App Name: TweetDeck for Android Beta by Tweetdeck.
Description: TweetDeck for Android Beta connects you with your social network contacts.
How it Works: Tweetdeck for Android Beta is similar to the other Twitter apps however for anyone who uses Tweetdeck Desktop it integrates Twitter with Facebook, Buzz and FourSquare contacts so you can see them all on columns that you set up on the app.
The app is just an beta right now so it isn’t available on the Android Market. To take advantage of the beta you log into your Tweetdeck account at http://www.tweetdeck.com/api/android_whitelist/ and also you should followTweetdeck for any new updates to the beta.
Once you are set up, you can add any of those social networks you want. It gives you 3 columns; ‘Home’ which is the main column showing all tweets, Facebook posts and other posts like Foursquare. You also have the ‘Me’ column which is for @mentions with Twitter and the column for Direct Messages. You can more columns such as for individual tweeps or search items such as ‘Android.’ As you accumulate more posts it shows a yellow bar on the side to let you know how much is unread posts.
With the updated beta 0.9.2 and up you have the option to change the font size and you can tweet it too. The pics with this review are showing version 0.9.2 however there is an update to 0.9.3 which gives some minor updates.
Since this is a beta keep track of any issues or good additions to make Tweetdeck for Android a better app cause that why the beta is out there for the Android masses.
The maps feature doesn’t show my location but shows downtown Tulsa instead and there isn’t a way to update it in the app. So I’m assuming it isn’t a full feature yet.
Opinion: For a beta app this is pretty good, I haven’t had many issues that can’t be adjusted and some have been addressed with the last 2 updates so the Tweetdeck team is dedicated to making this app rock. I was waiting on bated breath like a lot of the Android community for this app because I love Tweetdeck for Desktop, however when comparing this to other Twitter apps the only difference is the fact of being able to see Facebook and FourSquare posts. I’m not a big Facebook person and as one of my tweeps stated he already gets that from the Facebook widget. And one issue I have come across is I can’t log into Foursquare on the Android app, so while this app is very nice it is limited in the usability for me right now.
Ratings:
- Speed(4/5) – It keeps up with the posts without any lag
- Features(3.5/5) – It has most of the features of Tweetdeck for Desktop but it is missing some of the column options like Scheduled Updates or New Followers. Could also use a widget in the future.
- Theme (4/5) – The theme likes pretty identical to Tweetdeck for Desktop
- Overall (4/5) – It’s a beta so it still needs work but right now it pretty good.
Pro:
- This looks like a mobile version of Tweetdeck for Desktop.
- Updates quickly.
- Unlimited columns
Cons:
- Needs a widget
- Signing in issues for FourSquare
- No map feature yet
Overall: This app is just getting better with each update so all the cons I stated can easily be added with future updates so with those additions this app will only grow stronger.