Best selling programs for android. The best programs for Android

Previously Cell phones could only do limited set functions. As a rule, these are calls and sending messages. Thanks to the development of the technical sphere, many interesting developments have appeared that have allowed manufacturers to turn simple “dialers” into a full-fledged PC. Just 15 years ago, few could have imagined that the functions of a large bulky computer could be performed by a small compact smartphone or tablet. Now all this has become an everyday reality. But the gadget itself will not provide such opportunities. It can be conditionally called a base, which creates certain conditions for installation various applications. And it is the latter that make it possible to use the full resources of multimedia devices as efficiently as possible.

Currently, the most popular operating system is Android. Most manufacturers install it on their gadgets. We are talking about such well-known brands as Samsung, Huawei, HTC, Xiaomi, etc. By purchasing new smartphone or a tablet, users most often wonder what applications are needed for Android? Of course, the level of functionality of the device will depend on their correct choice. Going to Google Play Market, it’s easy to get lost in the wide range of applications. Not every user will immediately understand what exactly needs to be installed on the gadget. This article will describe exactly those services that, according to users, are the most necessary.

Top necessary applications for Android

Buyers purchasing new gadget, they notice that the manufacturer has already equipped it with various utilities. However, are they all really needed? Unfortunately, some applications turn out to be completely useless in practice. But, fortunately, such software can be removed and instead installed those programs that are needed by a specific user.

The Google store offers a wide range of paid and free content. Among this variety, there are applications that a modern user simply cannot do without. In order for the owner of the gadget not to waste time on independent searches, below we present a list of them.

So, let's look at what are the most necessary applications for an Android smartphone in the top 10.

  1. Antivirus. A modern gadget cannot do without protection. Currently exists a large number of viruses that can not only harm the device, but also completely disable it.
  2. Managers. In order to put all the files in order (organize and distribute them into folders) available on your phone or tablet, it is recommended to use a special utility. It's called a file manager.
  3. Browser. Currently, it is difficult to imagine a user who can do without the Internet. In order to be able to visit the World Wide Web, you need to install a browser.
  4. Navigator. According to statistics, the majority of the Russian population has cars, so it is recommended to equip your gadget with a special program that can get directions to any object. This will help save not only the driver’s nerves, but also gasoline.
  5. Cards. Previously, when arriving in a foreign city, you could easily get lost. I had to ask people to show me the way, for example, to the train station or to the museum. Now everything is much simpler. If you install maps, you can feel at home even in a foreign city.
  6. Social media. You can communicate with friends and relatives living in another country every day. To do this, just install the application and create a profile.
  7. Video communication. How good it is during a call not only to hear the caller’s voice, but also to see him! To do this, it is enough to have a gadget with a camera and installed special service. The application must be on two phones.
  8. Adobe Flash Player- a multimedia platform that allows you to play graphic image, audio recordings and videos.
  9. MX Player- an excellent video player that supports a large number of formats.
  10. Cool Reader- a program for those who prefer to read e-books.

Of course, the most necessary applications for Android are not limited to this list. Each user can additionally download educational games, fitness programs, health services (fluid control, anti-smoking, etc.), weather and much more from the Play Market.

Protecting your gadget from malware

The Android operating system is considered quite vulnerable compared to iOS. Unfortunately, danger can lurk where you least expect it. Users who are going to turn their gadget into a powerful working platform simply cannot do without an antivirus. There are a lot of different things on the Internet malware. It is impossible even for the most experienced programmer to identify them without a special utility. You can get a virus on your device by downloading music, pictures, or simply visiting websites. Malware can greatly ruin a user's life. At first, minor glitches will appear, and then the device may not turn on at all.

It is much easier to prevent such a nuisance than to “cure” the device later. To do this, you will need to choose the right antivirus and install it on your tablet or smartphone. However, you must act extremely carefully. The fact is that such programs are resource-intensive, so they must be selected carefully, based on the technical equipment of the gadget itself. If the characteristics of the device are not powerful enough, this will lead to severe slowdowns in work processes and, as a result, to freezes.

So, what applications should you install on Android in order to protect your gadget from attacks by virus programs?

  • Dr.Web. The most popular application. Copes well with assigned tasks. To install on a smartphone, it is recommended to use the simplified version - Light. According to users, this antivirus is the most reliable. It provides different functions: database update, blacklist, system check (quick, full), etc. A significant advantage of this program is the low hardware requirement. It is this utility that tops the list of necessary applications for Android. True, you can only install a trial version for free for a period of several months, and the full version is offered by the developers for a certain price.
  • Avast! Mobile security . No less popular antivirus. Works efficiently and quickly. You can install it on your gadget for free. Protects against different viruses, infected codes and malware. Can track online activity. The interface is simple, the controls are well thought out by the developers.

File managers

Continuing to study the necessary applications for a smartphone on Android, we need to talk about file managers. Many gadget owners will ask, what are they for? Users download a large number of music, graphics and video files to their phones. For example, an exciting movie helps pass the time in a traffic jam. The way to work becomes much more exciting if you listen to your favorite music. However, not all devices have special utilities that manage such files. Having downloaded data from the Internet, you can spend a day (or even more) searching for it in numerous system folders. To avoid this, a manager is installed. This application allows you to save downloaded files in a specific location so that the data is not lost.

Unfortunately, large selection There are no programs currently available. This, of course, greatly surprises users, since interacting with a gadget without a file manager is quite problematic. Now the store offers you to choose one of two applications - File Manager HD or File Manager. The utilities do not have any significant differences. With their help, the user can manage all files installed on the device, view them and even archive them if necessary.

World Wide Web - browser installation

Of course, the list of the most necessary applications for Android includes browsers. Without them, the user simply will not be able to go out into the open spaces World Wide Web. Today there are a lot of such applications. Each of them (according to the developers) is as convenient as possible. But is this really so? Unfortunately no. If, when purchasing a gadget, a browser is installed that the user does not like, it does not matter. It can be easily removed and replaced with another. There are a lot of offers in the Google store. After studying the reviews, we were able to identify two leaders.

  • Google Chrome. This browser The speed of work is unrivaled. Does not load RAM, which has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the gadget. Information is displayed on the screen in high quality. A significant advantage of Google Chrome is synchronization. In order not to re-enter information, just log into your account. After this, the user will have access to all saved data: history, bookmarks, passwords, etc. It is also worth highlighting the voice search option. With its help, there is no need to waste time entering text from the keyboard, but simply say the request out loud.
  • Opera Mini. This browser has been familiar to users for a long time. It began to be installed in simple mobile phones to access the Internet. Now the developers have focused the application as much as possible on modern smartphones. This is currently the only browser that has a built-in VPN option. Some domestic operators cellular communication offer unlimited internet if you use Opera Mini.

Navigator

Of course, the required Android applications for a tablet or phone cannot be specified unambiguously. They will be different for each user. For example, it is difficult to imagine a driver who does not use a navigator. You can purchase a DVR with this function, but it would also be a good idea to install the service on a smartphone or tablet. It will be useful even to those people who know the city well. Most of all, couriers, forwarders, and taxi drivers need it. This program will be able to plan a route taking into account traffic jams.

Among such applications, the leader is Navitel Navigator. This service paid. The program reads information from satellites. There is a voice notification option. Works only on gadgets that are equipped with a GPS receiver. Minimum Requirements- takes up 14 MB of RAM. Supports graphics acceleration and display filters. The search is carried out by objects and addresses. The user can customize the interface at his own discretion. There are no comments regarding the operation of the application. The system functions clearly and without errors, although the quality is inferior to professional devices.

Cards

So, what are the most necessary applications for Android? In addition to the ones described above, it is also necessary to highlight the cards. At first glance, it may seem that only travelers need them. However, it is not. Few people even in their city know all the streets, not to mention the numbering of houses and the location of service buildings.

Previously sold large cards, printed on paper. But using them is not always convenient. As a rule, they are not at hand at the most necessary moment, and then a smartphone with installed application. Based on this, we can safely say that maps belong to the category of necessary applications for Android. User reviews will tell you which of all the available ones you should choose. The undisputed leaders are:

  • Google Maps. The application allows you to get directions to a specific object. Provides information about the length of the journey and the time spent (by car, public transport and on foot). If you wish, you can view pictures of the area, work schedule, telephone numbers of office buildings, etc. All data is downloaded only when there is an active Internet connection. The only drawback of this application is its large size.
  • "2 GIS". This application provides the user not only with city maps with house layouts, but also complete information about organizations, even on which side the entrance to the building is located. You can also find out public transport routes, phone numbers, work schedules, etc. “2GIS” is not just maps, but a full-fledged reference book that is a worthy competitor to Google Maps, so if you still doubt what applications you need for Android, then be sure to install this program.

Social media

In the life of a modern person, social networks occupy important place. Young people communicate with friends, housewives exchange experiences, men discuss politics, sports news, etc. Accessing the Internet only from a computer is not always convenient; it is better to use a smartphone for these purposes. You can access, for example, Facebook, Odnoklassniki or VKontakte in two ways: through a browser and through an application. As for the first, it can be called a costly method. Users must open a browser, enter a query, and follow a link, which takes certain time. It is also worth noting that such actions waste traffic. And those owners who have already installed the necessary applications for their Android phone can significantly reduce the time it takes to access their profile on social networks. The Play Market has special utilities that are downloaded completely free of charge. They are very easy to find as they have the name used on the sites. All versions are safe. With their help, you can use social networks without a browser, saving Internet traffic.

Video calling

There are also necessary applications for Android (2017), which are repurposed for communication via video calling. Mobile operators They constantly offer favorable rates for calls and SMS, but if the user has unlimited Internet, then it is best to take advantage of an alternative offer.

Not so long ago, the ICQ messaging application was popular. The developers did not stop there and moved on. Now every owner of a tablet or smartphone can install Skype or Viber. They are offered to users completely free of charge. You can call or correspond with a subscriber who also has such an application installed. If there is no traffic limit, then you can communicate for an unlimited time without any additional costs.

The necessary programs for the gadget, according to users

Owner reviews will help you choose the right apps for Android. modern gadgets. Most of them have already been discussed, but there are others. They deserve no less attention.

  • Cool Reader - great app for those who love to read. It works with all known text files.
  • Adobe Flash Player. To watch videos on the Internet, you cannot do without this application. It also allows you to open all graphic images.
  • MX Player- a utility that can completely replace the built-in video player. The developers have provided a convenient library and a large number of codecs. The application works with almost all known file types.

Do I need to update applications on Android?

It often happens that when entering specific application, you may encounter a request to update the program. Not everyone knows what to do in such a situation. For example, user reviews often provide information that after updates the application begins to work with errors. However, in most cases, it is the new version that opens up many opportunities for the user. Therefore, if the question arises whether to update the program or not, then the answer can be one: of course, yes! Developers, having released the application, subsequently improve it by implementing new functions.

And one more thing you need to pay attention to: if you do not update the downloaded services in a timely manner, they may simply not start after a certain period of time.

Conclusion

In principle, this is where we can finish describing the applications that definitely need to be installed on the gadget. But this does not mean at all that the user should not download anything else from the Google store. There is a high probability that it will contain many more useful programs that will be useful specifically for specific activities. Everyone must decide for themselves which Android applications are the most necessary!

IN Google Play There are over 2 million applications, most of which copy each other's functionality or are simply outright slag. It’s difficult to choose software that will become your assistant and move from smartphone to smartphone, and the tasks of all users are different. But we are confident that our rating, which includes only the best programs for Android, will add a couple of titles to the list of your favorite programs.

Another Call Recorder

ACR is one of the simplest, most intuitive and well-functioning programs for recording calls. The application offers an extensive number of settings: more than 8 audio formats, recording in automatic and manual mode, uploading files to the cloud, protecting records with a password, deleting them after a specified time, and much more.


The program is shareware, the Pro version without advertising costs a little more than a dollar, it also adds the ability to automate recording for individual contacts. When working in background ACR consumes virtually no battery. Judging by the reviews, 95% of users have no problems with the launch and operation of ACR, so in terms of stability, this is the best program for recording calls on Android.

Mindly

Mindly - beautiful free application to create memory cards, and if you don’t know what it is, we strongly advise you to catch up. Memory cards can be used for planning tasks, creating notes and abstracts, preparing for a speech or a business event - it is much easier to navigate any thoughts and ideas that are presented visually than with regular notes.


Unlike other similar programs, Midnly not only has no limit on the number of elements inside the map, but also no advertising, and you can attach images and extended notes to any icon. This is definitely one of the most useful free apps on the Play Market!

Lightning QR scanner

Many people still don’t understand why a QR scanner is needed in a smartphone and why decoding a QR code may be required. But it’s worth keeping your finger on the pulse of technology: tags like these provide fast access to extended information on products, addresses, tickets, attractions, they allow you to follow an encrypted link on the Internet, get a discount on a product, or instantly pay for utilities.


The best program for reading QR codes for Android is Molniya QR scanner, it works quickly and error-free, has the most unobtrusive advertising in the free version among all analogues and works equally effectively with regular barcodes. Simple, fast and free - what more do you need?

MapcamDroid

An indispensable assistant for any driver, MapcamDroid performs the functions of a radar detector and warns of the approach of traffic police posts, speed cameras and places with high accident rates. You don't need the Internet to work; you just need to download the database for your region when installing the application. About 250 countries are available in the program, including Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.


The application works seamlessly in the background and synchronizes with any navigators and DVRs. MapcamDroid is undoubtedly the best radar detector program for Android; it is supported by tens of thousands of users who update the database daily and check the correctness of the available information.

Pedometer from Leap Fitness Group

The Market is full of carbon copy pedometers that are similar to each other, and they all suffer from the same disease - inaccurate calculations. The application from Leap Fitness Group has a minimal number of false alarms; it works according to the readings of the accelerometer sensor (the sensitivity of which can be adjusted to suit your needs), which means there is no excessive battery consumption due to constantly active GPS.


The pedometer has a nice minimalistic design, it is completely free, supports advanced physical activity statistics and many others. interesting tricks. In general, if you need a pedometer program for Android, this is the best choice.

Nova Launcher

Of all the launchers, Nova is the most customizable, smooth and beautiful. If you are tired of the stock interface of your smartphone, this application will help you change it beyond recognition. Nova brings not only visual changes, but also functionality - there is expanded support for gestures, a counter of unread applications on desktop shortcuts, the ability to flexibly customize the application menu, context menu on the icons.


The launcher is entirely in Russian, it is not demanding on resources and works correctly even on old smartphones (Android 4.1+ is required). Another undeniable plus is the thorough support from developers who promptly fix any bugs and regularly release updates. In general, Nova Launcher must be included in any top Android program.

Google Photos

Everyone probably knows about Google Photos Android users, but many do not use this great application, preferring a regular gallery. Of course, you can use something like QuickPick to view images, but that’s not the beauty of the product from Good Corporation - Google Photo automatically uploads photos to the cloud. Imagine: you come home from vacation, and the pictures on your computer are already waiting for you to view them.


Add here built-in processing tools, automatic creation of collages, animations and mini-movies, grouping photos by places, objects and faces, reminders of photo events days gone by and get one of the most useful applications for smartphones in principle.

Snapseed

Snapseed was and remains top instrument for working with color correction, it has comprehensive functionality, including working with RGB curves and lighting balance, retouching, noise reduction, sharpening, and there are also many presets and effects, including double exposure.


This editor is ideal for an amateur photographer, but this is not a program where cool processing can be achieved at the press of one button. Snapsid allows you to achieve amazing results even with the cameras of budget smartphones, but you need at least a minimal amount of learning how to use it. If you are interested in the best Android photo editing apps, where the entire process is fully automated, download Photo Lab and enjoy a variety of colorful photo effects and filters.

LAZY IPTV

The most advanced and at the same time free client for watching IP television, which also supports playing videos from VK, YouTube and listening to Internet radio. After downloading playlists into the application (search on w3bsit3-dns.com), you will have access to hundreds of domestic and international channels with an integrated program schedule, and you can also watch torrent-tv, through which major sporting events are often broadcast (AceStream is used for this on a computer).


With functionality from LAZY IPTV full order, it would take a very long time to list everything this client can do. In general, understand the application and you will not need other best programs for watching TV on Android.

Where are my children

A spy program for Android, designed to be used for good purposes. By using this application you can track in real time on a map the locations of family members who have similar software installed on their phones.
For greater safety, an alert is provided when a child leaves the designated area, there is a hidden dialing function that allows you to listen to what is happening around the baby, as well as a built-in chat for instant messaging. The application supports synchronization not only with smartphones, but also with children's smart watches. “Where are my children” is definitely a must-have for caring parents.

That's all, we looked at the TOP 10 best programs for Android. We hope that this rating has revealed something new to you and helped you choose a couple of useful assistants for yourself.

Each of us uses the capabilities of our smartphone differently: it depends on the type of activity, range of tasks, interests and other factors. Some, in the old fashioned way, are content only telephone capabilities devices, others combine voice communication with communication on social networks, web surfing and games, while others use gadgets with all their might to take photos and videos, navigate, carry out banking transactions, and read books. There are also many who use a smartphone or tablet in business activities: to work with electronic correspondence and documents, to quickly communicate with colleagues and partners, and to develop business. Scope of application mobile technology is huge, but few people realize that it exists in the store Google applications Play products that allow you to look at familiar devices from a completely different perspective and fully reveal their potential. Interested? Then let's move on to an illustrated review of the twenty most unusual applications for Android!

Our TOP 20 opens with a pair of applications that have the same name Smart Tools and are available for download via this and this link on Google Play. With their help, it will not be difficult to turn your smartphone into a “Swiss army knife” and use it as a sound level meter, range finder, vibration meter, metal detector, light measuring device, thermometer, radar for measuring the speed of moving objects, level, magnifying glass, metronome, tuning fork, cardiograph and dozens of other useful household tools. For full-fledged work Both programs require support in a mobile device for a whole bunch of sensors: light, proximity, accelerometer/gyroscope, magnetometer (digital compass), barometer and others. Of course, you shouldn’t count on the accuracy of the measurements made by Smart Tools, but in some cases such a set of software assistants can do a good job. For example, it can be useful for quickly finding hidden wiring in a wall or aligning washing machine on a horizontal plane.

Since we are talking about measuring instruments, then great addition to the applications mentioned above can be Planimeter - a tool for determining distance, area, perimeter, angles on the ground with using Google Maps and the GPS/GLONASS receiver built into the smartphone. Such a program can find application in various areas: field and agricultural work, planning, construction, traveling and for entertainment. It may also be useful for real estate agents. To calculate the perimeter or area of ​​any object (for example, a plot of land), it is enough to set the starting point on the map, turn on route tracking and then walk around the object. Planimeter will automatically perform all calculations and display the measurement results. Similarly, you can measure the distance between two points on the map and the angles between lines.

The Radioactivity Counter program is more progressive in terms of measurements, allowing you to seriously use your smartphone as... a simple radiation dosimeter! To monitor the radiation situation, a light-sensitive matrix of a mobile phone camera is used, the lens of which must first be covered with a dark film - for example, from a floppy disk or an x-ray. After this, you will need to calibrate the application according to the instructions provided on the developers’ website, and you can begin measuring background radiation. The link also presents various research materials, results of experiments using professional equipment and demonstration videos confirming the practical value and performance of Radioactivity Counter.

High school students and technical university students will definitely enjoy the PhotoMath application for solving mathematical problems using a smartphone camera and technology optical recognition Optical Character Recognition (OCR) tests. The principle of working with the program is simple, like all ingenious things: just point the camera at a mathematical problem, and PhotoMath will immediately give you the answer and provide a detailed step-by-step solution. The application's capabilities allow you to recognize not only printed but also handwritten text, as well as make edits to scanned formulas and equations. To be fair, we note that such a mobile assistant can be useful not only for students, but also for parents - to check that their children are doing their homework correctly.

This review wouldn't be complete without mentioning Im2Calories, Google's experimental app that lets you determine the calorie content of food based on photos. developers involved in the technology program artificial intelligence And machine learning let her with high accuracy determine the type of product, its ingredients and serving size, and then, based on the information received, draw a conclusion about the number of calories contained in the dish. In this case, it is not at all necessary that the photo be high resolution, - even a photo from Instagram is enough. Unfortunately, not yet known, when exactly will the full release of Im2Calories take place? As soon as the application is released, we will definitely tell you more about it.

Another noteworthy creation Google Teams- PhotoScan application for creating digital copies of memorable and dear paper photographs. According to the creators of the program, it not only takes a snapshot of the image, but transfers it to digital media with high quality. Using artificial intelligence technologies, PhotoScan independently determines boundaries, aligns the image, changes its orientation, and removes unnecessary glare. As a result of scanning, copies of the correct rectangular shape with corrected perspective are obtained, which can be saved in the memory of a smartphone or in the Google Photos cloud service.

Domestic organizations, including government ones, are not lagging behind. One of them is federal Service on regulation alcohol market(Rosalkogolregulirovanie), which has created an application that is relevant for those who like to “take it on the chest,” “Anti-Counterfeit Alco,” which is designed to determine the authenticity of alcoholic products. Using the phone camera, the program reads the excise stamp (or barcode on the receipt), and makes a reconciliation with the Unified State Automated information system(USAIS) and displays the test results on the screen. You can immediately report a violation found to Rosalkogolregulirovanie and notify the agency about the illegal point of sale of alcohol. The application also contains a map of stores licensed to sell alcohol. In light of widely discussed cases in the media of mass poisoning of the population with methyl alcohol and counterfeit alcoholic products Anti-Counterfeit Alco is definitely not worth writing off.

For motorists, our selection includes three programs: “Auto Acceleration”, Car Alarm and “MeteoWash”. The first allows you to turn your smartphone into a device for measuring the acceleration time of a car to 100 km/h, the second - into a simple alarm system to protect against theft, damage or evacuation of the car, the third - into an assistant that suggests the most successful day for washing a car and automatically builds a route to the nearest car washes. Fundamental difference“Auto Acceleration” applications from competitors - using information from two sensors: a GPS receiver and an accelerometer. They are also involved in Car Alarm, which monitors location vehicle and in case of an alarm, notifying the owner by call or SMS message. A special feature of MeteoMoika is a system for analyzing meteorological data and assessing the weather forecast for several days in advance. It is she who determines the most the right time for washing vehicles.

A good addition to the set of mentioned programs for car enthusiasts is the Nexar - AI Dashcam application, which turns a smartphone into an advanced video recorder that can simultaneously record video from the front and rear cameras, analyze the road situation on the fly and inform the driver about emerging dangers.

Thanks to the ABBYY FineScanner application, a smartphone on Android based can cope with the role of a pocket scanner for documents and books. The product created by a Russian developer allows you to create PDF or JPG files from any printed documents(invoices, certificates, contracts, personal documents). The program has built-in OCR technology, which recognizes texts in 193 languages ​​and, while maintaining formatting, uploads results into 12 popular formats, including DOCX, XLSX, PPTX, PDF. Finished documents can be transferred to any of eight cloud storages, printed, sent by e-mail, or opened in another application for working with PDF. To scan book and magazine publications, ABBYY FineScanner provides the BookScan function, which automatically divides the photographed book spread into two pages, straightens the bends of the lines, removes defects, and makes a scanned copy that can be recognized and produce an editable file.

IT system administrators should bookmark an application with the self-explanatory name Web Monitor, designed for monitoring and diagnosing servers on TCP/IP networks. The program periodically at a given interval time, sends requests to the sites set in the settings, records the responses received from them and generates detailed statistics on the operation of network nodes. When using such a mobile tool, it will not be difficult to find out whether the server is functioning, whether it has frozen and when it was unavailable, as well as to analyze the quality and congestion of the communication channel. In essence, Web Monitor is an improved version of the diagnostic Ping utilities, included with all modern operating systems and designed to test connections in TCP/IP-based networks.

A more advanced and technologically advanced analogue of Web Monitor is Pulseway - a software package for comprehensive monitoring of workstations and servers managed by Windows platforms, macOS and Linux, as well as virtual Microsoft environments Hyper-V, VMware and XenServer, MS SQL Server database management systems, IIS servers, Exchange, Active Directory and other services corporate level. With its help, you can remotely monitor the operation of devices and tasks being performed, view screenshots, analyze equipment performance, obtain information about the status of services, as well as emerging errors and system failures. Pulseway allows you to send commands to remote machines: reboot them, suspend processes, send messages to authorized users and perform other operations, a full list of which can be found on the product website pulseway.com. The collection of necessary information and management of computers is carried out through special software clients installed on workstations and servers.

Well, that closes our selection mobile instrument WiFi Analyzer, which allows you to use your smartphone as network scanner. The program scans the airwaves for Wi-Fi signals, determines the signal level of each of the detected networks, as well as their characteristics (SSID, channel, encryption method, router MAC address, etc.) and based on collected information draws visual graphs that show a clear picture of wireless networks. WiFi Analyzer supports various frequency ranges and can be used to determine optimal settings and location of Wi-Fi devices in order to improve the quality of signal reception and properly build wireless local networks In the organisation. The application can serve you well when conducting network security audits and troubleshooting network equipment.

The most strong point Android is an ecosystem of applications. There are an unrealistically large number of them and users pump them out in the billions.

Usually, good apps cost a few dollars. However, there are also options for which you don't need to pay.

We offer you our list of the best free apps on Android!

1Weather is one of the most feature-rich weather apps - today's weather, forecasts, radar, interesting weather facts, graphs and even sun and moon tracking.

The design is also incredible and there is widget support.

AppLock is a free Android application with many options. If you pay, you can get premium features and get rid of ads. If you don't pay, you can get them by watching ads.

Or you can refuse premium features and use the application for free and without advertising. The choice is yours.

The application itself is very simple - it allows passwords. This is especially useful if you have roommates, children, or simply don't want to worry about privacy.

Blue Mail is one of the best mail collection apps. Simple design, support for multiple email providers, organization by colors, themes, work with Android Wear and widgets.

Plus a lot of smart features, such as blocking notifications at a certain time (by account).

It completes most tasks successfully, with very few shortcomings. Rating on Google Play – 4.7 out of 5. Definitely worth a try.

Credit Karma

Credit Karma is a great finance app and checks your credit score once a year for free. In addition, the app notifies you of major changes and offers other services, such as credit cards, which you can qualify for if you have a good rating.

However additional functions You don't have to use it. One of the most undeservedly little-known applications on Android.

Feedly is one of the best news applications, which is definitely worth trying.

This is an RSS reader, which means you can subscribe to tons of different sites and receive news from them. There is support for podcasts, YouTube channels and other sites.

That is, thanks to applications like Feedly, you can view all the latest news in one application.

It's completely free and easy to set up. Without a doubt one of the best applications on Android.

Gboard

Gboard is the official keyboard from Google without any unnecessary bells and whistles. Among other things, there are gesture controls, voice dialing, search by emoticons, GIF support, etc.

The most unique feature is the built-in Google search, which allows you to search the Internet without leaving your keyboard or application.

Gboard can also sync with other devices, so your saved words are always with you.

Effective, simple and 100% free application. It's worth a try if your native keyboard doesn't suit you for some reason.

Google Drive Suite

Google Drive suite is a group of applications integrated into Google Drive, including Google Docs, Google Slides, Google Sheets, Google Photos and Google Keep with Google Drive itself.

Most of these apps are designed for documents, spreadsheets, and slideshows, but they can also be used for taking notes, backing up photos, and storing files.

The best thing is that they are completely free, as long as you don't need more than 15GB of Google Drive space. Most users don't need this.

Google Opinion Rewards is one of the best free Android apps in the Google Play Store.

To use it, you need to download, install and run it once. Google Opinion Rewards will then periodically ask you questions.

For each answer, you will be awarded credits that can be spent on purchasing applications and games on Google Play.

A great opportunity to expand your collection of applications without spending a penny of real money.

Groupon

Groupon is one of the best and most popular coupon apps on Android.

It's very easy to understand - find coupons for goods and services and use them to get discounts.

You won't be able to find a coupon for any item. However, any savings are very good. You can view the history of used coupons and much more.

The design is also good. Groupon is one of those free apps that is definitely worth trying.

Imgur and Giphy

Imgur and Giphy are image databases - perfect place pictures and gifs.

Most of the pictures you see on Facebook or Twitter are from here. Imgur is also the main image host for Reddit.

Both applications are completely free. Thanks to them, you can easily kill a few minutes or find a great GIF image for a post on social media. networks. Place your bet without hesitation.

Google Maps and Waze

Google Maps and Waze – navigation apps. They will provide information along the route, allow you to search for business establishments (and view reviews of them) and a lot of other information.

KeepPassDroid

KeePassDroid is a password manager based on KeePass, an open source project.

It can store all important information, including data for websites, serial numbers expensive things, etc.

The app doesn't look good, but it gets the job done. Moreover, all information can be exported to files for transfer to new devices.

Simple, reliable and completely free application. If this one doesn’t suit you for some reason, then there are other applications based on KeePass.

Quik

Thanks to simple design, it can be used to create shopping lists, etc. Tasks and categories can be shared with other users - they will receive notifications about updates or additions.

The free version includes more than what you need from a regular list app. Majority paid features used for corporate purposes.

Zedge

Zedge has a wonderful collection of wallpapers and ringtones available in categories as diverse as fantasy, humor, nature, and more.

Zedge users upload their own content, so you can find anything on Zedge. Finding pictures and ringtones is very convenient.

The only negative is that the advertising is somewhat annoying, but it’s easy to ignore. No additional in-app purchases are required.

What programs should be present on every smartphone? Read the article about the most useful applications for Android and why you should download them.

No smartphone or tablet comes with a completely bare operating system. No, you can immediately use at least a couple of dozen applications. However, pre-installed options are often limited in their functionality. And some tasks cannot be handled at all by any of the preinstalled programs. For example, with your smartphone running by default, you most likely won't be able to open a PDF document. In a word, let's find out which useful programs are worth downloading for Android. At the same time, do not forget that this is a strictly shortened list - on our website you will find much more detailed collections of Android applications dedicated to specific topics.

Navigation and maps for Android

How many of us still use paper maps? It seems that none of the readers of “Smart Beaver” are definitely involved in such a matter. All of us have a smartphone in our pocket that is equipped with a GPS chip. And by default, Google Maps is installed on it. But is it the best navigation app? I think no. Although the product of an American company is close to this status. We recommend installing 2GIS. Especially if you live in a large Russian city. With this program you will receive the most detailed map. Here you can visually determine the height of the houses, see almost all the paths, and learn about all the organizations present in each building.

With 2GIS it is not difficult to find a cafe, restaurant, sports ground, cinema and other establishments. The construction of the route can also surprise you - the program will take you to the very door! In total, the application is capable of working with maps of approximately 300 cities in 9 countries. Of course, the whole of Russia is not yet covered by the project - sparsely populated areas are left behind. This is the only serious drawback of the application.

Alternative: you can also look towards the Yandex.Maps program. Contained here navigation maps huge amount settlements, including very small ones. Some of the maps can be downloaded to your device so that you can view them without connecting to the network. But if you are interested in this particular function, then it is better to pay attention to OSMAnd+. This application uses the OpenStreetMap service, developed by users themselves. But for the most comfortable work with the program, you will have to pay a small amount - after that, absolutely all restrictions will be removed from you.

News

The most useful applications for Android in 2017 should also be able to provide a person with information. You can now read the news on various websites. Supplies them Google Now. Some of them are shown branded shells. But sometimes even this is not enough. In this case, we recommend that you download RIA Novosti. This application is from the information resource of the same name. Here all the news is sorted into categories. But most importantly, the program has a “Photo Gallery” section. It is a must-visit for anyone who wants to see the agenda but doesn't want to read the text. RIA Novosti also creates excellent infographics that will appeal to absolutely everyone.

Alternative: There are hundreds of news aggregators on Google Play. For example, Flipboard commands respect. This is a kind of digital magazine with appropriate layout and animation, compiled, among other things, by the users themselves. No less interesting option is Meduza. It contains not only text notes, but also tests with mini-games.

Video players for Android

Smartphones and tablets are often used to watch movies. In this case, you need a video player. By default, the device is usually installed with a low-functional application that is not even capable of displaying subtitles. Therefore, we recommend downloading VLC to your device. This great player with a lot of possibilities. It understands subtitles of different formats, and allows you to customize their display. Among the supported video formats there is almost everything, right up to DVD ISO! Now it is a real hit, which has been downloaded by more than 100 million people.

Alternative: many video players have approximately similar functionality. For example, MX Player performs well. And some will prefer the paid nPlayer, which officially supports DTS Headphone X and DTS HD. It also allows you to work with streaming services and cloud storage.

Internet browsers

By default, many smartphones are equipped with a relatively good Internet browser. But many people lack its capabilities. In this case, it is better to download Google Chrome to your device. And you definitely need to get them if you have a similar browser on your computer! This is one of best products Google - it has full synchronization (even passwords are transferred from the computer), and Internet pages are opened as quickly as possible. The application also has a traffic saving mode, when pages are first compressed on the developer's server. In a word, you can talk about this program for a long time - you better familiarize yourself with it.

Alternative: Free, useful Android apps include many browsers. Some of them are different from development Google support plugins that expand the capabilities of the application. For example, the Firefox browser can boast of such a function. And some people like UC Browser, which makes it much easier to search for videos and adequately blocks ads.

Messengers

Messaging applications were used even in the days of push-button mobile phones. Well, now such programs have reached a completely new level. One of the most popular applications of this kind is WhatsApp. Surely many of your friends have it - that’s the only reason you need to install it. It also makes it much easier to transfer media files to another person. You should also like the application interface, designed in a very nice manner.

Alternative: gradually everything larger number people prefer to download Telegram to their smartphone. The most intelligent encryption is implemented here - access to your correspondence outsider definitely won't be able to get it. And in terms of other functionality, this application does not disappoint at all. Viber is also very popular now, but most often this program is used for making video calls.

File managers

A very controversial type of application. No one argues that useful programs for Android should include utilities of this kind. But in fact, the vast majority of smartphones come with a pre-installed “explorer”, the capabilities of which are more than enough for many people. But if you are one of the select users who are trying to maximize the functionality of their device, then pay attention to ES Explorer. It extends to free of charge, providing access to almost all files contained on the device or memory card. Moreover, the application can be connected to cloud storage - a variety of services are supported. There is also FTP support, which should appeal to site owners. Other features of the utility include support for working with archives in ZIP formats and RAR.

Alternative: You can also download and install X-Plore. This file manager first appeared on operating system Symbian. Its main difference lies in the special display of the file system - it is displayed in the form of a tree.

Translators

Quite often we turn to text written in a foreign language. For example, this can happen when visiting a foreign site. In this case, we need a translation of a note or an entire article. And certainly useful travel apps for Android should have this function. Google Translate is the best solution for this task. As they say, the search giant ate the dog on automated text translation. For some time now, his creation has been able to translate even signs and road signs- you just need to launch the application and point the camera at them (or open a photo you took earlier). And you don’t have to be connected to the Internet - 52 languages ​​are translated offline. Interestingly, the application even recognizes handwritten input.

Alternative: oddly enough, Google product there are simply no competitors. Almost all applications of this kind are very far behind in their development. But you can try Yandex.Translator - its developers are mainly busy improving the translation function into Russian, without scattering their efforts on other languages.

Weather forecasts

Nowadays, many people use their smartphone to check the weather forecast. We recommend installing Gismeteo Lite for these purposes. This is a program from a well-known weather service. It has installed hundreds, and maybe thousands of meteorological stations throughout Russia. In this regard, the forecasts of this service quite often come true. At the same time, in the application you can see the weather forecast not only for the next couple of days, but also for the whole week. You will also get a set of widgets that display the current weather.

Alternative: if you decide to download useful applications on Android by visiting Google Play, you will find dozens of all kinds of weather widgets. The best program of this kind is eWeather HD. Why didn't we mention it first? Everything is very simple: they ask for about 200 rubles for its use. But if you don't skimp, you'll get the most comprehensive weather forecast from two weather agencies. There is a barometer, geomagnetic storm forecast, earthquake information, surface temperature of oceans and seas, tide information, moon phases and much more.

Music players

Almost every smartphone owner uses his device to listen to music. And it is extremely rare that a pre-installed player is used for these purposes. Usually it is replaced by creation third party developers. For example, PowerAMP might be a good choice. Yes, after 14 days of using the application you will have to pay. But then you will get music player with very wide functionality. There is a competent sorting of tracks, cutting off areas with silence, a thoughtful equalizer and many others. useful tips. You can upload covers manually or rely on automation - it will download them from the Internet. The program also has excellent widgets.

Alternative: If you need a free audio player, we recommend downloading AIMP. Many people use this application on both their computer and smartphone. There is support for playlists and many audio formats. In general, the program is only slightly inferior to its paid counterparts.

Useful Android apps for dessert

It's hard to put Shazam into any specific category. This is the most unusual application. It allows you to understand what is coming from nearby speakers right now - you just need to turn your smartphone towards the sound source. Some songs are identified literally in a matter of seconds! Others take a little longer to identify. There are practically no mistakes. The only disappointing thing is that the program will not let you download an MP3 - it will only give you a link to a track available for purchase on Google Music.

And also: a smartphone can even help in finding cheaper food products. To do this you just need to install Edadil or some other similar application(them in Lately is getting bigger). In fact, the program is an aggregator of discounts in large supermarkets. Convenient sorting is implemented here; the products you like can be added to “Favorites”. By the way, the application contains not only food, but also cosmetics, children's products and many other everyday items. After all, supermarkets have been selling not only food for quite a long time.

Summarizing

In this article, we tried to look at many useful applications for smartphones and tablets. But believe me, in reality there are many more of them. We did not touch on the topic of e-readers, alarm clocks, calculators, calendars, fitness applications and other global topics. However, stay tuned for new articles! Tell us in the comments: which apps do you find most useful?