Android Wear has been on our wrists for some time now, and there are now enough apps out there to provide users with a somewhat daunting amount of choice. So, how do you know which music controller is really better than Google’s? Which app is the best for keeping track of those runs and walks? Hopefully, a new monthly Top 10 will help answer those questions as well, in the future, highlight some of the more interesting an unique Android Wear apps. So, let’s get started, shall we?
Wear Mini Launcher
An essential download that many of you already know of, Wear Mini Launcher is the best way of accessing other apps on your Android Wear watch. Sure, we can just use a voice command, but let’s face it there are times we’re going to look a little weird doing that. Instead, you can just drag the draw out and quickly find that app you were looking for. You can customize things in the settings app on your phone so that you see more apps in the grid and so on. There’s also a second pull-out drawer to control things on your phone like WiFi and such.
Facer
I’ve spent quite a lot of time with Facer and I recently covered it in our weekly smartwatch feature. Now, the app has finally left the beta stages and is now just a simple download from the Play Store. Facer is essentially a way to create the perfect watch face for your Android Wear watch, be it circular or square in shape. You create watches with different text, different layers of colors and so on to create something that you can truly call your own. The real fun however, is in sharing these creations with other Facer users and coming across other designs that you wouldn’t have thought of.
Allthecooks
Cookpad Recipes is the app version of allthecooks, a service for well, cooking. Cookpad Recipes has a massive selection of different recipes available and if you’re the type that likes to try new things, then this is great for you. Android Wear support has been worked in really quite well, all you need to do is to send a recipe to your way and you can see all the steps from there, which is really quite convenient. Don’t worry about getting your watch dirty, either as they’re all waterproof and such, so you can just go ahead and rinse them off!
Runtastic
Runtastic is an excellent all round platform for helping you keep motivated and log all those miles you clock in. Of course, it’s an app that’s only really going to be much use to those that either do a lot of walking or running, but there are support for other sports as well. If you use Runtastic already, you’ll know that it’s great on phones, tablets, the web and now your wrist. For those looking to keep track of their timing, their distances and more, Runtastic on Android Wear becomes another card in your stack, updates in real time and is a nice and simple way of keeping on top of your stats while on the move. We chose Runtastic over Runkeeper here because Runtastic isn’t just one app, it’s an entire platform to help whip you into shape and keep you that way.
Tweening
So, you want a watch face for your Android Wear that’s digital, doesn’t get in the way of those pesky cards and suits the already pretty stylish look of Android Wear? Oh, an you didn’t want to build it yourself? That’s fine, because Tweening is the watch face you were looking for. I’ve been using Tweening for ages now, and I love it, it’s minimal yet good-looking, a great digital face and it displays the date as well. Best of all, it doesn’t get in the way of those pesky cards either, so you can go ahead and use your watch the way you always used to. Until Google produce the official Watch Face API to maybe get those cards under control, Tweening is the most stylish, like-for-like replacement I’ve come across.
Music Boss for Wear
For keen music listeners, Music Boss takes over your watch face (while still telling you the time, of course) and offers excellent control over the playing music or whatever else you might want to add to it. With gestures, you can swipe left, right, up or down to skip or change the volume. Being able to change the volume while on the move is a pretty nice feature, and one I sorely missed from Google’s own music player on Wear. You can also see how far into a song you are and there are other settings in the menu as well.
Small Wearables
Small Wearables is a collection of small apps that are straight and to the point utilities that aren’t exactly flashy, but they do the job and they’re very useful. The Twitter app included here will be great for those habitual retweeters and the ability to quickly show snaps to friends on your wrist is pretty nifty too. Included is also a way to find your phone if you’ve misplaced it (within range of course) and it’s altogether a nice selection of very handy utilities.
Evernote for Android Wear
If you’r already an avid Evernote user and you’ve just picked up an Android Wear watch, then you’ll be happy to hear that their Android Wear app is really quite good. Obviously something that those always on the move will find more useful than other, Evernote on your wrist can help you quickly add notes to an existing list as well as get access to pertinent notes that relate to where you are and so on. It could also be that push you were looking for to really start organizing everything now that you’ll be able to easily access it from your wrist.
Wear Tip Calculator
Let’s assume that you go out to dinner a lot and then let’s also consider that you’re a discerning tipper, who works in percentages, rather than just random pieces of change from your pocket. What’s that? You’re Math is awful? Well here comes Wear Tip Calculator, which is actually one of many similar apps, to help you easily calculate how much you should tip, including splitting that bill and tip with your friends. It’s a really slick app and it works just as advertised. For Android Wear, this is one of the few uses we’ve seen that actually makes a lot of sense, and a great way of showing off your fancy new gadget as well.
Wear App Manager
So, you’ve gone ahead and installed all kinds of apps and watch faces on to your shiny new watch. Problem is, some of them (read:most) don’t have an icon in your phones’s app drawer, so what do you do? It’s boring having to scroll through hundred of other apps from the settings menu. Enter Wear App Manager, a slick and easy way to see what’s taking up what on your wearable as well as the ability to uninstall just apps installed on your watch, rather than having to sift through all of your apps in one place. It’s simple, easy to work and does exactly what you want it to.