25 Awesome Android Apps For Your New Device

App Avalanche

Android app developers were busy in 2015, delivering a cavalcade of clever phone and tablet apps to help boost productivity, launch a startup, stay safe and keep you from getting bored while you're waiting to board your plane.

Developers also gave Android owners some ammo to fire back at snarky Apple iOS device users who perpetually boast about their exclusive iOS apps. This past year, not only was the list of Android apps impressive, but many apps were exclusive to the Android platform. Take that, iPhone users.

New Android apps came from a variety of companies. Intel and Microsoft released Android apps to keep you connected to your work while on the go. Newcomers such as UberConference released apps aimed at disrupting how conference calls are managed. Even Apple released an Android app to lure Android users into its walled garden of services.

Here is a look at the top apps that were new to Android in 2015, along with a look at apps that are exclusive to the Android platform.

Mirrativ

There are dozens of desktop apps for sharing your PC's screen, but how come there seems to be a dearth of apps for sharing your smartphone's screen? That's where DeNa comes in with a new app called Mirrativ.

This app lets you live stream anything on your phone's screen -- from videos to business utilities, online chat sessions to games -- to other live viewers. Participants can interact with live streams via stickers and real-time messaging. The app also comes with an option that allows you to embed a picture-in-picture face camera, so viewers can not only see the screen being shared, but also the expression on the user's face.

Price: Free

JustWatch

With Redbox, Netflix, Apple TV and hordes of premium cable TV channels, figuring out where a movie that just stopped playing at the Cineplex can be seen next becomes a daunting task. JustWatch, launched in early 2015, helps you identify where you can buy or rent movies or TV shows online. JustWatch can sift through the myriad viewing options and send you a list of which one has the cheapest rental or download deals.

JustWatch has some handy links to IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes for reviews and even has a section called "price drop" so you can score last-minute deals on movies.

Price: Free

Intel Remote Keyboard

Intel released a curious Android app this year called Intel Remote Keyboard, which allows you to turn your Android smartphone into a touchpad mouse or keyboard for your PC or any Windows 10 device. The app was originally designed for Intel's Mini PC, but will work fine with any Windows computer. To use the Intel Remote Keyboard, just install the app and make sure the PC and Android device are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.

Price: Free

Unclouded

If you're like most cloud-savvy desk jockeys, you've got files stashed on multiple cloud storage services. That can get you into trouble, as cloud-storage sprawl gets out of hand and you can't remember what accounts you signed up for and which cache of documents is where.

Unclouded is a great tool to help you untangle and manage your various cloud drives in one place. The app supports Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, Box, Mega and more.

Price: Free

Apple Music For Android

Is up down, and is down up? Perennial Android hater Apple unveiled a new Android app in 2015 called Apple Music for Android. The app, as the name suggests, links Android users to Apple's struggling Apple Music service. Apple Music, for those living under an Android rock, is Apple's version of streaming music service Spotify. There isn't a big difference, unless you're a Taylor Swift fan. Apple just secured an exclusive deal with the pop megastar for her "1989" world tour film and it will be the only place where fans can stream Taylor Swift's full catalog of albums and songs.

Price: Free

Glympse

Location management is taken to a new personal level with Glympse. The app allows you to simply share your location with a set group of people for a set period of time. To use the app, team members simply text or email one another with a link that they can use to track you or themselves. The app allows team members to view a dynamic map that updates team members' whereabouts in real time. The service uses a phone's GPS capabilities and allows participants to choose who they want to see their location, when and for how long. This is great for teams that want to stop asking, "Where are you now?"

Price: Free

UberConference

Say goodbye to juggling phone calls among multiple team members on your mobile phone. With UberConference, you can host an unlimited number of conference calls with up to 10 callers at a time – hassle-free. The app allows you to create instant conference calls simply by selecting from a group of contacts and choosing a meeting time. The real beauty of UberConfence is that, because it's an app with an interface that shows participants, it doesn't require awkward PIN numbers or having to ask, "Who just joined?" UberConfence also offers free conference call recordings.

Price: Free

SyncSpace

When words fail us in a business meeting, what do we do? We go to the whiteboard. But that's impossible when you're working with clients or colleagues in far-flung offices. SyncSpace gives you the ability to share a virtual whiteboard in seconds. SyncSpace is a real-time virtual whiteboard that allows you and participants to quickly and easily share a virtual environment to diagram, doodle and scribble a shared first draft of that million-dollar idea.

Price: Free

Muzei

Why put up with the same old home screen when there are countless great options? Answer: If you're like most, you're too lazy to change it. Muzei, which is exclusive to the Android platform, automates updating your home screen to something new every day. Muzei calls its app a way to deliver a "living museum" to your Android. It acts as a curator of great works of art, updating the home screen with rotating masterpieces from artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, Paul Cezanne and August Renoir.

Price: Free

FoxFi

Some wireless carriers don't allow you to turn your phone into a wireless hot spot or charge you an arm and a leg for the privilege. The workaround is FoxFi. The Android-exclusive app allows you to turn any Android phone into a wireless hot spot, making it easy to eschew any restrictions your wireless carrier may have -- as well as skip the premium charges.

Price: Free

DeaDBeeF Player

If you're a digital audiophile, settling for mp3-quality sound is like a beer connoisseur settling for Bud Light. The free Android app DeaDBeeF is a handy music player that supports the audio formats mp3, ogg, aac/mp4, alac/mp4, flac, ape, wv, wav, tta, mpc, sid, mod, s3m, nsf and more. The app includes a 10-band equalizer along with a ton of audio tweaking tools to make your music sound just the way it should -- perfect.

Price: Free

DropBox

DropBox isn't new to the Android platform. But its latest update is like a big breath of fresh air. After five years of languishing, DropBox has given its Android app a major UI overhaul with intuitive design, excellent file-synchronization features, the ability to send large files without having to rely on attachments and the ability to edit Microsoft Office documents.

Price: Free

PicsArt Photo Studio

Eat your heart out, Photoshop. PicsArt Photo Studio is a full-featured image-editing app that offers a bevy of photo effects, support for layers, drawing tools and much more. The app, which is free to download and costs $6 to activate in-app purchases, has more than 100 effects, ranging from collage maker to advanced brushes, and text and sticker overlays.

Price: Free

Flickr

We all know Flickr, Yahoo's popular photo sharing service. But Yahoo recently turned Flickr from a "me-too" photo app into a shutterbug's best friend. Flickr announced that every user would receive a free terabyte of storage. The announcement coincided with a total overhaul of its Android app. Added to the app were clever photo and video tools with a huge interface upgrade, making image archiving, light editing and organizing a snap. The app can also now be used to automatically back up photos from your phone.

Price: Free

AppLock Face/Voice Recognition

As the name suggests, the app AppLock Face/Voice Recognition is a password alternative for smartphones that allows you to use the camera and microphone on your Android device for access. This app, exclusive to the Android platform, also adds a layer of protection and allows you to create a "liveness" feature through which you can add facial movements -- wink, smile, frown or puffed cheeks -- to thwart anyone who is trying to gain access to your phone via a picture of you.

Price: Free

AirDroid

AirDroid links your smartphone to your computer using a shared Wi-Fi network and allows you to quickly and easily swap files -- no cords required. On top of swapping files, the app allows you to receive and send text messages from your phone via your PC and get notifications received on your Android phone.

Price: Free

Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint

Microsoft, after years of letting its ecosystem on the Android platform languish, decided 2015 was the year to up its Android game. Microsoft has given major updates to its core Office applications Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Updates are deep and vast, and include the ability to create, edit and review documents. The service, with ties to Microsoft's OneDrive cloud storage locker, gives much needed portability to its Office franchise to the millions of Android users who rely on Microsoft's platform.

Price: Free

HoverChat

If you're a multitasking maniac who also happens to be a text-oholic, then you'll love HoverChat. This Android-exclusive app creates a translucent chat window on top of whatever application you use. This allows you to text while you're watching a video or Web surfing. HoverChat allows you to decide how transparent you want the texting window to be and how large the screen should be.

Price: Free

Twitter Periscope

Twitter hit a home run this year with the introduction of Periscope. The application allows you to live broadcast to the world anything you can point your smartphone camera at. The only catch is you must have a reliable Internet connection. Even if you're not up for becoming a Periscope star, the app is extremely addictive, allowing you to watch live (and recently recorded) broadcasts by millions of Periscopers, from celebrities to everyday people in every nook and cranny around the globe.

Price: Free

Cortana

There is a glut of virtual personal assistants, from Google's Now service to Apple's Siri, Amazon's Alexa and now Microsoft's Cortana. Recently launched on the Android platform, Cortana is Microsoft's very adept virtual assistant with deep hooks into the Microsoft universe of tools such as the Outlook calendar, Bing search and the Edge browser.

Things you can do with Cortana on your Android phone include hands-free, voice-activated searching of the Web via Bing, setting appointments on your calendar, sending you reminders, and finding local restaurants and businesses.

Price: Free

MightyText

MightyText is another app that allows you to send and receive text messages using your computer. Simply install the app on your Android phone. Next, MightyText instructs you to visit a special Web page that allows you not only to text, but to gain access to your phone's photos, videos and contacts. MightyText works by routing SMS messages via your phone. Unlike AirDroid, MightyText creates an account and syncs your user information (contacts and images) with the service. The upside is that MightyText is easier to get started with using than AirDroid. The downside: MightyText might not be the best match for anyone nervous about sharing contact information with a third party.

Price: Free

Cardboard Camera

Google Cardboard is a fun and affordable way to experience virtual reality using your smartphone. But now, Google is allowing anyone to get into the content-creation game for the virtual-reality cardboard goggles. Called Cardboard Camera, the app allows you to capture and create 360-degree panoramas. You can view those images in Google Cardboard for a completely immersive experience.

Price: Free

Humin

Smart address book app Humin reorganizes your contacts in a more intuitive way as opposed to that sprawling alphabetized list. Humin organizes contacts using criteria such as proximity to you and how often you contact the person. It analyzes contacts based on a "connection graph" that taps Gmail, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to gauge relevance to your personal and professional life. The idea is that Humin creates enough context around an individual that you don't have to remember the person's name. Instead, you can just ask Humin to find people by mentioning the name of a company they work for or where they live or the last time you met.

Humin just became available on the Android platform and you can download it at the Google Play alternative app store MoboMarket.

Price: Free

Office Lens

Office Lens is a handy app for those times you take a picture of someone else's PowerPoint slide or whiteboard diagram. Office Lens has tools for cleaning up the image, cropping it and then converting the image to PDF, PowerPoint or Word document formats to share with colleagues or for archiving. Switch Office Lens into Business Card mode and you can use the app to take a picture of a business card and have the app's OCR reader extract names, addresses and phone numbers and automatically update your address book.

Price: Free

Hyperlapse Mobile

This is a very cool app for creating time-lapse videos using your smartphone. You set how often you want Hyperlapse Mobile to snap a picture. Ideas for Hyperlapses include: a bike ride or hike, a museum trip or an excursion to the mall. The magic behind Hyperlapse is how Microsoft, the publisher of the app, manages to make the final video "dreamily smooth."

Price: Free

Fringe Apps: Snap Me Up & Mistaken

Sometimes apps have just the right mix of stupid and what-the-heck to make you bite. That could be the case with these two bonus apps, Snap Me Up and Mistaken.

Snap Me Up is an alarm app for people who like selfies. With Snap Me Up, the only way you can turn the alarm off is by snapping a selfie.

Price: Free

Mistaken is a photo-sharing app with a very weird twist: You take a photo and never get to see it. Instead it is delivered to the phone of a stranger, who also will share a picture with you.

Price: Free