So, I’ve been an Android user for a few months now, and I’m SUCH a fan! Woohoo! I’m only using a phone that runs Froyo, but it suits my needs (it’s a cheap little Google phone, and that’s perfect for now). My E72 was getting very little play time, but have decided to get another internet-enabled line so that I can keep using it. The QWERTY keyboard is really useful when I have to type long emails, and my E72 is definitely lighter on data use (-my word, Android is quite a hog!). So, naturally, I will now share my favourite Android apps so far:

EVERNOTE

This is by far the most useful app ever invented. I make all my notes in it: sermons, reminders, ideas, plans, anything that can be made into a note. Evernote is actually the reason I went Android in the first place, and it was worth it. I have a free account, which is adequate for my needs. 

WHATSAPP

I probably use this app the most. Mostly to group chat with my sister in South Africa, and my mom. Dare I say it- it’s better than Skype lol. So I have been trying so hard to get my friends on whatsapp, but there’s where being an early adopter really sucks. Ah well.

REMEMBER THE MILK (rtm)

I do all my lists in rtm. That means I use it about once a month, but it’s still my go-to app. This is where I have my shopping list, list of things (clothes and shoes) I want to buy, books to read, gadgets to look out for, movies to watch, and stuff like that. I have a free account here as well, and that works for me.

ANY.DO

This actually merits a home screen widget, because this is where my daily list lives. That would be anything I need to be reminded of- bills to pay, people to call or email, and anything that helps me be better organised. Oh, and it’s beautiful.

OPERA MINI (OM)

Still my go-to browser, because it makes a huge difference to my data usage. I really like the Dolphin browser, but it’s not great unless you have wireless internet (which is still a challenge in Bulawayo- mostly I use 3G, which is really costly).

BIBLE

Great app but oh boy, when I first started using it, it nearly did my head in with all its bugs. A lot of work appears to be going on, though, and it’s improving. I am very grateful for the free downloads that are offered, and it’s a very comprehensive app otherwise.

TWITTER

It’s a cool little app. Heavy on data usage, but naturally it would be. I use it mostly for sharing websites I’ve opened in OM.

PALMARY WEATHER

I had tried the Weather Channel app, but half the time I couldn’t get the current temperature for Bulawayo, and I think the app must be very buggy. Palmary has worked perfectly; it’s a beautiful little app, too. 

PDANET is an app that I have just started using, and it’s been good to finally be able to use my phone as a modem, because I used to use the Nokia that way all the time. Works perfectly.

AVAST & PREY are apps I thankfully have not needed to think about, but they are running in the background, and I think I am glad to have them.

Apps I have uninstalled

GOOGLE READER

I love my feeds, and loved this app; but this was actually one reason I went back to using the Nokia. Google Reader appears to be a data hog, and it also seems to expand exponentially... Now anyone using an Android of the same generation will know how precious internal storage is. I just couldn’t afford this app.

SKYPE

I cannot fathom why Skype wants all my internal storage. ALL of it. So I’ve relegated it to an installed but inactive app, and intend to use it if there’s no other alternative. Maybe I will use it on the Nokia.

BEBBLED

Was having so much fun, but when push came to shove, it had to go. I’m obviously not a developer, but surely games can be stored on my SD card? 

ASTRID TASKS

In the end, rtm won. Though Astrid is way prettier. Maybe I just didn’t get it.

DROPBOX

It was just underutilised....

TWEETDECK

It just didn’t do any more than the apps I already had installed... I prefer it on my laptop.

LIGHTBOX/PICPLZ

To be honest, I ran into various problems with these apps. Sometimes they’d fail to upload a photo, then they’d be trying at random times for days and days. Or I wasn’t charmed by the fact that they wouldn’t save a copy to the SD card (picplz). And in the end I decided they wouldn’t do anything Photoshop wouldn’t do better, so they were only wasting storage space on my phone. I’m still sort of shrugging about them.

POPS

I used this briefly... It was cute.

For dishonourable mention: the Facebook app. Just like the Nokia Facebook app, I just can’t get this app to cooperate. I have actually given up on it, and only use it to share pictures and links- which works about 33.3% of the time