Photo editing app

Adobe Photoshop Express: This is a good app for those of us with an artistic inclination. If the camera software is too simple for you, this will allow you to do more with your pictures. You can crop, rotate, adjust color, and add artistic effects. And after you create a Photoshop.com account (it's free with up to 2GB storage), you can easily share your picture with your friends or family (or you can access your pictures from any computer, anywhere). Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.adobe.psmobile&feature=top-free#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDIwNSwiY29tLmFkb2JlLnBzbW9iaWxlIl0. From the phone search for "adobe photoshop express" and install.

Local business app

Yelp: This is a great app to find and read reviews about great local businesses near you. You can search for places to eat, shop, drink and play then read reviews from an active community of locals. It has a whole bunch of categories and cities and also has a very nice website you can access from a computer. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.yelp.android&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS55ZWxwLmFuZHJvaWQiXQ... From your phone search for "yelp" and install.

Ringtones & wallpapers app

Zedge ringtones & wallpapers: If you're bored of your limited wallpapers installed on your phone, or want a new, cool ringtone, this is one of the best apps. It lets you set ringtones, notification sounds and wallpapers directly from the app. Supports default ringtone, contact ringtones, message tones, alarms, alerts and all types notifications. Tons and tons of wallpapers sorted by categories. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=net.zedge.android&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsIm5ldC56ZWRnZS5hbmRyb2lkIl0. From the phone search for "zedge" and install. Happy customizing!

Radio app

iHeart Radio: Very good app for listening to your favorite radio stations, on your phone. It can be a very nice way of staying in touch with your home town even when you're away from it. It has over 800 stations from around the country, including 15 or so from West Michigan. It has nice controls and you can even create your own custom stations (kind of like Pandora). Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.clearchannel.iheartradio.controller&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5jbGVhcmNoYW5uZWwuaWhlYXJ0cmFkaW8uY29udHJvbGxlciJd. From the phone search for "iheart radio" and install. Happy listening!

Shopping list app

Out of milk: This is a very nice and easy to use app for keeping up a shopping list. It also allows you to keep a Pantry list (keep track of what you have in your pantry) and also has a to-do list for other things you might want to keep track of. When adding things to your shopping list, you can manually enter them or you can scan a product's bar code. You can keep track of your expenses, too. This is the free version. They also have a paid version ($5, I think) that has more options including an online version. Here's the link for more info: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.capigami.outofmilk&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5jYXBpZ2FtaS5vdXRvZm1pbGsiXQ... From the phone search for "out of milk" and install. Happy shopping!

Movie info app

Movies: This is a perfect app for the movie lovers. It has movie reviews, trailers and showtimes. In addition to trailers you can also see pictures related to the movies you research. You can find the closest movie theater and get directions to it. You can also research new movies released on dvd. Here's the link for more info: https://market.android.com/details?id=net.flixster.android&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsIm5ldC5mbGl4c3Rlci5hbmRyb2lkIl0. On the phone search for "movies" on the market and install. Enjoy your movies!

Golf app

Free Caddie golf GPS: This app is the most popular golf range finder available for Android. It has thousands of golf courses around the country. With it you can find the distance to the front, center and back of each green. This is a free app. There is a paid version that will let you see distances to hazards, bunkers, doglegs, start and end of fairways (where marked), shot measuring, scoring and statistics etc. Here's the link if you want to read more: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.freecaddie&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5mcmVlY2FkZGllIl0. From your phone search for "freecaddie golf gps" and install. Happy golfing! 

Video chat app

Oovoo: This is one of the best video chat apps I've tried (better than Skype). It does voice chat but also video chat. For video, you'd need a phone with a front facing camera. You can do up to 6-way video chat with your friends and it works with Android, Apple, a PC or Mac (it goes across platforms). Pretty cool. It works over 3G,4G or wi-fi and it's free. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.oovoo&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5vb3ZvbyJd. From the phone, simply search for "oovoo" install, create an account and call your friends right away (they'll need an account too). Happy chatting!

Travel planing app

Kayak: This is one of the best travel planing apps available for cell phones. It's really easy to use. It allows you to compare flight, hotel and car rental deals. You can also track flight status, manage your trip itinerary and check baggage fees. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.kayak.android&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5rYXlhay5hbmRyb2lkIl0. From the phone search for "Kayak" and install it. Happy travel!

Notes app

Springpad: Springpad is a free application that makes it quick and easy to take notes and save anything you want to remember in one place. You can save tasks and lists to products, places, movies, recipes and more. Also, everything you save on your phone will sync with their website and can be accessed from a computer. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.springpad&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5zcHJpbmdwYWQiXQ... From your phone search for "Springpad" and install it. Happy organizing!

Sky exploration app

Google Sky Map: This is a very cool app for those of us interested in exploring the sky at night time. Just point your phone to the sky and you'll see the stars with their name. Or you can search for a specific star or planet and the app will take you to it (just follow the red circle). You can also search the sky in manual mode. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.google.android.stardroid&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5nb29nbGUuYW5kcm9pZC5zdGFyZHJvaWQiXQ...

 From your phone search for "Google sky map" and install it. Happy exploring!

Instant info app

Google Goggles: This app allows you to search the Internet by taking a picture of the object you want to learn about. Helps a lot when you travel and don't have a guide available. Recognizes famous landmarks,  translates by taking a picture of foreign language text, recognizes paintings, books, dvd, cds, and just about any 2D image. It even solves Sudoku puzzles. Here's the link : https://market.android.com/details?id=com.google.android.apps.unveil&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5nb29nbGUuYW5kcm9pZC5hcHBzLnVudmVpbCJd.

 Some of our phones already have Google Goggles, but if you don't have it on your phone, search for "Google Goggles" and install it. You'll have a lot of fun with it.

Identify music app

Shazam: Did you ever heard a song on the radio or somewhere else and couldn't remember the name or the artist? Or you hear a new song and want to know more about it? Well, this app is for you. Open the app and "listen" to it. You will get a lot of information about the song, artist, the option to watch the video on YouTube or buy the song. Very accurate. It even recognized songs with some background noise. Here's the link:  https://market.android.com/details?id=com.shazam.android&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5zaGF6YW0uYW5kcm9pZCJd.

 From your phone search for "Shazam" install and enjoy.

Weight manager app

Libra-Weight Manager: With the holiday season approaching, I think we all need this app. It tracks your weight using trend lines, you can easily enter data, see charts, set a goal, see an estimated timeline for your goal and many other options. I like this app because it lets me see how much I don't take care of myself. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=net.cachapa.libra&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsIm5ldC5jYWNoYXBhLmxpYnJhIl0.

 From the phone search for "Libra-weight manager" and install it. Happy monitoring!

Best game

Angry birds: This is the best game available for Android phones (in my opinion). Millions of people are using it. It has tons of levels and it can be quite addictive. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.rovio.angrybirds&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5yb3Zpby5hbmdyeWJpcmRzIl0.

 From your phone simply search on the market for "angry birds" and install it. Welcome back to your childhood!

Gas price app

Gas buddy: This is an app that helps you find the cheapest gas in your area. It finds the gas stations around you and shows the prices. All the info is provided by the users so you have the opportunity to submit prices and help others find the best deals. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=gbis.gbandroid&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImdiaXMuZ2JhbmRyb2lkIl0.

 From the phone search for "gas buddy" and install it. Happy travel!

Shopping app

Barcode scanner: This is a very good tool, especially with the Holiday season coming. It's very simple to use and it will tell you if you get a good deal on a the purchase you're about to make and it gives you a lot of information about that product. All you have to do is open the app and point the camera on the phone to the barcore of the product. After few seconds it will give you info about it and also local and online prices for that product. Here's the link: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.google.zxing.client.android&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5nb29nbGUuenhpbmcuY2xpZW50LmFuZHJvaWQiXQ..

 From the phone search on the Market for "barcode scanner" and install it. Happy shopping!

Radio app

Slacker radio: This is a customizable radio app with over 100 pre programmed radio stations. You can also create your own custom radio station from millions of songs. It's similar to Pandora but with more options. It has a very nice interface and it shows artist's name, the name of the song, album and a picture of the album. The app has a paid version that unlocks all the features, but the free one is very nice. This is a link to the page: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.slacker.radio&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5zbGFja2VyLnJhZGlvIl0. Some of the new phones already have Slacker radio pre installed or you can search the Market for "Slacker radio". Rock on!

Voice commands app

Speaktoit assistant: This is an app similar to Siri on the Apple phone and allows you to communicate with your phone through voice and ask it to do a wide range of searches or tasks. It can answer questions, find information, launch apps and connect you with various web services, such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, etc. It can, also, get maps, search for news and images, look up weather reports, convert currency and measurements, send email, and much more. It can pick up even my accent and it gets what I ask 99% of the time. This is the link to the app if you want to learn more about it: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.speaktoit.assistant&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5zcGVha3RvaXQuYXNzaXN0YW50Il0.

 On your phone search for "speaktoit" and install it.Enjoy your new personal assistant.

Dictionary app

Dictionary.com: one of the best reference and dictionary apps, offers dictionary and Thesaurus content (words and definitions, synonyms, antonyms, phonetic and audio pronunciation, spelling suggestions, word origin and history and many more). This is a very useful tool for anybody (especially someone like me).

 This is the link to the app description: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.dictionary&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5kaWN0aW9uYXJ5Il0.

 From your phone search for "dictionary" and install. Happy spelling!

Tracking app for runners

 Imap my run. This is a very cool app for runners. It tracks the route, time, distance, speed, pace and calories in real time using the GPS on your device. There is also an option to sync your results with their website (http://www.mapmyrun.com/) for future comparising. Prety cool. From your phone search for "I map my run" and install it if you like it.

 Also another tracking app is "My tracks". It's very similar to the previous one and it gather useful statistics such as time, speed, distance, and elevation.

Translation app

 Google translate. This is an app that translates words or sentences from one language to another. Very useful for people traveling to foreign countries. It works 2 ways: you can type or you can talk to it. It will show you the translation in the second language. For some languages (the more common ones) there is an option to talk the translation back to you. There are around 30 languages available right now with new ones to be added in the future.

 This is a link to the Android Market if you want to read more about it: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.google.android.apps.translate&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5nb29nbGUuYW5kcm9pZC5hcHBzLnRyYW5zbGF0ZSJd
 From your phone go to Market and search for "Google translate" and install it.

Map and directions app

 In addition to the "Maps" that comes pre-installed on the phone, another good app is "Mapquest". Other then showing maps and giving driving directions, this app also provides live traffic reports. Here's a link to the Android Market page or you can search for "Mapquest" in Market from your phone :https://market.android.com/details?id=com.mapquest.android.ace&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5tYXBxdWVzdC5hbmRyb2lkLmFjZSJd.