Google has just announced a new version of their Goggles app for initiating searches with camera photos. Version 1.6 brings a cool new opt-in feature, which works in background to analyze every image you take and gives you notifications of anything it recognizes in it.

So now you do not actually need to start the app and then shoot something to start a search you just run the camera as usual and your Android smartphone will inform you if there is anything recognizable in your photos. You can then either do a Google search to find out more about it, or just dismiss it and continue as usual.

 

 

Instant messengers are a dime a dozen in all mobile platforms. When it comes to Android, you do not even have to download and install one to begin with.

 

Why bother getting Another IM?

Well, there might not be much of a difference between the popular chat protocols like MSN, Yahoo, GTalk etc, but it is not uncommon to have multiple accounts for business and personal uses. Moreover, our friends tend to have accounts on various platforms or social networks too. The best way to stay in touch with all of them at the same time is to have a chat client that can handle multiple chat accounts and protocols. BeejiveIM is a well known chat client and is available for almost all leading smartphone platforms, including Android.

Availability

BeejiveIM might be well known and feature rich, but it does not come cheap. But just in the case of Android, the app comes with a lite version, so users can evaluate the app before opening their wallets. BeejiveIM Lite is limited to three instant messaging accounts. To add unlimited accounts and remove ads, check out the original BeejiveIM. However, users with older handsets might be out of luck, as the app runs only on devices powered by OS version 2.1 and upwards.

Getting Started

 

Without much ado, the app launches to a screen from which you can select from nine different networks (AIM, MobileMe, MSN, Windows Live, Yahoo!, GoogleTalk, Facebook, MySpace andJabber). As expected, the login credentials page shows up next as soon as you choose the chat network. In addition to the standard description, username, and password fields, you can add the resource (device) name and set a level of connection priority for each account.

 

 

For some reason, the connection status of my Gtalk account was ‘offline’ after integration and my profile picture did not show up either. So I tapped on the Offline status message and a screen with a number of status options showed up. It is good to see that every status can have a custom message of its own.

 

Initiating Chats

Before beginning the chat, I noticed that, unlike a couple of IM apps I have used earlier, BeejiveIM does not log you out of any existing chat sessions from your other clients. Nor did I get any warnings about having logged in to another app and so been logged out by GTalk either.

 

 

A tabbed interface makes navigating through the app smooth and streamlined. From the Buddiestab, you can access the friends contact list from all the chat networks you have added to the app. To make things simple, buddies are listed under only two categories online and offline. A tiny logo of each chat network accompanies the display name and the profile pic to help identify the network they are logged into. All your ongoing chats can be accessed from the Chats tab.

 

 

Thanks to a cute and color coded bubble interface, messages sent back and forth are easy to read and reply to. The compose window has just three icons to send, add emoticons to, or cancel the message which preserve the scarce screen real estate in phones like my HTC Wildfire. While there are not many, emoticons are available for all popular moods and they are pleasant to look at too.

 

 

Are you someone who receives a lot of loaded chat messages? Fret not; there is hyperlink support which automatically parses links for web pages, YouTube videos, email addresses, Twitter usernames, and phone numbers. You can also send files and voice messages to your buddies by bringing up the menu options. I particularly liked the feature that lets you send a Google Maps link of your exact location to your friends.

Connectivity Options

Even if the connection drops, BeejiveIM automatically reconnects and picks up where you left off. The app also lets you move from carrier data and WiFi connections seamlessly. Even when you close the app, it runs in the background bringing you messages as they are received. However, to stay connected even after you close the application and be notified when you get a new message with push notifications, the device should be running OS 2.2 or above.

 

 

You may want to print more than a single photo on one sheet of paper but your iPhone does not support that capability out of box. Luckily, there is a app for that.

 

Called "PhotoPrint LT" Made for Printing, it allows you to use any AirPrint ready printer to print from your photo library and create 4×6 in postcards in minutes. But that's not all, you can also scale, mask and rotate photos straight from the app. Then, once you are done with editing you can either print your work, save it as PDF, or beam to someone as a PDF file.

 

The free version enables printing of a single photo per page, but if you pay $1.99 through in-app purchase, you will be able to push up to 4 photos on a single page. Simply select which photos you want, tap print and voila... you are done. When it comes to photo sizes, you can choose between 3.5×5 inches (9×13 cm), 4×6 inches (10×15 cm), 5×7 inches (13×18 cm), US Letter.

 

 

 

 

GetJar has spoiled us all, offering great paid apps for free. Now they are going one step forward, making this scheme official. The name of the game is GetJar Gold and it will give consumers free ongoing access to premium applications that they would have to pay for on other app stores.

 

The official pitch goes like this (from the press release):

The same premium Android apps that cost up to $10 on Android Market or Amazon App Store are offered free as part of GetJar Gold. New premium apps are added to GetJar Gold every day and remain on the store. All apps are available for download at no cost, saving consumers potentially hundreds of dollars over time. With 30 million active monthly users, GetJar is set to give away millions of dollars worth of apps.

 

 

 

Google has once again updated its Maps app for Android. Version 5.10.0 does not bring a whole lot to the table its mostly about reviews, allowing you to see places you have rated 4 and 5 stars right on the map view. Now when you are writing a review, you will be able to attach a photo alongside text.

You will be definitely prompted to update and since we like to keep your softwares up to date. Enjot the New Version