Best Smartphone Apps

By Branko Miletic

We’ve decided to take a look at the best apps we could find for Apple, Android and BlackBerry – and I must say, playing with apps is not the fun people think it is especially when they don’t work the way they are supposed to.

Here are 12 of the best apps resulting from my search – 4 for each OS – and whilst I admit that one man’s super app is another man’s digital junk, the following is a subjective look at what is out there.

Apple

Squeeze me some juice!
What happens when you want to listen to a live Internet radio program but can't because you’re busy, absent or simply forgot? Juice program lets you create your own custom online Podcast anytime, anywhere. Juice is free, it supports more than 15 languages and multiple media players, and has a built-in directory with thousands of listed podcast feeds.

You are so Tweet!
Yeah, yeah I know, everyone knows about Twitter, but there are so many Twitter clients out there that finding the best one is like looking for the proverbial needle in the figurative haystack. But never fear TweetDeck is here- and we are not the only site on Earth to push this Titter client and we certainly won’t be the last. You can receive and send to and from multiple accounts – basically it’s the aesthetics that make it so good – it makes Tweeting a lot of fun.

XnView you
XnView is a utility for viewing and converting graphic files. If you are big on pictures or use graphics files a lot, XnView is worth a look. With this program, you can; import about 400 graphic file formats; export about 50 graphic file formats; resize, rotate, crop; adjust brightness, contrast; modify number of colours; apply filters (blur, average, emboss); apply effects (lens, wave); batch convert and rename, and more.

Gorillacam for happy snaps
Ever wanted to have a phone camera that comes with a self-timer, anti-shake function, level measurement and the ability to take a 3-shot burst pictures? Well now you have it in app form for your smartphone and it’s called Gorillacam. Enough said!

Android

Tango for two?
Tango allows you to make free phone and video calls over 3G, 4G, and wifi. Make calls to any other person who has Tango installed on their phone or tablet. Start a Tango call with just voice, and move into a video call when you have something to share. Basically it’s FaceTime for Android. Features include free calls between Android and iOS phones and tablets, and you can start a phone call with Tango and switch to a video call by tapping the camera icon.

Hello Astrid
When you are in the Android universe and you need a To-Do list for your device, then you need the lovely Astrid. Not to be confused with a 1980s hit song by Cold Chisel, Astrid features reminders, lists, sync, a widget, task sharing and optional instant notifications.

Let me speak
Those that record conversations and that use an Android device will need a good recording app and there are not that many better than the sensibly named ‘Voice Recorder’. The main features include the ability to send data as attached file via Gmail, set recordings as ringtones, and activate the playback pause by using the stop button long press.

Crackle, Crackle
Do you like watching movies on your handset? If not, would you like to start? Well, you’ll need Crackle for that. Free and on demand, you can watch free movies on your Android phone, and if you are worried about the selection range, there are some two million titles to choose from.

BlackBerry

Navita Translator
So there you are, stuck in some small Russian village on the wrong side of the Urals and you need to find a toilet quickly. Who do you ask? Well with Navita translator there is no need to worry, as you will be able to fix your discomfort pretty quickly.  You can translate-and-speak words, phrases from e-mails, Browser, SMS from more than 50 languages and it is able to translate many languages including English, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, French, German and Russian.

Opening a Pandora’s box
If you want to listen to radio on your BlackBerry, then you need Pandora. Pandora creates a radio station that brings an effortless personal soundtrack right to you whenever you want to listen to music. Pandora has all styles of music – from hip-hop to jazz, country to classical, Latin to rock, dance to pop, and much more.

Going to the Flix
Flixter is the most popular movie app for Facebook and now you can use it on your BlackBerry. You can download details for the top box office movies, browse the DVD catalogue of over 50,000 movies, watch high quality trailers, read reviews from Rotten Tomatoes, view theatre info with maps, phone number, ticket info, buy movie tickets from movietickets.com, and search for movies by title, director, or actors etc. Need I say more?

Foursquare
Foursquare helps you explore the world around you. Meet up with friends. Find places to go. On top of that, many places offer discounts and freebies to the foursquare community, and you earn points and badges for doing the things you love.  If you want, you can easily post your proudest check-ins to Facebook or Twitter.

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