Everyone needs a break!

Everyone needs a break some times, so until mid January, Droid App of the Day will not be updated.

Just because there will be no new app recommendations though does not stop you from browsing through the archive of recommendations and finding plenty to fill your phone. If that is not enough, check out "Android News" from the link above, or simply jump straight to some great articles (frequently updated) below.

Thank you everyone for your support since Droid App of the Day went online, only a few months ago. It will be good to have you back in the New Year!
 

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Bow Man

Today's app of the day is Bow Man.

Bow Man is a great single player (but better in multi player) game in which players take it in turns to shoot a bow and arrow (well, only the arrow) backwards and forwards, trying to hit the other player, and over multiple turns, ultimately killing the opponent.

It sounds strange, but essentially works as a very dumbed down version of a classic 2D tank war game (or like stationary worms, with only one weapon).

I remember playing this on PC a number of years ago so it is great to see it transferred to android.

In the words of the developer:

Classic archery skilled Bow Man game.Bow Man is a game of skill. Practice your archery skills, or try and kill your friend in a 1 on 1 match! Funny especially for two friends playing.Wind and distance variety adds extra difficulty.Two modes gameplay:1. VS mode that you can play with your friend or against computer2. Bird hunting mode which is of lots of fun.

Bow Man

Price: Free

4Lyrics Lite

Today's app of the day is 4Lyrics Lite.


4Lyrics has all the features of a traditional mp3 player (search for singer, album, title of the track and random reproduction), but in addition displays the lyrics of the song you are listening to.

In short, the lyrics appear automatically as subtitle, synchronized with the music. Simultaneously, while visualizing the lyrics in “subtitle” modality you can also display the translation in one of the many languages available. You can choose among:

Arabic
Chinese Simplified
English
French
German
Hebrew
Italian
Japanese
Portuguese
Spanish

You can also correct offset of the lyrics, so that even if your lyrics are unsynchronized you can fix it.

4Lyrics Lite

Price: Free

Elixir 2

Today's app of the day is Elixir 2.

Elixir 2 is the swiss army knife of android apps, allowing you do find out almost anything you need about your device in a matter of clicks, and allowing you to create almost any form of shortcut or widget you require, again, in a matter of clicks.

Although there are lots of great features within Elixir 2, one of the best is the ability to create widgets of almost any size, linking to almost any feature on your phone. If you look below under the "in the developers own words" component of this article, you will see the large amounts of Widgets, and Widget icon types that can be used.

Best of all, is the ability to include widget bars in the notifications panel of your device. This is great for including frequently used apps and  more particulary, toggles within the drop down menu. This feature alone makes Elixir 2 worth the download, allowing you to include  important toggles a single swipe away at all times. Once implemented, this feature will be something you struggle to operate without. See the below screen shot for an example of only 4 apps in the drop down notifications bar (I have 14 apps in my notifiaction bar!)

Another great feature is that Elixir 2 only installs a base program from install, allowing individual users to then install additional packages based on their needs. For the average user, simple features will be avalable "out of the box" and this may be sufficient to satify needs, however over time, more powerful features can be installed to greatly increase the ability and power of Elixir 2. This is great for those looking not to fill their phone with apps full of unecessary features.

To encourage all readers to grab a copy, the developer of Elixir 2 has kindly offered 10 free activiation codes for the app, which remove ads from the interface. To get an activation code, all you have to do is follow these two simple steps:

Step 1: "Like" Droid App of the Day on Facebook (using the panel on the left of the screen) - If you have already done Step 1 in the past, move directly to Step 2!

Step 2: Send me an email to droidappoftheday@gmail.com and tell me your favourite android app.

The fist 10 emails I get who have followed step 1 and 2 will receive an activation code!

Overall, Elixir 2 is an app I would struggle to operate without, so strongly advice anyone with an android device to grab a copy!

In the words of the developer:

Do you want to know everything about your device? Try Elixir 2 and its widgets!

Elixir 2 is a system information application with highly configurable widgets.

 

Features:

 

- open system screens easily from one place
- displays information about battery, internal and external storage (sd card), cpu, memory, telephony, wifi, bluetooth, location, display, airplane mode, synchronization, audio, camera, camcorder, input devices, build, operating system, settings, configuration, clipboard, environment variables, features, java system properties, shared libraries
- change settings (brightness, screen timeout, volume, ringer mode), do actions (mount/unmount sd, clear cache, start bluetooth discovery, view location, ...), turn things on/off (apn, wifi, bluetooth, auto-brightness, rotation, ...) on information screen
- displays installed applications: code, data and cache size, network traffic; launch, uninstall, clear cache, move to sd, organize applications by labels, batch mode
- displays running processes / services / tasks: pid, cpu usage, memory usage, total cpu, network traffic, view logs of a process, kill background processes, batch mode
- displays output of the top linux command
- shortcuts to widgets, application labels or Elixir screens
- statusbar icon can display memory/battery/cpu/internal storage via circle/bar/percent/elixir/transparent icons
- displays sensor information, turn sensors on/off, microphone
- generating and sending reports
- view online documentation from the app
- displays logcat/dmesg logs, save/share logs

Widgets:

- multiple widget sizes, each can be disabled
- small widget icons, up to 7*7 icons per screen.
- open widget from shortcuts, put to the notification area or to the home screen.
- widget performance screen
- customize widget icons by icon packs
- various widget backgrounds, custom color, custom background image, changeable transparency
- different icon sizes
- change label position/color/size, hide labels
- backup/restore widget definitions
- change image, label, refresh rate of widget types

Widget icon types:

- application launcher
- contact
- shortcut: bookmark, contact, setting, ...
- battery
- battery current
- battery temperature
- internal storage
- external storage
- cpu usage
- cpu frequency
- cpu usage * frequency
- memory
- running applications count
- e-mail unread count: gmail or any imap server
- missed calls count
- messages unread count
- time
- uptime
- date
- next alarm
- mobile signal strength
- mobile traffic
- wifi signal strength
- wifi traffic

Widget toggles:

- mobile data
- apn
- wimax (4g)
- wifi
- wifi ap (hotspot)
- usb tethering
- bluetooth (2 or 3 state)
- gps
- airplane mode
- auto-brightness
- brightness (can set levels)
- auto-rotate
- lock
- screen timeout (can set levels)
- screen
- auto-sync
- sync all
- speakerphone
- ringer mode
- sd mount
- sd refresh
- usb mass storage
- flash (needs TeslaLED Flashlight)
- volume
- mute
- clear cache
- reboot (for rooted devices, normal/recovery/bootloader/shutdown)

* shortcut: bookmark, contact, setting, ...

 

Languages:

- english
- magyar
- русский
- deutsch
- ελληνικά
- polski
- française

Elixir 2

Price: Free



 

Solitaire

Today's app of the day is Solitaire. 

At the end of the day, no mobile user should truly be satisfied before they have a quality version of Solitaire on their device. Why? Well, regardless of all the Angry Birds, Cut the Ropes and Flight Controls out there, Solitaire is still one of best, tried and tested games around. Even better, Solitaire feels just that little bit more "intelligent" than most of the more generic mobile games, yet is still just as addictive, and arguably, equally as enjoyable.

So what do I look for in a Solitaire app, especially considering their are literally 100's on offer within the Market? In short, I want something simple, lightweight, add free, bug free, and something that can load up and have me in a game within seconds, not having to sit through minutes of splash screens. What application fulfills this role? The most simple of them all in fact - low and behold, the best Solitire game on Android is called..... drumroll.....  Solitaire.

Solitaire features great touch controls, a variety of game modes (spider, forty thieves, freecell and regular), and resumes right where you left off when closed and restarted. Pretty much that is all I want. It is simple, it is quick and it works. So - get Solitaire now. It's a no brainier if you have even the slightest affinity to the classic card game. 

Solitaire

Price: Free

Revision 3

Today's app of the day is Revision 3.

For those who haven't heard of  Revision 3 before, now is the time. In short,  Revision 3 is one of the best "Internet Television" channels out there, producing and releasing numerous programs a week, and most with a tech/gaming/science/geek theme. So for starters, even if you don't download the Revision 3 app, I strongly advise you to head to the Revision 3 website, and start watching some great online content!

This aside, if you are already a Revision 3 fan, or like what you see on the site, then it makes sense to download the official Revision 3 app so that you can watch great content on the go. This is a simple app, that does exactly what it should, and that is make all the latest Revision 3 content easy to find and then play on your device.

Best of all, the app allows three different qualities of streaming, so depending on your bandwidth and the speed of your net connection, you should hopefully be able to find a streaming quality that suits.

 

In the developers own words:

Revision3 - the leading Internet TV network featuring Diggnation,Tekzilla & more

Watch your favorite Revision3 shows on the go on your Android phone with the official Revision3 app!

We've made it quick and easy to watch your favorite shows from the Revision3 lineup, so if you're into Diggnation, Film Riot or Tekzilla, it doesn't matter - they're all here for you to watch and enjoy!

 

Revision 3

Price: Free

Backgrounds HD Wallpaper

Today's app of the day is Backgrounds HD Wallpaper.

Backgrounds HD Wallpaper is a simple app for downloading new wallpapers for your android device. In some ways, it is a simplified version of Zedge (which I have previously recommended), but simple does not necessarily mean worse. In this case, simpler means quick and efficient, allowing you to quickly find new backgrounds and set them as default on your phone.

 

In the words of the developer:

Backgrounds - more than 10,000 Wallpapers, Add your own Photo and customize!

10,000 awesome unique designs.
New Backgrounds added daily.

Categories: Funny,Cute,Quotes, Sunsets,Beaches,Cars,Girly,Guys,Games,Flowers,Models,Love,Christmas,Military,Money,Sports,City,Scary,Money,New Years,Music,Movies,Animals,Space, ...

Backgrounds HD Wallpaper

Price: Free

Google Currents

Today’s app of the day is Google Currents.

Google Currents is a brand new app (so new it is still largely unavailable across much of the globe) by Google, in an attempt to take on some of the market held by other apps such as Flipboard (for iOS), or Taptu, Pulse or ChannelCaster (all of which I have previously recommended) for Android.

Essentially, Google Currents allows you to “subscribe” to pre-created channels, which once synced (downloaded) can be read in an attractive newspaper / magazine type format on your phone. The all white background / moving graphical headers is quite reminiscent of Flipboard on iOS, giving me the impression that Google has realised it is only a matter of time before Flipboard itself comes to Android (which allegedly isn’t going to happen), or is at least ripped off well by another competitor.

Although the “pre-made” channels are a great way of quickly signing up to content,  Google Currents also features full Google Reader support, allowing you to sync your Google Reader feeds into Google Currents for a more attractive (i.e. magazine like) reading experience than most other RSS viewers currently available.

Other great features include the ability to follow power users such as Robert Scoble and receive content that they deem interesting or ‘newsworthy’. There is also a ‘trending’ feature, allowing quick access to the “top 5” of a variety of topics such as tech, world news, politics, gaming, etc.

In the words of Google themselves:

Google Currents - free & fast magazine-like editions for your tablet & phone. Google Currents delivers beautiful magazine-like editions to your tablet and smartphone for high speed offline reading. Editions are all free and include:
* Publisher editions - Publishers such as Forbes, Techcrunch, Saveur, Popular Science, Good, 500px, Fast Company and more have produced hundreds of editions including in-depth articles, videos, fine photography, slideshows, live-maps, and social streams.
* Google trending editions - Google Currents uses Google search technology to hourly build a set of editions tracking the five most recent trending stories in categories such as world, entertainment, sports, science, and more. Each story is presented through a fresh edition of articles, videos, and pictures,
* Your favorite blogs and feeds - Instantly, turn your Google Reader subscriptions, or any of your favorite blogs/feeds into a beautiful edition with a magazine feel.
Each edition is available for high speed offline reading, and provides quick-touch sharing. Google Currents self-adapts to differently sized phones and tablets, with your subscriptions synchronized across devices. Google Currents - a reading experience not to be missed.

Google Currents

price: free

Chess Time – Multiplayer Chess

Today’s app of the day is Chess Time – Multiplayer Chess

Chess Time – Multiplayer Chess is a great app that lets you play chess online against other android and iOS (yes, it is cross platform!) users from around the world. Think Words with Friends, but with chess.  I won’t say that I am particularly skilled at chess,  or play often, but every now and then it is good to settle back into something with a bit of a slower pace!

Best of all, Chess Time – Multiplayer Chess doesn’t make it impossible to win, even for beginners like me, as it automatically matches games against other users with similar rankings. Other features include the ability to chat in game with your opponent (good for sending some chirp) and online leader boards to track your progress.  

In the words of the developer:

Chess Time!

Cross Platform with iOS ( online , multiplayer )
Android Tablet Supported! In-Game Chat! Leaderboards! Friend Users! Rating System!

Play chess ...
The server will automatically force a resign on the opponent if they have not moved in 6 days.
You can cancel a game if the user has not moved in 3 days and get the credit for a win.

Do you like chess? Do you have friends? Do you have friends that like chess? If you answered yes to any of these questions then Chess Time is FOR YOU!!!!
Chess Time allows you to play chess with your friends on the go and anywhere. Make a FREE ACCOUNT and invite them to a game! Don't have any friends? That's okay because you can select a random opponent. Chess Time sends push notifications so you will always be aware of your next moves. It even allows for you to chat with the other players! Download today FOR FREE!!!!!!

- Play chess! online
- Play against your friends, multiplayer
- Game level chat!
- Account based! (Now guest players / no account needed)
- History of recent games played!
- Rating auto calculated.
- Export your game moves and share with a friend! Standard PGN format for us in PGN viewers.

Have friends with iPhones, iPods and iPads? Want to play chess with them? Tell them to get Chess Time on the App Store! ITS FREE!

This app is also tablet supported! Landscape view with side by side board / chat.

Chess Time – Multiplayer Chess

Price: Free

Pano

Today's app of the day is Pano.

Pano is a great app for your android device to easily create panoramic shots without the need to use any additional software. From within Pano you can take the shots (lining them up one after another), then click "Merge" and have Pano do all the hard work, stitching them together seamlessly!

Best of all, if you get in quick, Pano will only cost you 10 cents in the massive android sale that is currently underway! In the words of the developer:

The award-winning panoramic photography app!

Pano is an award-winning app that lets you take beautiful, seamless panoramic photos straight from your phone, no other software necessary. Pano has gotten rave reviews from hundreds of thousands of users around the world.

... and for a limited time, Pano for Android is ON SALE!

Features:
- Deliciously simple interface
- Take 360-degree panoramas with up to *sixteen* photos
- Handy semi-transparent guide helps you line up each shot perfectly
- Advanced alignment, blending, and colour-correction algorithms provide seamless images in just seconds
- Finished panos save directly to your device
- Panos can be resumed if interrupted

Please note: Pano does not yet fully support tablets. Tablet support is coming shortly in an update!

Be sure to check out our Flickr group to see what people around the world are doing with Pano:
http://debaclesoftware.com/flickr

Contact us for any reason at support@debaclesoftware.com

And follow us on twitter: @debaclesoftware

What the reviewers are saying about Pano for iOS:
- MacWorld (4.5/5 stars): "Pano is an amazing app for creating on-the-spot panoramic photos without the need of desktop software to stitch the photos together." -- Tom Hesser.
- Webmonkey: "...Pano, a new app for the iPhone, makes taking extreme wide-angle panoramic photographs a total breeze." -- Michael Calore.
- iJustine -- "I just want to Pano everything! .. The interface is extremely easy...It works amazing..."
- Wired: "Pretty neat -- and a creative way to pass time with your iPhone. The panoramas look quite good considering the iPhone's meager 2-megapixel camera, wouldn't ya say?" -- Brian X. Chen.

Awards given to Pano for iOS:
- Selected by Apple as one of their "Best Apps of 2009"
- Selected by Apple in 2010 as one of the "App Store Essentials Hall of Fame"
- Awarded "Best Photography App" in Best App Ever Awards.
- Awarded a Top Pick in O'Reilly's "Best iPhone Apps"
- Selected by iLounge as one of their "100 Essential iPhone Apps"

Pano

Price: 10c - 99c

Read it Later

Today’s app of the day is Read it Later.

Read it Later is a great app if you read a lot of news every day, but don’t have the time to delve as deep into every article as you may wish. If this rings a bell, then Read it Later is for you.

After installing, Read it Later incorporates itself into the sharing function on your android device and allows you to easily articles of your choosing from almost any android app. Read it Later also allows offline viewing, making it great if you have times in the day when you are out of reception.

I also appreciate the ability to install Read it Later on your PC (through a Chrome extension), allowing you to easily find articles that you started reading on your phone at a later date. This is great if particular articles have larger images, data heavy videos, or generally are more suited to exploring on a larger PC screen. Best of all, Read it Later syncs between all devices, so whether an article is shared on your PC, tablet or mobile, it will be available to be “read later”.

In the words of the developer:

One reading list, everywhere you are.

Used by over 3.5 million people worldwide.

Read It Later lets you save any web page or video on your phone, tablet, or browser to view later - even offline - in an easy-to-read interface. It automatically syncs your queue across all your devices (Android, iPhone/iPad, Firefox, Chrome) making sure your content is always ready to view on the go, in the air, and at your leisure.

New York Times, Business Week, and TechCrunch call it the "DVR for the web."

FEATURES:

VIEW CONTENT ONLINE or OFFLINE
Save full articles and videos for viewing later. Downloads the complete web page for magazine-like offline reading (video viewing online only).

FORMATS ARTICLES FOR EASIER VIEWING and READABILITY
The unique Article View captures article text, images, captions and videos in a uniform, easy-to-read format no matter where the article is from. You can adjust the text size, font, alignment and darkness for night-time reading.

WORKS EVERYWHERE
View and add articles or videos to your queue on any computer or mobile device. Save in any Android app with a share menu. Save directly from your computer with our browser extensions and bookmarklets found here: www.readitlater.com.

BEAUTIFUL AND SMART
You can search, sort, and even tag the items in your list. All of your read articles are archived so you can quickly dig up anything you read in the past. It remembers your scroll position so you can start reading exactly where you left off.

WHAT YOU GET IN PRO?
You’ll get some additional features like viewing your entire queue (no limits), easily search, sort, tag and archive content in queue, scroll with the volume rocker and a one touch rotation lock.

Read it Later

Price: Free