Ask NerdGirl: My Faves, Personalized Tones, Move Contacts Off the Phone and On to Google!
by n3rdg1rl
May 12, 2010 8:00 AM –
I was looking at my post from yesterday, and I learned something; I shouldn’t write my blog when I’m really tired. I can’t spell and I didn’t put an intro! Won’t happen again!!
Any really cool apps that you recommend? There are a ton of apps to go through but most are soundboards and such that don’t do much.
There are a TON of apps out there. I know just what you mean! I’ve tried A LOT of them and there is a lot of trash. There are a lot of great ones and I do have some favorites.
As a nerd, I love astronomy. Google Sky Map lets you see what’s in the sky around you using the GPS in your phone with augmented reality. I love the fact that it has night mode so you don’t lose your night vision as you look at your phone then back at the sky.
Gmote is great for controlling your computer remotely. You can browse media files on your computer (as long as you’re on the same wireless network) and play them on your phone or your computer. I can also use it to control the cursor on your computer so you don’t even need to be near it to control it.
Google Goggles has a lot of potential. It can recognize logos and some objects and bring back information about them. It also uses the camera to create a virtual layer telling you about your surroundings. They’ve even added language translation too; so scan text and get the translation back. I can see them doing a lot more with this in the future.
Replica Island is a fun, free platformer. I don’t normally play games on my phone, but this one is fun. It uses the tilt, trackball, and touch screen to make it pretty interactive. It is a little glitchy, but it’s fun enough that I can look past it.
WaveSecure Mobile Security is a must have, I think, for all Android users. It’s a security program and a backup in one. Yes, it costs $19.90 a year, but the security it provides is completely worth it!
iheartradio is a radio streaming program from Clear Channel. Here in Cleveland, there are a few Clear Channel stations I listen to when I’m in the car, and now I can listen to them while I’m sitting at Starbucks writing my reviews and answering your questions.
EasyTether allows your non-rooted phone to act as a modem for your computer. Not everywhere I go has wireless, which I totally don’t approve of, but now it does. EasyTether Lite is free, and works very well, unless you want to get on secure websites. Then there’s a one-time charge of $9.95 to upgrade to the full version. I would suggest paying the $9.95 as you can tether your phone to connect to any website.
AppManager allows you to keep track of and manage all of the apps you have on your phone. I find it much more user friendly than the built in program for this. It allows you to batch uninstall and backup all of your apps to SD card.
Advanced Task Killer has saved my battery almost every day. I am bound to open an app and forget it’s running. Then a few hours later wonder why my GPS has been on the whole time. I run Advanced Task Killer and I get more speed back and I don’t kill my battery nearly as fast.
I just did a review on AppBrain Market Sync and it’s one of my new favorites. I can easily find new apps I want to grab and research them all from my computer. Then, when I have some time, I can just make a couple taps and download all of the apps I looked at and liked before.
Hey, it looks like NerdGirl just made a Top 10 Awesome Apps list!
How do I get SMS tones for HTC Desire?
I’m assuming you’re looking for a way to set things like MP3s as tones. I use a program called Rings Extended. Not only can I use MP3s for my tones, but also for my ringtones. I have a horrible 90’s pop music theme right now. Loving it! 
Once you’ve installed Rings Extended, when you go into something to change the sound you’ll see the option to use that program instead of the built in one. There you can change your tones to any MP3 on your SD card and personalize away!
I just read your response to Shon about backing up his phone data prior to the 2.1 update for the Hero. I’m in the same boat and also a new android convert. My problem is that my contacts aren’t synching even though I have all the settings as you describe. When I originally put my contacts in, I put them in as “phone” contacts rather than Google contacts. If I enter new people as Google contacts then they sync no prob. Is there a way to get all my other contacts to sync without having to redo them all? When I try to edit the contact, the type (Google or phone) isn’t an option any more. Thanks for your help!
David
There is an easy way to solve this issue, David. Open Contacts » press Menu button » Import/Export » my assumption is that the contacts are on your SIM card so choose “Import from SIM card”. (For phones below Android 2.0 there won’t be the extra option to choose from multiple Google accounts you would like to import the contacts to).
Please keep asking your questions! I love them! I’m not afraid of doing some research so don’t hesitate with asking anything. If I don’t know the answer I’ll find someone who does! Send ‘em to
nerdgirl@androidtapp.com!
~n3rdg1rl