Welcome to the roundup of the best new Android applications and live wallpapers that went live in the Play Store or were spotted by us in the previous week or so. Today I have Facebook's Twitch competitor, an enjoyable music creation app, and a Wi-Fi app from Cisco designed for secure public Wi-Fi connections. So without further ado, here are all of the notable Android apps released in the last week.
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Looking for the previous roundup editions? Find them here.
Apps
Facebook Gaming: Watch, Play, and Connect
Android Police coverage: Facebook Gaming app debuts in US as gaming and live streams spike during quarantine
Facebook Gaming has been launched early in order to take advantage of the fact that the vast majority of people are stuck at home thanks to the coronavirus. Originally the social media company planned to bring its Twitch competitor to Android in June, but that release schedule was moved up. As a gamer, I can't say I'm all that interested in watching others play games, and really, YouTube, Twitch, and Mixer were more than enough options for me for the few times I wanted to look in on how a game plays. Still, I suppose one more hat in the ring should be good for competition, even when it's clear that Facebook is distastefully trying to capitalize on a worldwide virus outbreak with this week's early release for Facebook Gaming.
Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $99.99
Beats and Loops - looper
Beats and Loops is a musical looping and beat-creating app, and it works like a guitar pedal. Now I know what you're thinking, why would I stomp my foot on my phone after placing it on the ground, but you see, you won't have to do that since this app works by swinging your foot over the screen. So yes, you will place your phone on the ground, but you won't ever have to actually touch it with your foot. All in all, this is a clever way to offer a looper and drum machine pedal in a smartphone app.
Monetization: $3.99 / no ads / no IAPs
OpenRoaming
OpenRoaming is a Cisco app that allows for automatic and seamless roaming across Wi-Fi 6 and 5G. Basically, what this means is that you can sign into this app with a Google account or Apple ID, and then you can use public Wi-Fi without having to worry about sharing any of your credentials. So once you've set yourself up through this app, jumping on and off public Wi-Fi networks that support the service should be a breeze.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Sterio - Share Music Across Platforms
Sterio is a music sharing app designed around streaming services. If you've ever used a music streaming app, you'll know full well that sharing this music is extremely difficult if your friends don't subscribe to the same service. And with so many options out there, there's no doubt that most people use competing apps. In comes Sterio, an app that will automatically find a comparable link to the music you've selected, all so you can share those links with the users of those services. So say you really like a song on Spotify, but your buddy uses Apple Music. This app will allow you to find the Apple Music link with ease (through the Spotify link) so that you can share the particular song without having to resort to digging up a YouTube video.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Reelgood - Streaming Guide & Roku Remote
If you've ever tried to stream media to a ROKU, then you know full well that the streaming box doesn't support many of the media apps currently available on Android or iOS. This is why Reelgood is such a useful tool. It's an app that lets you see all of the content that's available on Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, Disney+, HBO, and over 100 other subscription services, all in one place, and best of all, you can stream this content from these services to your ROKU through the Reelgood app.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Simple SMS Messenger - Manage messages easily
Simple SMS Messenger is just that, a minimal messaging app designed around ease of use. The app supports group messaging, as well as a few date formats for customization. The app is small in size, so it's easy to download, though internet access is required if you want to send an MMS message.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
ACRPhone Dialer & Spam Blocker
ACRPhone Dialer & Spam Blocker comes from NLL, the developer behind the popular screen recording app Screen Recorder. If you couldn't tell by the name, ACRPhone is a dialer replacement and spam blocker. What's great about the blocker is that you can build your very own blacklist, making it easy to block any incoming call. Of course, now that number spoofing is extremely prominent, be careful not to block local numbers that spam you, or else you may actually block a legitimate number.
Monetization: free / contains ads / no IAPs
VUniverse
VUniverse is a media discovery app that offers personalized movie and TV show recommendations. Now that we know rating sites are often useless when it comes to consumer trust, it's tough to dig up reviews for media that you can rely on. This is why apps like VUniverse are so helpful. The app doesn't care about the latest movies and TV shows Hollywood wants to sell you on since its recommendations are built off of your viewing history, and best of all, the app can take into account all of your subscribed services (if you connect them to this app), so finding similar content should be much easier when the entirety of your view-history is in one place.
Monetization: free / contains ads / no IAPs
Apocalypse Survival Training
Apocalypse Survival Training is the latest app to gamify working out. The app offers three types of workouts, Speed, Strength, and Control. As you would imagine, these are three things that would ideally help you during an apocalypse, and so this app offers an unfolding storyline where completing your workouts will eventually lead to an end to the title's apocalyptic alien invasion. So if you're the sort that needs an extra push to get off your behind, Apocalypse Survival Training adds a fun incentive to a daily workout routine.
Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $7.49
Manufacturer And Tie-In Apps
Verizon Care Smart
Verizon Care Smart is a tie-in app for Verizon's Care Smart watch, and this is a watch that comes with its own phone number, ideally for the use of keeping tabs on the elderly. So if you'd like to stay in contact with your parents or grandparents, Verizon's watch is an option, though you'd think a smart hub with a screen would be a much more reliable way to communicate with an age-group that often suffers from poor eyesight, not to mention is often tech illiterate. As someone that could barely teach their grandparents how to use a tablet, a smartwatch would have definitely been out of the question, no matter how many useful features the watch boasts.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Live Wallpapers
Diffuse - Apple Music Live Wallpaper
Diffuse is a live wallpaper app that simulates the look of Apple Music's live background. The app supports a robust selection of music apps, such as Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, SoundCloud, YouTube Music, and will blur the album art of whatever you're listening to at the time through a live wallpaper. It's a simple app that elegant in its execution, and if you'd like to take it for a spin, there's a free version available alongside this premium release.
Monetization: $1.99 / no ads / no IAPs
Know A Worthy New App? Let Us Know!
If you have an application in mind for the next issue of the roundup, feel free to send us an email and let us know.
Important: there are 2 requirements in order for the app to be considered, listed below.
- the app's launch date has to be no longer than 2 weeks ago
- it has to be original, ground-breaking, well-reviewed, interesting, fun, etc - the cream of the crop
Now, if and only if the above requirements have been satisfied, fire up an email to this address: oh.no.its.the@androidpolice.com.
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