When I first created my Must-Have Android list two years ago, the Android Market was still playing catch up to the Apple's App Store. Now, a renamed and revamped, Google Play offers more apps than Apple. Developers are increasingly launching new apps on Android first and then porting them to iPhone. Clearly, a lot has changed. So has my list of essential applications.
A few disclaimers before we get into the list. First, these are *essential* downloads. If you want the100 Best Android Apps, we have a list for that as well. These are my picks for the *first* 10 apps you should download. And yes, I had to leave some really great apps off the list.
I talked to lot of the guys in labs about these picks, but I should be clear my opinions are sometimes different from the analysts. I would have probably made SnapSeed an Editors' Choice, but Jeff Wilson has some reservations. This is my personal list so it shows some of my idiosyncrasies.
For example, when I think of "essential apps," I don't think games. Angry Birds and Temple Run 2 are fantastic time killers, but you already know that. They will get a million downloads whether I list them here or not.
I've also chosen not to include what I consider no-brainer Google apps, such as Google Maps. As far as I'm concerned, Google Maps is a gimme. If you are an Android user, you should already have it installed. And, this goes for the native Gmail client as well. Google+ and Google Music are neat apps, but they have a way to go before I would call them essential. And while I love the new Google Chrome Beta for Android, it isn't available on enough devices for me to recommend.
This list of essentials is also light on social media apps—no Facebook or Twitter clients made the list. I'm a big Twitter user (@dancosta), but the truth is, most people probably don't need to tweet from their phone. Again, not essential.
source pcmag
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