I have come to appreciate the enhanced apps that Samsung provided with its Galaxy S line of phones. I had the Vibrant, but got frustrated at (a) the GPS that never works; (b) the slow file access speed; and (c) the long delays in getting the latest versions of Android OS.
When I switched cell phone providers, I decided on the Google Nexus S (made by Samsung), because it eliminated the three problems listed above, and was just $25 with the three-year plan. However, all those lovely Samsung enhancements are missing. Among them:
- The camera app is rather plain, and I especially miss the real-time panoramic stitch mode. As replacements, I found Camera X as a better version than the camera app included by Google. Easy access to options, but lacks a way to view or share pictures. And 360 is an attempt at automatic panoramic photo stitching. Not as fast or as slick as the one on the Galaxy, but better than nothing!
- The status bar no longer has the handy mode switching. As a replacement, I found Widgetsoid. It lets you create your own master control widget for controlling phone functions. Many, many options. I have toggles for GPS, Orientation, Brightness (Auto/30%/1200%), Silent (causes Shush to kick in), and WiFi.
- The clock app is missing the stopwatch, and the alarm is not as lovely as Samsung's gentle awakener. Gentle Alarm is the third-party replacement for the alarm clock.
With this new Nexus S phone, I also got these apps:
ADWLauncher EX - a replacement home screen. The main feature I used is the ability to have 4 columns x 5 rows of icons on each screen, as well as five icons in the main dock at the bottom. Also has a nice balloon interface for changing buttons on screens.
Agenda Widget - displays Google Calendar items as a widget. Lots of customization of the look. I used the big 4x5 widget size and the smallest font to maximize the amount of calendar items displayed at one time.
Data Counter - tracks the amount of data received and sent by the phone, both by WiFi and by cell phone. If you don't have an unlimited data plan for your phone, then this widget reports how much data the phone has used.
Data Enabler - toggles the phone's data connection (2G/3G/4G). Since I have the cheapest data plan ($25/month for 500MB), I need to make sure the 3G connection is turned off most of the time!
DICE Player - the only movie player that can correctly play back MKV movie files.
LED Light - a widget that turns on the camera's flash so that it acts as a powerful flashlight.
Shush! - When you turn off the volume on the phone, this app pops up and prompts you for how long to keep the volume turned off. Great for having the phone unmute in the morning automatically.
SwiftKey X - now better, because it includes cursor keys!
TuneIn Radio Pro - excellent user interface for listening to Internet radio stations.
Wireless File - lets me move files between computer and phone by WiFi; includes a file manager and an application manger. TIP: you need to press the Stop button to make it start!
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