Welcome to the roundup of the best new Android applications and live wallpapers that went live in the Play Store or were spotted by us in the previous two weeks or so. This week I have an AI curated news feed app from Microsoft, a secure gallery app, and a new virtual reality game streaming app from AMD that works with standalone Daydream devices. So without further ado, here are the most notable Android apps released in the last two weeks.
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Looking for the previous roundup editions? Find them here.
Apps
Hummingbird - stories for you
Android Police coverage: Microsoft releases Hummingbird, a personalized news app powered by AI
Hummingbird is a news feed app from Microsoft that is intended to compete in the space of AI curated news, and in the day and age of fake news, I can see why people would be more than perfectly happy to let an AI control all of the stories they see. So if you are looking for a great way to let a corporate entity feed you all of your news, then this is the app for you.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Cover: Auto NSFW Scan & Secure Private Gallery
Android Police coverage: Cover promises to automatically hide NSFW content on your phone
Cover is a secure gallery app that is useful for hiding all of your NSFW photos in one place. You can even automate the process by using the app to scan all of your local pics. Its algorithm can recognize what's safe and what is risque, and then store anything tagged as NSFW in a secure and encrypted gallery that's password protected.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L53jIBy3epg
Gemini - Buy & Sell Cryptocurrency
For those that don't pay attention to cryptocurrencies, Gemini is a website that works as a platform to buy, sell, and store digital assets, and this app makes it easy to do so from the comfort of your phone. You can use this release to quickly view market prices, set price alerts, set buying orders, and even send and receive the cryptocurrency of your choice.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
APPmark 2018
APPmark 2018 is a benchmarking tool for Android devices. It can measure the performance and battery life of simple tasks like web browsing, viewing and creating emails, photo and video editing, and video playback. You can enable cross-platform device comparisons, for those times you'd like to see how your device stacks up against the latest flagships, and you can even upload your benchmarks so other users can compare their hardware to yours.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Open Garden: WiFi Sharing Device
Many areas in the US still have expensive data restrictions, and there are often very few choices available if you'd like to switch providers. This is why an app like Open Garden: WiFi Sharing Device exists. It affords users an easy way to manage and share their connection over wifi, all without having to deal with the inherent security risks of handing over your wifi password to your neighbors. This way multiple people can share a connection, thus cutting down on overages when one of the networks in the group reaches its data limit.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
MNML Screen Recorder
When it comes to screen recording, there's plenty of option already available on the Play Store. One issue you may run into is that a lot of these screen recording apps contain advertisements as well as in-app purchases, which seem a little unnecessary for such a simple task. That's why MNML Screen Recorder may be the answer to this problem. Not only is it free to use, but its minimal interface ensures the task at hand is its only function.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Plus Beat
Vishal Dubey's Plus Beat serves as an alternative to LED notifications. So if you just purchased an OP6T and are desperate to get back your notification light, you can use this app to display quick pulses on your screen that will alert you anytime you receive a notification. It may not be as elegant as an LED built into your hardware, but it works as described and is pretty helpful.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Holopipe
Holopipe sounds like it's some sort of holographic marijuana app, but that couldn't be further from the truth. It's actually an app for visualizing creator-made content. So say you designed a 3D object in your favorite creation program, you can then show off that object in a real-world environment using the app's augmented reality functionality.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0JbWGqftXA
Cerberus Child Safety (Kids)
In my day children were allowed to roam the streets freely, at least until it got dark. Nowadays parents are relentless with their need to continually keep tabs on every single thing their child does, which is why tracking apps like Cerberus Child Safety exist. Not only can you track your child's whereabouts, but you can also monitor their online use, making this an all-in-one solution for helicopter parents.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
HBO
Alright, the next two HBO apps aren't for the US. This first listing is for Spain and Nordic countries. If you live in those regions and are a fan of the channel's content, such as Game of Thrones, then you'll be thrilled to find out this app can stream all of your favorite HBO shows straight to your Android TV devices.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
HBO GO - Android TV
HBO GO - Android TV is the second app from the channel this week, and it's only for our Eastern European readers. Much like the title listed above, you can use this app to stream all of your favorite HBO content to all of your Android TV devices.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Bottom Quick Settings
Bottom Quick Settings works similarly to the iOS settings drawer. It allows you to drag a quick setting panel up from the bottom of the screen. You'll find toggles like wifi, bluetooth, and airplane mode, and you can even customize what is listed there, so all of your favorite toggles are only a swipe away. Sure, they were already a swipe away from the top of the screen, but now you can pull them up from a much more finger-friendly position.
Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $6.49
Nav Explorer - Wear OS Wireless File Transfer
Nav Explorer is a simple app designed to share files with Wear OS devices. If you'd like to transfer a bunch of mp3s to your smartwatch, just load them onto your phone, and then you can use this app to send them to your watch. It's simple, it's easy, and I'm surprised this is the first app I've run across that allows you to manage your files on Wear OS wirelessly.
Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $9.99
SLOWLY
SLOWLY is a new pen pal application that can match users with like-minded individuals. If you'd like to have regular discussions covering your favorite hobbies, there's a good chance you can find someone through this app that shares your passion. There is also a stamp collection aspect that gamifies connecting with numerous users. The more people you chat with, the more stamps you can collect.
Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $10.99
WiFi ARCore
WiFi ARCore is a cool little app that visualizes wifi strength through augmented reality. All you have to do is boot up the app, accept its permissions, and then you'll be able to see clearly labeled signal meters in your surroundings. This way you'll know exactly what direction to move towards if you ever need a stronger signal.
Monetization: free / contains ads / IAPs from $0.99 - $24.99
DROPOUT by CollegeHumor
CollegeHumor is apparently still kicking, so I guess it makes sense for the website to offer a competitive video streaming service. The big draw of this app is that it provides uncensored content, so you won't ever have to worry about YouTube flagging and removing your favorite CH videos. You also get this content ad-free, though it comes with a price attached. A subscription will run you $5.99 a month, though there are lower prices available if you subscribe to more than one month at a time.
Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs from $5.99 - $47.99
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6y0Yw5jkk4
Lympo - Walk. Run. Earn.
Lympo is a new exercise tracking app that has not only gamified working out, but will actually reward you with in-game currency that can then be traded for real-world items. It's an interesting concept that may indeed be the push people need to get off their keister and out into the streets.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKqU-v4f6-I
Manufacturer And Tie-In Apps
Radeon™ ReLive for VR
Android Police coverage: Radeon ReLive for VR lets you stream SteamVR games to Daydream devices
Radeon ReLive for VR is a new app and service from AMD that lets you stream SteamVR games to standalone Daydream devices. You'll, of course, have to be using an AMD GPU in your PC, and will need to install AMD's latest Radeon Software. But once you have the equipment and software that's required, AMD's low latency tech will let you stream your SteamVR games at a 1440x1440p resolution to a standalone Daydream device.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Playground: Travel
Android Police coverage: Google Playground and its AR Playmoji come to Pixel and Pixel 2 phones, new Travel pack lands [APK Download]
Sure, Google may be closing G+, Hangouts, and Allo sometime soon, but hey, it's not like there's a running joke that sticker packs appear to be the only focus of the company as its many services die from a severe lack of support. Oh wait, what do we have here? Apparently, the company has released two new sticker packs this week. The first is Playground: Travel, and it offers a pack of augmented reality stickers themed around travel. Now that it's winter, I'm sure everyone out there is super keen on sharing stickers that have to do with vacation travel.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Playground: Marvel Studios Avengers
The second sticker pack from Google this week is called Playground: Marvel Studios Avengers, and it was actually available a while ago, but for some reason the old listing is gone. I suppose it's a good thing that it has reappeared this week under a new listing on the Play Store. It, of course, offers a bunch of stickers themed around the highly-popular Marvel movie lineup.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Zion – Social Key Recovery
HTC's Zion is a new app useful for recovering Zion wallets with Social Key Recovery. This way, if your phone is ever lost or stolen, you'll still be able to recover your key. You'll have to first store part of your recovery data on a friend's device, but once everything is set up, you will be protected.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Samsung Checkout
Samsung Checkout is a payment app that ties into your Samsung account and can take advantage of any payment info already tied to it. This is useful for purchasing content on Samsung TVs so that you don't have to type in your card's details whenever you want to purchase a movie or TV show.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Sling TV for AirTV Player
Sling TV for AirTV Player offers exactly what its name implies. This is an app designed to run on the AirTV Player. The reason it was released on the Play Store is so you can receive quicker updates from the manufacturer.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Dolby Dimension™
Dolby Dimension is an app that's useful for managing your Dolby-branded products. This way you can personalize your listening experience and take control of your device's features, all from the comfort of this smartphone app.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Liberty Loyalty Connect
Liberty Loyalty Connect is an app from Mastercard that can tie your in-store Loyalty Connect services to the payment card of y9ur choice. So if you have a particular debit card you often use at a store and would prefer to tie your rewards for that store to your debit card, this app will help you do that. This way you can get rid of your stand-alone Loyalty Connect cards and cut down on the bloat necessary to go shopping in public.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
NatWest Loyalty Connect
NatWest Loyalty Connect is another app from Mastercard that ties your in-store Loyalty Connect services to the payment card of your choice, just like the Liberty Loyalty Connect app listed above. So if you are tired of carrying around a physical NatWest Loyalty Connect card, this is the app for you.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
DJI Mimo
Another week, another DJI app has been added to the Play Store. DJI Mimo is specifically useful for the DJI Osmo Pocket handheld gimbal. Now, you'd think the company would get tired of having to program new apps for every product it releases and create one app that works with multiple products, but I suppose that could be confusing to the user. Sadly this means we have to decipher what each app is actually useful for because you can't really tell by their names. Oh well, if you ever require the use of this app, I'm sure the manual for the DJI Osmo Pocket handheld gimbal will point you in the correct direction.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
AWS Snowball Edge Verification
AWS Snowball Edge Verification is a tie-in app that lets you validate the Snowball Edge Compute Optimized hardware. So unless you own or work with one, you won't ever really need to use this app to validate the equipment by scanning the QR code on the side of the product.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Digital Intelligence Mobile
Digital Intelligence Mobile is an enterprise app that uses artificial intelligence to mash up insights, recommendations, and actions into easily digestible information. Basically it provides the user with an overview of their operations, data, usages, and KQI, all based around selected locations and technologies. An activation code is required, but once you put it in, you won't have to do it again.
Monetization: free / no ads / no IAPs
Live Wallpapers
Origin Clock Wallpaper and Widget
Origin Clock Wallpaper and Widget offers just that, a customizable live wallpaper with a clock, as well as a widget with a clock. You can choose to display a digital clock with numbers as well as an analog clock with hands. Heck, you can even display both at the same time.
Monetization: free / no ads / IAPs $1.00 a piece
Know A Worthy New App? Let Us Know!
If you have an application in mind for the next issue of the roundup, feel free to send us an email and let us know.
Important: there are 2 requirements in order for the app to be considered, listed below.
- the app's launch date has to be no longer than 2 weeks ago
- it has to be original, ground-breaking, well-reviewed, interesting, fun, etc - the cream of the crop
Now, if and only if the above requirements have been satisfied, fire up an email to this address: oh.no.its.the@androidpolice.com.
1 sponsored placement per week is available (your app would be featured at the top and marked as sponsored) - please contact us for details.