Several big names launched Android apps this week, showing a strong end to June and a big start for July. Amazon released Kindle with Whispersync for Android, while Yahoo! finally got around to making a few apps for the Android Market.
Here are the top new and performing apps of the week.
Managing accounts
Yahoo! took a while to launch any Android apps, but they’re finally here. Mail, Messenger and a homescreen search widget help you navigate your Yahoo! account, with easy toggles amongst the apps themselves. With a cross-app tactic, Yahoo has launched its free and centralizing apps the right way.
Another bank has launched an Android app, adding to your secure finance options on the go. The free Wells Fargo app lets you view account balances and activities, pay bills and transfer money. There’s also an ATM locator, with mapping and navigation tools.
Games and travel
The soccer fun doesn’t have to end after the World Cup. EA Sports has released FIFA 10, allowing you to get a match in anytime. There’s more swiping than kicking going on with this $6.99 game, with a superstar mode for pro players. All the teams, leagues and players from FIFA are featured in this game app.
Geodelic has gotten a boost this week, thanks to another $7 million in funding. The company’s free Android app helps you find local venues, with quick filters for categories like groceries, movies, banks and more.
Concur Breeze makes travel easier with its expense tools. The free app tracks your spending, with photo imports for receipts. Your expense activity and reports are readily available on the app, keeping you abreast of your account at all times. This is helpful, as many other expense apps keep their reports on their websites only.
Shopping and recommendations
Kindle with Whispersync is a storefront to the Kindle bookstore, with options to read books on your mobile device. The app itself is free, but the books will cost you (no easy filter for free titles). Access your Amazon library, wish list, as well as the full store. One drawback is the limited info on titles before purchase, though sample text is free.
IMDb has launched a pretty robust app, with local showtimes, upcoming movies, box office stats, and its MOVIEmeter. See info on the film, its actors and directors, view trailers and share it all with friends. IMDb Everywhere is free in the Android Market, and has voice search, filters and options to purchase movies as well.
Google’s relatively new Shopper app has already gotten an update, adding actual shopping tools. Scan a barcode and see local retailers with the product, instead of just web results. You also get more easily accessed filters, for price, reviews, etc. Share products and star them for later. Shopper has launched in the UK with this release.
ShopSavvy has also been updated specifically to work optimally on older versions of Android. Now, all Android devices can use the price comparison tools offered in the free app. Scan an item barcode and see web and local results for that item.
AppAware’s market and recommendation tool has gotten easier to search, with the new option to tag apps. Each app has a tag cloud, which overlaps with the engine’s social features as well. See what others have added to it and better find the best apps for you. Keyword search options have also been added, making the tool far more streamlined overall.
