Over 9,000 new apps were published on the Android Market last month and about one third of them were junk. That leaves 6,000 apps to browse through or about 200 per day.

Which would you rather do? Browse through the sometimes-slow loading Market on your phone OR bookmark a few sites and see what’s hot in seconds.

Here are a few of my favorite tools to discover new Android apps and games. Which sites do you visit for finding new apps to download?

1. AppAware – Stats

See app installs in real time.

Link: AppAware – Stats

AppAware is the most basic site on this list, but it is the one I visit the most. I normally browse it from my Android phone, but they also have their stats online.

Whenever an AppAware user installs, updates, or removes an application, that information is automatically reported to their server (and Tweeted if the user enables it). I regularly check their last hour report to see which apps are being installed the most. This allows me to instantly see what is hot and I discover something new to download almost every day.

It is also cool to browse the Top installed apps in the last day report. I can see that many of our readers are already using AppAware because when we post about a new app it will get a couple hundred installs.

Another interesting report is the Featured apps page. Apps are ranked by the number of times they are installed vs uninstalled which generates a quality score. This allows some apps that might not have as many downloads (but still has a loyal following) to be discovered by new users.

Make sure you install the matching app if you have an Android phone. Additional reports allow you to see the most popular apps by specific device and location.

Hits: Companion Android app, live data, automatic reporting, Twitter integration, QR codes listed on site, popular apps by device, popular apps by location

Misses: No app details, no way to temporarily “mute” service for privacy or exclude apps from reporting, slow load times on the app, no search feature

2. aTrackDog – Most Popular Apps

Filter apps by category, popularity, and price.

Link: aTrackDog Most Popular Apps

ATrackDog has been a long time favorite of ours. They gather their stats from an Android application that reports the versions of Android apps installed on a user’s device. This data is used to generate a most popular apps list that can be sorted by category, time, and price.

Combining different views allows you to create some pretty cool lists like top 100 apps for the last month, most popular paid games for the week, or new and updated apps.

The Android application is also the best at tracking version numbers of apps. It can track any app including betas, installed, uninstalled, or even those backed up on your SD card (aTrackDog(SD) required).

Hits: Most popular apps lists with advanced filters, companion Android app, keeps apps up to date, tracks uninstalled apps, tracks latest beta versions of apps, export app list for sharing, tracks non-Market apps, download beta apps from developers web site, built-in app manager

Misses: No premium version (non-ad supported), no QR codes on site, no live stats, some app listings are in Chinese, user has to manually check for updates

3. AndroLib – Top of the Day

Track the daily progression of apps.

Link: AndroLib – Top of the Day

AndroLib is primarily used to browse app listings, but they have some interesting stats that no one else provides. I like browsing their Top of the day report which has revealed some real odd apps.

Applications are ranked by pageviews on the site and updated once per day. Since the stats do not come from Market or installation data, this report regularly produces some odd results. These apps might not be always be good, but they are normally entertaining (Night Vision Goggles).

Hits: Extensive application detail, track daily progression of apps, discover weird apps people are viewing, app recommendations

Misses: No Android app, no mobile UI for site, popular stats can only be viewed by day (no week, month, etc.)

We already tested Sprint’s 4G network using the Overdrive and found download speeds of 3-6 Mbps. At the upper end, these speeds are 10x faster than the average 3G connection (600 Kbps vs 6 Mbps). Sprint is going to cover 120 million people by the end of this year, so many of you will be able to benefit from the faster network.

To check out the current and upcoming 4G coverage areas, please visit www.sprint.com/4g

One of the most exciting aspects about a 4G Android handset is going to be the new 4G apps that spring up to take advantage of the faster speeds. The most obvious apps to benefit will be video streaming services (ESPN via Sprint TV anyone?), but I’m curious to see what new ideas come to the forefront.

What types of 4G apps would you like to see created? Live broadcasting of video (Qik, Ustream)? Complete phone backups and restorations? Voice chat during online games? Video calling using VOIP (Fring)? Online file storage for all your media?

If you can dream it then someone can build it, so share your ideas for 4G apps.

From the Google page:

Starting today, Nexus One users will begin to receive an over-the-air software update on their phones. This update provides some great new features, and fixes a few problems that some users might have experienced, including:

Google Goggles: this mobile application will now be available directly on your device by launching it from your All Apps menu. Just use your Nexus One camera to start searching the web

Google Maps: the Maps application with be updated to a new version, Google Maps 3.4, which will include:

• Starred items synchronized with maps.google.com – access your favorite places from your phone or computer
• Search suggestions from your personal maps.google.com history – makes it easy to search for places you’ve searched for before
• Night mode in Google Maps Navigation – automatically changes your screen at night for easier viewing and driving

Pinch-to-zoom functionality: devices will now include a new pinch-to-zoom mechanism in the phone’s Browser, Gallery and Maps applications

3G connectivity: we will provide a general fix to help improve 3G connectivity on some Nexus One phones

In order to access the update, you will receive a message on your phone’s notification bar. Just download the update, wait for it to install, and you should be all set. This update will be rolled out gradually to phones – and most users might not receive the notification until the end of the week. We hope you enjoy these new features and look forward to your feedback.Nexus One blog

Have any of our users started to receive the update? We own two Nexus devices but neither has received the update. Once one of our phones gets the update we’ll post a video demo of our shiny, new, pinch-to-zoom goodness…

We have listened to your feedback and found the number one request to be “more”. That demand will be filled with more contributors, more reviews, more videos, more interviews, more giveaways, more network sites, and several other special projects that will be revealed over the coming months.

One of our top priorities this year is to continue to build the And Me Network. This is a collection of independent sites that serve different needs of the Android community. We have an open invitation to all the Android related sites out there and are looking to make new partnerships to help grow the community. Be on the lookout for a dedicated site soon that will serve as the hub of this network.

Another area that we want to improve is providing Android news in different languages for our many readers around the globe.

Welcome And.roid.es

We are proud to announce that And.roid.es has joined the And Me Network to provide Android news in Spanish. Users can currently reach the site by visiting http://and.roid.es or http://es.androidandme.com. Our site navigation is being overhauled and will soon provide easy access for jumping between the different languages. And.roid.es will help translate our stories to Spanish, share hot news from other countries, and provide reporting from overseas events like Mobile World Congress.

Please join me in giving a big welcome to our new friends And.roid.es.

One-handed operation is a great idea – I love being able to control almost every part of my phone using only my thumb. However, there are a ton of tasks that could be completed easier (and faster) by using two fingers. It is not a question of one or the other; some tasks were made for one finger and some for two.

The most obvious implementation of multitouch that everyone wants is pinch zoom. This makes precision zooming possible in the browser, high definition photos, and maps. The top handset makers like HTC and Motorola have recognized that people want this feature and they have implemented it on their Android phones where they control the software.

On the Google experience Android phones, where Google controls the software (like the G1, MT3G, Droid, Nexus One), most of the native apps do not implement simultaneous touches. Only the virtual keyboard uses multitouch to improve error detection.

Everyone has asked Google why they left out basic multitouch implementations, but they have had no luck in getting a clear answer. Most of the time all we hear is, “We are looking into it”.

Engadget’s Joshua Topolsky recently asked Google’s Eric Tseng the burning question and this is how he responded:

“When people say ‘why doesn’t Android have multitouch?’ it’s not a question of ‘multitouch’… I want to reframe the question. We have multitouch — what people are asking for is specific implementations in the UI that use multitouch, like pinch-to-zoom, or chording on the keyboard.”Eric TsengSenior Product Manager for Android

As you can see, that is not really an answer. When Topolsky mentioned the conspiracy theory that Apple was blocking pinch zoom, he was met with a smile and “No comment”.

Hutchison and Cyanogen to the rescue

Deep down, I believe Google will wake up one day and give in to the multitouch implementation demands. Based on how long it has taken Google to implement other requests (like app storage on the SD card), it could be awhile before we see this happen. Thankfully, the dev community has stepped up and provided a temporary hack while we wait on Google.

Luke Hutchison has ported his multitouch controller to Eclair and Cyanogen has released a modified browser that implements pinch zoom. These are the same guys responsible for many of the multitouch apps on the G1 and myTouch so hopefully we will see other modified apps for the Nexus One soon.

For anyone who has already hacked their Nexus One, it only takes about 30 seconds to install the modified browser. I tested this hack on my Nexus One and it works just as expected. It is a great start and hopefully we will have pinch zoom in the gallery in the next couple of weeks.

A quick video demo of the hack is provided below.

I doubt we will ever know the real truth behind all the multitouch conspiracies, but at least the users who really want it can get it. We thank HTC and Motorola for implementing multitouch features into Android and hope they continue to expand its use.

The real question now is: How much longer will Google ignore the demand for multitouch implementation and continue to get hammered by the reviewers who complain that Android ‘doesn’t do multitouch’ when it actually does?

Does anyone believe the Apple conspiracies? Why would Google not implement multitouch functions in their native Android apps when everyone else is doing it? Do they actually believe that one-handed operation is superior to two?

It almost reminds me of Apple sticking to a one button mouse.

The engraved text is a really light gray and not particularly large. It sits really flat on the phone, you can barely feel it when you rub your finger over it.

In an attempt to keep you guys connected, we’ve got our photos headed straight from our Canon XSi to our Flickr account. So far we’ve just got some airport, hotel, and Nexus One shots up but tonite we are headed to our first event and tomorrow the big show starts so it should start filling up with some gems soon.

For up to the minute photo updates, keep your eye on the AAM Flickr.

We said we’d have a My Life with Andy every Tuesday, and while there’s only a few hours left on this Tuesday: Better late than never, we always say. Except I guess if you’re headed to an airport. If you are too late there you might as well turn around and head home.

An alarm blasts in your ear when you check late luggage, long lines risk you missing your flight and costing you hundreds of dollars. No one wants to deal with that. Tomorrow we have a flight at 6am so I’m sure we’ve got a super-fun early morning rush ahead of us. I’m really looking forward to it.

The video shows some obvious short comings in the flash handling (slight flickering very visible) but it’s still a huge step forward and I can’t wait to start browsing flash sites and playing games from my browser. Are you guys excited at the prospect of finally having flash in action?

Link to the image itself…

Side note: If anyone knows who is responsible for these motion graphics or is familiar or close with the project, please drop us a comment. The style is amazingly tight and I’d love to know who put these together.

We’re headed to Las Vegas tomorrow (January 6th) out of Austin, TX to cover the Consumer Electronics Show and plan on trying to track down everything Android we catch wind of.

We’re also headed to a solid stable of side-parties. Our first night in town we are headed to a Pepcom event (we attended the one at CTIA and were thoroughly impressed). The next day Taylor’s got us going to the might-be-celebrity-filled It Won’t Stay in Vegas party hosted by Brent Spiner (I GET TO MEET LT COMMANDER DATA). Last year Levar Burton was there (I’ll have to resist the urge to walk up signing Reading Rainbow at the top of my lungs) and this year Leo Laporte is scheduled to attend (been watching this guy for the better part of a decade now) so I’m starting to get pretty excited.

The meat and potatoes of the trip though is CES and we plan on covering every angle of the Android gear presented this year. We’ll be posting video interviews live from the show floor, photos as we take them, tweets as quick as we can— all to keep you, the loyal reader, informed. To follow all the action we’ve set up numerous streams of content, listed below:

Android and Me CES Page
We’ve set up a special page that pulls all of our CES-related posts into a single place. Starting today, any post on this site that pertains to CES will get a CES rider right under the main post image (like you see on this page). Clicking the banner will take you to the central CES page.

Travel Blog
For all our non-Android content like where we are eating, hotel antics, after party stories, etc you can follow our travel blog on Tumblr. All three of us will be using aTumble throughout the trip to constantly update a single Tumblog.

Twitter: @androidandme, @clarklab, @angiedoes
Follow us on Twitter for short blasts throughout the trip. Twitter is also a pretty handy way to get a hold of us so if you have a question or are in Vegas looking to meet up, hit us up on Twitter.

Flickr Photostream
All of our photos from the trip and show floor will be automatically uploaded to Flickr. This year we went ahead and bought an Eye-Fi card in the hopes of blasting live high-res photos direct to Flickr from the show floor.

YouTube Channel
We’ll be filming any hardware we can get our hands on and plan on doing as many booth interviews and recaps as humanly possible before we drop.

We’re super excited to be headed to Vegas (especially on a ‘business’ trip where the site can foot the bill) and even more excited to share it with all of you. If there’s anything specific you want us to track down or any questions you want us to try to find answers to, let us know. We’ll do our best to squeeze every bit of Android info out of this thing.