Android Apps Weekly

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Android Apps you shouldn't miss this week

Splitter Critters
Splitter Critters is a puzzle platformer where you must literally cut up levels so that you can continue.
Download from Google Play

Unworded
Unworded is an indie narrative puzzler. You use letters to make things to continue in the story line.
Download from Google Play

Cornerfly
Corneryfly is an app that gives you rounded corners like you saw on the LG G6 or the Galaxy S8 (rumored). Cool!
Download from Google Play

BritBox
BritBox is a new streaming app that gives you access to tons of TV shows from the UK. The selection is okay.
Download from Google Play

Shadowmatic
Shadowmatic is a new puzzler that focuses on silhouettes. Your goal is to take objects placed in front of a light and twist them around until the shadow makes a picture. The visuals are gorgeous and the game comes packed with over 100 levels.
Download from Google Play

Headlines this week

TechCrunch outed Tinder this week. As it turns out, there's a secret version of Tinder called Tinder Select. Celebrities, supermodels, and people who seem to do very well in Tinder get invited to use it. It strips away us normal people and only shows other people in Tinder Select. It's been around for about six months now and we wouldn't be shocked if some people knew about it already. Good luck getting it, though, because it's apparently not easy.
As it turns out, the Nintendo Switch's Joy-Con controllers actually work on more than just the Switch. Reports are that you can use the controllers on Windows, Mac, and even Android to play games. It's not perfect, though. You'll need a third party app on Windows to make the controller work. Additionally, the latency on Android is pretty bad. You won't be playing any first person shooters with these. However, it's kind of cool that it works.
To the surprise of no one, Google Allo seems to be having trouble competing in India. A new report from Sensor Tower shows that Google Allo has about 3.4 million downloads between iOS and Google Play in India. Those numbers aren't great. Especially when compared to the big players like WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. It's a slow grind for Google but at least the app is getting downloaded.
Word around the digital grapevine is that Spotify is preparing a lossless Hi-Fi option. Some users have reported seeing a prompt to upgrade to the new service. The prices ranged from an additional $5 to $10 for some. The likely explanation is that they're testing to see what prices people like. This will put them directly in competition with Tidal as the only two companies that do lossless streaming. Also, Spotify announced that they've hit 50 million paid subscribers.
Looking for a tutorial about Google Assistant inside of Google Allo? We wrote up one this week that's pretty good!
To help promote the new King Kong movie, Google Maps added Skull Island to their app. It's a little promotional thing, but it's kinda fun.

App Updates

Facebook Messenger is receiving an update this week. The change adds in a new Snapchat-like feature where you take a video or snap a picture using Facebook Messenger. It's then accessible by all of your friends. It then deletes itself after 24 hours. It's not a huge thing, but it's another company trying to edge in on Snapchat's popularity. Snapchat had its IPO not long ago, so things like this actually matter now.
Twitch was updated this week. In the update is a new thing called Pulse. Pulse is a lot like Facebook's Timeline except for video streamers. It'll make it easier for affluent members of the community to share clips, highlights, and even stuff like schedules. Followers can see these things and interact more. It adds a bit of nuance to Twitch's otherwise cut and dry experience. It should be rolling out right now.
Google Allo was updated this week. The new update includes Android Auto support and animated emoji.
AutoVoice received a major update this week. Included is support for Google Home along with Amazon Echo.
It was announced this week that Pokemon Go will finally be getting legendary Pokemon by the end of 2017. Woot!
Google Assistant got a small update this week that now lets it interact with text messages.
Android Pay is now available in Belgium! Rejoice!
Adobe Lightroom Mobile was updated this week. It can now capture HDR images in RAW format. Glorious.
Android Studio was updated to version 2.3 this week. It features a bunch of minor improvements to help make things easier.
Gboard's beta received some new features this week. Included is Google Translate support, better theme selection, and some other stuff as well.
You can now use Microsoft Exchange tasks in the official Gmail app.

Additional app releases, announcements, and deals

A new Google Chrome add-on allows you to connect your WordPress site to Google Docs. It then lets you construct documents in Google Docs and port them to WordPress quickly. Give it a shot!
Tomb Raider got a reboot this week and it was released on Android. Kind of. It's actually an Nvidia Shield TV exclusive that you can pick up right now. It'll run you $14.99.
There is currently a sale on three Google Daydream VR games. The games are going for 50% off!
Samsung Pay's early access program has officially launched in India!
You can now try out the beta versions of Gboard and Google Play Services by becoming a tester in Google Play. It's a good way to get the latest features early.
Cortana was updated this week on Android. The new update comes with lock screen support as well as some additional fixes and features.
A new app is throwing its hat into the video streaming circle. It's called Boomerang and its goal is to show you old cartoons from your childhood. They claim to have thousands of shows ready to stream, including Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry, Scooby Doo, and many others. It'll cost $4.99 per month or $39.99 per year. Of course, you'll get a 30-day free trial to test it out. This could be great for kids and for those looking for a little nostalgia.
Google Play announced their first original podcast this week. It'll be called City Soundtracks. It's essentially a podcast version of VH1's Behind the Artist. Each episode will focus on one artist and their hometown. Most are calling it an attempt for Google Play to promote its own service from within. However, it does sound genuinely interesting. It launched on March 8th with three episodes. It's on Google Play now if you want to try it out.
Fireproof Games announced that a new Room game is coming. It'll be called The Room: Old Sins. It'll be a puzzle game mixed with an escape game much like its predecessors. There isn't a lot of information available yet. However, we know it'll take place in a house and will feature a very creepy dollhouse. There isn't a definitive release date just yet. We just know that they're working on it.
Capcom is apparently working on bringing four more classic games to mobile. One of them is 1942, a classic top-down shooter that many people enjoyed back in the day. So far, Capcom has botched six Megaman releases this year so we're hoping that this attempt goes a little bit better. We don't have a time frame on when these will be released. We just know that they're working on it.

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