Whether you're an faithful Android user or you've just unboxed your first Android phone, there's a wealth of free and cheap apps in the Android Market that can turn your device into a mobile powerhouse. Our second annual Lifehacker Pack for Android is stuffed full of apps to keep you connected to home, office and friends, or just help you stay entertained on the go.
The Lifehacker Pack is a yearly snapshot of our favorite, must-have applications for each of our favorite platforms. If you're curious to see how things have changed this year, here's last year's Lifehacker Pack for Android.
Want to skip to a specific category? Use these links:
Evernote for Android has been regularly updated and has come a long way since it made it into our pack last year. The app scored a huge update in April that added shared notebooks, geolocation, sharing with Facebook and tighter integration on your phone, and more. Evernote says mobile is their most rapidly growing space, and it shows in their Android app.
Download Page
Springpad is another utility that allows you to take notes and snippets from the web and the things around you and save them for future reference. Where Evernote focuses on notes and web clippings, Springpad expands the idea to products, places, and more The app combines all of those clippings with a robust organizer and to-do manager that can change the way you work.
Download Page
What started as a side project of a Google engineer has turned into Android's leading to-do list organizer and manage, and is still one of our favorites. It's simply, it's easy to use, it syncs with Remember The Milk RTM syncing has since been removed, and it'll keep you in line so you don't forget to do the things you need to do.
Download Page
Even though other services have appeared to help manage money and finances, Mint still holds the title for all-in-one web-based financial management tool. Mint has updated with budgeting tools and the ability to add transactions manually, making it even better for on-the-go budgeting. Make sure you lock the app with a PIN though, in case your phone falls into the wrong hands.
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Dolphin HD is still one of our favorite alternative Android browsers, and given the state of Android fragmentation, it's good to have a browser that'll work well on any version of Android you may have. The interface is remniscent of desktop browsers, with tabs on top for easy access, but they slide away to save real estate. Even though we like Dolphin Browser, it's certainly not the only one out there.
Download Page
There are plenty of great Android Twitter clients available, but we keep coming back to the official Twitter for Android app because it's clean, easy to use, and it gets the job done. Plus, the app was recently updated with multiple account support and push notifications, making it even better.
Download Page
Google's new social network is now the fastest growing social network ever, and just topped 25 million users. As soon as the network launched, the Google+ Android app launched with it. The app gives you access to your stream and all of your circles on your phone, can automatically upload your photos to Google+, and lets you see and join Huddles on your phone quickly. If you're in Google+, the Android app is a must-have.
Download Page
Every Android phone comes with turn-by-turn navigation and driving directions, complete with traffic overlays, drive times, nearby gas stations, and even restaurants on the way if you want something to eat when you're on the way. Google Maps Navigation will even route you around traffic if the path is congested, and if you prefer you can just fire up the map to get a top-down view of where you're planning to go.
Download Page
Even though it's actually a to-do list and task management suite, the ReQall app for Android can tell where you are and remind you if you have something to do in that location. You'll never again have to drive home from the office, pass the grocery store, and completely forget that you meant to buy milk and eggs on the way. Here's how to use ReQall to make your to-dos come to you.
Download Page
If you're looking for a comprehensive backup utility for your Android phone, Titanium Backup is the app for you. The app can back up your files, your SD card, your apps, your settings and configuration, and even dump all of that data to the SD card or Dropbox so you can root, tweak, and play with your phone, then restore if you need to. Titanium Backup is central to our guide to setting up an automated backup process for your Android phone.
Download Page
Dropbox is still the go-to file syncing and storage solution for almost every major platform. There are alternatives, but we still love Dropbox for its wide availability and its ecosystem of utilities, tools, and plug-ins that are available for it. Plus, since the app doesn't take up space on your phone until you download a file, it's a great way to extend the storage of your phone without adding anything to it.
Download Page
Swype is so popular that more Android phones come with it pre-isntalled than don't these days. If you haven't used it yet, it's worth the download. Once you start using it you won't find yourself tapping individual letters every again. You'll get so used to gliding your fingers across the screen from letter to letter that you'll miss it if you move to a new phone without it.
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If you've ever said to yourself "I wish my phone would do this and then immediately do that" without having to do it yourself, Tasker is for you. You don't have to be a power user to make the most of Tasker, but it definitely helps. Tasker is perfect for turning on WiFi when you get to the office without you having to interact with your phone, or turning on Bluetooth when you get in the car.
Download Page
Voice Search has been upgraded several times since it made the pack last year, and if you're not making use of it, you should be. The app now lets you navigate by voice command just by speaking the address, send emails and SMS messages by speaking the recipient and then the message, and of course, search the web quickly by talking to your phone. Once you get used to dictating your SMS messages while driving, you'll never feel the urge to text while driving again.
Download Page
There's no shortage of file management and browsing tools for Android, but File Expert gives you a tabbet interface that's easy to browse, easy to search, and lets you share those files with other computers on your network via Wi-Fi without connecting to a computer. The app even rolls in an SMB client for audio and video streaming on remote computers when you're away from home.
Download Page
You don't have to be in on the Google Music beta to download and install the new Music Beta player for your Android phone. It helps, but the Music Beta player also plays the music on your Android device, and looks much better than the stock music player that ships with Android. You can browse by tiled album art, switch to landscape mode to flick through cover art to find a song, or scroll through a list of album or artist names while the persistent player at the bottom makes sure you don't have to stop the music to search.
Download Page
Pandora is almost ubiquitous, but its Android app is a pleasure to use, especially while driving. The app offers access to all of your stations and ratings on the go, and can automatically adjust your stream quality based on the data connection you have. Creating new stations on your phone is easy, and your new stations will be available on the desktop the next time you get to a computer.
Download Page
The Kindle app for Android gives you access to Amazon's massive ebook store and all of the books inside. You can read them on your Android phone, or you can save your place and pick up on your PC or Mac, or on your Kindle Ereader, if you have one � but with the Android app, you may not need one.
Download Page
The default Android player leaves much to be desired, especially media format support. MoboPlayer crashed onto the scene with software decoding and broad format support, a smooth and clean player that supports gestures to control playback and volume, and is completely free.
Download Page
Google Listen may be ubiquitous when it comes to downloading and enjoying podcasts on your Android phone, but Doggcatcher is probably the best app for the job. The app supports audio and video podcasts, variable speed playback, off-hours downloads or Wi-Fi only downloads, and even though it's pricey, many of you thought it was more than worth the money when we looked at the best mobile podcast catchers.
Download Page
Spotify's launch in the US was big news, and if you've scored an invite to the service or signed up for a premium or unlimited account, you can take your music with you using the Spotify app for Android. For Spotify free or Unlimited users, you can use the mobile app to sync your own music collection with the app, but Premium users get the benefit or offline playback and the ability to search Spotify's database of music on the go and listen to new music at any time.
Download Page
FourSquare has come a ways from just being a way to tell the world where you are at any given moment and collect points to see outgoing you are compared to your friends. Now that the service is rolling in local deals and check-in bonuses and benefits with businesses in communities around the country, FourSquare can be a great way to have a little fun checking in and sharing your location with friends, but also a great way to save a few bucks on appetizers and drinks at your local bar.
Download Page
The Netflix mobile app just launched and is still on a select few devices, but we're talked about how you can get around that in the past. When and where it works, it works well, and lets you stream anything in your Netflix Instant queue to your Android phone over Wi-Fi or 3G. You'll need an account to use it and you should watch how much data you use, but it's a great way to pass the time when traveling or away from home.
Download Page
Yelp is still the best way to find a new place to eat or something to do in your area. Take location reviews with a grain of salt (the way you should for anything on the web) but Yelp's ability to show you what's in your immediate vicinity either by map or augmented reality view are fun to use. Even if you're not interested in the fun factor and just want to find a place that's open at 3 in the morning and you're hungry, Yelp is there for you.
Download Page
iOS users have Instagram, but everyone has PicPlz, another social network/photo sharing service that will remix your photos with filters and effects to add interest and then share them with your friends on the service and with your friends on Flickr, Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, and other networks. PicPlz will even drop your photos on Dropbox so you can get to them on other devices if you want.
Download Page
Magic Hour, named for those first and last sunlit hours of the day where the light is perfect for shooting video and capturing gorgeous photos, offers filters and photo editing tools to tweak your photos on your Android phone. You can apply simple filters to add interest, or you can change the brightness, contrast, or build your own filters to apply, and then share the final product with friends. Check out the free version to get a feel for the app before buying filters or buying the full version.
Download Page
Camera 360 also applies filters and effects to your photos to try and spice them up, but the focus of this app isn't just to make photos of your cat more palatable to your Twitter friends. Camera 360 has HDR effect filters, a tilt-shift and color-shift mode for your existing photos, and the ability to share those final photos on Facebook or Twitter.
Download Page
Twitter clients are a point of contention for many people � everyone has their favorite. If you dislike the official Twitter client, TweetDeck gives you access to your Twitter feed and your Facebook stream in one app, and many of you have suggested Twicca to us as a beautiful client that's worth mention � so we took a look. Also, it's worth noting that Twidroyd was our App Pack selection for Best Twitter client.
Download Twidroyd, Twicca, or Tweetdeck
Swype is certainly the ubiquitous alternative Android keyboard, but it's not the only one out there. We've discussed some of the best Android keyboards out there based on the type of typer you are, so don't stick with Swype just because you have it. 8pen may look wacky, but once you start using it, it's remarkably intuitive, and Swiftkey's latest updates make it even more attractive and easy to use, especially for tablet users.
Download Swiftkey or 8pen
This list is hardly exclusive, and there are tons of other great Android apps we couldn't feature here. Do you have Android apps not listed that you can't live without? Share your favorites in the comments below.
posted Sep 1st 2011 12:00PM
