apps

Video playback on Google Android: Is that all?

Does it strike anyone else as odd that Google has left some basic capabilities to third-party Android developers? Video playback in the day where multimedia is king seems like such an obvious application to perfect and include on a platform with a lot to prove, yet the only video-related application the T-Mobile G1 sports is a YouTube application.

That makes perfect sense, YouTube having been bought by Google and all, but what if the videos you want to see plain haven't been uploaded yet?

Thankfully, the Android add-on Video Player reliably fills a basic role by playing MPEG4 or … Read more

Turn almost any app into a portable app

UPDATED: Clarified the end result of AppCompactor on a standard program.

When you gotta go, advanced users should strongly consider using AppCompactor to stay mobile. Just introduced by John T. Haller of PortableApps, this portable power user's right-hand man crushes program files, often shaving 50 percent off the size of a disk.

AppCompactor melds 7-Zip and UPX to compress and archive DLLs, EXEs, JARs, and other files essential for running any program into a package that doesn't need to be unarchived to run. Programs that have been compacted run smoothly from a flash drive or other on-the-go storage … Read more

Java on Google App Engine? Not yet

Reports out of a Google developer conference in India indicated that Google was primed to add support for Java programs running on its presently Python-only Google App Engine. Java support is a top request for the Web application hosting site, but fans would be better off holding their horses for now.

The reports based the Java-on-GAE conclusion on remarks from a speech by Prasad Ram, director of Google research and development in Bangalore. Google, though, said nothing is happening soon.

"While we don't have any immediate plans or announcements, we are working on other languages for App Engine. … Read more

Voice recording quietly comes to Touch 2G

What a difference a month makes. In September, we couldn't find a single voice-recording app for the iPhone that would work with the headset input included on the second-generation iPod Touch. I took a look around the iTunes App Store today and found that seven of of the 13-plus iPhone voice-memo apps now list themselves as compatible with the second-generation iPod Touch. Here's the list, so far:

SpeakEasy Voice Recorder from Zarboo Software QuickVoice Recorder from nFinity Recorder from Retronyms Note2Self from Web Information Solutions iRecorder from Simple Touch Software YouNote from Sophiacom iTalk Recorder by Griffin

If … Read more

TuneWiki rocks music videos on your Google Android phone

Updated: To correct licensing information.

The music player on the Google Android G1 phone isn't bad, but can it scroll lyrics while the song plays, download you new songs for free, and play music videos?

All that is packaged into the free TuneWiki music player, a much more complex and ambitious Android app than most of its cohorts debuting in the Android Market today. Not only does TuneWiki catalog the songs already on your phone, it also supplies you with quick links to download free songs, and links to play videos coupled with lyrics, some licensed.

You can use … Read more

PicSay makes LOLcats on your Google phone

PicSay's stated purpose is to e-mail or text annotated photo messages to friends, but there's nothing stopping you from using the free program as a makeshift photo editor.

PicSay is a simple application made especially for Google Android, but it's nevertheless the most customization-focused application I've reviewed today. You start by choosing a picture from your photo album or the image you most recently viewed (this won't work if your Android phone is in mass storage mode.) Then press the Menu key to start adding in the special effects: word balloons, colorful headings, cartoony images, … Read more

Summon Wikipedia on the Google Android G1

WikiMobile Encyclopedia has been around for awhile for the BlackBerry and Windows Mobile Pocket PC, so it's no surprise to see it formatted for the Google Android G1 phone.

Just as advertised, WikiMobile Encyclopedia crawls Wikipedia.com for articles, offering up predictive search queries as you type your term. You can also search Wikipedia for a random article or browse what's popular, especially if you have a few minutes to kill or are looking for a factoid to impress people at a dinner party.

Interestingly, instead of scrolling or flicking the results page vertically, the app slices the … Read more

Google Android beckons taxis with Cab4me Light

Why isn't there ever a cab around when you need one?

The free Google Android application Cab4Me Light makes finding, scheduling, and calling cabs to your side virtually brainless. Cab4Me Light's interface is simple and efficient, with one tab that shows where you are on the map and another that shows the details of cab companies in your area.

Step 1, drag your approximate location on a zoomable Google map. You can use GPS to locate yourself or enter a new address or a contacts' address to call the cab to a different location. Step 2, either click … Read more

BreadCrumbz G1 Android app plots Point A to Point B

BreadCrumbz (beta) is another one of the new Android apps I like. I got a run-through of the free multimedia directions app a few months ago with the developer, and I gave it a spin on my own here in San Francisco. BreadCrumbz uses GPS, Google maps, and the G1's camera phone to help you track a route, like directions from the train station to your house.

You essentially start a new route, take photos along the way to mark the path, and label everything with helpful hints. You can tag an image and annotate it with an arrow … Read more