Category: Android Phone

Many like to compare Google Play Newsstand to Flipboard, the news and information curation app and service.  While Flipboard certainly has its strengths and features that Google Play Newsstand doesn’t offer, the Google alternative does have some great features.  Frankly I look at these as complementary apps more than anything because Google’s app, while Flipboardesque in many ways, equally has some features that make it stand out.  Most notably, it is your source for magazine reading for your Google Play subscriptions through the Play Store.

The latest update to Google Play Newsstand is available now and it brings a great new feature that allows you to pin a news source from the app directly onto your Home Screen, saving you from having to tap into the app.  You love everything you read on AP (Associated Press)?  Then pin it to your Home Screen.  To get this new feature you need to be running the latest version of Google Play Newsstand, build 3.4.2 on Android phones for those keeping score at home, which is available as now in the Play Store

Google Play Newsstand – Free – Download Now

Google Fit, the activity tracking app that uses the GPS and accelerators in your Android Phone, has been updated with a raft of new features and functionality.  Chief amongst those updates is a new Home Screen Widget where you can quickly see your progress towards your daily fitness goals. The latest update is build 1.52.44-000 for those keeping score at home and it is certainly worth the update for those who use or are considering using the app.  If you aren’t familiar with it, Google Fit allows you to easily and accurately (especially with this update) track your steps, miles you have walked or run along with other activities which you can select to keep track of your activity levels.  While it isn’t going to give you the granular detail of say a Fitbit or Up!, it is certainly a great and free way to track your activity levels for a healthier lifestyle.

Google Fit for Android – Free – Download Now

Google’s SMS app, Google Messenger, has been updated today and brings with it the ability to send your location or stickers to those with whom you are texting. Now instead of having to type out your location, you can simply send it to someone so they can more quickly find you.  This latest update is build is version 1.4.046 (2073855-38) for those keeping score at home and is available now in the Google Play Store.

If you have not checked out Google Messenger and are looking for a more powerful option to the built-in SMS app on your Android phone, I would encourage you to give it a go.  I reviewed it earlier this year and it remains my default texting app on my OnePlus One.

Google Messenger – Free – Download Now

Major League Baseball has released an update to the MLB Ballpark app and while it is considered a dot-release, there are some significant new features in this update.  The biggest of these new features is a new journal section of the app where you can keep a record of your MLB stadium visits and games watched.  The updated build is version 4.2 for those keeping score at home (and yes, that’s a baseball term) and you will need to have a MLB.com account (which is free) to use the app on your Android Phone.

MLB Ballpark – Free (Account Required) – Download Now

After spending the last few months in Preview (Beta) mode, Microsoft has officially launched the Office for Android Phone apps to the general public.  The new Excel, PowerPoint and Word apps are now universal apps for both Android tablets & phones and are available for free from the Google Play Store.  If you have a device that is under 10.1″ in screen size, they are able to view, create and edit files while those with an Office 365 subscription will have every feature fully enabled.

For those who keep score at home, the Office for Android new versions are builds 16.0.4201.1008.

I’ve been testing the Office for Android apps for the entire Preview period and while there were a few bugs here and there, generally speaking they were all solid on performance and stability.  The release today brings some additional features to the apps including support for Google Drive.

Excel for Android – Free – Download Now

PowerPoint for Android – Free – Download Now

Word for Android – Free – Download Now

One of the most anticipated Android phone releases of 2015 will be the OnePlus 2, the follow up to the highly successful OnePlus One from the Chinese manufacture OnePlus.  There have been a huge number of leaks, rumors and guesses as to what the OnePlus 2 will look like, it’s price, what it will have powering it and when it will actually be released. The challenge of course is separating the fiction from fact and, to their credit, OnePlus has been doing a pretty good job of confirming and denying these leaks and rumors as they have come out.

To help set things straight, I’ve put together a list of the things that we know for sure about the OnePlus 2.  These are all confirmed by OnePlus themselves.  I have purposely avoided rumor posts just to get visitors to my site and I stand firm in that.  What you won’t find in this post are supposed leaked images of the phone or other guesses.  It’s just facts.

That said, I have been clear in my opinion that the OnePlus 2 is critical to the long term success of OnePlus.  It has to be a success for the long term sustainability of the company.