Android

Software for Android Devices

Miro

As an open source video and music player, Miro has a lot in common with other free players. But it goes beyond what the usual freeware offers. Aside from managing audio and video, it also doubles as an audio/video shopping center. Miro allows users to import their libraries from iTunes. There is support for Android syncing. If you are looking for the iTunes equivalent in Android devices, this is it. Aside from supporting all popular video and audio formats, you can download or subscribe to podcasts.

Foodspotting

Foodspotting is all about finding your favorite dishes or restaurants nearby. If you want to find out what your local restaurant is serving up, this app from Foodspotting Inc can help. The information comes from users who post images of their favorite foods. This setup is different from other apps in that you get first hand info from real users and restaurant goers.

Pulse News

There are a lot of news readers for the iPad, with most having the same interface. Pulse from Alphonso Labs is different. It’s not just the unique interface; there are also distinct features in this app. When you start this RSS reader, you’ll see that it makes good use of the iPad’s generous screen. Navigating the app is pretty easy. News feeds are scrollable. To see more, move vertically. One of the nice things about Pulse is the pictures, ideal to liven up your news reading. News items can be read in web or text version. In portrait view, the entire screen will be reserved for reading. In landscape view, stories can be read side by side. A new feature lets you keep track of stocks.

iHeartRadio

iHeartRadio is more than an online radio. It is a free, complete digital service from Clear Channel Management Services. There are over 1500 stations to choose from. You can search stations by format, zip or state. One of its nicest features is you can build a custom station based on songs or artists. You can also review your “likes” and history, read song lyrics and get information about the songwriter. Your favorite stations can be shared, including the ones you make.

Feedly

There are a lot of useful Google Chrome extensions, and Feedly is one of them. It works like a news reader, informing you the latest news from blogs, feeds, Twitter, Facebook and other sites. The contents are displayed in a magazine-like manner. Feedly also integrates nicely with YouTube, Amazon, Delicious, Google Reader and other popular sites. Feedly provides many ways to edit, work, display, filter and add content. You’ll have to spend some time configuring the program, but it’s worth it. After setting up Feedly, you will end up with a custom made magazine digest consisting of stuff you want. The app also provides suggestions, a lot of which are pretty good and spot on.

Urbanspoon

There’s no shortage of places to eat, but how do you know which ones are good? Well you can try Urbanspoon, a free app (Android / iPhone) that allows you to search for the best restaurants around you. There are several ways to filter your searches. Once you register for free, you can look for eating places that have entered the Village Voice's "Best of" lists. You can also look for restaurants with a James Beard Foundation award, or those that made it into the dining blog Eater’s “essential” restaurants. This new option is great if you want to find out the places the food critics are raving about.

Android Booster

Together with the iOS, Android is one of the best and the most powerful smartphone ecosystems out there and a highly capable optimizer would surely be a great addition. Here enters Android Booster. This is a do-it-all app with all the nitty-gritty under-the-hood for maximum functionality on any Droid device. Created by NQ Mobile (NetQin Mobile Inc.), this developer has quite a big list of productivity apps under their belt, so they definitely know what they are offering with our today's little treat.

BigOven

Big Oven app shows why mobile food / drink apps are superior to traditional recipe books. This app by BigOven.com comes with over 250,000 entries, which is why it is also called 250,000 Recipes. Fortunately, the program has a robust search engine. The search feature is very flexible. You can look for specific food. It can generate random recipes if you want to try something different. You can also find out what other users are preparing.