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LinkedIn

Posted Tuesday, April 26th, 2011 at 8:00 am by Toni McQuilken 0 Comments

User Rating5.00/5

LinkedIn for Android puts your professional network just a touch away. Walk into any interview or client meeting with the ability to look up the details and connect with over 100 million professionals worldwide. Get the latest updates and messages from your network and keep them up-to-date with your status in real-time. We Work Where You Work!

Price: Free

AndroidTapp.com Android App Review:

Pros & Cons:

Pros

• Finally there is an official LinkedIn client
• Access to features such as the Inbox, People You Might Know, and outstanding invitations

Cons

• No Group access
• No contacts integration

LinkedIn, the popular professional networking site, has finally released an official Android application. After being in beta testing with users for several months, the first official version is now available on the Android Market. While this is a good first attempt, the consensus seems to be that LinkedIn is behind both third-party developers offering access via their API, as well as their own clients for other platforms. Must-have features such as integration with the contacts on the phone and access to group discussions are missing, and these are the two biggest requests/complaints users are clamoring for. LinkedIn, for it’s part, has said it is working on these features as we speak, so future releases should get these, as well as other, features not available to third-party apps on Android right now.

Features:

Users of the LinkedIn website have been waiting for a long time for an official client from the company for Android. There are a few third-party apps out there based on the API LinkedIn has released, but the official app has been much anticipated. It was in beta for several months with a Group page on LinkedIn for feedback and suggestions, and the first official version is good, but has a ways to go.

Right now, the app gives you access to view and manage invitations, reconnect with people it suggests you might know, and view your messages, connections and update feeds. It does not integrate with the phone’s contact system or provide access to groups, which are the two most-requested features for the next version, and both of which the developers have said they are working on.

You can view your own profile information, but right now, you can’t make any changes to it within the app itself. You also can’t update your own status from the app now. Again, those are both features the developers have said they plan to add in the future.

Usefulness:

If you have a LinkedIn account and use it with any degree of frequency, this is a good app to have. It lets you get a quick overview of your account, and if the developers follow through and add the requested features, it will only continue to be more useful.

Ease of Use:

It’s based around the LinkedIn way of organizing information, so if you’re familiar with the site, this will be very easy to pick up.

Frequently Used:

Daily, if you check your LinkedIn account regularly.

Interface:

Very clean and easy to use. It’s a good mix of visual icons and text. I also like that, in the Updates section, they give you a menu option to hide the “John is now connected to Smith” posts with one click, ensuring a much more useful feed.

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