TuneWiki Limited

This week’s Android listings were again dominated by games. The most interesting thing to note is the position of Zombie Farm. Last week the Mobage frontrunner had only just managed to crack the top 50 of the free app charts, and this week it is firmly in the middle of the top grossing charts, picking up hundreds of thousands of installs in the process. (Update) Life is Crime – When we last checked in with Red Robot Labs’ location based social game, it was the number #18 top grossing app. Three weeks later, Life is Crime is now in the #6 position.  While Booyah and CrowdMob were first to tackle the location-based RPG genre, Red Robot Labs looks like it may be able to hold onto its early success, overcoming the difficulty of creating a new social gaming ecosystem from the ground up with a pool of players artificially limited by their location. Life is Crime is free-to-play and monetizes through via in-app purchases. iMobsters - The #17 top grossing app this week is Storm8’s iMobsters, a mobile MMO and the the next closest competitor to the quickly rising Life is Crime. Boasting 1.6 million players, iMobsters challenges players to start their own gangs and recruit other players into their ranks as they try to become the undisputed Mafia Don of a virtual city. Installs of iMobsters have been steadily rising for the past 30 days, and as with Life is Crime, the game is free-to-play and monetizes through in-app purchases. (Update) Zombie Farm – What a difference a week makes. The day after Ngmoco went on the defensive about the Android version of Mobage, the proof seems to be in the pudding. Zombie Farm, one of the first titles on the new network has shot up to the #23 spot on the Android top grossing charts now showing almost a million total installs. The Farmville-meets-Plants Vs. Zombies game is a big hit for developer Playforge on iOS and it was popular enough that the San Mateo-based company is trying to extend the franchise with Zombie Life. Tap Ranch – Moving all the way down to the #42 spot is Gameview’s Tap Ranch, a farming sim that challenges players to build a successful and profitable farm from the ground up, starting with just one cow and a small plot of land. Players can grow more than 22 varieties of crops, and Read More

After successfully conquering the iOS market, TuneWiki is launching Lyric Legend for Android, challenging users to remember some of the greatest lyrics ever written. Currently in Beta, the game is free to download from the Android Market, featuring seven free songs from some of today’s hottest artists: The All-American Rejects, Metric, London to Tokyo, Awesome New Republic, Andy Grammer, We the Kings and Airborne Toxic Event. Additional songs and artists are available to download including Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Owl City, Drake, The XX and many more for 80 gold notes (the in-game currency). 80 gold notes cost $0.99 and can be earned through gameplay or purchased via the music store. In the game, you play by hitting the word orbs in the correct order, and in time to the music, to progress to the next level. By perfecting the lyrics, you get to climb up the rankings competing against other players from all over the world. For the record, Lyric Legend for iPhone has crossed 1.8 million downloads since its launch in August 2010. Move Along by The All-American Rejects is the top song with over 1 million registered scores… Dusan has been using smartphones since their introduction and is now following the latest trends in the industry. The "convergence" is what he's most excited about, and writing about it is the next logical thing to do. He thinks that using a smartphone is what everyone who cares about their time should do. In addition to his interests in mobile phones, Dusan also loves to experiment with the latest web and mobile 2.0 services. The idea of accessing and managing your information from any device no matter where you are simply amazes him. Whether it's an online to-do list, note taking service or a video sharing social network, he's there to try it out. He admits though, he's still searching for the ultimate web-based organizational tool, which "sings" perfectly with the mobile PIM application. Dusan used to run SymbianWatch.com which later became part of IntoMobile. He lives in Serbia, South-East Europe, from where he edits the site on a daily basis. Read More

Every so often, Android’s Market is graced with a premier app once reserved for iPhone users. Brands like Netflix often take longer to release Android versions due to the separate requirements for Google’s mobile OS, but when the long-awaited apps finally hit the Android Market, it’s always a good sign. Also moving to validate Android’s marketplace is ESPN, with a live-streaming app to keep up with sports news and game updates. Netflix has finally made its way to the Android Market, representing a defining move for the company and Google’s mobile marketplace. With accessibility being Netflix’s competitive advantage, an established presence on Android is a necessary move, albeit not a swift one. Launched late last week, the Netflix app is initially limited to a handful of Android devices, including the HTC Incredible and Evo 4G, as well as the Nexus One and Nexus S, all requiring Android 2.2 or higher. Access your movie queue, resume films where you left off, and generally enjoy the app’s vast catalog of movies and TV shows whenever, and wherever you want. WatchESPN delivers live streaming access to events and programs, letting you take the familiar news desk with you on the go. From the NBA Playoffs to The Masters, you’ll get up-to-the-minute news, highlights and analysis with this newly released app. Your favorite shows, including SportsCenter, PTI, SportsNation and Mike & Mike are streamed through this app as well. Navigate to news about your favorite team, staying abreast of the updates that matter to you. As with many cable-gone-mobile channels, ESPN is limited to Bright House and Time Warner customers, though Verizon FIOS and High Speed Internet users can access the full content of this app as well. You’ll also need Adobe AIR to run WatchESPN -- the restrictions are high, but the end-result is worth it. Next Issue brings Android tablet users a collection of magazines, which can be purchased as individual issues or periodical subscriptions. The magazine titles are a short stack in this preview app, but Android users are hopeful for more publications to catch on to the tablet craze. Unfortunately Next Issue is only available for Samsung Galaxy tablets, offered through Verizon’s Vcast app store. But Next Issue’s preview launch is significant because it looks to bring Android tablets on par with the iPad, attracting publishers to the digital forefront. Until Next Issue extends its Android device support list, try Issuu Read More

The Android version of the TuneWiki music player has been updated today, including much more in the way of social networking features to help users share stuff. And make friends. It supports visual skins, streaming in song lyrics, geo-specific charts and location-aware features, sharing and much more. It’s for people who don’t only listen to the same 50 Pet Shop Boys MP3s over and over and over again. We got sent a test version of this. But didn’t try it. Sorry about that, only we’re not really into the new types of music or talking to other people. Looks good, though. It’s up on the Android Market now if you are young and into new experiences. Here’s the press release: TuneWiki Energizes the Mobile Music Experience with the Launch of its New Social Music Player The innovative TuneWiki Social Music Player creates the premiere social music destination on your mobile device with all-new discovery and sharing features Santa Monica, Calif., May 18, 2011 – TuneWiki announced that its new Social Music Player, launching today on the Android platform, offers the most expansive set of features ever seen in a mobile music player. In its simplest form, users can enjoy the new player to listen to music while viewing synchronized lyrics. For those looking for deeper and more social engagement, TuneWiki also offers an extensive and immersive set of discovery features new to music services, including the ability to create a unique and personalized music profile that can be shared with their friends. TuneWiki’s Social Music Player, with a completely re-designed user interface, continues to offer its award-winning feature for real-time, subtitled lyrics that are displayed while users listen to their music. Lyrics are instantly translated into more than 40 languages, maintaining TuneWiki’s role as the global lyrics resource for music lovers. Users can still seamlessly connect to other streaming radio apps such as SHOUTcast™, music videos, on-demand services, and TuneWiki’s best-selling music game, Lyric Legend. Users can now also download the beta version of a new desktop application on http://www.tunewiki.com that provides synchronized lyrics and the ability to sync music from a desktop library to a mobile device. Creating the ultimate destination for music discovery, the new Social Music Player allows TuneWiki users to view and sample songs that others are listening to around the world through Song Maps or by exploring the geo-specific Top 50 charts. Users can find their Read More

For many of us who remember a time before iTunes, our first digital music player was Winamp. So when I saw Winamp release its Android app, I have to admit I downloaded out of nostalgia. I wasn't impressed at first, but an update improved the interface and functionality enough to make it one of the best free players available. Its key feature: wireless syncing with your Winamp desktop library. Of course, that requires you to be using Winamp on your computer, but even if you're not it's still better than the stock player. Shoutcast radio is built in, so you have access to more than 40,000 Internet radio stations, free music downloads, and persistent player controls for controlling what you're listening to from any screen. Also, it's integrated with Android's "listen to" voice action, giving you a hands-free way to call up music on your device and start playing. March 31, 2011 2:47 PM PDT Photo by: Screenshot by Joshua Goldman/CNET | Caption by: Joshua Goldman Read More

As great as Android is, the default experience and app selection can be a little bit... dull. A little bit... Windows 95. The standard Android email client is basically just a list of text, as is the SMS client. And while the WebKit browser is fast and free, it doesn't exactly lead the curve when it comes to offering interesting things to fiddle with or a genre-defining feature set. Even if you're using a phone layered down with a custom user interface like Sense, TouchWiz or that blue thing Sony Ericsson puts on its Android phones, there are many alternatives to your pre-installed tools and settings. And don't worry about experimenting - if you don't like the look of your new email client or browser, simply delete it - your old one will still be there. So, if you're after a bit of an OS refresh, these are our 10 favourite alternate Android apps. Add a few more options and some different colours to your phone. It's almost as good as blagging an upgrade. 1. Best keyboard for Android: SwiftKey Beta Just launched in beta a few weeks ago, SwiftKey is a larger, more useable alternate keyboard for Android, which introduces more text prediction options. It doesn't just predict the word you're typing, it also tries to guess the next word - letting users auto-type entire sentences. As long as you don't use too much flowery language. 2. Best Android email app: K-9 Mail The incredibly simplistic official Android email app is very bland - you get your emails, nothing more. K-9 Mail lets you edit fonts and colours, combine email inboxes, use gestures to page through your emails, also giving users the power to customise separate individual display options for each folder. It's a tinkerer's dream that's miles ahead of the Android default. 3. Best Android Facebook app: Bloo If you're a little fed up of the official Android Facebook app what with all its glitches and limited functionality and the way it often just doesn't work, give Bloo a go. It's the same, only different, plus the maker has announced a plan to completely rebuild and open-source it - so development of Bloo ought to power further ahead now the community has it. 4. Best Android home screen: ADW.Launcher Available in two versions on the Android market for both Android 1.6 and 2.x OS versions, ADW.Launcher is a complete Read More

Using your Android phone should be fun. Whether you own an early G1, use a Motorola Droid, or just picked up the new HTC Droid Incredible, you can grab plenty of fun apps that will keep you entertained. But with over 30,000 apps now available in the Android Market, finding the real gems can take a while. Here are our top ten entertainment essentials to get you started. Best of all, most of them are free. Read More

One of the ways around the issues of security and control that make some businesses wary of cloud computing is to build a private cloud -- one that remains within the corporate firewall and is wholly controlled internally. Private clouds also increase the agility of IT an organization's IT infrastructure and make it easier to roll out new technology projects. Download this eBook to get the facts behind the private cloud and learn how your organization can get started. Read More

One of the ways around the issues of security and control that make some businesses wary of cloud computing is to build a private cloud -- one that remains within the corporate firewall and is wholly controlled internally. Private clouds also increase the agility of IT an organization's IT infrastructure and make it easier to roll out new technology projects. Download this eBook to get the facts behind the private cloud and learn how your organization can get started. Download this Internet.com eBook to learn about the emerging trends in business intelligence, common mistakes, and leading business intelligence vendors. Read More

Android phones are rivaling the iPhone 4 now, so music apps are being released in droves. Here are some of the top music apps for your Android device, from personalized radio players to interactive apps. Pandora is a favorite Android app, with personal radio stations that play all your jams. Mark your preferences as you listen, so Pandora gets to know your music taste. Free, the app lets you set multiple stations, learn more about artists, and purchase songs for download. Rhapsody's on-demand music service will cost you about $9 per month, but consider it your endless library, with custom playlists. Listen to any song, anytime, anywhere. Rhapsody is also accessible through other outlets, such as the web, your cable box and more. Last.fm's Android app lets you access your existing account from your phone. Hear recommended songs and stations, set your preferences, and utilize the free app as a music discovery tool. You can't directly scrobble from your phone, but you can always get a good radio station playing. There's still no official Spotify Android app for American users, but there's hope! Spotify's mobile music app lets you listen to its large catalog of music, free. Music is searchable, and streams on demand. Sync it with your desktop app, download music for offline listening, and rewind, fast-forward, pause and skip tunes. TuneWiki makes music social, with wiki features for commenting and sharing song information. The free app is known for its lyric inclusions, which appear on all songs streamed through the player. See what others are listening to in real time, watch music videos, and share your favorite tunes with friends. DoubleTwist is like iTunes for Android, with a desktop and mobile app for accessing your music anytime. Import your music, and listen to it on your phone, with album art included. Similar to iTunes, you can navigate between artists, albums, songs, playlists and podcasts. Free, the DoubleTwist app also supports other media types, so you can watch videos. For something more visually enticing, try 3 (aka Cubed). The free app puts a 3D spin on your music player, making your listening experience more interactive. Swipe to find artists, and toggle between modes to determine how you want to navigate the app. The Concerts add-on lets you see nearby performances of artists in your collection. Shazam Encore brings unlimited features to music lovers, identifying a song in just a few Read More