Version 4.0 also brings the following new additional features:

• Live stream of recent scans using the ShopSavvy application (more on that in the next section)
• Better scanning technology which allows for full 360 degree scanning so you can scan the image from any direction
• Enhanced sharing features such as sharing info via Twitter and Facebook
• Export your historical scans to Microsoft Excel or Apple iWorks
• ShopSavvy Deals – a service which searches your historical scans to look for price changes at all retailers (including if a purchased product drops in price after you’ve bought it, alerting you whether you can take in your receipt for a refund of the difference)

The new homescreen for ShopSavvy 4 features a live feed of user scans from around the United States. This feature pulls in both the item name, the city in which the item was scanned, and the best available price for that item. Users can simply click on any item in the live feed, and it will scan both online and your local retailers to find the best available price. Think the live feed is a little too big-brother-y? Rest half-assured. Users can switch to the standard personal historical scans view in the settings, but there doesn’t appear to be a way to prevent your scans from showing up in other users’ live stream feeds.

All things considered, Shopsavvy version 4 is an awesome update which should please ShopSavvy users once you get used to the new layout and features. If you haven’t yet checked out ShopSavvy on your Android device, you may want to download the free application now.

Don’t like the new UI update? The folks at ShopSavvy have also released GoCart, which is basically a legacy edition of their most recent pre-4.0 update release (version 3.6).

ShopSavvy Barcode Scanner ShopSavvy, Inc. MARKET QR POWERED BY APPAWARE

Bluetooth Speakers

Any music fan worth his salt knows volume is king. A song endures some kind of transformation when you crank that dial to 11. And that wimpy speaker on the back of most phones has nowhere near the power needed for a proper jam.

With a set of Bluetooth speakers, your music fan will be able to wirelessly blast his or her tunes from a pair of speakers with some authority. This BlueAnt model, at 28 Watt RMS, is the world’s most powerful portable speaker. It’s got an internal sub-woofer and internal battery with a ten hour life (BlueAnt M1 speaker from the AAM Store – $159.95). The pocket-sized Motorola EQ5 even comes with a speaker-phone for hands-free calling (Motorola EQ5 speaker from the AAM Store – $99.95).

Archos 5 Tablet

Most of the Android devices available today have just barely an ample supply of internal memory for the casual user, but any hardcore music fan is going to have a library that would make almost any microSD card cry. If your music fan is looking for a place to stockpile all his tunes, look no further than the Archos 5 tablet series.

The Archos 5 internet tablet is powered by Android and comes in varieties with internal capacities ranging up to 500GB. It’s also got a 4.8-inch TFT LCD touchscreen display with a 800 x 480 resolution, but that’s just icing on the cake (Archos 5 Tablet from Amazon – $379.99 to $485.99).

FM Transmitter

One place I like to listen to music most is the car. And while the radio or a CD does a pretty good job, nothing beats your own personal selection of music. With an FM transmitter, your music fan can hook up his phone (or Archos tablet or any other MP3 player) to blast music out all of his or her car’s speakers.

This FM transmitter from Soundfly plugs into your auto outlet (so it won’t need batteries like some other models) and as a bonus even has an SD slot to play straight MP3 and comes with a remote control (Soundfly SD Fm Transmitter from Amazon – $34.95). Models like those from iriver allow you to choose any frequency, allowing you to find a clear channel even in densely populated radio space (iriver AFT 100 FM Transmitter from Amazon – 9.49).

Headphones

While your music fan may like all music all the time, he likely realizes others do not and would get good use out of a pair of decent headphones.

These Klipsch earbuds not only look sleek but blast some serious bass and isolate outside noise (Klipsch S4 Headphones from Amazon – $79.99). The Motorola S9 headphones weigh barely an ounce and can handle voice calls (Motorola S9 headset from the AAM Store – $49.95).

Amazon gift card

When all else fails, you can never go wrong with some straight up spending money. Amazon has tons of perfect audio purchases and runs one of the biggest MP3 stores around. Your music fan will have the freedom to pick their own gift, which is really the best gift of all (Gift cards from Amazon, no fees, no expiration).

Until tomorrow…

Friday, the fifth and final day, we’ll count down the best phones of the year. We are going to pick the best Android phones available now, by carrier, so you can make an informative decision if you are buying Android this holiday season.

Nook (or other eReader)

A student is inundated with books to read. Texts to study, novels to analyze, instructions to memorize- it’s adds up pretty quick. With an Nook at his or her side, your student will happily be able to offload some books into a handier, digital format. Plus it’s powered by Android, how cool is that?

Sure, the Nook is currently back-ordered at Barnes & Noble, but that wouldn’t stop a proper Santa from tracking one down in time for the holidays. If you’ve just gotta have it, there are plenty to be had on eBay, but if you’re patient (or your student would appreciate a voucher for future-gifting), B&N is targeting a Feb 1 ship date (Nook from B&N – $259).

The only other eReader worth considering seems to be the Kindle from Amazon. It’s now available in two sizes and we (of course) prefer the large. With it’s 9.7in display, reading just got a lot cooler (Kindle DX from Amazon – $489.00). If that’s too steep, try the regular Kindle, now featuring global wireless (Kindle from Amazon – $259).

Dock / Cradle

One thing (of many) I had trouble mastering in college was morning life. Not just being awake on time, but ready to go, dressed appropriately and with gear in tow.

This Moto dock not only charges but turns any Droid into an alarm clock for waking up on time and a weather station to help when getting dressed (Motorola desktop charger from the AAM Store – $29.95).

If the student hasn’t graduated to the Droid yet, there are still docks available for virtually any model Android phone, like the Mobi G1 cradle with a spare battery slot (Mobi Products cradle from the AAM Store- $24.95).

Earbuds

A student does two things more than he’d like to: study and walk. On a big campus it’s easy to spend half an hour on foot between classes and even easier to spend all night studying. And nothing is better at breaking up that thrilling plainness than music.

If the student has a first generation phone, like the MyTouch or G1, try a miniUSB set. The HTC stereo headset has a microphone and call button, allowing an easy switch from music to calls (HTC miniUSB headset from the AAM Store – $14.95). If you’re in the market for something in the 3.5mm space, you could try a set from Sennheiser (Sennheiser CX300-B Earbuds from Amazon – $28.95).

Car charger

Not every student ends up at a college far from home, but those that do are faced with endless car trips back and forth. Holiday? Drive home. Exceptionally boring weekend? Drive home. All the extra hours in the car make a car charger the perfect student stocking stuffer.

This Doubletalk charger can plug into an auto or wall outlet, making it a handy tool to always keep stashed in the glove compartment (Mobi Products charger from the AAM Store – $17.95). The AT&T car charger is even sporting a spare USB port, allowing the student to charge two devices at one time (AT&T charger from Amazon – 7.99).

Android clothing

Some students like to procrastinate. I made it an art form. One of my most hated tasks? Laundry. I never resorted to wearing outright dirty clothes, but I made sure to wait until the last possible moment before I hauled 4 loads of laundry up and down three flights of stairs.

Buy your student one more day of laundry freedom with a fresh shirt. Google recently added a few Android items to the Google Store, our favorite of which is this Android t-shirt (Android tee from the Google Store – $10.75). If your student has an eco-conscience, you can try the organic cotton tee, featuring a familiar green robot walking a dog (Organic cotton tee from the Google Store – $13.95).

Until tomorrow…

Thursday we’ll be taking a look at our list for the music fan in your life. Just one more list to go before we count down the best phones of the year. Make sure you check back by the end of the week or over the weekend to see the entire buyer’s guide list in full.

Car mount

With the introduction of turn-by-turn directions in Google Maps, every Android phone (well, any device with at least 1.6) was instantly upgraded into a full-fledged GPS navigator. Take advantage of the situation with a car mount, the easiest way to stick a phone onto a windshield or dash.

When we made the Android Road Trip, we had three mounts with us and it made things much easier. The iGrip universal mount will hold just about any phone and has a great quick-release (iGrip Swivel Mount from the AAM Store – $29.95). If you don’t want something hanging from the middle of your windshield or live in a state where it’s illegal (California and Minnesota) you can try a Arkon “friction style” mount for the dash (Arkon dash mount from the AAM Store – $29.95).

Full coverage case

According to Angie, a purse or handbag is no place for an unprotected phone. Keys, wallets, pens- all floating around in there waiting to destroy a shiny new phone. Remedy the situation with a nice, leather case and keep that phone in mint condition.

A side-loading case seems to be best for quick phone retrieval and, most importantly, protects the entire screen surface. Some smaller snap-on cases leave the screen exposed (and your keys would just love to see that). For style points, try a Krussel (Krussel Horizon case from the AAM Store – $24.95). For selection and options, try a case from Smartphone Experts (SME Side Pouch from the AAM Store – $24.95).

Bluetooth headset

Ahhh, Bluetooth. King of the mobile conversation (and for goobs like me, a lot more what’s and huh’s before I realize it’s not me she’s talking to). With a Bluetooth headset she’ll not only be able to answer the phone without digging it out of her purse, she’ll also enjoy hands-free conversations. Freeing up both hands is a great way to not let a call slow you down while working or help keep things a bit safer in the car.

For something affordable and low-profile, try a Samsung headset (Samsung WEP-200 from the AAM Store – $39.95). Looking for something a bit sleeker and higher performance? Check out the Motorola H12, sporting diamond-cut metal and dual microphones (Motorola H12 from the AAM Store – $69.95)

Flickr Pro account

With today’s devices you don’t just get a phone, you get a pretty solid camera. Sure, you won’t be the next Ansel Adams but for snapping photos of friends at a party or out on the town, the cell phone camera is king. To house and share all those photos, get her a Flickr Pro account (1 year of Flickr Pro – $24.95).

A Flickr Pro account comes with all kinds of goodies: unlimited uploads, storage, bandwidth- everything you’d make picture (and video) sharing as smooth as possible. To make things easier, the Android market is filled with apps that can push to Flickr, our favorite being Pixel Pipe Lite. Plus Flickr offers a printable, foldable card with the gift accounts, saving you a trip to the drug store to pick up another card.

Until tomorrow…

For day 3 we’ll be posting a list for the Android-powered student. While making the list it made me realize how much I would’ve benefited from a smartphone while in college so if you’ve got a kid headed to school or someone knowledge-bound in your family, make sure you don’t miss tomorrow’s list.

Each day this week we’ll be posting a new list of goodies. We’ll do our best to highlight some of the coolest and most-wanted Android items along with a photo, short description, price, and link to purchase. We know it’s starting to get close to the big deadline and you might be cutting it close with the shipping so we recommend ordering as soon as possible and always double checking your shipping options and dates (worst case scenario: you end up in a brick and mortar store).

Body Glove Snap On Case

Nothing makes Santa cry like a broken phone. At the prices of today’s smartphones, each purchase becomes an investment worthy of being fiercely protected.

We took a good look at the Body Glove case for the G1 way back in March. Since then, Body Glove has rolled out cases for almost every Android phone. The cases are sturdy, stylish, and affordable, the trifecta in phone protection. Plus they come with a belt clip that doubles as a kickstand and we are a big fan of multitaskers. (Body Glove Snap On Cases for the G1, MyTouch, Hero, and Droid – $23.95 to $29.95).

16GB MicroSDHC Card

One thing most Android phones are sorely lacking is internal storage space. Imagine Christmas morning, ripping open your new phone, furiously downloading apps and adding your music library only to run into the dead-end of a phone out of free space.

The good news is the situation can be easily remedied with a large capacity MicroSD card. While there are quite a few to pick from, our favorite budget brand is Dane-Elec (Dane-Elec 16GB from the AAM Store – $39.95). If you’re in the market for something a bit more performance minded, try a speedier class 6 card (Transcend 16 GB from Amazon – $90.99).

Acer Android Netbook

While an Android device does a great bit more than most phones, sometimes you just need a real PC. Enter the Aspire One AOD250 netbook, a sleek little package dual booting to both Windows XP and Google Android. Sure, it’s a bit of a novelty, but what good is a new piece of tech if it doesn’t have a feature you can hang over your friend’s non-Android-having head (Aspire One AOD250 netbook from Amazon – $334.99).

If Android on a netbook is not your cup of tea, don’t fret. There are plenty of solid deals on netbooks to be had this season. The newest Asus Eee PC gets an astounding 10.5 hours batterly life (ASUS 1005HA from Amazon- $329.95) and the Toshiba Mini has three sleep-and-charge USB ports, allowing you to charge your gadgets even when your netbook is powered down (Toshiba NB205 from Amazon – $324.49).

Seidio Innocell Battery

All the features that make us love our phones (large touch screen, GPS, accelerometer, etc) come with a drawback: real drain on the battery. Battery issues have plagued some of the first generation phones for some time now and if you are a power user it might be time to step up to an extended life battery.

Seidio’s battery replacements have up to a 50% higher capacity and come with a new snap on back (featuring Seidio’s signature soft touch coating) to house the extra bulk. The extra size and weight is a minor draw back, but you’ll find yourself thankful when you’ve got enough juice left for that extra round of Cow Potato (Seidio Innocell batteries for the G1 or MyTouch from the AAM Store – 54.95 and 59.95).

Golla Pouch carrying case

When pockets just won’t cut it and you refuse to carry a man purse: enter the Golla pouch, a phone-swaddling, card-holding, key-clipping man’s bag.

Each pouch has a large center pocket for your phone, along with a host of support players of smaller pockets, metal d-ring clips, zippers, velcro flaps, etc. With any luck you might be able to condense your wallet contents into the pouch and come out with a pocket to spare.

Golla pouches come in a variety of patterns and colors, all stylish and affordable. (Golla Pouches from the AAM store – $17.95 to $19.95).

Until tomorrow…

Like we said earlier, we’ll be back each day this week with new suggestions for you and those on your lists. Tomorrow we’ll be tackling Android gifts for her (with some help of course from our only resident female). If you’d like to share some gift ideas of your own, please feel free to do so in the comments or in the forums.

• Sprint HTC Hero (Android 1.5)
• Sprint Samsung Moment (Android 1.5)
• T-Mobile HTC myTouch 3G (Android 1.6)
• T-Mobile Motorola Cliq (Android 1.5)
• Verizon HTC Droid Eris (Android 1.5)

I got to say this is a great price since there are no mail-in rebates. However, I will give my readers the same advice I have been sharing with my personal friends. If you are considering purchasing an Android phone, be aware that most carriers will have second generation (Android 2.0) phones in early 2010. It is always the case that newer and faster technology is around the corner, but keep in mind you are stuck with a 2 year contract and it is uncertain at this point if these phones will receive Android 2.0.

Why should you purchase your next smartphone at Best Buy instead of a carrier store?

• A better choice of mobile devices and networks: Best Buy Mobile offers an unmatched assortment of phones, networks and all of the supporting products and services necessary for customers to truly enhance their mobiles lives.
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