Best Android Apps (July 2024)

Summary

This video script introduces viewers to 10 useful Android apps to enhance their smartphone experience. It highlights 'Spam Blocker' for call and message protection, 'Pixel Expert' for lock screen effects, and 'Music Live Wallpaper' for music lovers. Other apps include 'Sound Tap' for music control, 'Material Photo Widget' for customizable photo frames, 'Quick Shorts' for home screen shortcuts, 'IME Material Icon Pack' for iOS-style icons, 'Packmate' for travel organization, 'Local Send' for cross-platform file sharing, and 'Screen Stream' for screen sharing. The script also mentions exclusive promo codes for some apps, encouraging viewers to subscribe for updates.

Takeaways

• 📞 The video introduces 'Spam Blocker', an app that uses filters and number patterns to block spam calls and messages, offering customizable settings to enhance control over incoming communications.
• 👍 'Spam Blocker' is praised for its compatibility with default messaging and phone apps, functioning as a middleman to check numbers before they reach the user, and is noted for being free, open-source, and available on F-Droid and GitHub.
• 📱 The script highlights 'Pixel Expert', an app that brings the iPhone lock screen depth effect to Android, working on rooted Google Pixel devices running Android 10 or higher, with customization options for UI elements.
• 🎶 'Music Live Wallpaper' is mentioned as an app that revives the full-screen album cover feature on the lock screen during music playback, with customizable settings to adjust the display style.
• 🔊 'Sound Tap' is an app that allows control of music playback using the device's volume keys, providing a convenient and customizable way to manage music without opening the app.
• 🖼 'Material Photo Widget' is recommended as an alternative to Google's photo frame widgets, offering more customization options such as specifying photos, aspect ratio, and tap actions.
• 🔗 'Quick Shorts' is an app for creating shortcuts on the home screen and within quick settings, enhancing the Android experience by providing quick access to apps, contacts, files, and more.
• 📱 For those who like the new iOS icons, 'Ime Material Icon Pack' is suggested as an alternative that matches app icons to the colors of the wallpaper while maintaining a dark theme, supporting a wide range of icons.
• 🧳 'Packmate' is a travel companion app that helps users create a list of essentials for trips, offering real-time weather updates and collaboration features, with some features available through an in-app purchase.
• 🔄 'Local Send' is a cross-platform file-sharing app that works over local networks without an internet connection, supporting various operating systems including Android, iOS, Mac OS, Windows, Linux, and Fire OS.
• 🖥 'Screen Stream' is an app for screen sharing, either locally within a network or globally via a web browser, allowing users to mirror their phone screen on other devices for presentations or assistance.

Q & A

What is the primary purpose of the 'Spam blocker' app mentioned in the script?

The primary purpose of the 'Spam blocker' app is to provide an extra layer of protection against spam calls and messages by using filters and typical number patterns to block scammers, and allowing users to customize these filters for more control over incoming calls and messages.

How does the 'Spam blocker' app detect spoofed numbers?

The 'Spam blocker' app uses a test called STIR (Secure Telephony Identity Revisited) to detect and block spoofed numbers, where the caller's identity is hidden.

What are the benefits of using the 'Pixel Expert' app for Android devices?

The 'Pixel Expert' app allows users to achieve a lock screen effect similar to that of iPhones, with a depth effect that makes some subjects appear over the clock. It also works with almost every background and can transition nicely to the always-on display. Additionally, it provides UI customization options such as enabling a light theme for the quick settings panel and power menu, and adding more rows or columns to the quick settings.

What is the limitation of the 'Pixel Expert' app in terms of device compatibility?

The 'Pixel Expert' app only works on rooted devices running Google Pixel stock firmware on Android 14 or higher.

What feature does the 'Music Live Wallpaper' app bring back from older Android versions?

The 'Music Live Wallpaper' app brings back the feature of making the album cover full screen within the lock screen whenever music is played, a feature that was removed in Android 11.

How does the 'Sound Tap' app enhance the music listening experience on Android devices?

The 'Sound Tap' app allows users to control music playback using their device's volume keys, such as long pressing the volume up to skip to the next track or long pressing the volume down to rewind.

What customization options does the 'Material Photo Widget' offer compared to Google's photo frame widgets?

The 'Material Photo Widget' offers the ability to specify which photos to use, customize the aspect ratio, modify the shape with more options than Google provides, and select the tap action, providing a more personalized experience than Google's photo frame widgets.

What is the main functionality of the 'Quick Shorts' app?

The 'Quick Shorts' app allows users to create shortcuts for their home screen and quick setting tiles for apps, contacts, files, websites, and more. It also enables customization of these shortcuts with different icons, backgrounds, and shapes, making the quick settings panel more useful and accessible.

What does the 'IME Material Icon Pack' offer for users who like the new iOS icons?

The 'IME Material Icon Pack' offers a similar icon experience to the new iOS icons, allowing icons to match the colors of the user's wallpaper while always staying dark, similar to the iOS 18 style. It supports nearly 19,000 icons, ensuring that most apps in the launcher are themed.

How does the 'Packmate' app assist with travel preparation?

The 'Packmate' app serves as a travel companion that automatically provides a list of essential items for any trip, allows users to add personal items to the list, includes tasks to be done during the trip, shows real-time weather updates for the destination, and enables collaboration with others on the list.

What is the 'Local Send' app and how does it facilitate file sharing across different platforms?

The 'Local Send' app is a free, open-source alternative to websites like pdr.net for transferring files seamlessly across different platforms, including Android, iOS, Mac OS, Windows, Linux, and even Fire OS. It allows sharing files and messages with nearby devices on the same local network without requiring an internet connection.

How does the 'Screen Stream' app work for sharing a device's screen with another device?

The 'Screen Stream' app allows users to share their device's screen with another device on the same network by using a local mode within the app. For sharing with someone in a different area, a global mode is available, where the other person can visit screen stream.io and enter the ID and password provided in the app to connect and view the screen stream, including audio.

Outlines

00:00

🛡️ Spam Blocker App for Enhanced Android Security

The script introduces an Android app called 'Spam blocker' that offers an additional layer of protection against spam calls and messages. It utilizes filters and number patterns to identify and block potential scammers. Users can customize these filters to have more control over incoming calls and messages, including blocking numbers that repeatedly call in a short period or those using spoofed identities. The app operates as a middleman, checking every number before it reaches the user, without the need to switch default messaging or phone apps. It is free, open source, and available for download from F-Droid and GitHub. The script also mentions a monthly series highlighting the best Android apps to improve the user experience, with 10 useful apps featured this time, excluding games due to the abundance of impressive apps for July.

05:02

📱 Customizable Android Features and Utility Apps

The second paragraph discusses various apps that enhance the Android user experience. 'Pixel Expert' is highlighted for bringing a depth effect to the lock screen on Android devices, similar to an iPhone feature, which works on rooted Google Pixel devices running Android 14 or higher. 'Music Live Wallpaper' is another app that brings back the fullscreen album cover feature on the lock screen when music is played. 'Sound Tap' allows control of music playback using volume keys. 'Material Photo Widget' offers more customization for photo frame widgets than Google's default option. 'Quick Shorts' enables the creation of home screen and quick setting shortcuts for various actions. The paragraph also mentions 'Ime Material Icon Pack' for those who prefer the new iOS 18 icons, and 'Packmate', a travel companion app that helps users create and manage packing lists for trips. 'Local Send' is introduced as a cross-platform file-sharing app, and 'Screen Stream' allows screen sharing between devices on the same network or globally via a web browser.

Keywords

💡Spam blocker

Spam blocker is a term used in the video to describe a type of application designed to prevent unwanted calls and messages from reaching the user. It is related to the video's theme of enhancing the Android user experience by providing an extra layer of protection against spam. The script mentions that it uses filters and number patterns to block scammers, and it can be customized to control which calls or messages get through.

💡Customization

Customization refers to the ability to modify or adjust settings to better suit individual preferences. In the context of the video, it is used to describe the feature of the Spam blocker app that allows users to tailor the filters to their needs. For instance, the app can be set to block repeated calls or spoofed numbers, demonstrating how the app contributes to a personalized Android experience.

💡STIR test

STIR, which stands for Secure Telephony Identity Revisited, is a protocol mentioned in the script for detecting and blocking spoofed calls. It is integral to the functionality of the Spam blocker app, ensuring that the user's privacy and experience are protected from unwanted and potentially harmful calls. The script uses this term to highlight the technical measures taken by the app to ensure security.

💡Open source

Open source is a term used to describe software whose source code is available to the public, allowing anyone to view, modify, and distribute the software. The video script praises the Spam blocker app for being open source, which implies that it is freely available and can be improved upon by the community, aligning with the video's theme of promoting apps that enhance user experience and control.

💡Pixel Expert

Pixel Expert is an app highlighted in the video for its ability to replicate a feature found on iPhones, specifically the depth effect on the lock screen, on Android devices. This app is relevant to the video's theme as it demonstrates how Android users can achieve a similar aesthetic to that of iOS, showcasing the versatility and customization options available on Android.

💡Rooted devices

A rooted device refers to an Android device that has been given superuser access, allowing the installation of apps and modifications that require administrative privileges. The script mentions that Pixel Expert only works on rooted devices running Pixel stock firmware, indicating a limitation for users who wish to utilize the app's features, thus relating to the theme of exploring advanced customization options on Android.

💡Music Live Wallpaper

Music Live Wallpaper is an app featured in the video that brings back a feature from older versions of Android, where the music album cover would appear full screen on the lock screen while music is played. It ties into the video's theme of enhancing the Android experience by personalizing the user interface to reflect the current music being played, adding a dynamic element to the device's appearance.

💡Sound Tap

Sound Tap is an app mentioned in the script that allows users to control music playback using their device's volume keys. This app is an example of how the video discusses apps that add functionality and convenience to the Android experience, enabling users to interact with their devices in a more intuitive manner.

💡Material Photo Widget

Material Photo Widget is an alternative to Google's photo frame widgets, offering more customization options such as specifying which photos to display. The script uses this term to illustrate the theme of personalization and enhancing the Android experience by providing greater control over the appearance and behavior of widgets on the home screen.

💡Quick Shorts

Quick Shorts is an app that enables users to create shortcuts for their home screen and quick setting tiles, allowing for quick access to apps, contacts, files, and more. The video script uses this term to highlight the theme of efficiency and convenience, showing how Android users can streamline their device usage with customized shortcuts.

💡IME Material Icon Pack

IME Material Icon Pack is an app that provides iOS-style icons for Android devices, allowing users to theme their app icons to match the aesthetic of iOS 18. The script mentions this app in the context of personal preference and customization, relating to the video's theme of offering apps that allow Android users to tailor their device's appearance to their liking.

💡Packmate

Packmate is a travel companion app featured in the video that helps users create a list of essential items for trips, add personal items, and manage tasks. It is relevant to the video's theme as it demonstrates how apps can assist in organizing and planning travel, making the Android experience more practical and convenient.

💡Local Send

Local Send is a free, open-source app that allows users to share files and messages with nearby devices on the same local network, regardless of the operating system. The script discusses this app as a solution for cross-platform file sharing without the need for an internet connection, emphasizing the video's theme of promoting apps that enhance connectivity and functionality on Android.

💡Screen Stream

Screen Stream is an app that enables users to share their phone screen with another device, either locally on the same network or globally via a website. The video script uses this term to illustrate the theme of connectivity and sharing, showing how Android users can easily mirror their screen for various purposes, such as helping others or casting to a larger display.

Highlights

Introduction of Spam blocker, an app that provides an extra layer of protection against spam calls and messages by using filters and number patterns.

Customization options in Spam blocker to control what calls or messages get through, including blocking repeated calls or spoofed numbers.

STIR test used by Spam blocker to detect and block spoofed numbers.

Spam blocker works as a middleman with default messaging and phone apps, and is free, open source, and available on F-Droid and GitHub.

Monthly series showcasing the best Android apps for improving the smartphone experience.

Skipping games in this episode to focus on amazing apps for July, with a promise to bring them back in the next month if there's positive feedback.

Pixel Expert app brings the iPhone lock screen depth effect to Android, working with almost every background.

Pixel Expert's limitations to rooted devices running Pixel stock firmware.

Additional UI customization features in Pixel Expert, such as light theme for quick settings and power menu.

Music Live Wallpaper app to bring back the full-screen album cover feature on the lock screen during music playback.

Sound Tap app for controlling music playback with device's volume keys.

Material Photo Widget as an alternative to Google's photo frame widgets with more customization options.

Quick Shorts app for creating shortcuts for home screen and quick setting tiles with customization options.

IME Material Icon Pack for iOS 18 style icons that match wallpaper colors and support a wide range of apps.

Packmate travel companion app for creating and managing travel checklists with real-time weather updates and collaboration features.

Local Send app for cross-platform file and message sharing within the same local network.

Screen Stream app for easy screen sharing within a browser on the same network or globally via screen stream.io.

Transcripts

[Music]

are you tired of getting spam calls or

messages I mean sure your Android may

have a built-in spam protection feature

but it's still unable to detect every

spam caller and some can still slip

through the cracks and end up

interrupting you that's why I now use

Spam blocker as an extra layer of

protection it uses filters and typical

number patterns to block scammers plus

within its settings you can customize

these filters to get more control over

what calls or messages are allowed to

get through for example you can stop

anyone who keeps calling you repeatedly

in a short amount of time or if a number

is spoofed meaning that the caller's

identity is hidden spam blocker uses a

test called stir to detect and block it

the best part is that you don't even

need to switch to a different messaging

app or phone app you can still use your

default ones cuz spam blocker just works

as a middleman checking every number

before it reaches you and for that on

top it's completely free open source and

available to download off F Droid and

GitHub thumbs up for starting off with

the Banger and for those who are new

here this is a monthly series that I

push out the first of every month where

I show off the best Android apps that

you can download on your phone to

improve your overall experience and this

time around we're going to show off 10

useful apps that really take your

smartphone experience to the next level

unfortunately we'll be skipping the

games this time around because there

were just so many amazing apps for July

but rest assured I'll bring them back on

the next month's episode if there's

enough positive feedback for it in the

comments so make sure to get subscribe

so that you don't miss out on that

moving on iPhones have had this really

neat feature in the lock screen which

lets you add a depth effect to the

wallpaper so that some of its subjects

appear over the clock it's really cool

and I've always wanted this on Android

luckily an app called pixel expert

managed to get this same looking lock

screen effect working on any Google

pixel device running Android 14 or

higher plus the subjects can even

transition nicely to the always on

display it even blows my mind that it's

able to work with almost every

background out there although some work

better than others the only downside and

I'm sorry to break this to you is that

it only works on rooted devices running

pixel stock firmware so yeah that sucks

but hey if you have a rooted pixel phone

you should try this out to top it off it

lets you customize other parts of the UI

such as enabling a light theme to The

quick settings panel and Power menu to

give it more life being able to add more

rows or columns to the quick settings to

reach even more tiles at once without

needing to scroll to the next page it

lets you add a brightness level to the

flashlight tile to let you adjust the

brightness and do the same thing for

this new volume tile it also lets you

move the brighten slider to the bottom

to make it easier to reach with one hand

adds a much more easily accessible clear

all button within the recent page and

autog generates themed icons for those

that got Miss on the home screen there's

a lot more where that came from so if

you thought rooting was dead think again

okay this next one works whether you're

rooted or not remember back in the day

when Andrew used to make your album

cover full screen within the lock screen

whenever you played music some people

liked it others hated it and eventually

it got removed in Android 11 well if you

like to bring this back download music

live wallpaper you set this as your life

wallpaper and by default you'll have a

nice peaceful background which you can

change within its settings but as soon

as you start playing music the album

cover will appear in the background plus

within the settings you can change the

wallpaper style so that it only shows

the album cover in a partial manner or

within a shape to make it easier to see

your

notifications plus I even love how they

made the blank area match the colors of

the current album cover so that it's a

nice transition it's a really nice way

to get your phone to match the theme of

the song that you're playing and since

we're already talking about music you

can also download this other app called

sound tap to let you easily control your

music with your device's volume keys so

you can long press the volume up to skip

to the next track or long press the

volume down key to rewind and go back

works like a charm and it's pretty

customizable too what isn't very

customizable is Google photos picture

frame widgets I mean they do allow you

to choose the Google account you like to

use which faces you like to appear and

the frame shape but you can't choose

which specific shot

should or shouldn't appear so that's why

I'm now using material photo widget cuz

it looks just like Google's picture

frames with all those crazy shapes and

it lets me specify which photos to

use I can also customize the aspect

ratio modify the shape which there are a

lot more to choose from than what Google

provides select the tap action and more

another handy app is quick shorts it

lets you create shortcuts for your home

screen and quick setting tiles shortcuts

for apps contacts files websites and

more pretty much anything you can think

of you can even customize the shortcuts

with different icons backgrounds and

shapes it's a great way to make your

quick settings panel a lot more useful

too by adding tiles that native Android

doesn't even come with plus you can even

group shortcuts together on the home

screen for easy access it makes it

easier to reach your favorite things and

do things a lot quicker saving you a few

Taps every day if you Apple's WWDC

conference you probably saw their new

icons which I think they look awful and

I think most of you would agree but for

the tiny few of you who actually like

them first off I think you need glasses

or you can just download ime material

icon pack to get something similar just

like on iOS 18 these icons can match the

colors of your wallpaper but they always

stay dark just like on iOS it also

somehow already supports 19,000 icons so

almost every app in your launcher should

get themed oh and it also cost a dollar

to download but I just dropped 120 promo

codes for it on my patreon so that you

can get it for free huge thanks to the

developer for being so generous you know

I'm sure we've all been there where

we've gone on vacation and on the way

there we've realized that we forgot to

pack the laptop charger or the deodorant

or even worse your Android Mini

collectible no I'm just kidding but it

is super annoying so to save myself from

future headaches I now use packmate it's

an awesome travel companion app that

automatically gives me a list of all the

essential things I would need on any

trip I take then I can add to that list

with even more personal things that I

don't want to forget plus I can add some

tasks that I need to do while I'm on

that trip on top of that it'll show me

real-time weather updates for the

destination that I'm going to on those

specific dates so that I know what type

of clothing to bring and I can even

invite others to collaborate on the list

so that we're all on the same page about

what we're bringing really creative to

top it all off it has a really stylish

widget to Mark things down a lot more

quickly just keep in mind that some of

these features are locked behind an Ina

purchase of

$3.99 luckily I reached out to the

developer to see if he'd be willing to

give away some promo codes and he also

agreed to give away 120 so again those

will be available on my patreon trying

to send files from an Android to an

iPhone is is super annoying let alone

trying to transfer it to a Mac and for

the longest time I've just been using

this website called pdr.net which I've

showed off on the channel a while back

to connect these different platforms

together and transfer files seamlessly

but it isn't always reliable and does

require an internet connection but a

fantastic free open source alternative

is local send and it lets me share files

and messages with any of my nearby

devices as long as they're in the same

local netor Network and it supports

almost every OS out there including

Android iOS Mac OS Windows Linux and

even fire OS definitely a must have for

anyone who likes to cross

platforms if you ever need to share your

screen with another device maybe to help

someone out with their phone or just to

cast it on a bigger display you should

download screen stream cuz it'll let you

do this so easily within the browser if

your devices are on the same network

within the app you just make make sure

stream mode is set to local mode tap on

start stream then allow it to start

recording or casting and finally type in

the address that's given in the app onto

your browser of the other device that's

it you should not be seeing your phone

screen being mirrored onto your other

device if you're trying to share it with

someone who is in a completely different

area though then you can use global mode

and this time you need to tell the other

person to go on this website called

screen stream.io

and then type in the ID and password

found inside the app to connect they'll

even be able to hear you since the

microphone will be enabled along with

the device's audio too the only downside

is that the stream will look a bit laggy

but it still works anyways tap this card

right here to watch a playlist of all

the previous best apps of the month been

doing this for years so you have a lot

of apps to download drop your thumbs up

if I helped you download at least one

app in this month's episode of the best

entered apps thanks for sticking to the

end and on catch you guys in the next

one Kow