yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
CircleLauncher (widget)

App Name: CircleLauncher (v.1.5.2, @AppBrain)

Developer: db-ware

Price: ~$1.37 (free, limited version here or @AppBrain)

As mentioned previously, I have a lot of apps. One of the problem with having a lot of apps is running out of room on your homescreens for app shortcuts. There are various widgets out there that propose a variety of solutions to this problem, but they often leave you with tiny, almost unusable icons. This would have been fine in the days where the trackball reigned supreme, but this is the oh-tens. It has to be finger-friendly.

One true solution that I stumbled across the other day is called CircleLauncher. What it does is really very simple, but it does it very well. It allows you to create a single widget to group similar applications together (I've used location-themed apps and clock-based apps in my example). Tape the 1x1 widget, and a lightweight menu appears to launch your apps. Pretty standard, but this menu is laid out (by default - you can change this in the settings) in a ring around the icon. As you slide your finger or thumb around the ring, the currently selected application icon grows to make selection a bit easier.

Note that CircleLauncher includes other layout types (configurable from the widget's config menu, which you access by selecting the widget and then press-and-holding the center) including horizontal and vertical lines. I was also very pleased with the way that the widget's application menu adapts to its position on the screen - stick it in a corner, and your full selection of apps will be displayed within a 90-degree pie slice.

Obviously, a menu such as this is a bit limited to a relatively low number of apps (more than 9 or 10 and the ring will be just too cluttered to be functional), but if you need to have quick access to just a few more apps from your homescreen, this should do the trick. Since there is a free version available, why not give it a shot and see if this widget can help you to organize your home screen a bit?

Verdict: An easy way to combine several app shortcuts into one.

Screenshots:

1) Plain widgets (labeled GPS and Time) - you can dress them up a bit more if you are artistically inclined.

2) One widget opened showing the full selection ring.

3) The corner widget open showing the adaptation to the position.

4) One icon expanded while my finger hovers over it.

5) Settings menu

(tested on NexusOne / Kang-o-rama 1.2 T1 (CM7.n13 / GRH78C / Android 2.3.2))
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] gruzman:
Keep going mate:):)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
I surely intend to! Just have to figure out which app to post next ;)

Thanks for the encouragement though. It is appreciated to know at least someone is reading over all this mess!
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
SwipePad Beta [APP]

App Name: SwipePad Beta (v.0.7.5, @AppBrain)

Developer: Conduction.mobi

Price: FREE

Keeping on the theme of "apps to help you access your apps", we come to SwipePad Beta. Similar in some regard to Clutch, this app also gives you "hot corner" functionality. Use the settings menu to establish what corners (or regions) you want to be active, and then slide your finger from a specified region to the center of the screen. Hold it for just a moment, and a 3x4 grid of application shortcuts magically appears. You can, of course, fully customize what applications should appear on this grid by simply pressing your finger on an empty square or by holding your finger over an existing icon until it is highlighted. The hot corners/region and swipe gesture should work pretty much any time that the screen is unlocked, and is a great way of quickly launching a new app without returning to your home screen.

The application offers to integrate task managing application by the same developer (which is a paid app) that I haven't tried out yet. Personally, I've got plenty of other ways of killing apps at this point - particularly once the function gets built into Clutch.

SwipePad is very nicely polished and quite responsive. It does what it does quite well. My only issue with it is that I just don't use it very frequently. I almost forget that it is there; I must be thoroughly conditioned to launching apps from the home screen. It's free, though, so give it a whirl and see if it can further help to optimize the way you launch apps from within other apps ;)

Verdict: Clever use of hot-corners to gain quick access to up to 12 user-defined apps; non-intrusive to the point that you might forget to use it.

Screenshots:

1) SwipePad in action. Note that putting a link to SwipePad on your SwipePad gives you a quick way to access the settings screens.

2) SwipePad settings, with the hot corners highlighted in red at the bottom.

(tested on NexusOne / Kang-o-rama 1.2 T1 (CM7.n13 / GRH78C / Android 2.3.2))
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] waichung:
is there a video demonstrating the use of Clutch? I want to watch it before paying for it. :)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] PokeAsheep:
Deff fav'ing this. Am looking forward to all reviews :)

(*is thinking about getting clutch)

Epic is as Epic does
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] LordManhattan:
Nice! Thanks bro!
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
I imagine there should be a video somewhere on the youtubes. Let me know if you find one and I will add it to the post. I'm about to go into work so it will be another 12 hours before I have access to the full internet, but I will look then if you haven't found anything.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] AngelGrey_SB:
Very good! Thanks
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Shift Puzzle Game [GAME]

App Name: Shift Puzzle Game (v.1.2, @AppBrain)

Developer: Handmark

Price: $1.99 (Free ad-supported version here or @AppBrain let's you try out 15 levels; full version features 40 additional levels and no ads)

The Shift Puzzle Game is a tasty Android port of the ever-popular SHIFT game by Armor Games, which you can play free in your Flash-enabled browser at the Armor Games website. If you're not familiar with the original (as I wasn't until I found this app just an hour ago), then let me fill you in on the skinny.

Shift is a new take on the classic adventure-puzzle platformer game. Your mission is to get from point A to point B, dodging whatever nasty traps and obstacles may be in your path. The twist is the ability for you to literally shift the game universe upside down. White becomes black, up becomes down, and you find yourself walking on the flip side of the surface you were just standing on. You can (and will) use this clever maneuver repeatedly in order to successfully navigate each challenging level. Not quite tracking? It can be rather tough to explain... Hopefully the screenshots below will help clear it up (or go play the flash version for free here).

This implementation for a touchscreen device is phenomenal. The controls are large and appear on either side of the landscape display - and you don't even need multitouch. Just tap the left arrow to move left, the left-up diagonal to jump left, and the SHIFT button at the top to do that groovy shift thing. The gameplay is engaging, and the levels can be quite challenging (and quite addictive). The game is worth trying out (the free version) solely for experiencing the joy that is puzzle-solving by twisting the fabric of the universe, and you might just get hooked enough to purchase the full version. It would be two bucks well spent.

Verdict: Quickly becoming my latest Android gaming addiction.

Screenshots:

1) Main menu

2) First level

3) First level - SHIFTED!

4) It gets twisted!

(tested on NexusOne / Kang-o-rama 1.2 T1 (CM7.n13 / GRH78C / Android 2.3.2))
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] jinsfch:
This is a little off topic but is anyone attempting a Tor app?
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Just slightly off topic, but no worries.

A quick search on AppBrain found Orbot: Tor On Android. Impressive, since Android still doesn't have proper proxy support on its own...
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] waichung:
Can't find clutch video on youtube...

Btw,i think swipepad is better than it as swyping from the bottom is easier than from the right :)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
I looked for Clutch videos as well and was disappointed to see that there aren't any. I may try to shoot a video once I get home from the desert in a few weeks (hopefully).

You can change the position of the Clutch region to really any spot on the screen. And I don't really see the two as competing anyway as they have entirely different purposes: Clutch gives you quick access to your recently-executed apps, while SwipePad offers a fixed menu of apps for you to launch.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] waichung:
The likely alt-tab function of clutch is really fantastic but does it show the recently-executed apps or the running apps? I use swipepad together with the virtual task switcher which allows switching among the running tasks. These 2 apps are completely free and no need to paid $1 for the "swipepad: tasks". But I prefer quick accessing recent tasks to showing those apps running at the background.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
The set {recently-executed} apps includes the subset {running apps}. The default behavior of Android is to show all recently-executed apps under the Recent Apps functionality, regardless of whether those apps are still running or have been terminated. I thought that Visual Task Switcher behaved the same way, but based on the application page it does appear to only display currently-running apps. Personally, I prefer to see recent apps (with a visual distinction between those that are still running and those that have been terminated), as I often end up re-launching the same app over and over; of course, you could also just pin a shortcut to those frequent apps to SwipePad. We all operate our devices in different ways, so either option is of course valid.

Visual Task Switcher (at least the last time that I used it) tended to make my phone lag significantly for whatever reason; I did use it for quite some time though, and was pleased with its functionality as a complete Recent Apps replacement (after configuring the long-press home trigger to launch it via CyanogenMod settings). Also note that the free version includes ads (which may contribute to the lag I was experiencing?) while the full version will set you back $1.99.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
ElectroDroid [APP]

App Name: ElectroDroid (v.2.0.1, @AppBrain)

Developer: Demetrio Iero

Price: FREE (ad supported; ad-free version available here and @AppBrain, ~$2.73)

ElectroDroid is a must-have reference application for those geeks who work electronics at the component level. The app is packed full of all sorts of geeky information and tools. ElectroDroid will help you decode resistor and inductor color codes and understand various wiring pinouts. It features calculator tools for Ohm's law, reactance, resistor ratios, voltage dividers, LED resistors, heat dissipation, battery life, and more. As if that wasn't enough, ElectroDroid also provides a handful of handy reference tables for resistivity, marking codes, SWG wire sizes, symbols and abbreviations, and SI unit prefixes. Everything is tied together with a simple, intuitive interface that makes any calculation a snap. This is such a powerful and helpful app that anyone who even tinkers with electronics should definitely have a copy.

Verdict: A required reference and calculation app for electrically-geared geeks; a bunch of boring numbers and symbols for the average Joe. ;)

Screenshots:

1) Calculators tab

2) Resistor color codes decoder

3) Ohm's law calculator

4) Pin-outs tab

5) USB pinout

6) Reference tab

7) Resistivity table

(tested on NexusOne / Kang-o-rama 1.2 T1 (CM7.n13 / GRH78C / Android 2.3.2))
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Hella Umbrella Beta [GAME]

App Name: Hella Umbrella Beta (v.1.0, @AppBrain)

Developer: Ramblin' Wreckage

Price: FREE

If you haven't caught on by now, I'm a sucker for games with an innovative gameplay element. Hella Umbrella Beta brings that innovation the forefront as the entire game is built around the player's manipulation of gravity through their device's accelerometer. While SHIFT allowed the player to invert the game world with a touch of their finger, Hella Umbrella lets you turn your phone in different directions - and the game's gravity follows suit. Use this variable gravity to your advantage as you navigate through levels filled with eye-catching side-scroller graphics, a hostile environment, and challenging puzzles. The controls are simple and intuitive (swipe left right to set the character moving in that direction, tap to jump, touch the character to stop), and the levels are engaging.

The game is a Beta release, with more levels and features promised.... but it hasn't been updated since September. I remain hopeful that we'll see a full release before too long (and would gladly pay for it), but the short beta should at least keep you entertained for a little bit.

Verdict: Exciting gameplay element, lots of fun, great potential .... unfortunately a bit short in its beta form, and no immediate signs of further expansion. An enjoyable diversion for the evening at least.

Screenshots: (from the Market page; triggering ShootMe by shaking while in an app that uses the accelerometer didn't work out so hot....)

How did I forget to mention the hats? There are shnazzy hats to be worn.

(tested on NexusOne / Kang-o-rama 1.2 T1 (CM7.n13 / GRH78C / Android 2.3.2))
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Digital Wall [LWP]

App Name: Digital Wall Live Wallpaper (v.4.04, @AppBrain)

Developer: Travis Pearson

Price: $0.99 (free ad-supported option-limited version available here and @AppBrain)

I spent a long time searching for a good Matrix-themed Live Wallpaper, and I encountered many that, well, sucked. I mean really, there are some absolutely horrible offerings out there in that category. Most of them actually have "Matrix" in the title. Digital Wall Live Wallpaper does not have Matrix in the title, and perhaps that is why it is so much better than all the others. Okay, that's a lie - it most likely has to do with the fact that Digital Wall is a much prettier and more appealing presentation of the Matrix code than any of the others out there. It comes very close to comparing with the GLMatrix screensaver for GNOME (Linux), which is quite an impressive feat. The glyphs are quite beautiful and are animated smoothly, as individual characters in a string of code rather than a rigid block of code like most other LWPs seem to be. With a predominantly-black background, I have found this live wallpaper to be very friendly to my battery - as friendly as any LWP can be, really. I've tried out a good dozen other wallpapers after find the perfect Matrix one, and I keep coming back to this as my default.

The free version should be more than sufficient for most. So impressed was I by the quality of the animation that I felt the developer had earned at least the single buck he was asking for the Donate version. The paid version adds a handful of extra configuration options that you can use to tweak the wallpaper to really make it your own. It lets you customize the line color, size, speed, and density, as well as allowing the color to be automatically adjusted to indicate your current battery level. You are also able to adjust performance settings to decrease battery usage, and to insert "subliminal message" text to be displayed randomly in the same fashion as scrolling glyphs.

Verdict: The only Live Wallpaper suitable for The One.

Screenshots:

1) Standard wallpaper

2) Subliminal messages

3) Battery-colored

4) Main settings

5) Performance Settings

6) Color settings

(tested on NexusOne / Kang-o-rama 1.2 T1 (CM7.n13 / GRH78C / Android 2.3.2))
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Shortyz Crosswords [APP]

App Name: Shortyz Crosswords (v.2.3.28, @AppBrain)

Developer: Robert "kebernet" Cooper

Price: FREE

I have found the Holy Grail of crossword apps for Android, and it is Shortyz Crosswords. This completely free (no ads or anything) app provides access to 20 different free sources for crossword puzzles and will automatically download daily and weekly puzzles. It also allows you to enter your subscription information for the New York Times puzzles, and will download those as well.

The interface is intelligent and easy to use, and is very configurable. You can select whether to use the built-in keyboard (styled after the Android 2.1 keyboard), or use your device's currently selected input method. You also have a choice of puzzle view modes, and can easily switch from the puzzle overview to the clue overview by tapping the clue at the top of the screen. Shortyz supports the pinch-to-zoom function so you can size the puzzle just right, and you can easily navigate the puzzle by tapping on the screen or scrolling with a trackball/pad/dpad. You also have a selection of assists that can let you know if you have entered an incorrect letter or can reveal letters or words if you need a little nudge. Once a puzzle is completed correctly, you will be presented a dialog with your elapsed time so you can see how long that puzzle took you.

This app is fabulous. I've been using it to pass the time for about the past six months, and have had zero issues with it. Again, it is completely free, so I can strongly recommend that you give Shortyz Crosswords a try if puzzles are your thing.

Verdict: Simple the best crossword puzzle app for Android, and a must-have for any puzzle buffs.

Screenshots:

1) Puzzle view. Note the clue displayed up top. This will automatically update based on what boxes you have selected.

2) Clue view.

3) Daily crossword list.

4) Weekly crossword list.

5) Selection of available crosswords on the device.

(tested on NexusOne / Kang-o-rama 1.2 T1 (CM7.n13 / GRH78C / Android 2.3.2))
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Android App Suggestions

I was asked by one of my friends to recommend a few apps for his new Android phone. The results are below. This is just a selection of some of my favorite apps that I have installed on my phone at the current time, and is not a complete review, but I figured I'd share in case some of these might be new to you folks. Enjoy.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Elixir [APP]

App Name: Elixir (v.1.4.1, @AppBrain)

Developer: Tamás Barta

Price: FREE

Elixir is the mobile phone geek's ultimate sidekick. If you are familiar with PC applications like Speccy and CPU-Z, you can have a pretty good idea of the type of information this app provides about your system. It will reveal extremely detailed information about the major components in your mobile device, including your processory, battery, display, input devices, and camera/camcorder. It will also display real-time statistics and information on these components, as well as on memory, network connections, location, and sync connections. Hope on over to the Sensors tab, and there is a wealth of information available about any sensors on your device, including acclerometer, gravity, magnetometer, light, proximity, and more. Tap on a sensor's name or the triangle on the far right to pull up specifics about the sensor's name, vendor, version, resolution, range, delay, and power consumption. Tap next to the name for each sensor and you will be able to view real-time raw sensor data - quite useful if you need to verify a sensor's function with a new ROM or kernel.

Those features on their own would be more than sufficient to secure Elixir a spot on this list, but wait - there's more! Elixir includes a highly-configurable widget system as well, which gives you quick at-a-glance access to a lot of the same information you'll find within the program proper. You can also configure an Elixir widget area to function as an application launcher, and can fit as many as 49 Elixir icons on a single homescreen (Elixir squeezes up to 7 icons into each row and column).

Verdict: Elixir's depth of information, sensor tests, ease of use, and widget configurability make it an extremely useful geek utility. Free's not bad, too.

Screenshots:

1) Informational widget

2) System screen

3) More of the System screen

4) Sensors screen

5) Details on the camera device

6) Widget settings
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Zeam [Launcher]

App Name: Zeam (v.2.8.7, @AppBrain)

Developer: Michael Bentz

Price: FREE

There are hundreds of homescreen / launcher replacement applications in the Market today, and a lot of them (like LauncherPro and ADW Launcher) bring a whole mess of features, options, tweaks, widgets, and kitchen sinks to the table. That's all well and good, but sometimes you just want a launcher that is snappy, responsive, stable, and efficient. That launcher, my friends, is Zeam.

While other launchers may focus on massive feature sets, Zeam is all about performance. It is very, very fast - quick enough that it made my device as a whole feel snappier than when I was running LauncherPro, ADW, or even the stock Launcher. The smoothness is very impressive, especially when I throw a whole mess of widgets and shortcuts onto my homescreens with an animated Live Wallpaper in the background. My current arrangement is smooth as butter, whereas it would have lagged significantly on LauncherPro.

Just because Zeam is lightweight and fast doesn't mean it doesn't have any features or options. Zeam supports (very fast) homescreen previews, as well as a scrollable dock at the bottom of the screen to hold your frequent shortcuts. The popular "drop to uninstall" feature is also supported. The Preferences menu is intentionally sparce, but holds all the options you need for adjusting the number of home screens, rows and column available for icons/shortcuts/widgets on each home screen, action bindings (including swipe-up and swipe-down gestures), app drawer animations and transparency, and the scrollable dock.

Zeam is (unfortunately) no longer under active development, but has made it to the point that it is pretty much perfect for what it is. And it is the fastest launcher replacement application that I have tried to date. It's free, so you really owe it to yourself to give it a try.

Verdict: Light on features, big on performance.

Screenshots:

1) Homescreen

2) Homescreen Previews

3) App drawer (I have over 200 apps installed, and the scrolling is very quick and fluid)

4) Main Settings

5) Workspace Settings

6) Bindings Settings

6) App grid Settings
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] jbnstlk:
hi..

could u tell us more about the latest app for android..im new android user...

thanx
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] tyl3rdurden:
This has been great help. Thank you so much :)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Which latest app are you interested in hearing more about? I'll gladly try out pretty much any app on the market. Just let me know what you people are interested in seeing more of :)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] sageDieu:
Thank you for this, very good reviews.
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] codesplice:
Glad you like it!
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] eldiablex:
Thanks codesplice, I've been on android for a while but haven't seen some of these apps yet and love them. Keep up the great work man! :)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] syrenz:
Good work, keep it coming. :)
[Android Software/Hacking General [Developers Only]] macanovic88:
Thank you very much, this is very helpful! :)