Author Archives: schatzi

Mar
23
2023

An Overview of the Android App Market and Its Demarcating Features

The use of Android based smartphones has increased reasonably well with time and now boasts of an incredible number of apps. The market is growing at the rate of 32 per cent every month and there is no end to the number of smartphones which are coming in the market related to every price range which gives the users a huge number of options. The rise in interest is mostly attributed to the great sale of Samsung S II and due to the advent of Samsung S3 which has got released recently. There are certain HTC models along with Sony Ericsson who have been impressive with the slew of smartphones that they have released in recent months. Android is open source and hence there are many Android developers who are interested in creating innovative apps.

Android also presents an open market place for developers who create third party apps and they are allowed to publish and rate too. Android app development can be done using any platform: Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X.

Here are some of the best-known apps which have a large fan following:

  • Google Voice
  • Advanced Task Killer
  • Evernote
  • Documents To Go
  • Amazon Kindle
  • Astro File Manager
  • Pandora
  • Shazam
  • Dial Zero
  • Google Goggles
  • Google Sky Map
  • Tricorder
  • Bump

Cloud based service integration and its related apps have companies that control IT to expand their operations. Mobile apps have extended the overall reach and location based apps can easily find out the location of the mobile as well as the customer via GPS. These apps give out detailed information related to different places, things and facts. It is said that in the future the Android-based phones will be used as smart cards to swipe and withdraw money. E-commerce companies are looking to leverage this feature on smartphones and so that they can easily attract people for easy sales. It would also make shopping easy and fun for all.

Android is always in demand and the field of mobile application development space comprises of many other players. But Android is very popular because of its easy-to-use software development kit, Android Media APIs, Location-based feature and Wi-Fi feature.

There are various mobile application development services provided by Android developers:

  • Web-based app development
  • Custom Android apps and domain-based apps
  • Java app development
  • Android games development
  • Mobile business app development
  • Multimedia-based app development
  • Enterprise Security mobile app solutions
  • Feature-based app development like GPS-based and Wi-fi based apps
  • Communication app development
  • Utility app design and development
  • QA services for Android projects

Here are some of the salient features of Android OS

  • Android can Run Multiple Apps at any given point of time. Android users benefit greatly from this feature and hence one can listen to music or even record GPS data simultaneously.
  • Information is kept visible on the Home Screen. Android has a customizable home screen with active widgets without any application launch necessary.
  • Android has reached a whopping figure of apps in the Android Marketplace which gives immense potential for the user to leverage a smartphone’s features. The market is completely open for budding developers to introduce innovative apps.
  • Android helps you choose your carrier as well as a smartphone on a budget.

Mar
22
2023

6 Tips and Tricks You Can Try Out on Your Android (ICS) Devices

Google launched a newer version of its Android OS – the Ice Cream Sandwich or Android 4.0, in the last quarter of 2011; this release was highly anticipated by the Android fans and users all over the world. This new OS from Android has a number of features and functionalities, which made it worth the wait for this highly anticipated version of the Android OS.

Let us look at some of the tips and tricks which all the Android users out there can use on their Android 4.0 devices.

Face Unlock – add extra faces

I am sure you must have some knowledge about the Face Unlock feature of the ICS; you can unlock your devices simply by scanning your face using the front camera. This is a great feature which ensures that your Android phone/tablet remains secure throughout. But just imagine what will happen if you forgot to shave for a long time or what if you got a new hair cut or hairstyle? In such scenario, the device won’t recognize your face isn’t it?

Well, there is no need to worry since the ICS has the ability to store multiple images of your face. So what you can do is, click your pictures in different looks such as – sporting a French cut or a goatee, spikes or fishtail braid, fringes or anything under the sun. Additionally, you can also add a friend to the “visually verified user list” so that you can take their help to unlock the device.

Keep track of your data usage

Monitor your data usage and curb extra charges by following some simple steps. First of all, open the Settings menu. After doing so, tap on ‘Data Usage’ and proceed to select ‘Set mobile data limit’. You will see a red and a green sliding bar; set the red bar to set your data usage and use the green one to set a warning zone so that you get an alert when you are nearing your data limit.

Record videos and take snaps simultaneously

The brand new camera app for Android 4.0 devices allows you to take still photos while you are recording video clips. All you need to do is tap the screen and the picture is saved to the device’s photo gallery on its own. What’s even better is that all the snaps are taken in full resolution.

Easily close the apps

Now you can close your apps effortlessly on our Android ICS devices simply with a swipe of your finger. Just go to the ‘Recent Apps’ button to see the applications which you are currently using. Tap the icon of the app you want to close and swipe the icon off the screen and your app will be closed instantly. Easy isn’t it?

Control background processes

Often, multiple apps running in the background can drain out your smartphone’s or tablet’s battery. Although, there are debates over this topic, it is better to stay on the safer side and stop the device from storing too many apps in its memory. Over a period of time, you will come to know whether or not this helped you in saving the battery life of your device.

Do away with the lock screen

Yes, it is possible to show the lock screen of your Android ICS device the door. This is due to the fact that you can make the phone turn instantly on by pressing the power button. Although this makes your phone a wee bit less secure than the devices owned by your friends, family and colleagues, it is a good option if you want instant access to your device anywhere, anytime. Just go to Security and select Screen lock and tap ‘None.’

To conclude, I hope if you own an Android 4.0 device, you will try out at least some, if not all tips and tricks mentioned above and benefit in some way from them.

Feb
06
2023

Facebook Ads Management: Newer Way Of Marketing Your Product!

Marketing a product efficiently and effectively will always gain good profit. There are various approaches in marketing your product.

Advertisements through media and newspapers are some of the traditional approach for marketing your products. With the advent of internet, marketing business has found itself many newer ways of advertisement. Facebook advertisement is one such method of advertisement. Facebook is a popular social networking website which is used by almost every internet user. The probability of your product getting a reputation is higher through social network advertisement since all the users stop by the social network website every now and then. This is advantageous since one can reach out to different people each day.

There are millions of Facebook users in the internet. That’s why this approach is the best among many marketing techniques. Direct marketing business is one of the businesses that have succeeded using Facebook. The people involved in direct marketing have got many customers through this networking site. Thus Facebook came up with an innovative idea for helping those who would like to advertise in this social media. They brought up a tool which will manage thousands and thousands of advertisements. The Facebook Ads management helps in managing the ads. Facebook advertising has obtained fame and is a perfect gateway for gaining good profit.

How to start a business using Facebook Ads manager will be the first question that arises when one wants to advertise in this website. There are two ways of advertising in this site. One you can be your own boss and market your product or you can outsource your business to top digital marketing people who constantly study the market and aim at targeted customers. If you want to advertise yourself, then you should follow three steps. Initially you should build your own page. There is an option to create a page in the Facebook website. Then you can post your ads and promote your business. You can add pictures and rates of your product in this page.

If you are outsourcing your business, then go for a trustworthy client. There are two types of charges involved here. They are cost for per thousand impressions and cost per click. In the cost per click payment is made for every click on daily basis. Thus Facebook is an influential online marketing tool and many people have benefited out of this marketing technique. This method is an ultimate method of attracting many people and turns them to be your customers.

Jan
06
2023

Gadgets to Help the Home Security System

Having a home security system is a step toward protecting the home and family and there are many gadgets that can also be added to a home security system to help it work more efficiently and to warn off burglars.

The first of these are the door locks with keyless entry, many of these work with a thumb print and are run using the home computer. When using this door lock there will be no reason for anyone in the family or anyone that has a reason to enter the home to have keys that can be lost. It also means there are no locks to risk having picked by burglars and because this type of lock is opened by the thumbprint it is easy to program. Programming can include non-family members that will also be easily taken out of the system when they no longer have a reason to be in the home. During the time this non-family member is coming into the home the door lock can be programmed to only open for their thumbprint during certain hours and certain days.

This is a real benefit for home security; no lost keys and anyone that does not belong in the home can be taken out of the system, this means times when no one can be at home for the repair man he could be put into the thumbprint system and when the job is complete taken out of the system. Which means no house keys are given out to strangers working in the home, it also means no leaving the key hidden anywhere outside of the home for this person.

Another aid to the home security system is the digital cameras known as nanny cams and outside cameras. These can be used to make the home more secure and to watch what goes on in the home on the computer. This is a comfort when the family is away on vacation, when the children are home with a sitter or older children are home after school. It’s a way of ensuring the home and the children are safe with the use of a home or work computer. The outside cameras can watch the movement of anyone outside the home and it can identify a burglar who leaves the home without breaking in due to the home security measures the homeowner has taken. This is a real advantage to make a homeowner make sure their family is secure. These watched by the police can help them to arrest this person before they can harm an unsuspecting family who is not protected by a home security system.

When a homeowner uses these gadgets to help their home security system to protect their home and family they reduce the threat of home break-ins even further than the home security system alone. Every family wants to be as safe and secure in their home as possible and this is what a keyless door lock can do and what digital cameras can do located inside and outside the home, which can be controlled by the home or work computer.