the week. Developers are falling all over themselves to build extensions for this multi-talented clock widget, and here's an interesting one. Whether you use DashClock on your lock screen or home screen, the new DashClock Facebook Extension could save you all kinds of frustration.

This app is simple – it displays your unread messages and notification count on the DashClock widget so you don't have to pop open the Facebook app as often. You will need to have the DashClock app installed, but Facebook itself is actually optional. You'll log in via the extension and can set the refresh interval from there.

Feb

PushBullet Now Has An API, Will Hopefully Result In More And Smarter Pushing

Posted by David Ruddock in Applications, Apps/Games, Development, News

PushBullet is a pretty clever but simple service that allows you to push text, links, files, and various other information from Chrome to your Android phone or tablet. Think of it like Chrome to Phone on steroids. We recently recovered the Android app's update to version 8, which allowed friends (other Google accounts) to push to your device.

Yesterday, the developer of PushBullet announced that an official API was being released, which should add all sorts of versatility to the already very-useful service. I, for one, would love a way to integrate PushBullet into the Windows shell, so I could right click anywhere on anything and push away.

Feb

Official Weather Channel App Receives Major UI Update, Forecast Includes 100% Chance Of Holo

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

If you've given up on the official app of The Weather Channel in lieu of other, better-looking solutions, it may be time to give it another shot. The app has received a major update today that finally modernizes its previously-dated UI, bringing it up spec with the Android design guidelines. You know what that means – it's Holo, baby!

Not only is the app 4.0+ optimized, but it also brings a new tablet-friendly interface, as well as a killer new feature that will tell you the exact time rain (or other less-than-ideal weather conditions) are going to hit your area. That's slick.

Feb

[New App] Quickly Uses Jelly Bean's Expandable Notifications To Put An App Launcher In Your Shade

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Applications, News

Notifications have been one of the areas that Android has excelled in since day one. In Jelly Bean, that feature got a boost with the ability to expand a one-line entry, turning it into what is essentially a widget. Quickly happens to be one of the neatest uses we've seen of this new feature. This app creates a persistent notification in your shade that can be expanded to reveal an app launcher.

This app is a first release and the developer notes in the description:

The app was originally meant as a proof of concept, but there was demand, so here!

Feb

Solid Explorer Updated With SugarSync Support, Settings Backup/Restore, And More

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

Despite its slightly controversial conversion from being a free beta app to paid in the final version, Solid Explorer continues to be one of the most powerful, versatile, and best-supported apps on Android – especially in the file manager category. The app recently received an update that makes it even more powerful, specifically in the area of cloud storage: the app now has SugarSync support, as well as improved libraries for Box and SkyDrive.

Those aren't the only improvements wrapped in this update, either:

What's in this version:

-SugarSync support
-backup and restore settings
-ability to set a wallpaper and a ringtone
-creating symbolic links
-last open folder is remembered even after app kill
-charset selection in text editor
-updated Box and SkyDrive libraries
-option to keep the screen on during file transfers
-other minor improvements

If you're looking for a mature, feature-rich file manager, you'll be hard pressed to find one better than Solid.

Feb

Clipper Plus Updated To v2.1, Now Has Cross-Device Sync

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Applications, News

If you've been looking for a good clipboard management tool for Android, there's no better time to take a look at Clipper. The app just updated to v2.1, which brings a pretty incredible feature: cross-device syncing. This means you can copy text from one device, and paste it on another. That's just badass.

Of course, there are potential security worries with a feature of this nature – like passwords, for example. Personally, I copy passwords from KeePassDroid quite frequently, and I know Artem uses LastPass to do the same thing. Understandably, this is the type of information that no one wants shared across multiple devices through the cloud.