Welcome to the 436th edition of Android Apps Weekly. Here are the big headlines from last week:
- We asked our readers if they still store music on their phones locally. As it turns out, almost 70% of our readers still listen to music without streaming. Several of our readers have shared their stories of losing their massive collection and simply giving up or streaming being cheaper than buying. However, some people also talk about their collection of rare items that you can’t find again easily.
- File transfers on Android are much better than before, but can still be quite an annoying experience. Our writer, Dhruv Bhutani, talks about how he got around the limitations of Android’s file system using knowledge and applications. Hit the link to learn more.
- We conducted another reader poll this week asking people how they watch the new TV show. Most of our readers watch TV in one way or another, but others still try to watch TV shows as they air or wait until the season ends to binge watch everything. You can hit the link to check it out.
- Google launched Android 13 beta 3 weeks ago. This is the first beta released to reach the Platform Stability milestone. The beta should have minor changes until the final release. Platform Stability is where Google stops adding new things, so app developers have time to update their apps for the official launch of Android 13. You will see app developers releasing updates to support Android 13 from now on officially.
- Netflix is reportedly in talks to buy Roku. This is going to be a big deal because Roku is one of the big three set-top box operating systems. However, both companies are currently struggling, and a merger could help both. However, this is only in the rumor stage, so we’ll be keeping an eye on it and letting you know if anything changes.
Pro Music
Price: Free / Up to $4.99
Music Pro is a new app from Sony, and it’s specifically for Sony smartphones. It doesn’t actually play music as the name suggests. Instead, it’s mostly for recording audio files. It’s worthy of a recorder, and you get nice waveform animations when you do it. This one’s claim to fame is its ability to self-monitor while recording if using wired headphones. There’s also some tuning functionality to help you get better sound from your recordings, but those are premium features. Unfortunately, I don’t have a Sony phone so I couldn’t test it, but it looks easy enough.
MU Origin 3
Price: Free to play
MU Origin 3 is a new MMORPG and the second to launch in two weeks, with Diablo Immortal being the others. This one has three customizable classes, which are basically melee, ranged, and magic. It also offers an open world, cross-server PvP, lots of loot, and other MMORPG staples like flying. It’s a fairly straightforward MMORPG experience, but does all the usual MMORPG stuff solidly. It has a lot of menus that can be confusing at first, and autoplay isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. It has its ups and downs, but should be quite popular for a while.
Super Notes is a note-taking app with a UI reminiscent of Google Keep. You get the main screen with your notes in different colors. It also supports lists, images, rich text, night mode, and a few other things. You can lock this app with fingerprint to avoid prying eyes. Plus, you can export notes to PDF or TXT files if you prefer. It runs for $5.99 upfront but has no ads or in-app purchases. Overall, it’s pretty good if you need that extra level of privacy, but other note-taking apps are still pretty decent.
The Story of a Company
Price: Free to play
A Story of A Company is the latest game from Buff Studios, the developer of Underworld Office and Buff Knight. This one is a visual novel game similar to Underworld Office. You follow the story of the daily life of a group of human and animal hybrids in their completely normal office environment. There’s no real mechanics, but it’s indicative of the genre in general. You mostly just read the story, make some decisions, and have fun until you reach the end. There are many endings, epilogues and achievements for players. It’s a pretty cool game overall, and Buff Studios did a pretty good visual novel in general.
Microsoft signup
Price: Free
Microsoft List is a productivity tool for people who use Office 365 as part of their job. It lets you manage your work, track information and stay organized. It’s similar to things like Asana or Basecamp, but on a smaller scale. The app comes with templates to help you build things fast, collaborative features to include co-workers, and integration with other Microsoft products. A lot of the negative feedback comes from this not being a note-taking app or a list app, despite the name. However, it works pretty well assuming your job uses Office 365.
If we missed any major Android app or game release, let us know in the comments.
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