chao ah beng's list of Android apps (part 1)

i was asked by our few-but-growing (hopefully) Android-equipped ITLians to compile a list of droid apps to give them a quick start on their way to mobile information enlightenment.

but when i started going through my currently installed apps, i realise that i probably should split this entry into multiple parts to cover them. yes, the iphone i-duhviduals probably will say, "my apps are more than yours!" but that's them la... ignore.

so this is how it goes:
Part 1 (this entry) - The Die-Die Must Haves
- the apps that i can't do without

Part 2 - The Boliao But Fun Stuff
- the stuff that is fun and/or i can hao lian with. this is supposed to be part 3, but thot i should show you now so that you may hao lian :)

Part 3 - The Won't Die But You Are Missing Out Alots
- the rest of the apps that i use occasionally and/or hao lian with :P

so here goes...

The Die-die Must Haves

1. Air Control Lite (website)
- ads supported

in this game, you are the air controller and your job is to direct the planes to land on their designated runway or helipad. highly addictive!

2. AK Notepad (website)
- freewarethis is a no-frill notepad application for me to take note of anything from to do list to shopping list. you can pin any note to the Home screen for quick access.

3. ASTRO File Manager (website)
- ads supported
File manager application that shows you all the user folders and files in your droid. can connect to your computer over LAN also. integrate with a task manager too to manage running apps and services but i prefer to use Estrongs one instead. ASTRO is used for performing backup.

4. Estrongs File Explorer & Task Manager (website)
- freeware
my preferred file/task manager app. similar ASTRO. the task manager allows you to add a widget to the Home screen for quick process killing. can get pretty addictive too! :)
auto task killing is also supported.

5. Meebo IM (website)
- freeware
Instant messenger that allows you to connect to multiple IM networks. there is eBuddy for Android too but my preference is this.

6. OI Safe (website)
- freeware
password manager application to help you remember all the passwords and PINs. very important considering the no. of different userid/password combinations used in the office and my gradually deteriorating memory...

7. Opera Mini (website)
- freeware
even though the built-in browser on my X10 is already pretty decent, i find myself using Opera as my default browser. maybe its due to the quick dial buttons bah. :)

8. XPERIA FlashLight (website)
- freeware
don't have screenshot because its not necessary. this app allows you to use the camera LED as a torchlight. this app is specifically developed for X10 devices so may not work on other droids. there are quite a no. of similar apps around also, some basically brighten up the screen to act as torchlight. you should look for one that uses the camera LED instead.

stay tuned for Part 2...

chao ah beng