Droid Cell Phone

For those individuals that adore the sport of Nascar there is nothing better than being at the races themselves. However, this is not always an option and the next best thing is to watch the races on television. When even this option is not available these diehard fans still desire to know who won what race and at times like that they must turn to news outlets and similar institutions. The people at Stock Car Spin, world renowned for their up to the minute and detailed racing blog and news site, have crafted the perfect method for true Nascar fans to keep in touch with the latest news and race results. This answer to Nascar fan prayers is the Stock Car Spin app Android app.

This app guarantees quick results and continual data feeds designed to bring every facet of Nascar to the viewing public. Continual updates occur whenever anyone accesses the app and anyone with the program will know the winner of a race and any important information the moment it happens. The information is up to the minute and uncensored in a manner that true fans demand. Requirements to run the Stock Car Spin app Android app are that the user must have an android powered phone such as the Motorola Droid to run it.

This app is perfect for any avid Nascar fan that doesn't have the time or the schedule to actually watch races as frequently as they would like. The information granted is complete and uncensored so the race fan never has to miss a moment of the action even if they can't see or hear it. Anyone who loves Nascar, has a Motorola Droid or similar android powered device, and is literate will love this app.

There are many races throughout the year and the only way to keep abreast of all of them is to either watch them from work, for those lucky few that can, or actually be at the races. The news feeds from various sources vary in content and usefulness but the people at Stock Car Spin are well known for unbiased content and straight talk about racing performances.

The reason to use the Stock Car Spin app Android app as opposed to "googling" the net for information or waiting for the sports news on television is simple. The information is immediate, unbiased, and uncensored. The modern fan base demands detail and information that our forefathers of racing enthusiasm did not know or care for. The knowledge of what racing team is being sponsored by which sponsor is just as important to some people as the races themselves. The market for racing information has gone far beyond who won and who lost. Fans want to know who crashed, how many tire changes, how fast did they fuel up and change out tires, etc.

For the true Nascar fan that must know everything about the race and must know it now the Stock Car Spin app Android app is the best answer to this question going.

Gesture Search from Google Labs lets you search your Android-powered device by drawing alphabet gestures on the touch screen. It allows you to quickly find a contact, a bookmark, an application, or a music track from hundreds or thousands of items, all in one place. It is fast and fun to use.

We played around with this a bit. T came up with everything starting with T. All my T contacts, Twitter ,Twoid, Google Talk, Tiger Woods Camera, etc.

Once you have what you want, Be it a App or contact users can call it use it with ease. For the short period of time I used this I was impressed. It found everything I searched for.

Droid Users can search for and download the Gesture Search App in the Android Market, Or Use the Bar Code Scanner App.
1. Open 'Barcode Scanner'
(available from Android Market).
2. Point your phone camera at the screen,
and scan the QR code above.
3. Follow the onscreen installation directions.

If a target item is not shown just keep writing and search resuly are always updating, refined as you ad each letter. You can wipe off one letter or cleaned the entire screen and start over.
Draw directly on top of search results to ad letters and refine search further.

Google seems to think this app will relieve stress. I created home screen short cut during setup. This enables the user to search there phone even faster.

The Gesture Search App is sure to be a hit.

Gesture Search currently supports English and requires Android 2.0 or above.

The Android Bar Code Scanner App is an application programming interface (api) that allows cell phone owners with the Android mobile operating system to scan an item's bar code to get more information on the item. Since bar codes are used in stores everywhere to quickly inventory and process the purchase of the item, this simplifies the search for information on it.

How does the Android Bar Code Scanner App work?

The Android Bar Code Scanner App is simple to install. Most of the work is done by the already installed Android Bar Code Scanner Application programming interface. All the cell phone owner has to do is go to Android.com, Google's dedicated website for the Android mobile operating system and Google's new Nexus One smart phone. Just go into the Android market, select a bar code scanner application and download it. Once it is installed, the cell phone's camera lens becomes the scanner. Just scan the bar code of the item and the Google Product Search for Android will gather the requested information in a few seconds. It will work with 1 dimension and 2 dimension bar codes.

How will the Android Bar Code Scanner App help users?

The Android Bar Code Scanner App will be a great personal assistant for its users. The major limit on its uses and benefits will be the imagination of the user. Over time, as the user becomes more familiar with the app, more and more uses will be discovered. Some of the users with computer programming skills will develop new programs for the Android Bar Code Scanner App that will expand the utility of the application.

The most popular use of the Android Bar Code Scanner App is comparison shopping. With the bar code scanner's ability to access the Google Product Search function, product information is readily accessible. Google Product Search will not only retrieve information on the product, it can even find the same product in nearby stores without leaving the store where the scan was done. It can also search for the product at online venders such as Amazon.com, Half.com and Ebay. For books, it can search local libraries for the book's availability as well. Not only can the Google Product Search provide the specifications and uses for the product, it will also suggest similar products that compete with the original product. Their locations and prices will be provided on a comparison basis.

If the cell phone owner finds an item of interest online, either at a home, work or public computer, the item can still be scanned and the same information retrieved from the bar code on the item's image on the monitor.

The Google Sky Maps Android app is a true marvel of modern technology and simple usage. With this app a mobile device owner can discover the wonder and beauty of the night sky simply by positioning themselves and pointing their mobile phone toward space.

By utilizing the Android phone’s location and orientation sensors you can be shown a star map for the local area. Every star, planet, and constellation within the phone’s point of view that is currently known to man and able to be seen by modern technology will appear in a brilliantly detailed map on the phone’s display.

The mobile device owner can take the time to explore the local area of their galaxy by looking up and learning the names and locations of objects on a cosmic scale. With this android app astronomy can become a simple hobby based on charted and known space. Anywhere in the world with a view of the night sky will allow the owner of this app to find and discover the stars and other heavenly bodies beyond their view.

In conclusion this Android app is the perfect addition to any mobile phone. It can turn a normal run-of-the-mill night into a night of beauty and celestial discovery. There is much to be discovered out in the wider universe and this app allows the owner of a cell phone it is installed upon to be part of the wonders of that discovery.

It is said that leaning starts at home. This Android app is a pertinent reminder of the truth of that statement.

Alice

Alice is an Android app that centers its purpose on locating local events of interest for the social oriented individual. With this app a mobile device owner can find any gig such as concerts and the various music stars of interest that will be performing in a nearby venue.

The app can be configured readily to create a detailed watch list for anything of specific interest or the Alice android app can be set to automatically create one based on the music artists listed on your mobile device. If the mobile device owner has a LastFM account that automatic watch list can also be created utilizing that data as well.

Of further interest is the fact the owner of the Alice app can search or browse for events and artists in the manner of a regular gig guide. They can view maps of the area to locate the venue, buy tickets, send or receive email about events and look for artists in a similar genre among other things.

The Alice Android app is connected to both LastFM and BandsInTown. This provides excellent event coverage and allows up to the minute changes in venue and scenario.

This Android app is for any individual that loves going to concerts or at the very least enjoys being the hub of the social scene when it comes to doling out information regarding upcoming events. A mobile device owner that enjoy music and concerts can’t go wrong with purchasing this little gig guide gem.

Trip Journal

We used this app on a recent trip to New Hampshire skiing. Worked great for easly logging the trip. There are two versions. A free one and paid. The free version is a bit limited, but works fine.

I tend to put non work related apps in the Best Droid Apps category. I'm sure some may find other apps more useful for work and business travel.

Trip Journal is an app dedicated to logging your vacation and the experiences you had on them. You can store them and share them with your friends to allow them the full blow-by-blow coverage of everything you did while away.

With Trip journal, an android app, you can track you travel route, take your photos and notes to attach them to specific trip files, and record your individual waypoints along the way. You can further visualize this previously recorded information and even follow yourself from your specific position en-route via real time on Google Maps.

Trip Journal allows the mobile device owner to send real time updates from the places they are visiting. These journal entries can be sent via well designed KMZ files that can also be viewed via Google Earth. Further you can export vacation or other trip photos to an album you create on Picasa Web.

The features of this Android app are as follows:

* Track your travel route

* Record way points

* Take your photos, notes, and statistics then attach them to a trip file

* Uses Google Maps to follow your progress and allows for the exporting of KMZ files to Picasa, Flickr, and even Facebook.

This travel app is the perfect thing for long trips, or simply keeping information about your vacations. A picture of that nice guy or girl someone met on their road trip can easily be combined with a short information screen, with such information as name, number, and anything else of interest.

Please lets us know what you think of this Droid Application or any other Android App you use while traveling!

Movies by Flixster, the #1 movie app for the iPhone, Facebook and MySpace is now on Android! - View showtimes & details for the top box office movies & DVDs - Watch high quality trailers - Read reviews from Rotten Tomatoes - Get links to theater maps and phone numbers.
This is a very social based app. Flixster is a community for movie fans of all shapes and sizes. Whether you are a die-hard horror movie fan or fan of romantic comedies, Flixster is a place where users can find others who share your taste and through them discover new movies that you will love.

About two and a half years old, Flixster is already one of the largest movie sites on the web with over 15 million unique visitors and almost 2 billion movie ratings.It uses friends and contact information to bring users a great experience on there mobile phone.

Flixster is a simple website that lets you see at a glance which movies your friends liked or didn't like.
Flixster is better than other movie review apps because ratings from your friends are both more useful and a whole lot funnier than reviews by strangers.
Flixster has fan clubs, video clips, layouts, news & tons of photos for thousands of actors.
Flixster has pics & posters, fan clubs, layouts, news, and millions of ratings & reviews for thousands of movies.
The best thing about this app is that it's FREE!

As part of Googles Local Search Project "Near Me Now" has been launched.

Need that cup of coffee or 5 star restaurant in a unfamiliar city? Near Me Now has you covered. Simply enable privacy and location options on your mobile phone and let this function do the work.

"Near me now" was designed to address two user problems. First, to make it fast and easy to find out more about a place in your immediate vicinity, whether you're standing right in front of a business or if it's just a short walk away. For example, you may want to know what other customers think about a restaurant before you go inside or what they have been raving about on the menu before you order. By selecting the "Explore right here" option, you can find out more about a place "right here" with just a few clicks.

"Near me now" is currently available in the US for iPhone (OS 3.x) or Android-powered devices with version 2.0.1 or later. You must first enable location in order for "Near me now" to appear, and "Explore right here" works only if the phone provides location accuracy within approximately a city block.
Full Story

Did you get lucky and get a Android Based Phone for the Holidays? For those who did congratulations and welcome to the future.

When you first open your phone and turn it on for the first time it can be a little overwhelming. The Android based phones have so many capabilities that it will take time to take full advantage of everything available.

Before going crazy and downloading every app you find there are a couple things to do. First see what version of Android you are running. The first batches shipped with early versions. Eris are shipped with 1.6 and Droids are shipped with 2.0.0. Both these phones have updates available. Once the phone is turned on navigate to settings>about phone. At the bottom you look for "Firmwire". If you don't see the latest version you need to update. Check Android 2.0.1 Eclair Update Post.

Next task that is important is to conserve battery life. We have had the Droid A855 running multiple apps while browsing and listening to music all at the same time. Though the device does perform for hours like that we don't suggest it being done constantly. Remember batteries can only perform so much and have a life span.

Take steps to conserve battery life by turning down the brightness to start with. Next grab a task killer from the Android Market. Also if you are not using the GPS and are in WiFi range shut off the GPS Location and connect via WiFi.

Once you have your phone ready start thinking about what you need to do and search the Android Market place from your Droid. PC and Mac users get a limited view of the app store. You will be surprised what you will find. You will find a app for just about anything.

We have a couple posts that will help with getting started. Here's 10 Free Droid Apps and a list of Twitter Android Apps to get you going.

Not only do you have one of the most powerful smartphones ever built you belong to a community. We highly recommend visiting the Android Developers site. You will find the news feed in the footer of our site. Also try grabbing the RSS Feed for updates from us.

We recommend that you only purchase accessories for The Droid from Verizon Wireless. This device is new and only a few OEM products are available for now. We have heard some bad things about none OEM accessories. Example would be Docking Stations. Some reportedly don't charge the phone. Be safe and buy direct from Verizon or Motorola.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all.

Are you a Twitter user or new to smartphones or just like reviews? We have put together a list of applications for Twitter and Android users. Over a 3 day period we put 5 app's to the test. We didn't really have a set of rules of what to look for but wanted to evaluate the user experience.
Everyone on Twitter wants different functions. Some users simply want to send out quike tweets and others can't live without certain functions that the site offers.
Twitter continues to add functionality to the website. The most recent being "Lists". Users can dig into there own community and create a list of there favorite people they are following or who is following them. This is very new and users are only beginning to get the most out of Lists on Twitter.

This list is not in any order it is written in the order they are on the Droid. Please remember any faults we found are not necessary the fault of the App itself. Android apps run of of many things. One of which is other app's. They also use Twitters API. We all know about Twitter and its API not always working correctly. Those of us who used Twitter it's very first days never thought Twitter would get so big because it crashes so much. It still does, so any function that didn't work for us may work for you tomorrow.

-- Twitter On The Fly. I may have just done something wrong, but this app just would not work for us. It kept saying we where not connected to the Internet when we where. We tried reinstalling it, checking Twitter User Name and Password, Checking permissions. The situation is still under investigation. The App could be conflicting with another App. We will get back to you about Twitter On The Fly.

I-Twitter is useful for most users. It has the search, Favorite, @ IE: Mentions, Direct Messages and Friends. No lists function that we could find on this app.Under the search field tab there is Top 20 Trending Topics for each hour in a given day. Also there is Top 30 Trending Topics for each day in a given week.
All 5 of the tabs are working and the trends are working but for some reason the search had a hard time. It would time out or just not finish. This was probably due to something at Twitter. It is probably the tester but we could not find a way to follow others at first. Very strange we where able to send replys and a photo in a reply, but we could not figure out how to follow someone or send a pic in a tweet. After many times scratching our heads we thought we had it figured it out. No. If you use the general menu on the phone the users profile opens with Reply Send DM and ReTweet, Time Line and following/followers. No Follow button
These issue are probably the fact that the tester is a space shot, but these functions should be easy to find for anyone. Know matter how many Dead shows you've been to.
Besides any dissatisfaction here it is lite and sends and receives tweet.

Xeeku Twitter App This app has many functions built in and starts with a update which we liked. It makes s sure everything is working properly. Xeeku has a sliding toolbar in the footer of your time line. The toolbar has New Tweet, Lists, Trends, DM's, Gallery, Mentions @, Saved Search and Search.
Xeeku has a large update area to type tweets and adds 3 more tools on the right side.Send Tweet, Add photo and Delete.
When you do a search with Xeeku and find a user you want to follow you simply taps on there tweet and you are taken to a option screen with 4 choices, Reply this tweet, Retweet, Send DM, There Website link if they have one and Mention @.
If you tap on a users photo the status comes on the screen. You can follow them by taping on there photo again and your done.
A great feature of this app is Friends Draw Gallery tab. This app has small tabs that popup when a certain area is open. When your in a users prfile it says Frieds Draw. It never ends with this app. When your on the timeline page you have more functions in the general menu on the Droid. The general menu show Preferances, Reload, Logout, Term and Mail To functions provided by the Application.
This Twitter App for the Droid is going to be on best of lists everywhere!

TwitterRide is a well thought out app. The layout was easy to use for us. The app as many screens that are easy to move between. Posting pictures is easy as was the mention function. By have many different window/screens it Free's up space in each area to see whats happening.

My favorite feature is a button on the bottom left that take the user to a post window that is very clean and uncluttered. It makes it easy to send a tweet while adding a photo , URL or both into a post.

Twitter Ride also has a general menu function on the Droid with Refresh, Favorites, Search, My Profile, Settings and a more button with update your profile and exit. We really like the exit button. It shuts down the app. Some of the other apps continue to run in the background when we didn't want them to.

Twidroid is a very functional app for keeping track of your tweets. With the pro version users can have multiple accounts and switch between them fairly easy. The app has all the functions a power user needs.

On the bottom of the home screen users will find basic functions like home, Mention @, DM button, search and refresh. We liked the refresh function. A must have when looking for the best twitter android apps for each user.

We also really liked the general menu functioning in concert with the home menu. By engaging the general menu while on different pages brings up advanced function for that area. Most of the app we used had a similar arrangement, but TwiDroid used it more effectively. IMO

Android Phone users will find many more apps in the Android Market. Everyday we see more interesting ways of utilizing the power of the Android Project. We wanted to bring the more popular Twitter Android Apps to our reader attention, but there are many more to choose from.

When it comes to social networking from a Android Smartphone every users needs are unique. Some may simply need to stay in touch with friends and family while others need to access multiple accounts and market with there phone on Twitter.

We suggest testing out as many apps as you can before settling in with one. The Android App Market Place also is constantly sending updates to your apps. So today you may think one is the best and tomorrow a developer may do a update on another app that makes that app better for you.