A caveat before you get too deep into this review; the official Twitter app is only available on Android 2.1. This is good news for all you Nexus One owners, as well as those lucky enough to have seen their phone receive the official 2.1 update. For this review, I am using a T-Mobile myTouch 3G running an Android 2.1 ROM.

Right off the bat, the Twitter App is very pleasing on the eyes. Animated clouds float by both the top and the bottom of the screen, along with an animated bird. It is here at the main screen that we find the first innovative feature, live trends that appear as conversation bubbles along the bottom of the screen. Tapping one of these bubbles takes you to the latest tweets on that topic. The main menu has all the major features conveniently laid out, giving quick access to all the features you could hope to use.

Another new feature we have yet to see in other Twitter apps is the “map this tweet” feature. This allows you to map the latest tweets in your timeline assuming the tweeters make their location public (defaulted in the Twitter app). In my opinion, this is a cool new way to use Twitter and it’s always interesting to see where others are in relation to ourselves.

For those familiar with the Facebook widget, Twitter apparently had the same person work on their widget, as they look almost identical, and offer much of the same functionality. You can use left and right arrows to scroll through recent tweets, update your status, or click on the big ‘T’ to launch the application.

What’s really cool about the official Twitter app is its tight integration with the Android platform. Contacts on Twitter can be synced with your contacts, allowing you to view your friends’ status updates directly from your contact list. I liked this feature when the Facebook app introduced it, I still like it with Twitter (although I have far fewer real-life friends who use Twitter). Twitter also allows you to “share” tweets you enjoy either through Facebook, email, or SMS.

So has the release of the official Twitter app made all other 3rd party Twitter apps obsolete? Well, not really, not yet anyway. Though very close to perfect, there are still a few drawbacks that ensure this will not be my exclusive app for a while. First, I absolutely need the ability to add comments before retweeting something. Looking at my feed, it’s apparent that many others feel this way as well, and this is one I hope Twitter clears up very soon. Second, I’ve been spoiled by the full conversation view found in Touiteur, and really want to see Twitter integrate this feature in a future release. Finally, Twitter does not offer multiple account support, which is likely to be a deal breaker for some. Most 3rd party apps offer multiple account support, and it’s somewhat surprising that the official app does not do the same.

Pros:

• Tight integration into the Android platform
• Pleasing/almost eye-catching user interface
• Mapping tweets
• Well laid-out widget
• Innovative and easy-to-use Twitter trends feed

Things I’d like to see in future releases:

• Ability to add comments before retweeting
• Full conversation view
• Support for multiple accounts

Final Verdict

If you have Android 2.1, you need to download the official Twitter App. It hit a homerun in its first release, and is only a version or two away from the lucrative grand slam. I greatly enjoy the Twitter app, and strongly think you will too.

Twitter is available for free on the Android Market for all phones running 2.1 and above.

Unfortunately, the official Twitter requires Android 2.1 or greater.

Twitter also shared that they had a great time working with the Android team. In the near future, Google will be open sourcing the code used in this app so that developers can create new experiences using the Twitter APIs.

My guess is we see Twitter fully integrated in Android 2.2 (similar to Facebook and 2.1). Twitter for Android adds the ability to sync all your existing accounts and updates under the Android accounts setting.

Gallery

This is especially nice on older Android phones because the more notifications you have active, the harder the app is on battery life. Most (if not all) competing clients I’ve tested with multiple-account support force the same notification settings across all accounts.

One of the most powerful options is keyword notification. Users can create a keyword search that is treated as its own stream with an option for notifications when new tweets match the query. Other clients have keyword search built in, but do not offer tracking and notifications. Businesses that use Twitter rely heavily on keyword tracking, and frankly I’m surprised keyword notification isn’t offered in more clients.

HootSuite also integrates click-through statistics for all shortened URLs using Ow.ly. This information is available for all links you shorten using their service (even from the desktop). However, the Android client does come up short here by only showing per-link statistics and nothing for all links combined.

Another unique feature on Android is the ability to schedule delayed tweets. This helps prevent users from flooding followers’ timelines and expand their account’s visibility over the day.

HootSuite is available in the Android Market for $2.99 and a lite version is offered for free.

The goods:

• Free version includes multi-account support
• High level of customization
• Keyword tracking and notifications
• Integrated stats with graphs
• Threaded @replies

Needs improvement:

• Does not support native RT
• Needs more link stats

Final Verdict

HootSuite is well known for its flexible and robust web interface, and their Android app lives up to that reputation. If you’re looking for a business-oriented Twitter client, HootSuite should be first on your list to try.

Note: This review was submitted by Lane Montgomery as part of our app review contest.

So far I have enjoyed Seesmic for its simple navigation, speedy performance, and multi account support. I also like the regular updates that come about once a month (I’m looking at you Twidroid). Those most recent update includes some nice UI tweaks (like improved notifications) and adds proxy support.

Seesmic says they will have a separate post to go into more details on the proxy support so I’m interested to see where that goes. They are releasing a Seesmic SDK for their desktop client, so it looks like plugin support could find its way to the Android client.

The list of Seesmic updates includes:

• Improvement to notifications (new icon, count of messages in icon and bug fixes)
• Tap on the top red bar to jump to the top of any timeline (with tutorial)
• Proxy support, on a per account basis
• SSL support, on a per account basis
• User Interface fixes, including for Motorola Blur OS
• Added a setting to automatically launch the application at startup of the phone (Settings > Advanced)

If you have never used Seesmic for Twitter, give the new version a spin. If you already have it installed then I suggest checking out some other new clients (like Touiteur or Twicca). For an insanely detailed Twitter app comparison chart go visit Androinica and read Andrew’s take on 13 different clients.

HootSuite is currently only available for devices with Android 1.6 and above, but a version for Android 1.5 is being worked on.

Highlights of the HootSuite features include:

• Managing multiple identities and accounts
• Creating custom views for tags and searches
• Understanding reasons for trending topics
• Scheduling messages for the future
• Adding followers to lists and accounts
• Sharing photos and shortening URLs
• Plus HootSuite Android version includes a few new tricks including background notifications so messages keep on coming even when you’re browsing elsewhere.

We had the pleasure of meeting Seesmic founder Loic Le Meur at CES and I personally begged him for multi account support. It appears quite a few other people requested the feature as well, because Seesmic just updated to version 1.2 and added multi accounts along with a host of other new functions.

Changes for the latest version of Seesmic include:

• Multi accounts
• Remember scroll position
• Adding an Extra Large text size option
• Your profile information (avatar, number of following and followers,…) will now be updated automatically
• Changing your Twitter account password will now be handled by the application
• Composer now auto-corrects and auto-capitalize your words and sentences
• Notifications are now cleared when the application is accessed from Launcher
• Easily changing default account from the application’s Settings
• Can remove a Twitter account simply by pressing on it

I had the chance to test out the latest client and it handles multiple accounts quite well. Users can add as many accounts as they want and then jump between them using the menu button.

It would be nice to have a unified inbox like Twidroid, but keeping the accounts separate can also have its benefits. One advantage that Seesmic has over Twidroid is the ability to easily cross post a message to multiple accounts by checking them off on compose screen. (Speaking of the compost screen, Seesmic beats Twidroid hands down with its layout.)

If you tried the first release of Seesmic and were unimpressed, give the latest version a try and let us know what you think. Don’t forget to drop by the official feedback page and give your input and feature requests.

We have to give Seesmic credit for keeping all their Twitter clients relevant while continuing to pump out updates. From Android to the web to the new Look (Twitter for the Oprah crowd), Seesmic is able to service a wide scope of users and they show no sign of slowing down.

Threaded conversations in Twidroid 3.0.

Version 3.0 also came with many additional features including:

• new: threaded conversations
• new: in-app image previews for twitpic, yfrog, twitgoo, phodroid, posterous and twitter profile images
• new: in-app link previews
• new: twidroid plugins 1.0
• new: action menu design streamlined with icons
• new: share option for single tweet
• new: view large avatar in profile
• new: saved searches sync with twitter
• new: marker for tweets annotated with geo information
• new: report spam
• new: remember timeline position setting (default: on)
• new: jump to top in timeline button
• new: autocomplete usernames for timeline and replies
• new: bring up tweet box directly by typing @
• new: DM list now with avatars

The developers Zimmermann & Marban show no signs of slowing down and have also posted a roadmap of features for version 3.1:

• new: unified action and inline link menu – whole tweet brings up the menu now
• new: native youtube posting in cooperation with google
• new PRO: offline sending (tweet outbox)
• new interface languages: chinese, czech, russian, arabic
• new: sample plugin to integrate your own URL shortener
• new: RT icon instead of text
• new PRO: white on black theme

My only question now. How much longer before some big company acquires Twidroid? I think Twitter, Google, or any handset maker would be proud to make this their official client.

Seesmic now offers the Twitter client you’ve been waiting for! A powerful feature-rich application that’s simple and easy to use. Share photos with your choice of image service, post videos to YouTube, share links connected with your Bit.ly account, fully configure your notifications and view your Direct Messages in a simple threaded view.

I installed Seesmic and played around with it for a little while to snap some screens. The client has a simplified UI which is easy to navigate. It appears to be a pretty full featured Twitter app for the first release and I’m excited to see what they add next.

Check out the app and send your feedback to Seesmic to let them know what features you would like added (hint: multiple account support).

As an Android enthusiast, I love the way Twidroid continually updates their release notes. Anyone can see just how active the developers are and they have recently began including a roadmap of upcoming features.

The next major update due in December should include:

• new: threaded conversations
• new: remember timeline position setting
• new: single tweet view with extended infos (geo, report to spam etc.)
• new: offline tweets [~2.9]
• new interface language: chinese

I also like how Twidroid is available in two versions: Free and Pro. I prefer the Pro version for its full featured lists support, multiple account management, desktop widgets, and themes (For a full comparison see their features list). The Pro version will cost you around $5, but if you are a heavy Twitter user I would definitely recommend it.

Twidroid has also been helpful for other application developers as well. They recently announced they support plugins so other apps can integrate with their service.

We’re happy to announce that we will soon provide a mechanism for Android developers to build plugins that use Twidroid as a platform for all Twitter-related communication and enhance the feature set for end-users. Our first example will be a native Google Maps integration for individual Tweets as not all currently available devices are equipped with native capabilities for viewing maps. We’ll provide further infos in the next weeks.

I know there are a million different Twitter clients for Android, but Twidroid has consistently been the best over the last year. Our readers agree too, since they voted it as the Best Twitter App during our last Android Network Awards.

If you have yet to sign up for Twitter, what are you waiting for? Be sure to follow @androidandme for up to the second updates on the latest Android news.