I've been trying to hone in on the most important and vital apps for my new Android 2.0 phone. With the help of Twitter followers and Luke, I've come up with a great list of top 5 Android apps for my wonderfully powerful Droid. If you enjoy this, check out our Top 3 News and Weather Apps for Motorola Droid too!

• Google Voice -- [Link to Site]
  • I've been addicted to Google Voice, it saves me something like $15 to $20 every month on texting and I can call ANY number with a secure, controllable line from Google. Google Voice may actually be more important, relevant, and usable than Google Wave. There's so much potential with this technology. On an Android phone, unlike the closed off iPhone, you can have the Google Voice App take over all calls -- even international ones! By taking over the device, any call that I make through the phone emulates my Google Voice number. No inconvenient Google Voice mobile website for me [on an iPhone], now I just make a phone call. The application transcribes my voicemails and allows for a visual form too. This visual system saves me yet another $2.99 -- Verizon charges that for visual mail access.
  • Downsides: No messaging app support, SMS messages are not pushed (fetched at every 5 mins -- fastest rate), must have a data connection to make phone call through GV number.
    
• Pandora -- [Link to Site]
  • This is nothing new, and it's still the ultimate personalized radio. Pandora delivers a fantastic application and service to Android and iPhone. The experience is hindered by a basic ad on the bottom of the application, but it's nothing compared to the ads and messages that Pandora places on its website. Pandora let's you create personalized stations with a thumbs up/down voting system. It allows you to bookmark songs and artists for later viewing. The application also supports the adding and removal of new "stations" that can be based off of artist, song, album, etc.
  • Downsides: Advertisements on the bottom of application, improper Bluetooth support (doesn't stop playing if Bluetooth headphones are disconnected), and still slow, despite the Droid's processor power.
• DoggCatcher -- [Link to Site]
  • There is no native application to download, subscribe, and listen to your latest podcasts. DoggCatcher is the perfect accoutrement to your powerful device. It comes at a price though, $6.99, which makes it one of the most expensive apps in the Market. In fact, it's the only app that requires a purchase on this list. But it's still well worth it and powerful. DoggCatcher lets you select and subscribe to your favorite podcasts, and unlike the iPhone (AT&T), you can download as large a file as you'd like. While burning through battery, it can download that 131 MB episode of Diggnation for immediate viewing. And if you don't feel like burning through battery life, you can choose to have the device only download new episodes on Wi-Fi and/or while being plugged into power. Unlike Pandora, DoggCatcher responds to disconnects from headphones and Bluetooth, pausing where you are.
  • Downsides: Price tag ($6.99), no automatic downloads despite a subscription (still need to queue downloads), and small selection of suggested podcasts.

• i Music -- [Link to Site]
  • The internet has a number of ways to illegally download music. LimeWire and Kazaa are things of the past. So many people put music straight onto their websites, and it's just a matter of finding the songs. i Music is a powerful music search app that finds exactly what you're looking for. Looking for a Beatles song or something by Bob Dylan? Search on i Music and you'll find the song. After finding the song you want, you can legally listen to the song or you can illegally download it to your Droid. This is a gray area of copyright laws, but there's no doubt that downloading songs for free is still illegal. Whether you just NEED to hear a song once, or want to grab it for free, i Music a prime example of the power of open-source and spits in the face of Apple's closed system.
  • Downsides: The user interface (UI) is hideous, ads are on the top of searches (making queries unintuitive), and the apps widget is appallingly simple.
• FxCamera -- [Link to Site]
  • The Droid camera is finally fixed! But the basic camera application doesn't leave a lot of options for users. That's where FxCamera comes in. Offering basic image additions like the Toy Camera effect makes images look aged and artistically designed. Just look at my Twitter pic. FxCamera doesn't have some of the editing features of PicSay Pro, but it does spruce up the the basic camera. The application simple, and is relatively quick at launching the camera and processing the picture with its effect. What's missing is the ability to truly take over the camera and by default, launch the app after a picture has been taken.
  • Downsides: Doesn't connect with the Droid camera by default, needs more effects, and could use a quicker user interface.

Runner up:

• Twidroid -- [Link to Site]
  • A powerful Twitter client for the Droid, but still with a variety of faults. Twidriod is quick and actively processes new tweets in the background -- seemingly using very little battery from what I've seen. And you always know when you have a Twidroid notification; the program has its own notification light, it's a cool blue. But it doesn't give users trending Twitter topics, and the app doesn't have a proper widget for the Droid quite yet (free or paid).

What we still want to see:

• NPR -- [Link to Site]
  
  • The public radio company has yet to produce an app for the Android platform. The iPhone has a beautiful application that is insanely powerful and convenient for users. Android users are seriously missing out from any solid NPR player and program. It's the single app that I miss most from the iPhone.

Please comment below or Twitter us if you have any other apps that we should take a look at or we left out!

Apps:
We all know that there aren't enough, but it's growing and there are some decent apps already out there.

Navigation:
Google Maps with Navigation is an amazing upgrade. But it's buggy, slow, and a major battery hog.

Screen:
The screen is brilliantly clear and responsive. Great for watching video on YouTube or through a podcast. Unfortunately, it's been picking up finger prints too easily.

Speed:
The home screens are slow to switch between pages, but the actual in and out/start and close of apps is incredibly fast.

Camera:
Definitely better than an iPhone 3GS, but not a major step up. The camera has so much potential and this may just be a software error. It's slow, unresponsive and hard to tell when you've actually taken a picture.

On-Screen buttons:
Sometimes unresponsive. Frustrating, and I wish their was a better "home" button like the iPhone.

Battery:
Hard to charge the unit with a computer or on a non-traditional USB charging device. The Droid has to be plugged into the wall charger to make any battery progress. Otherwise, the battery life is fantastic after a full charge.

Google Voice:
Definitely a major upgrade over iPhone's non-existent support. Phone calls are quick and the quality is surprisingly good. This is such a time saver! Needs to send SMSs into the Messaging app for a more seamless interface with the phone (but that's an upgrade that the individual app needs to do).

More to come! Stay tuned and subscribe to Twitter updates @DrPsychology

Updated: Camera now works great! The focus is back and is taking fantastic pics! Now, head on over to this post to see the Top 5 Android Apps for the Motorola Droid!

The iPhone doesn't do/have: multitasking, a 5MP camera, open-source development, Google Voice, etc. But here's an early prediction, Apple will soon have a face off with Verizon's new "killer." If the environment and competition warrants it, I foresee Apple and AT&T retracing a number of their preventative methods, which hinder the phone's greater capabilities.

Verizon's Droid is due to come out on October 30th, with some estimates pointing to an early November release date. Either way, the phone its accompanying specs will quickly stunt the iPhone's growth; that is, if Apple and AT&T do nothing.

That's where I think we're going to get a healthy does of competition. Apple can quickly and easily allow apps to background and therefore multitask--it just takes the flick of a switch and a major press release to developers. All of a sudden, apps like Pandora and NPR, which stream over 3G/EDGE/Wi-Fi, will operate for as long as you want, even while checking your email. No doubt, their will be complaints over battery drain and AT&T's horrid wireless network. But at least the iPhone will have built-in multitasking capabilities.

Soon after that, we could see a firmware update with a major megapixel upgrade to the iPhone. FM capabilities will be a must. Google Voice may soon be approved. And we could see improvements to AT&T's troubled data network.

Maybe the last couple sentences are more of a hope than reality. But without a doubt, competition will force Apple to finally step up. It's time to take advantage of everything the phone is already capable of!

Apple has made it clear that they wont allow applications that test, exceed, or go into the root of Apple's iPhone software.

With the recent block of Google Latitude and Voice, Apple has set a clear precedent of conservative pragmatism that assures the iPhone's destruction. Unless Apple reverses it's closed off course, opens up to the open-source philosophy, and becomes a company for developers, Apple has already lost the smartphone wars.

Google and Verizon's recently minted deal for Android on Verizon Wireless phones creates one of the greatest deals for Google--the phone is now going to be on the most popular national carrier.

Wake up Apple, we don't want a closed device.

When we launched Google Voice, we offered free calling to the continental US. We've just expanded this to all 50 states by adding free calling to Alaska and Hawaii. (SOURCE)

http://googlevoiceblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/free-calling-now-to-hawaii-and-alaska.html

One source close to the thinking of AT&T executives said the company has been deliberating the decision for weeks and that top executives have said they were close to accepting voice over Internet services on all AT&T phones, including the iPhone. The source spoke on the condition of anonymity because a decision hadn't been officially announced. Skype currently operates on the iPhone through WiFi access, but not on AT&T's 3G mobile network. (SOURCE)

Stay tuned for more details. News like this isn't surprising as the recently inked deal between Google and Verizon may be pressuring Apple and AT&T to think about the ramifications of open source applications.

Update: Looks like AT&T just approved VOIP apps to be on the 3G network. Now the question is how long it takes for apps to update. Hopefully google voice will also be included in the new rules.

Check out Google's post about SMS Emails: http://googlevoiceblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/receive-and-reply-to-sms-messages-by.html