Tired Of The iPhone App Lists?

Good, me too. I’m about to hit you with some Android love. I put together a list of 10 apps that help me out on the daily – some relate to productivity and some don’t. One thing they all are, though, is free.

Seesmic for Twitter
We’ll kick off this Android list with one of my favorite Twitter apps. When I first embarked on my Android journey, I gave at least 7 different Twitter clients a shot at finding a permanent home on my phone. Seesmic came out the victor in this grueling battle for Twitter supremacy. Seesmic offers a clean design, Force-Close free operation, and an easily deciphered layout. All of the Twitter functionality that I’ve come to expect (and more) is present: from uploading to yFrog/TwitPic to Twitter’s native Retweet system.

gTasks
gTasks is a must for anyone that uses Google Tasks. You’re able to automatically sync your task lists in Gmail with your phone which really comes in handy. Another plus is the gTasks widget that you can place on one of your home screens so that your massive To-Do list is always just a glance away.

xScope Browser Lite
If you’re looking for an alternative to the stock Internet Browser, give xScope a try. xScope offers you multi-touch capability (pinch to zoom) as well as tabbed browsing. The main reason I gave xScope a try was its tabbed browsing. I don’t visit many websites on my phone, however, I like to use tabs when I do.

ASTRO File Manager
ASTRO is pretty self-explanatory. This app is the equivalent of Finder or Windows Explorer. You’re able to rename, move, and delete files. Great, right? OK, well those are the most basic functions that you’d expect. ASTRO also allows you to backup & restore all of the applications that you have on your phone. In addition to backup functionality, you’re also able to read zip & tgz files. Cue the infomercial: BUT WAIT – THERE’S MORE! This file manager also doubles as a video/music player. I use the video player on the train every single day in order to catch up on TV episodes I might have missed due to my busy schedule.

EboBirthday (with EboBirthday Contact Sync)
EboBirthday and EboBirthday Contact Sync are two separate downloads, but they’re incredibly useful. Can’t remember your friends’ birthdays for the life of you and checking Facebook daily to make sure you didn’t miss anyone is out of the question? Hello, EboBirthday. EboBirthday will take birthday data from Facebook, CSV, Phonebook, Windows Mobile, and Google Contacts in order to have all of your contacts’ birthdays in one place. You can set optional notifications along with SMS & email reminders as well. This app makes it very difficult to miss a birthday! So what does EboBirthday Contact Sync do? Contact Sync will sync the birthday information from EboBirthday with your Google Contacts. It really comes in handy, that’s for sure.

gDocs
gDocs allows you to view, edit, create, and sync documents with your Google Documents account. You’re also able to import/export and send documents from gDocs as well. I just don’t feel like lugging around my laptop when I’m leaving the office for the night so I’ve used gDocs quite a few times to work on a Google Doc on my train ride home.

Solitaire
If I didn’t include Solitaire in my Android apps list, I would be doing each reader a disservice. The Android version of Solitaire created by Ken Magic will help you kill a lot of time. In addition to regular Solitaire, you’re able to play games of Freecell, Forty Thieves, and Spider. This is another one of my train-ride favorites.
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OK, I’m going to get real with you right now… the next two apps are only for Android users that have successfully “rooted” their phone. If you aren’t familiar with rooting or are not technologically inclined, treat this as the intro to any Jackass episode/movie: do NOT try this at home.
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Android Terminal Emulator
There are a few Terminal Emulators in the Android Marketplace so you’re looking for the one created by Jack Palevich. ATE allows you to communicate with the built-in Android shell and understands just about every terminal code you’ll throw at it.

Wireless Tether
This amazing program allows you to tether via WiFi or Bluetooth – WIRELESSLY. You’re able to cruise the internet on your laptop over your handset’s 2G or 3G mobile connection. This app has been a lifesaver for me on a few occasions. Here’s a word of warning: please make sure you check with your cellular provider about your data plan (is it unlimited or capped?) and also your contract. Some carriers consider tethering to be a breach of contract and you don’t want to travel down Breached Contract Boulevard. That’s a bad neighborhood.

Do you have any favorite apps that I don’t have on my list?