It’s December, which means that it’s also time for everyone to start making their year-end lists of all the best things that came out in 2014. Google has gotten off to a quick start and has posted a huge list of 75 different Android apps that it thinks are 2014’s very best and they offer a huge variety in terms of functionality that will help you get the most out of your Android device.
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For your enjoyment, here are the 75 Android apps that Google thinks you need to install on your phone right now. Note that all apps listed are free to install unless otherwise noted.
TV and Video Apps
- Hulu, a TV app for all your favorite network TV shows
- Cartoon Network Anything, which is Cartoon Network’s app designed specifically for short-form content on smartphones
- Comedy Central, which is where to get your fix of South Park and The Daily Show
Disney Movies Anywhere, which lets you bring everyDisney film you’ve bought with you across all devices you own- DramaFever, a streaming service that lets you watch Korean, Japanese, Taiwanese, Spanish and Latin American TV shows with professionally done English subtitles
- 5by, a.k.a., “the only place for friends to find, share, and chat about their favorite videos”
- DailyMotion, one of YouTube’s bigger rivals
- Samba, a very clever video sharing app that lets you see your friends’ reactions to your videos as they’re watching them
- Video Collage Maker will, as the title suggests, let you make collages combining all your favorite videos
Photo Editing Apps
- Over, a photo editing app that lets you add text and artwork to your pictures. Cost: $1.99
- Timehop, a brilliant app that collects photos from all your social media accounts and organizes them in chronological order so you can find exactly what you were doing on a given day
- Afterlight, a photo editing app that offers an incredible 59 different filters and 15 different adjustment tools. Cost: $0.99
- Carousel, a Dropbox-created gallery for your uploaded pics and videos
- Facetune, a photo editing app geared specifically toward making your face look its prettiest in selfies. Cost: $2.99
- Camera ZOOM FX, a camera app that lets you make iOS 8-style Time Lapse videos on your Android phone
- EyeEm, another Instagram-style photo editing app
- Frontback, a photo app that lets you “take a photo with the front camera, another with the back camera, and share them both in a single image”
Music Apps
- Shazam, the popular song identification app
- Pandora, the king of radio-style online music streaming
- iHeartRadio, Clear Channel’s online radio streaming app
- SoundHound, a Shazam-style music recognition app
- musiXmatch, an app that displays lyrics to songs as they’re playing and is a dream come true for karaoke fans everywhere
- edjing, a DJ app with access to more than 50 million tracks
- TuneIn Radio, which gives you access to over 100,000 different radio stations
- djay2, an app that integrates with Spotify and “transforms your Android device into a full–featured DJ system.” Cost: $2.99
- Equalizer, a digital music playing app that audiophiles everywhere will love
Social Apps
- OKCupid Dating, one of the best matchmaking services around
- Skype Qik, the quickest way to do Skype video chatting with your friends
- Obscure, a photo-sharing app that actually lets you take back any photos you regretted sending to friends
- lettrs, a messaging app that brings back the thrill of sending and receiving formally written letters from friends, complete with your own personalized signature
- Rundavoo, a top-notch app for scheduling events with your friends
- Bitmoji, because you can never have too many emoji in your lives
- Secret, the infamously dopey app that lets you dish dirt with total anonymity
- LINK, a social network that’s great for people who have just moved to new areas and want to make friends who share similar activities
- Telegram, a WhatsApp rival that’s focussed “on speed and security”
Travel and Transportation
- Expedia Hotels and Flights, for all your most important travel bookings
- Windfinder, a sailor’s delight that tracks weather reports and forecasts from thousands of sources to make sure you’ll never get stuck in the doldrums again
- MAPS.ME, a great way to get access to maps when you don’t have a mobile data or Wi-Fi connection
- Uber, the renegade driving service that’s equal parts convenient and controversial
- Anywayanyday, an Expedia-style travel booking app
- Golfshot, an insanely detailed golf course GPS app that features “3D aerial flyovers of each hole, precise yardages, and game-improving statistics to more than 40,000 golf courses worldwide”
- Amazing World Atlas, Lonely Planet’s mobile atlas app Cost: $2.99
Productivity and Professional
- Wunderlist, a popular task management app
- IFTT, a productivity app that lets you more easily manage how your favorite Android apps interact with one another
- SwitftKey, one of the best third-party touch smartphone keyboards around
- Sunrise Calendar, a beautifully designed calendar app
- (OFFTIME), an app that helps social media junkies and workaholics unplug and simply relax without constant distractions from their phones.
- Todoist, a highly acclaimed task management app
- Strive, a location-based employment app for temp workers looking for jobs on the go
- Viadeo, a LinkedIn rival that lets you “connect with 60 million professionals worldwide”
- SlideShare Presentations, a LinkedIn-created app to help you develop the world’s best presentations
- Mailbox, the email solution from Dropbox that integrates with both iCloud and Gmail
News Apps
- Yahoo News Digest, a quick way to stay informed on news that matters most to you
- Locket Lock Screen, an app that brings all your top stories and social media posts to your lock screen
- BuzzFeed, for anyone who needs cat GIFs and “What Celebrity Am I?” quizzes in their lives
- Link Bubble Browser, a clever browser that only shows you pages when they’re loaded so you don’t have to waste precious seconds looking at a blank screen
- The Economist Espresso, for anyone who likes learning about why Nigeria is at a crossroads, along with other global affairs
- CNN Breaking News, so you’ll never miss one minute of hyperbolic Ebola coverage
- OneFootball, the only app that soccer fans everywhere truly need
- NYTimes – Breaking News, all the news that’s fit to print
- Watchup, a news video app that calls itself “the smartest way to watch video news because it builds your personalized newscast from a growing number of local, national and international news channels”
- Univision Deportes, never miss a single GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAL
Educational Apps
- TED, the official Android app of the always-informative TED Talks
- Luminosity, an app that will help improve your memory
- Duolingo Test Center, the perfect app for anyone from foreign countries who wants to master the English language
- Craftsy Classes, the go-to recourse for anyone who loves taking on crafts projects
- Nester, a mobile app for new parents everywhere who want both a child lock app and something that will teach kids about the value of both work and play
- Ultimate Guitar Tabs and Chords, the go-to app for aspiring musicians everywhere. Cost: $1.99
- Monki Chinese Class, a terrific way to learn Chinese
Shopping and Finance Apps
- Wish, a personal shopping assistant that can help you save significant cash
- Groupon, the best place to get killer daily deals
- Money Tracker, a personal finance app from BillGuard
Fitness Apps
- 7 Minute Workout, a fitness app that does just what you think it does
- Google Fit, Google’s own in-house fitness app
