I’ve had several friends recently take the Android plunge and ask me what apps that i’m using, so I decided to write them up in a list for everyone to enjoy and comment on. They’re listed in no particular order and I’ve provided a link to them in the doubleTwist app catalog so you can read a description and scan the QR code to install.

If you’re new to Android, this app is the first thing you need to install. With it, you can scan the square bar codes (QR codes) on the app pages and your Android device will fire right into the market and let you install the app. So simple! Check out the description and icon on the following page, then search the Android market on your device and load the one with the same icon. It’s free and it works.

• Barcode Scanner – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Barcode-Scanner/8684651697626048315

Once you’re ready with that, you’re going to need a good keyboard. I’ve said it before, and i’ll say it again. Swype is the way to go. It’s currently in Beta right now so you won’t be able to get it from the Android market, but trust me when I tell you that it’s worth signing up for the Beta and replacing your old keyboard with the Swype one. Here’s the link to the developer’s site. Give Swype a week as your default input method and you won’t go back.

• Swype – http://www.swypeinc.com/

Now that you’re able to Swype and ready to barcode scan, check out the following links and load some apps!

• Yelp – This app allows you to search a directory of businesses to find nearby restaurants, entertainment, etc. You can read reviews as well as “check in” at various locations. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Yelp/-8428439410233946704
• Foursquare – The same basic thing as Yelp except the reviews are not nearly as good and the directory is littered with useless stuff like people’s houses. Foursquare is also more about the social game aspect than actually finding good places to go. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Foursquare/2242381791158486847
• Layar – This app let’s you look through your phone and it overlays businesses, restaurants, real estate, etc. It’s more or less like having an information readout built into your eye. Pretty neat! – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Layar-Reality-Browser/-5492439195135970260
• Urbanspoon – Similar to Yelp/Foursquare but focused on food and has a nifty interface. Great for finding local places if you’re not really sure what you’re in the mood for. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Urbanspoon/5770309968564102810
• Movies – Flixster’s movie app. Find movies, buy tickets. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Movies/3803559356039407742
• Fandango – Fandango’s version of a movie app. Find movies, buy tickets. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Fandango-Movies/-8503835660650838916
• Shopper – Google’s shopping app. Find items by bar code or by taking a picture of them and then compare prices. A little limited on what it will recognize at this point, but neat! – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Shopper/9021953638086515981
• Shazam – Ever wonder what song is playing in the background? Shazam can help you find it. Just let the phone listen to the song and Shazam will find out what it is and save a tag for you so you can go get it later. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Shazam/9078283276958955682
• Tapatalk – If you read a lot of forums, check out Tapatalk! It formats the forum in a more mobile device friendly way. Unfortunately it requires that the forum owner install some software, but it’s free for them and a lot of forums have it now. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Tapatalk-Forum-App-(Demo)/5172159749994684569
• Astro File Manager – Manage the files on your Android device without having to plug the USB in! Very convenient for making small changes and such. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/ASTRO-File-Manager/3521322703668947709
• Astro Bluetooth – Adds Bluetoooth support to Astro so you can move files around to other Bluetooth devices – http://apps.doubletwist.com/ASTRO-Bluetooth-Module/-2665954802189038548
• Astro SMB Module – Adds SMB support to Astro so you can browse Windows files shares. Very handy for moving files back and forth to your PC without plugging in the USB. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/ASTRO-SMB-Module/-4297525784532731675
• Microsoft Tag Reader – QR codes can be limited and stop working well when a lot of data is encoded in them. Microsoft Tags pick up where QR left off. They’re used widely on the Xbox sites and such so it’s handy to have this app to decode them. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Microsoft-Tag-Reader/7572172615153708714
• Parcels – Track packages from various shipping companies. You can also label them. Very convenient if you’re expecting a package and don’t like to be chained to your PC for tracking updates. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Parcels/-3066158123332380186
• Bump – Swap contacts, photos, and other information just by bumping phones! – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Bump/-8864954203326452993
• WordWise Free – It’s like Scrabble and you can play against your friends remotely. Very cool. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/WordWise-Free/-871152393333584378
• Fring – Video chat and IM client similar to Qik but without the monthly bill. Kind of useless if you don’t have a front facing camera. The client is also compatible with iPhone Fring so you can chat with iPhone 4 users as well. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/fring—free-video-calls%2C-IM/7265829848860942341
• WordPress – A nice app for connecting to WordPress blogs (like this one) – Read comments, posts, etc – http://apps.doubletwist.com/WordPress/2060168375811358412
• My Tracks – Records movements, speeds, elevation changes and creates custom Google Maps and Documents to share with your friends. Now you can record your walks, jogs, bike rides, etc and track your performance. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/My-Tracks/5619948915145980006
• K-9 Mail – A mail client built off of the stock Android mail app. Very nice feature set. It adds a lot of the features that the stock client lacks. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/K-9-Mail/-2319226184818340004
• Sound Manager – Adjust all of the Android volume settings at once. It also has scheduling so you can have the phone automatically adjust volumes based on times and such! – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Sound-Manager/-7202281942786502586
• Google Earth – Browse the world from the palm of your hand. Very neat! – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Google-Earth/8735095210975905124
• PayPal – Manage your PayPal account from this handy app – http://apps.doubletwist.com/PayPal/1717242335864165550
• IMDb – Browse IMDb without the hassle of using the browser – http://apps.doubletwist.com/IMDb-Movies-%26amp%3B-TV/6013565622762873534
• Adobe Reader – Adobe’s official PDF reader for the Android platform – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Adobe%C2%AE-Reader%C2%AE/-1935143053349851793
• WiFinder – Locate and connect to WiFi hotspots. Much easier than going into settings and all of that. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/WiFinder/-1003813077939557751
• IM+ Lite – Very nice IM client for Android. Lots of options and protocols supported – http://apps.doubletwist.com/IM%2B-Lite/-250213690496941545
• FlightStats Lite – Track flights from the convenience of an app – http://apps.doubletwist.com/FlightStats-Lite-for-Android/-7065009727566998176
• Engadget – A convenient way to catch up on your favorite gadget site! – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Engadget/5256348713963807342
• OpenTable – Find restaurants and make reservations online – http://apps.doubletwist.com/OpenTable/-7021538021013229553
• Pocket Agent – If you have State Farm insurance, this app will allow you to make claims, get assistance, etc. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Pocket-Agent/-7080433943161957637
• Battery Widget (HTC) – Monitor the battery of your phone from this handy desktop widget – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Battery-Widget/4393210931049278918
• Mobile Banking – Convenient access into your Bank of America account – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Mobile-Banking/-8693904818618931351
• Amazon.com – Amazon.com search and purchase tool. Very nice if you’re an Amazon fan – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Amazon.com/1451235214243631243
• Shoryuken – One of my favorite toy apps. You move the phone, it makes street fighter noises. Selectable characters and an on screen “moves list”. Very fun if you played Street Fighter back in the day. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Shoryuken/4454830978903503607
• Google Maps – Find locations, business, restaurants, etc, then get directions to them! Very nice mapping app from Google – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Google-Maps/-3632499760052616472
• Google Goggles – Search Google by pictures. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Google-Goggles/7122374109537329528
• The Weather Channel – The official weather app of weather.com. Nice radar views and such. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/The-Weather-Channel/-6750316753266307112
• Compass – Everybody needs a compass sometimes! – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Compass/-4451580330297319367
• doubleTwist Player – A nice upgrade to the stock Android media player. Includes last.fm scrobbling, cover art downloading, etc. Works well when used with the doubleTwist desktop application. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/doubleTwist-Player/-3242011087289649748
• Pandora – One of the best free internet radio options. Build your own stations and customize them to play only what you want, then have it recommend more of the same type of music for you to check out. Very nice. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Pandora-Radio/4924458746518977325
• eBay – Manage your eBay account from your mobile. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/eBay/-3564758678792161604
• Handcent SMS – A MUST HAVE app to replace the stock Android SMS client. If you don’t like the text messaging in Android, this is the answer. Very customizable too. Instructions to replace the stock SMS client with this one are on the Handcent site – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Handcent-SMS/8114420675433515351
• Documents to Go – View Excel and Word files with ease. This thing was great on the Palm and it’s back with a vengeance on Android. There is a paid version that does PDF and PowerPoint as well as let you edit. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Documents-To-Go-2.0-Main-App/2978032577393184508
• Mint.com – If you use Mint.com for financial tracking and planning, this app is for you. It connects to your Mint.com account and lets you manage it from Android with ease. -  http://apps.doubletwist.com/Mint.com-Personal-Finance/-4416547265345152262
• Last.FM – Your own personal radio station, now on your phone. Last.FM is one of the original projects to create custom radio stations for people to get only the music they want. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Last.fm—Personal-Radio/3347146850818170505
• Advanced Task Killer – I still don’t believe you need a task killer in Android if you manage your apps properly, but this one is very popular and I have a lot of friends that use it. It’s simple but it works and it’s free. – http://apps.doubletwist.com/Advanced-Task-Killer/6460596612060981171
• SystemPanel Lite – This is a handy app for killing an app if you have to. Unlike most task managers, it shows cached applications in a separate list so you know what you need to kill and what you need not bother with. There is a paid version which also does app install/uninstalll and system usage history – http://apps.doubletwist.com/SystemPanelLite-Task-Manager/2059222314703525083

I hope you enjoy these apps as much as I have. Feel free to comment on them or make recommendations of your own.

Special Thanks to House of The Faculty for providing me with some updates and several of these apps.

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