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Top 10 most popular Android apps from last week: EyeEm, Temple Run, GPS Essentials

Taylor Wimberly — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 15:55:16 +0000

Every week we cover Android gaming on Wednesday, followed by Top 10 app updates on Friday. Now every Monday we will look back and see which ones were the most crowd-pleasing among our audience. Read on for the 10 most popular Android apps from your peers.

1. Temple Run

Temple Run Imangi Studios PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

This game was a smash hit on iOS and we have been waiting a long time for it to come to Android, so it’s no surprise that Temple Run received over 1 million installs in the first three days. Readers of our site clicked on Temple Run 2x more than any other app last week. It was almost my most-played game in the last Android Gaming Weekly.

2. Dungeon Hunter 3

Dungeon Hunter 3 Gameloft PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Gameloft’s Dungeon Hunter 3 only debuted this weekend, but it was still able to grab 2nd place. We think it got a lot of installs because it’s a free title, but that same freemium model might also be responsible for the poor average review score of 3.2. Some people still love the game, so give it a try if you are looking for a free action RPG to burn up some time.

3. GPS Essentials

GPS Essentials mictale.com PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

We had never covered GPS Essentials until it appeared in our Top 10 app updates, but this little app described as “The Swiss army knife of GPS navigation” was the 3rd most popular on our site. It’s free in the Google Play Store where it has an average review score of 4.4, so try it out if you love GPS tools.

4. Camera 360

Camera360 Ultimate PinGuo Inc. PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Installs spiked to 30 day high.

We first featured Camera360 a couple weeks ago and it debuted at #1 in our first ever Top 10 Most Popular Apps last week. This time around it dropped 3 spots, but it’s still racking up the installs and maintains an average review score of 4.3. I named Camera360 one of my favorite camera replacement apps, and I’ve still been using it quite frequently.

5. EyeEm

EyeEm - Photo Filter Camera EyeEm PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Installs spike after featured on A&M.

I fully expect EyeEm to become the most popular app next week. It’s that good. EyeEm is another camera replacement app, but it has a unique real-time photo search engine that automatically tags your photos based on location, time, and the objects in a photo. All the standard filters and frames are included, and EyeEm also has a social network that includes public albums of similar topics you might enjoy. If you already installed Camera360, try out EyeEm and let us know which you like better.

6. GO TaskManager

GO TaskManager GO Launcher Dev Team PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

GO TaskManger already has over 10 million installs, but it managed to capture the #6 spot when we mentioned it for the first time last week. The latest major update turned their widget into a more powerful app that they claim is more useful. The app is free in the Google Play Store, so try it out if you need a new task manager.

7. Lightbox Photos

Lightbox Photos Lightbox PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Camera apps have been hot lately, and Lightbox continues to ride that wave. Last week Lightbox ranked #4, but it still managed a respectable #7 this time around. It’s special because it has it’s own social network with a feed of all your friends pics. The app is free and still maintains an average review score of 4.4.

8. The King of Fighters

THE KING OF FIGHTERS Android G-Gee PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

The King of Fighters briefly appeared on the Google Play Store last week, but it was mysteriously pulled down by the time we mentioned it in Android Gaming Weekly on Wednesday. We included a download link in case the game came back, and enough people clicked on it for the game to rank #8 this week. Hopefully, the developer SNK Playmore will resolve any issues and get this classic fighting series back up for sale.

9. SoulCraft

SoulCraft MobileBits GmbH PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

This week MobileBits expanded their open beta of SoulCraft to include non-Tegra devices for the first time. Gamers responded and installed the game over 10,000 times so far. Early reviews are positive, and it looks like this game will keep getting better as it nears release.

10. MyTracks

My Tracks My Tracks Team at Google PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Google’s MyTracks has been around a long time, but last week an update added a new feature that let users play back a track as a tour using the Google Earth mobile client. It sounds awesome, and that was enough to help MyTracks crack our Top 10 list.

Wrap Up

Some quick notes from this week’s Top 10 most popular apps:

Only 2 apps held over from last week: Camera360 and LightBox
Games held the top 2 spots, and 4 of the top 10
If you app is featured on A&M, installs could spike to all time highs
I like writing these weekly columns

Find an app that we should feature on Android and Me? Send us your suggestions and we will check them out.

CrApp of the Week: The World’s Hardest Game sucks. Period. So shut up.

Dustin Earley — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 19:33:48 +0000

So here I sit. Absolutely fuming mad. Because of one stupid game that looks and sounds like garbage. Really? The World’s Hardest Game? It’s not even hard in a fun way. It’s hard because it’s impossible to play on a small touchscreen. It makes me want to punch Joustin’ Beaver in the face (I suppose I want to do that anyway). I hate it.

The game sounds simple enough (“You are RED square, avoid the BLUE circles and collect Yellow circles. Once you have collected all the yellow circles move to GREEN beacon to complete the level.”), but it’s meant to be challenging. I get that, I really do, but this game was not meant to be played on a touchscreen. I don’t exactly have pencil thin digits, but it’s not like I have Shaq hands. I can’t even see what I’m supposed to be doing once I put my finger on it. And the graphics suck so bad, and there’s such a small area to move around in, and you can’t zoom in, and annoying techno is assaulting my eardrums, and my dog has to go outside, and my text message noise won’t quit going off, and my girlfriend wants to know what I want for dinner, and I have no freaking idea, and next thing you know, my phone is on the other side of the room. Because I threw it against the wall. And showed it who’s boss.

I hated this game when it was in the Flash portal on Newgrounds, and I hate it even more now. You might think at this point that the game isn’t actually all that bad, and I just have a personal vendetta against it. Just play it for yourself.

World's Hardest Game Sufi Soft PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Have a fantastically terrible Android CrApp you’d like to see covered? Let us know in the comments below.

Top 10 most popular Android apps from last week: LightBox, Camera360, Another World, …

Taylor Wimberly — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 20:32:18 +0000

1. Camera360

Camera360 Ultimate PinGuo Inc. PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

I called this app my favorite camera replacement last week, and it was the most clicked download of the week. I really enjoyed the simplicity of how it worked, but it’s still slow to start up. Camera360 has now seen their daily installs spike to a monthly high, while still averaging a review score of 4.3.

2. Another World

Another World DotEmu PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

The 20th anniversary edition of the classic platform game Another World came in a close second. Even though the game offers updated HD graphics and enhanced sound, I didn’t feel like throwing down $4.99 to replay this game I wasn’t a huge fan of. The game only sold between 1,000-5,000 copies, but it’s being well received with an average review score of 4.3.

3. Angry Birds Space

Angry Birds Space Rovio Mobile Ltd. PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Rovio hyped up Angry Birds Space the last couple of weeks and we were not surprised to read over 10 million people installed the game in three days. Most of our readers went with the free version, supported by battery-killing ads.

4. LightBox

Lightbox Photos Lightbox PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

LightBox came in 4th place when we listed it as an alternative to Instagram for Android. Over 1 million users have already joined the Lightbox community, where they can follow and interact with friends and creative people from around the world.

5. QuickPic

QuickPic alensw.com PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

We have mentioned QuickPic several times in the last couple weeks, and it continues to be a popular alternative to the native Gallery app. Even on new phones like the Galaxy Nexus, the default Gallery app can become slow and unresponsive. QuickPic describes their app as “more quick and clear then the lazy stock Gallery.” We agree.

6. Pixlr-o-matic

Pixlr-o-matic Autodesk Inc. PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

I installed this app after using Camera360, and I think I enjoy Pixlr-o-matic the most. It has a more polished look than Camera360 and offers more frames and lighting effects. Both are free, so try out each one and see what you like.

7. MyTracks

My Tracks My Tracks Team at Google PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Google’s MyTracks has been around a long time, but it saw a spike in attention this week with a new update. The latest feature allows users to play a recorded GPS track as a tour using the Google Earth mobile client. Sounds pretty cool, but I haven’t tried it out yet. Let us know if you did.

8. MX Video Player

MX Player MX Technologies PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

This video player has been around awhile and already has over 10 million installs, but it’s still not very well known. MX Video Player is available for free and plays just about any video file on your Android device. Did you know it also supports multi-core decoding, which shows up to 70% performance improvement than single-core devices?

9. Beauty Camera

Download App in the Android Market PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Another camera app from our Instagram alternatives made its way into the Top 10 list. I tried out Beauty Camera to see what it was about, and was not that impressed with the editing features that it offered. Others have found it useful, since it has over 1 million installs and still maintains an average review score of 4.1.

10. Aging Booth

AgingBooth PiVi & Co PLAY QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

I was kind of surprised to see that Aging Booth only had 1 million installs, because all the camera apps from PiVi & Co are awesome. This is a great app to have a laugh with your family and friends. (p.s. Where did Zombie Booth go?)

Develop an Android app, submit it to BlackBerry App World and get a free PlayBook

Dustin Earley — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:54:04 +0000

RIM wants Android apps in their BlackBerry App World market so bad, they’re practically giving away PlayBooks to developers who submit them. What’s that you say, they actually are giving away PlayBooks? Oh RIM, what’s happened to you?

Instead of building quality hardware, pairing it with quality software and attracting users and app developers the old fashioned way, a clearly desperate RIM is giving away PlayBook tablets to any developer who submits their Android app to the BalckBerry App World market.

You see, RIM has developed software for the OS running on the PlayBook that allows Android apps to be ported to BlackBerry with just a few simple clicks. Apparently, RIMs plans to leech from the Android Market isn’t turning out quite like they imagined. Even after drastically lowering the price on PlayBooks, RIM still can’t get rid of them. So why not give them away in exchange for apps?

RIM’s future is still very uncertain at this point, but a free tablet is a free tablet. Need an ereader for your kids? A $500 coaster? A chew toy for your dog (just kidding, don’t give your dog a PlayBook to chew on)? You have until February 13th to submit your app and take advantage of this generous offer.

Android now has 400,000 apps, still a ways to go to catch iOS

Anthony Domanico — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:05:37 +0000

Distimo is reporting that Android now has 400,000 applications available on the Android Market, putting Android a mere 25% behind Apple’s App Store. Android’s smartphone market share continues to grow more rapidly than any other smartphone platform, and developers are taking notice.

With more and more developers developing Android applications before developing for other platforms, it will likely not be much longer before the number of Android applications matches the number of iOS apps, likely when both platforms are in the 550,000 to 600,000 range if Android’s market growth continues at the rate it has been.

Distimo’s report shows that Android’s application growth is largely coming in the free application category, with 68% of applications now available free of charge to end users, a 13% increase from April 2011 to December 2011. We expect this trend to grow even more as developers embrace the freemium model, where developers offer the basic application for free and offer premium features as in-app purchases.

While it’s encouraging to see the number of applications growing, we hope that the trend continues to bring useful and novel applications to Android rather than “crap-apps” or apps that simply replicate functions of another application.

Android 4.0.3 becomes base version of ICS; not all apps ready to roll

Dustin Earley — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 20:50:56 +0000

Google has just announced an “incremental” update to Ice Cream Sandwich that will now serve as the base version of the OS. From this point forward, manufacturers looking to update their handsets to ICS will be doing so with Android 4.0.3. According to the Android Developers blog, 4.0.3 will be rolling out to production phones and tablets “in the weeks ahead.” While this is a good sign that manufacturers are just about ready to start rolling out updates, not all developers are ready for the jump.

The update to 4.0.3 isn’t exactly earth shattering compared to any other version of Android 4.0.x. There’s plenty of optimizations packed inside, as well as some big fixes, Bluetooth enhancements and graphic improvements. There’s also some new APIs for developers to play with that pertain to the camera, calendar and more. As badly as I’d like to see these changes brought to a device near me, there’s something else that needs to happen first. Developers need to make sure they update their apps to work with Ice Cream Sandwich.

Android 4 may have a relatively small user-base compared to previous builds, but that doesn’t mean app developers should postpone updating their apps until more people are using Ice Cream Sandwich. Of course some developers are ready for the update, but support issues for popular apps are more rampant then you think. We reached out to the followers of the Android and Me Twitter account to see what kinds of apps you’ve been having with trouble with, and which ones are working fine, on your shiny, new Galaxy Nexus.

Netflix: Netflix really needs no introduction, and fortunately, the app has been updated to work on ICS. Breathe easy streamers.
Dolphin Browser: Easily the most popular alternative browser for Android, ICS users are having trouble using Dolphin Browser.
OnLive: If you happen to use OnLive to get your gaming fix, you’re in luck. OnLive works on the Galaxy Nexus.
Facebook: Some users are reporting problems with Facebook. Considering it’s the most popular Android app on the Market, Zuck might want to get on that.
Light Flow: Light Flow gives users an added level of control over the LED notification light on their device. While most are saying it does indeed work on the Galaxy Nexus, there are some bugs that need to be smoothed out.
GTA 3: Probably one of the most popular games on Android at the moment, some users are reporting problems with the newly released game.
Swype: This is a big one. Swype has officially announced that their innovative replacement keyboard is not ready for ICS.
Adobe Flash: Adobe promised they’d update the abandoned Flash player to work with Ice Cream Sandwich, and sure enough, it was.

This is just a short list of the apps that do and don’t work with Ice Cream Sandwich and the Galaxy Nexus, so feel free to share any issues you’re having in the comments below. And developers, your users are waiting.

Google launches Android Training for aspiring developers

Dustin Earley — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 06:23:32 +0000

The Android Developers website has always played host to a great wealth of knowledge on developing apps for Android. It’s where you go to download the SDK, find announcements on development and publish apps, among other things. Starting today, the Android Developers website will also become a training ground for developers in the making.

Announced by Reto Meier, Android Developer Relations Tech Lead, Android Training is a collection of free virtual classes aimed at helping developers with a wide variety of problems and questions. Classes range from Designing for Multiple Screens to Monetizing Your App, with a little bit of everything in between.

Meier has promised that more from Android Training is on the way, but for now, there’s more than enough to keep even the seasoned developer occupied for awhile. To see all the different classes Android Training offers, just head to the Android Developers website now.

Flurry: Developers still heavily favoring iOS over Android

Dustin Earley — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 21:43:21 +0000

During the Le Web technology conference held recently in Paris, France, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt took to the stage to lay out some predictions on how developers will favor Android over iOS before 2012 is finished. He said that within six month’s time, developers will be releasing apps for Android before iOS due to the sheer volume of Android devices out there. Flurry sees it differently.

Flurry is a mobile app analytics firm that has their hands on data from just about every popular smartphone OS on the market. So far, over 55,000 companies have used Flurry Analytics across more than 135,000 applications. Developers use Flurry’s analytical data before apps are initially shipped (for a number of reasons), so the company has a good idea of what platforms developers are going to be supporting out of the gate.

Flurry has collected the data from 55,000 apps that were started in 2011 and organized which platform they were developed for by quarter. While Android developer support has steadily declined (save for a small 2% uptick in Q4) throughout the year, iOS development has exploded. In Q4 2011, 73% of developers using Flurry were making apps for iOS first.

Of course this data comes from developers using Flurry, not all apps in general. Still, Flurry Analytics “powers approximately 25% of all apps downloaded from the App Store and Android Market combined.” There’s good reason to believe that Flurry’s data is an accurate description of the market. Especially once you factor in money.

Schmidt’s prediction that developers will support Android first is related to how many Android devices are out there. Not how much money apps are making. By taking a look at in-app purchases in some top apps across Android and iOS, you can see just how much more money iOS users are putting into their apps. According to Flurry, iOS developers make around three to four times as much money with iOS apps. On average, “for every $1.00 generated on iOS, the same app will generate $0.24 on Android.”

Google is certainly headed in the right direction with the Android Market, but it’s going to take a lot more than sheer volume to secure immediate developer support. Until the money is on Android’s side, iOS is going to stay the go-to platform.

Advanced app review filtering comes to the Android Market

Dustin Earley — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 19:58:33 +0000

App reviews have always been some what of a sore spot for developers and users alike. Reviews are an essential tool in deciding if an app is worth purchasing or not. But without a whole lot of rules behind them, it can be a pain narrowing down relevant reviews to see who had real problems on what devices, or who was just blowing off some steam. Thanks the the Android Market’s new advanced app review filtering system, finding trustworthy reviews just got a whole lot easier.

By clicking on an app in the web-based Android Market (sorting isn’t available in the mobile app yet), and then clicking on the “user reviews” tab, you can now sort app reviews in a number of different ways.

Version number is the first option on in the list, allowing you to look at reviews for all versions of the app, or just the latest version. Sorting by version is helpful for seeing if a new version got rid of any nasty bugs stopping you from purchasing.

Next up is devices. By using the device filter, you can see reviews from people using your device. Or any device registered to your account. Unfortunately, you can’t just look at reviews for any Android device out there, but sorting reviews by your phone or tablet model is certainly helpful for narrowing down any compatibility errors.

Finally, the last feature in the new filtering options is the ability to organize reviews by helpfulness. App reviews can be sorted by the date posted, the rating and helpfulness.

These three sorting features along with in-depth review details (reviews say the device and app version the review is tied to) and the option to sort reviews by their star rating and are going to be a huge help in finding reliable information on an app.

Google’s 10 cent deals – Day 6

Nick Gray — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 15:20:13 +0000

Looking for some more great apps deals from the Android Market? Day six of Google’s 10 billion app download promotion is here with a handful of new apps for only a dime. Read on for today’s specials.

If you spot any of the other ten cent apps for today, leave us a comment below and we’ll add them to the list. What apps will you be buying today?