Android software

What better way to celebrate Labor Day than by eschewing all forms of labor, instead kicking back with your phone or tablet and rocking some serious run-and-gun action?

To help you accomplish that nation-honoring act of laziness, Gameloft is offering three Android games on the cheap.

Throughout the weekend, you can get Gangstar Rio: City of Saints, Modern Combat 3: Fallen Nation, and N.O.V.A. 3: Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance from Google Play for 99 cents apiece.

These titles normally sell for $6.99 each, meaning you're getting for three bucks what would normally cost you $21.… Read more

Scouring the Google Play Store for apps isn't always easy. When looking for an app you'll probably know the category it falls into, and you might know the name of something that works similarly to what you're looking for. Unfortunately, it's still a lot of work to sort through each entry until you find the perfect one.

You could look at app reviews online, or check star ratings in the Play Store, or you could try looking at Recommended For You.

Just open the Google Play Store and tap on Apps, then tap on the banner … Read more

The newest version of PayPal for Android is out, and it sports a refreshed interface, complete with the "Holo" styling typical of apps designed for Android 4.0 and above. All of the main navigation is at the top, with the familiar dotted menu button sitting on the top-right of the Action Bar.

With all of PayPal's core features now split into three tabs -- Account, Send, and Request -- PayPal 4.0 is easier than ever to use. Plus, it now looks and feels more in line with its sibling PayPal Here, the company's answer … Read more

Android users in several European countries can now use Amazon's app marketplace.

The company announced today that its Appstore is now available to consumers in the U.K., Germany, France, Italy, and Spain. As with the store in the U.S., users will be able to find and download Android apps to either their smartphones or tablets.

Now that Amazon has expanded to more countries, the company's marketplace is even more a competitor to its chief alternative, Google's Play.

Outside of the Android market, Apple's App Store is still going strong. Earlier this year, Apple announced … Read more

In addition to its Lenovo IdeaTab S2110, Lenovo unveiled two more Android 4.0 tablets today during IFA 2012 in Berlin, Germany.

The first is the Wi-Fi-only Lenovo IdeaTab A2109, which has a 9-inch LED touch screen with a 1,280x800-pixel resolution and 16:10 aspect ratio.… Read more

Google Maps for Android has offered turn-by-turn directions for automotive use since 2009. It wasn't long until walking navigation was added in 2010. Finally, transit direction made the jump to turn-by-turn navigation back in June of this year. Today, with the version 6.11.1 update to the Google Maps app, cyclists can get in on the turn-by-turn fun with the addition of bicycle route navigation.

Cyclists will be able to view turn-by-turn directions on a live updating map after selecting a destination and affixing their phone onto the handle bars, or they can simply listen to the spoken … Read more

If you spend a lot of time in the car, you know what an awesome companion audiobooks can be.

A pricey one, too. A single "book on tape" (OK, CD) might run you $20, $30, even as much as $50.

That's why I'm a big fan of Audiobooks.com, which offers unlimited listening for a flat monthly rate. Just one problem: it's a hassle to use on your smartphone. Although you can access the service via your phone's mobile browser, you need a decent Internet connection to stream the audio -- and the browser … Read more

After announcing its intentions to do so a few weeks ago, Microsoft today launches its official SkyDrive app for Android devices. Similar to its sibling apps on Windows Phone and iOS, this newest release lets users access their SkyDrive cloud storage accounts from devices running Google's mobile operating system. While it was designed specifically with Android 4.0 in mind, the app is said to be fully functional with devices running Android 2.3 and above.

From the looks of it, SkyDrive for Android covers all the basics, letting you view personal documents, shared documents, and recently used documents. … Read more

Android users might find themselves benefiting from an unintended consequence of Apple's recent patent battle against Samsung.

Older versions of Android (2.x) that were found to infringe upon Apple's intellectual property might get around the ban with an update to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, points out 9to5Google.

This would specifically sidestep patent issues for Samsung's Nexus S and its "Pure Google" experience, one of eight models in Apple's cross-hairs.

On the surface, it sounds as if Google and its partners will want to get Android 4.1 deployed to as many devices … Read more