Some more evidence of a March arrival for the long-awaited Sprint HTC Touch Pro 2 Windows Mobile 6.5 update has leaked on PPCGeeks.
The above slide shows the ROM update coming with an improved version of HTC Sense and other mysterious Social Network integrations, which hopefully hints at an integrated HTC Peep twitter client found in HTC Sense 2.5
Are any Sprint HTC Touch Pro 2 user still waiting for the update? Let us know why below.
Via Pocketnow.com
Bruce V. Bigelow wrote:
You could say Tom Gephart is “old school” venture capital, which means he started investing in the 1970s when there were no rules. So maybe it shouldn’t seem too surprising when he says he’s working on a proposal to secure $5 billion in federal economic stimulus funding that would be invested in startup companies throughout the U.S. by a network of existing VC firms.
Would you agree that sounds like an idea from someone who is unencumbered by rules?
“Ask him, ‘How big of a bong is he smoking?’” one San Diego venture investor exclaimed, when I called to get his reaction to Gephart’s idea. (My source later asked me not to identify him, saying he feared alienating himself from San Diego’s clubby VC community.)
But Gephart is hardly alone in his thinking. A few weeks ago VentureWire carried the headline “A Year After The Stimulus, Cleantech VCs Still Crave Funding” above a story from San Francisco that underscored the lack of funding of any kind for startups developing green and renewable energy technologies.
Gephart assures me he is serious, and other local VCs are reacting positively to his ideas. Connect CEO Duane Roth tells me that Gephart’s idea is similar to funding he suggests in his own proposal for a distributed partnering model for innovation, which he outlined recently in a post written for the Xconomist Forum.
“Tom’s approach [is] to have the federal government fund VCs,” Roth wrote in an e-mail in response to my query. “I proposed that the private sector fund early stage (pre VC) and that the federal government would match at the same terms and conditions as the private sector.”
Gephart has been a successful VC in the past, according to Roth. After making individual investments during the 1970s in the Los Angeles area, he established Ventana Capital in Orange County. Gephart tells me he tapped institutional investors that were primarily in Sweden, Norway, and other Scandinavian countries to raise capital for five Ventana funds over the ensuing 25 years. Ventana invested in many San Diego high-tech startups, including Cymer, Proxima, and Brooktree, as well as biotechs like Idun Pharmaceuticals, Corvas International, and Roth’s unsuccessful blood-substitute company, Alliance Pharmaceutical.
Ventana set out in 2007 to raise a sixth fund of $200 million, but Gephart says they never closed on that effort. While Ventana’s partners are still managing …Next Page »
Microsoft is pretty proud of their Windows Phone 7 user interface, to the extent that they have been giving out a 47 page book on the UI design inspiration.
Long Zheng from the Istartedsomething.com blog has uploaded the pages for our enjoyment.
Do our readers look forward to using a UI with a design ethic? Let us know below.
Press Release: Today, Opera Software released the final versions of the world’s most popular mobile Web browsers, Opera Mini 5 and Opera Mobile 10. Now, nearly any mobile phone can support an Opera-driven Web experience, complete with unmatched speed, style and cost savings. Simply go to m.opera.com/ to download it directly to your phone today.
Today’s release puts the finishing touches on the Opera mobile-browsing duo. The focus is on delivering the best Internet experience on nearly any mobile phone, along with a unified look and feel and innovative favourite features, such as Speed Dial, password manager and tabbed browsing.
“Keeping in mind the needs and wants of our 50+ million users, we have emphasized speed, desktop-like functionality and data savings in our mobile browsers. Today, we have made it even easier for everyone to surf, search and socialize on the Web,” said Lars Boilesen, CEO, Opera Software.
Opera delivers the full Web experience on nearly any mobile phone, and it is easy and free to download.
Opera mobile browsers are designed to boost your browsing speed significantly. Opera brings the best and fastest browsing experience on any mobile phone.
Opera Mini’s compression technology reduces the amount of data sent to your phone by up to 90 percent, resulting in lower costs on pay-per-MB data plans or when roaming.
Opera keeps it simple with a sleekly designed user interface, regardless of the phone you are using, and with the same great feature set, such as Speed Dial, tabs, and the password manager.
Opera Link lets you synchronize your bookmarks, notes and Speed Dial between your computer and your mobile phone. Make your information available wherever you are – at work, at home or on the road.
Bring the power of the Web to your phone. Download Opera Mini 5 or Opera Mobile 10 directly to your phone at no cost from m.opera.com, or read more at www.opera.com/mobile.
Microsoft has released this video showing the new marketplace in Windows phone 7. As with the Xbox hub there is many opportunities for Microsoft to promote applications, and of course we know that this is the only authorized source of Windows phone 7 apps. The marketplace will also integrate carrier-branded stores in marketplace itself (under Contoso in this example).
Of note however is that developers an register devices to unlock them for arbitrary apps, which will hopefully be as easy as it is to register as a developer on the Android platform (that is very easy).
The above video from MIX10 shows 3D game play on a Windows Phone 7 phone, including a full 3D destructible environment and unlocking XBox Live Achievements, which is sure to be a draw from the hardcore gamer crowd.
We had previously told you on how to download Hulu videos, however, Hulu is known to block applications which provide video downloads for their services.
If the previous tools does not work for you, you can now try out a new tool to download Hulu videos called Stream Transport.
Stream Transport will allow you to download Hulu TV Shows or record the Hulu movies you are watching and save them to your computer. The downloaded files will be stored in FLV format, which you can play using any compatible player or a standalone desktop FLV player. If you use Windows Media Player, you can also use a codec to play FLV files in Windows Media Player.
The software comes with a in-built browser using which you can browse video sites, and also other regular websites. If a video is available for download you will see options to download it in the bottom pane.
To start the download click on the download link and hit the Download button, this will open up a new download window. You can download multiple Hulu videos at one and even pause and resume the downloads.
Stream Transport works pretty well on Windows 7 and supports both 32bit and 64bit versions of Windows.
In addition to downloading videos from Hulu.com, Stream Transport also allows you to download videos from YouTube, Google Video, MySpace, Yahoo! Video, CBS, MTV, Megavideo, Photobucket, Dailymotion, Veoh and Demand Five.
This makes it a comprehensive tool and makes it a worthwhile download. However, like I said earlier, don’t expect it to work with Hulu all the time and specially don’t expect this to work outside of US every time you use it.
If you are looking for other tools, you can use our site search to find software to download videos to your computer from different sites.
Techie Buzz Rating: 4/5 (Excellent)
Download Stream Transport [via gHacks]
DivX has released its new DivX Plus Software package which supports up to 1080p HD H.264-based videos. The package consists of four products: the DivX Plus Player, the DivX Plus Web Player, the DivX Plus Codec Pack, and the DivX Plus Converter. The DivX Plus Player includes the all-new DivX To Go feature, which makes it easy to transfer videos from the computer to any DivX compatible devices such as DVD players, Blu-ray players, digital televisions, gaming consoles and mobile phones. Meanwhile, the new DivX Plus Web Player will let people stream HD video right in their web browser. But the highlight of these new products is really the DivX Plus Converter which has been completely redesigned an is now being offered totally free of charge. This software can covert 1080p HD content to DivX Plus HD, which is based on the MKV file container and H.264 codec. That means that DivX is now making it much easier and affordable for the masses to do 1080p conversions.
Press Release: Today at MIX10, Microsoft Corp. showcased advancements in its platform technologies that enable the developer and designer community to deliver compelling user experiences across a broad set of devices. Building on the excitement of the recently announced Windows® Phone 7 Series, Scott Guthrie, corporate vice president, .NET Developer Platform, and Joe Belfiore, corporate vice president, Windows Phone Program Management, detailed the opportunity for developers to use proven technologies such as Microsoft Silverlight and the XNA Framework to build new mobile applications and 3-D Games.
“As the browser, server, Web and devices evolve, a focus on delivering consistently great user experiences has become paramount,” Guthrie said. “By extending our familiar platform technologies and tools to phones, Microsoft is delivering the premier application development experience across a variety of devices and form factors.”
End-to-End Application Development Platform for Windows Phone 7 Series
During the keynote, Microsoft provided the first deep dive into Windows Phone 7 Series application development. By combining Silverlight features for rich application development and the XNA Framework for games, Windows Phone 7 Series empowers millions of developers and designers to build visually stunning and immersive applications and games — one of the industry’s most profitable mobile application categories — while taking advantage of device-specific capabilities. Specifically, developers will be able to take advantage of the following features:
•Accelerometer, an intuitive control that responds to motion
•A Microsoft Location Service to provide developers with a single point of reference to acquire location information
•Microsoft Notification Service for pushing information to the phone, regardless of whether or not an application is running
•Hardware-accelerated video with digital rights management (DRM)
•Internet Information Services Smooth Streaming for the industry’s highest quality content viewing experience
•Multitouch
•Camera and microphone support
“Windows Phone 7 Series brings together a rich application environment, powerful hardware, a fresh approach to software and a smart new design,” Belfiore said. “It was designed to generate incredible opportunities for developers and designers to quickly and easily deliver compelling applications and games. With the best developer tools, an established ecosystem and marketplace, and a path for developers to use their Silverlight and XNA Framework skill sets, we are delivering an application platform that is simple, powerful and inspiring.”
Free Tools for Windows Phone 7 Series Developers and Designers
To further support an end-to-end development experience, Microsoft announced the availability of comprehensive tools support for Windows Phone 7 Series. The easy-to-install package includes previews of the following:
•Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Express for Windows Phone
•Windows Phone 7 Series add-in to use with Visual Studio 2010 RC
•XNA Game Studio 4.0
•Windows Phone 7 Series Emulator for application testing
•Expression Blend for Windows Phone Community Technology Preview (available as a separate download)
A Marketplace for Windows Phone 7 Series Applications
Microsoft also showed how developers and designers will be able to bring applications and games to market with a new Windows Phone Marketplace. The Marketplace features a panoramic design and active merchandising to increase the discoverability of games and applications, and supports one-time credit card purchases, mobile operator billing and advertising-funded applications. The Marketplace will also enable customers to try applications before buying them and allow developers to cross-promote their applications through deep linking.
Several leading companies will be creating exciting applications and games for Windows Phone 7 Series. They include The Associated Press, Archetype International Inc., AWS Convergence Technologies – WeatherBug, Citrix Systems Inc., Clarity Consulting Inc., Cypress Consulting, EA Mobile, Fandango Inc., Foursquare Labs Inc., frog design inc., Glu Mobile Inc., Graphic.ly, Hudson Entertainment Inc., IdentityMine Inc., IMDb.com Inc., Larva Labs, Match.com LLC, Matchbox Mobile Ltd., Microsoft Game Studios, Namco Networks America Inc., Oberon Media Inc., Pageonce Inc., Pandora Media Inc., Photobucket Inc., PopCap Games Inc., Seesmic, Shazam Entertainment Ltd., Sling Media, SPB Software Inc., stimulant, TeleCommunications Systems Inc., Touchality LLC and Vertigo Software Inc.
Continued Innovation With Silverlight and Expression Blend
Microsoft announced a release candidate (RC) for Silverlight 4, available for download today, which builds on the beta version released at the Professional Developers Conference in November 2009. The Silverlight 4 RC provides powerful media and enterprise application and media capabilities, out-of-browser flexibility and world-class tools support via Visual Studio and Expression Blend with Sketchflow to enable robust application development and rich interactive experiences.
In addition, Microsoft unveiled the Expression Blend 4 Beta, a design and development workflow tool. New features such as Path Layout enable developers and designers to build and animate innovative user interface design via a groundbreaking visual layout mechanism, without the need to write code. Expression Blend 4 Beta also adds support for Silverlight 4, .NET Framework 4 and Visual Studio 2010.
Silverlight Customer Adoption
Silverlight adoption has continued at a rapid pace with installations approaching 60 percent of all Internet devices worldwide — an increase of nearly 15 percentage points in just four months. Customers such as Major League Soccer, BBC, eBay Inc., Netflix Inc., NBCOlympics.com and CT Corp., a Wolters Kluwer business, demonstrated how they are taking advantage of the power of Silverlight to deliver compelling consumer and enterprise experiences.
“Microsoft Silverlight technology will be the backbone of the video platform on our newly launched MLSsoccer.com,” said Chris Schlosser, director of digital strategy for Major League Soccer. “Our work with Microsoft allows us to launch cutting-edge digital and mobile experiences for our loyal fans. As part of our increased focus on digital media, we view a rich video experience as absolutely critical to accomplishing our goal of ‘super serving’ MLS supporters.”
All the latest from MIX10 is available at http://live.visitmix.com/press, including downloads of tools for Windows Phone 7 Series, the Silverlight 4 RC and Expression Blend 4 Beta, which will be available today.
See the MIX10 keynote after the break.
The above video is pretty interesting, not just for the demo in the later half of the video, but due to the interesting proposition the developers raise of Silverlight being a practical cross-platform development tool which means desktop and handset porting will potentially be extremely easy and rapid.
More at Slashgear.com.
There is a lot of good news in Windows Phone 7, not least being the renewed developer support for the OS and all the services it comes bundled with.
The OS also however comes with plenty of bad news for those who liked how Windows Mobile worked.
Some of these include:
Is there anything else about Windows Phone 7 that makes you want to stick with your Windows Phone 7 device forever?
Let us know below.
Via WMExperts.com
The world of mobile tech had a complete halt for Microsoft to release more information on WP7S, and with those released came a new developer kit. The kit contained many things, and most notable, a WP7S emulator. The emulator is made for developers to see how the OS works and how the phone will work with their apps.
Neowin, has used the information and developer tool to create a demo video for the new browser. The video is not very detailed, but shows you the main functions and performance of the new browser.
Comment below and tell us how you feel about all this news and announcements.
Microsoft’s already done a lot right with Windows Phone 7, and it’s not even out until late this year. But after today’s announcements, there’s one lingering question: How can Windows Phone 7 possibly catch up, in terms of apps? More »
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On their blog Seesmic, developer of the best twitter client for the iPhone, has now committed to releasing their software on Windows Phone.
The Silverlight app, which will take advantage of work already done using their desktop Silverlight app, plans to fully utilize the benefits of the Windows Phone’s OS rich user experience and full integration of Bing maps and its geo-location features.
More screenshots after the break.
Read more at Seesmic’s blog here.
One of the surprise 3rd party apps shown off at MIX10 was by Netflix, which unlike on other platforms, support the full experience, including Watch Instantly, which allows the streaming of full movies over 3G.
The availability of this app goes far in addressing scarcity of media on the platform, and will allow Microsoft to leverage a service that’s already in pretty wide use, which can only be good for the popularity of Microsoft’s new mobile OS.
Via Engadget.com
Gregory T. Huang wrote:
Maybe the world of venture capital has stabilized—albeit at a lower but more sustainable level. Last month, companies in Washington state raised about $53.5 million in 10 venture deals. The stats are almost identical to the $57 million invested in eight deals back in January—and still up from the anemic $22 million invested in just four deals last December.
That’s according to data provided by our partner, private company intelligence platform CB Insights. See the table below for a full list of February venture financings.
The biggest deal of the month came from BlueKai, the Bellevue, WA-based Internet data exchange firm, which raised a $21 million Series C round, led by new investor GGV Capital. This continues the trend of one tech company dominating the monthly stats with a large mid-stage round—in January, it was fellow Bellevue firm Visible Technologies raising its $22 million Series C round.
The bad news is that only two of the month’s deals were Series A fundings, and they totaled just $2.5 million. That’s not enough to get all the promising new companies I’m hearing about off the ground. We’ll be watching to see if this trend starts to turn around later this year.
Half of the investments (five) were made in the Internet sector, while two were in energy and cleantech (Infinia and 3Tier), and one was in healthcare and biotech (Hemaquest Pharmaceuticals).
As an aside, I’m pleased to see that Mercer Island, WA, has at least one other tech startup besides Napera Networks—Spectrum Networks raised a $1 million Series A round.
Here’s the list of February venture deals for Washington companies:
Gregory T. Huang wrote:
Microsoft announced today a new development platform and marketplace for Windows Phone 7 Series applications. Mobile software developers will be able to make use of Windows Phone accelerometers, location-based services, and push notification services, as well as video, camera, and microphone capabilities, to create games and other visually-based applications. A number of companies with Seattle-area ties have signed on to develop apps for Windows Phone 7, including PopCap Games, Photobucket, Oberon Media, and Microsoft Game Studios.
We love Hulu. And we wish it lived on TVs, phones, tablets and places other than laptops. StreamTransport, a Windows Hulu ripper, is a start. Get the software before it’s inevitably shut down. [StreamTransport via Lifehacker] More »
by Scotty Brown
Have you ever seen one of those lists on a tech site giving you this list of apps that they claim are the end-all-be-all of lists? The type of article that swears up and down that what they are telling you is for your own good, and that the author knows everything about all of the apps in the Market? Yes? Great! Here’s another one!
After weeks of exhaustive research (and by “weeks” I mean 20 minutes, and by “exhaustive research” I mean I asked a couple of my buddies), I’ve compiled what I believe to be an excellent list of apps that everyone should give a shot. I’ve divided these apps into three different categories for your reading and browsing pleasure.
For the purpose of this article a utility program is one that doesn’t fit into one of the other two categories. See, it’s good to be the writer, I can make things up as I go along. Actually, these are general purpose applications that would include social networking apps, enhancements to the user interface, or apps that allow additional functions.
You may know HootSuite as a main stream iPhone application, but recently they’ve launched an Android version. This app is easy to work with, graphically appealing, and has a web interface as well. Some users with smaller screens may find it harder to navigate the menus, but if you’re running Droid or Nexus One you shouldn’t have any issues. This app comes in a free (limited functionality) version as well as a paid flavor. From the HootSuite Website:
Now Google Android device users can enjoy HootSuite from anywhere with a choice of full-featured and lite versions of the popular social media dashboard. Built to utilize Google open web platform, Android users will now enjoy the same benefits iPhone user have raved about, including:
- Managing multiple identities and accounts
- Creating custom views for tags and searches
- Understanding reasons for trending topics
- Scheduling messages for the future
- Adding followers to lists and accounts
- Sharing photos and shortening URLs
- Plus HootSuite Android version includes a few new tricks including background notifications so messages keep on coming even when you’re browsing elsewhere.
Choose between two versions – including a free option. The full-featured allows unlimited Twitter accounts plus on-board, click-through statistics tracking. The Lite versions – available for no cost – are limited to three accounts.
Already using HootSuite on the web? Tight integration means a single import gets you rolling so you are synced up on the go, and at your desk with help from a powerful wizard.
Get your fingers on this Owl to outreach to audiences, track conversation, spread messages and track statistics from anywhere you choose and let the robots work for you.
PdaNet is a handy little app that allows you to tether your device to a laptop, netbook, or desktop PC. The tether will work either with USB or Bluetooth without changing any settings on your PC/Mac. But, that’s not all… the greatest part about this app is that it doesn’t require root access. So, if you’re like me and you don’t want to void your warranty but still want to tether, here’s the app you’ve been waiting for. From the PDANet website:
PDANet has been one of the most popular software for Windows Mobile phones, Palm OS phones and iPhones. It is now ported to the Android system! PdaNet provides you with FULL Internet access so all your email, instant message programs will work without any setting changes. Supports both USB Tether and Bluetooth DUN.
PDANet does NOT require root access or hacking your phone’s firmware in order to work. It is just a regular Android application that works on all Android phones as-is. Tethering is fast, secure and USB mode will also charge your phone at the same time. Your phone can either connect to 3G data, WiFi, or even through VPN and PdaNet will share the connection with your computer.
New! Version 2.41 adds an SMS Agent for sending/receiving SMS on Windows.
Likely the most widely used Weather app in the Market is the Weather Channel. This is a full featured app (for free) that provides you with up to date localized weather, videos, maps, and even alerts for severe weather issues. This app is graphically appealing and contains a lot of detailed info. Also, this is a must-have if you’re doing any travelling!
What AndroidGuys list would be complete without me plugging our own app? You can listen to our podcasts, view our articles, join in on our poll, and pretty much inundate yourself with AndroidGuys. It’s kinda like carrying us all around in your pocket… only, not nearly as creepy. Yes there is a free version but I’n not plugging the paid version because we’re money hungry (ok, we are… but that’s still not the reason!). You want the paid version for one reason: the desktop widget. Yes, it’s very attractive and updates frequently showing a stream of our latest stories. That, and you’re friend will be jealous because AndriodGuys is awesome. From our website:
Get it while it’s hot! That’s right, we’re serving up fresh and hot Android Guys News and Podcasts right on your phone! We understand your need to get Android gossip, news, and reviews and we’re more than enthusiastic to give it to you.
Now available for download on the Android Market and on SlideME.org is the Official Android Guys App. Coming in two versions we have the ad-supported version for free, and the ad-free PRO version for $0.99 as well.
Official feature list for the app is as follows:
- Read Daily News from Android Guys
- Read comments on all news articles
- Share articles with friends
- Listen to the most current and older Android Guys Podcasts
- Weekly Polls from Android Guys
- Staff Application Picks, linking you directly to the Market
- Changeable themes and backgrounds, 3 currently available.
- Homescreen Widget to view the day’s top articles (PRO version only)
Grab yours now and become part of our great community. In addition to all these fun things I do suggest you read our End User License Agreement and General Public License that the application is being released under. Please be kind and rewind rate it on the market!
Music Apps would be an application that’s primary function has something to do with… you guessed it, music!! Gold star for you! But not all music apps just play music.
TuneWiki combines social networking, music, and connectivity to other social sites. Now you can broadcast to your friends and followers exactly what you are listening to in real time. From the TuneWiki website press release:
TuneWiki, the next generation social media music player, today announced its new app for Google’s Android 1.5, Cupcake. This new version of the app features Blip technology for increased social connectivity, offering to post the user’s current song on their Twitter or Facebook profile. The new social media capabilities come in addition to earlier TuneWiki versions, promoting a social network that allows users to add, edit and subtitle lyrics for audio and video files in all languages.
This new version of TuneWiki is the most advanced and comprehensive social media music player compatible with Cupcake available today. Features found only in the Cupcake version include a home screen widget, allowing users to control TuneWiki without having to launch the full player, and the ability to organize and access different parts of their music collection directly from the home screen through live folders. TuneWiki for Cupcake is Bluetooth compatible and can be upgraded to an ad-free version for $4.99.
Features Include:
- Blip technology to update Facebook and Twitter with current playlist selection
- Android Home Screen widget
- Bluetooth wireless compatible
- Free Ad-Supported or Ad-free version available for $4.99
- Interactive Music Maps showing what other users are listening to around the globe
- Lyric subtitling for both audio and video, including the option to translate lyrics into 40+ languages
TuneWiki is the world’s leader in social media music players, with the largest legally-licensed lyrics database in the world, covering more compositions in more territories than ever available before. The company has won numerous international awards for innovation including the Android Developers Challenge, the GSM Association Best Consumer Application in Asia, and the AT&T Best Consumer Application at the CTIA. Founded in May 2007, by Rani Cohen, Amnon Sarig and Chad Kouse, headquarted in the British Virgin Island with R&D offices in Bellbrook, Oh.
My favorite desktop music player, now in travel size! If you’ve used the desktop client then you’ve got to try this gem of an app. You can log into your stations right on your phone and listen to your streams, vote songs, see song info, and discover new music. From the Pandora website:
Pandora Radio is your own FREE personalized radio now available to stream music on your Android phone. Just start with the name of one of your favorite artists, songs or classical composers and Pandora will create a “station” that plays their music and more music like it.
Already a Pandora user? Even easier. Just log in. Pandora on Android is fully integrated with Pandora on the web. Enjoy all your existing stations – and create new ones right from your Android phone.
Pandora for Android is designed to run on all Android phones.
I love Shazam. Have you ever been driving in your car and hear that awesome new song pounding on your stereo, but you don’t know who sings it or the name of it? Though you bounce in your seat, pound your steering wheel, and mouth along to the lyrics, there is no way you can download the song later if you don’t know anything about it! No longer do you have to Google what you think are the lyrics! Simply load up Shazam, let it listen to the music for a few seconds, and find out that you’ve been doing the car-mosh to the latest Winger comeback song. From the Shazam website:
Create music moments. With Shazam you can identify music tracks, store them, and buy them; plus you can learn more about the artist and connect to their MySpace page. Start your music journey now!
Pretty self-explanatory. Fun stuff!
Need to get your MMORPG fix while on the go? Parallel Kingdom: Age of Emergence is the app for you. But, be careful this game will suck you in and take a great deal of attention if you’re wanting to be good at it. Think of this as World of Warcraft Light. You can fight other players, expand your territory, chat, trade, and many other things. Honestly, this is one of the most in-depth apps on the Market. One of the pioneers in augmented reality, PerBlue has managed to really hit a home run with this app. Yes, I play this game daily. Yes, I will kick your butt if you make me angry. Yes, I highly recommend you download this app now and start playing.
From the creators of the highly addictive Abduction! World Attack game comes the equally addictive Gem Miner. Boasting excellent graphics and an infectious game play, this is one that you can play over and over and not get bored of it. Seriously, The Greatest Girlfriend In The World played it all the way from Seattle to Sacramento on one of our road trips. Download it and give it a shot.
Wrapping up this list is another favorite time-waster of mine, Jewellust. This isn’t your mothers typical gem-swapping game either. The paid version of this game adds a very cool campaign to it where you pass through different levels in Egypt collecting different types of gems. Also, the graphics in this game are incredible. The colors are vibrant and the motion is smooth and you’ll get a lot of replay out of this game. From the Jewllust website:
Your journey begins from the small Step Pyramid and runs through seven Egyptian Pyramids. Each pyramid has several rooms with closed doors. To open each door you must gather a mosaic tiles from mystical lock and put them together. Every pyramid holds a magic crystal. Using seven crystals you will get into the very heart of the Great Cheops Pyramid and enter a Pharaoh’s Treasury. Your jewelry lust will be surely satisfied!
Burst the gems by grouping them to three or more in a row (or a column) before time runs out. Your must take all mosaic tiles to the lowest row. If you’ve burst four or more gems in a row, a bonus gem will appear. In campaign mode new bonuses become available as your journey goes.
So there’s my list… what say you, AndroidGuys readers? What are your “must install NOW” applications? When your buddy get’s his brand new shiny Android phone, what are the first apps that you tell them to download? What apps were you told to download? Let’s get some awesome discussions going in the comments!
