MySettings offers Quick Access to Android Settings without Poking Around

MySettings is a superb and comprehensive settings application that provides a bright, clear interface and interactive toggles. While on the outside it looks like a functional although basic toggle interface, there are lots of extra options and information available. Obviously most of this information is available on your phone anyway should you search for it, but it draws all these resources together into a little app that packs quite a punch.
Price: Free, $2.99
Tested on: HTC Desire HD
Content Rating: Low maturity
Pros
Comprehensive variety of Settings options and information available in one resource.Brilliant and smooth UI.Simple to use.Fast and responsive.
Cons
The information is available on your phone already.
It is easy to dismiss apps like MySettings as merely applications that does nothing that your phone cannot do already with native features. While in a way this is true, it can still be a chore to look up say, battery usage statistics or find your torch light quickly. What MySettings does superbly is drawing all this information together into one very simple application.
Your view of the app is initially a grid-like set of toggle options: Ringer Mode, Brightness, Unlock pattern, Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, Sync, Rotate, Screen Timeout Airplane Mode, Cell location and Networks Modes. Each are either straightforward to toggle- such as WiFi and Airplane Mode, or instead present a quick overview of the various options related to that function. So, with Brightness there are 5 pre-set brightness options and a sliding scale to adjust brightness manually. Therefore the app enhances some of these options (My HTC Desire HD doesn’t have any such presets) in addition to making them easily accessible through the app interface.
MySettings also provides access to an assortment of relevant information; battery statistics, your unlock pattern settings and mobile network settings. I think what really stands out with this application is the smooth and responsive UI that presents all these settings in such a user-friendly way it’s hard to see why manufacturers haven’t adopted some of the simplistic principals here. While many users are extremely comfortable to change settings on their phone, Android is growing at a rapid rate and many new users are not going to be as initially savvy. In my opinion MySettings is an ideal application for such users to consider, or in fact anyone that would like a simpler and more straightforward interface. On top of all this the app can be easily hidden in the notifications panel (with or without icon), so accessing the app is a breeze.
If you are new to Android, MySettings will perhaps be a massively useful app to have. Everything you might need to adjust is right there, alongside extra features such as your torch light and battery information. Even more experienced users can appreciate the simplicity, convenience and user-friendly aspect of the app.
If there is a settings app that is simpler than this one I don’t think I have seen it. It neatly includes a range of functionality and setting options in a very simple interface. The ability to pop a shortcut to the app right there in your notifications bar is also incredibly easy to access.
Settings sometimes have to tweaked for all manner of reasons. Personally, if I am trying to preserve battery so I head to my settings to lower screen power consumption (my 4.3? screen can be a massive drain!), but also you might want to put the phone on silent or vibrate during meetings, etc. There are plenty of uses for the app so frequency of use is principally down to the user.
For me, the interface is the biggest draw of the app itself. You can do most of the settings yourself in the Android system, but MySettings brings all these together in a large, clear, smooth and polished interface. The tabs are responsive and fast, making adjustments becomes very straightforward indeed.

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GO FBWidget – Android Widget to Access Facebook for GO Launcher EX

GO FBWidget is one of the new GOWidgets that compliments GO Launcher EX, one of the most popular and praised home replacement apps on the Android Market. The widget is part of a growing family of add-ons for the launcher, which also includes Calendar, Messaging and Contacts. The app is pretty functional and may well be welcomed by GO Launcher EX fans. However, it has a host of limitations and problems which might put many off.
Price: Free
Tested on: HTC Desire HD
Content Rating: Everyone
Pros
Lets you see your timeline in a scrolling widget.Allows you to expand statuses and comment or ‘Like’.You can post pictures from your gallery.Able to view your own profile.
Cons
Unable to view friends’ profiles.Unable to customize the look of the widget.For some reason your own profile pic doesn’t come up.Scrolling can be a bit sluggish.No access to groups, etc.No access to your messages.
After recently adding a Twitter widget to their assembly of GO widgets, users now also have a Facebook widget. While quite basic, the widget lets you add posts and pictures in addition to scrolling through your Facebook stream. You can comment on or ‘Like’ your Facebook friends’ posts and, if needed, you can touch the top of the widget to link directly to the official Facebook app if you have it installed. The widget is quite nice and will look good if you also use any of the other GO widgets in the collection.
However, I have found the widget severely lacking. Firstly the widget comes in a slightly-lighter-than facebook blue (which contextually looks a bit strange), but then all the other GO widgets are in this color too. Which is actually one of the problems with the GO Widget family. While GO Dev team, and a variety of third party developers make some of the most unique and brilliant themes in the Android Market for GO Launcher EX, every widget comes in this dreary blue color and cannot be customized or changed. This is disappointing as it defeats the purpose of the theme if the widgets look completely out of place on the homescreen.
Aesthetics aside, the app doesn’t have much in the way of functions beyond the very basic. You cannot view your friends’ profiles nor can you access or view groups. Weirdly, when you look at your own profile- which is available- your profile picture doesn’t come up. Furthermore, you cannot access your private messages through the widget. I thought this was particularly strange seeing that you can view DMs on the new GO Twitter widget, but for some reason not the Facebook one. Lastly, scrolling through the widget is also a bit sluggish as it lags and freezes as it takes in the posts. While this normally might be forgiven a little, the Twitter GO widget did scroll well, without any of these problems.
GO FBWidget is a useful addition to the family of GO Widgets available for free in the Android Market. You can post updates and pictures quite easily as well as viewing all your friends statuses. Each status can be opened, commented on or ‘Liked’ quite easily too. However, with limited functionality and a glitchy slow interface, you are going to have to be pretty committed to use the app on the regular basis. I’m no fan of the official Facebook for Android app, but it’s widget is far superior to this.
The widget is pretty simple to use and should be familiar to most users. It’s significantly let down by lack of functionality however and you will probably find yourself having to use the mobile website or the official Facebook app in order to do a lot of things.
If you don’t use Facebook much and only post the occasional update, this might suit you down to the ground. But more frequent users will rightly become frustrated by the lack of functionality and glitchy interface and switch to another app.
The interface is at least viewable and it’s easy to follow people’s updates. However the sluggish manner in which the widget scrolls make for a disappointing experience. It’s just that the widget is so limited, you cannot expect much from it.

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Twitter GOWidget – Android Widget to Access Twitter for GO Launcher EX

Twitter GOWidget is one of the new widgets available for GO Launcher EX, one of the most popular launchers on the Android platform and available in the market for free. Twitter GOWidget is a 4×4 homescreen widget that shows your twitter feed. Despite being a mere add-on for the main launcher, the app has a quite a few features and will surely be worth a consideration for anyone running GO Launcher EX.
Price: Free
Tested on: HTC Desire HD
Content Rating: Everyone
Pros
Lets you post, reply, retweet, favourite and message.Switch between Timeline, Mentions and Messages views.Post pictures from your phone.Quick and responsive.Scrollable.
Cons
No customizations.Does not support multiple accounts.Unable to view follower profiles.Unable to view lists.Posting pictures is a bit of a lottery.
Despite Twitter GOWidget being simply another add-on for the popular GO Launcher EX home replacement application, the app has a good number of features. The first thing you notice is how quick it is; it certainly felt quicker than using the official Twitter app. The timeline updates promptly and scrolling down to previous tweets is very zippy, even the pictures of those you follow.
Aside from the speediness, you can do most of the things you would expect; reply to posts, retweet them, add them to your favourites and send/recieve private messages. You can switch between timeline, mentions and messages fluidly and easily using the tab on the top right of the widget and everything feels quite intuitive and easy to use. You can post photos, although I found this a bit hit and miss. Some would post, others wouldn’t.
Unfortunately, perhaps due to the fact this isn’t a fully featured app, rather a widget add-on, there is limited funtionality overall. You cannot view lists or follower profiles. Like I have argued in other reviews of GO widgets, there is no customization- the widgets have a blue border and there is no way to alter this if your GO Launcher EX theme doesn’t suit it. The font size in Twitter GOWidget didn’t bother me, but for some it might be a bit on the small size for some and there is no means to increase this.
I’m certain the widget will be popular with fans of GO Launcher EX and it’s another in a growing list of widgets specifically for the launcher. It does a job, is fast, fluid, smooth and responsive. While it lacks the features and interface of fuller apps, see for example Plume or Tweetdeck for Android, it performs well and is very stable.
For GO Launcher EX users who use Twitter, this app will be a great addition to the widgets available. Posting is simple and great for tweeting on the go. For more serious and regular users of Twitter however, it might be a little on the basic side; forget having multiple accounts or viewing full profiles for example. It’s a nice little add-on but lacks the usefulness of more dedicated Twitter apps.
The speed and ease of use are the highlights of the app. I did find posting pictures a bit tricky- it was easy to do, but sometimes the pics did not post, meaning I had to find other ways of posting.
I think if you are an occasional tweeter this app will suit your fine. If say you post once or twice a day then perhaps this would be ideal. However, if you use Twitter more than that, you might find the widget a little restrictive and perhaps not your go-to Twitter client of choice.
The interface is quite simple and very much in flavour of the other GO Widgets. Functional, quick and simple to get your head around. The font size might be an issue for some people and the lack of customizations is a real drag for those of us who like our homescreens to look right.

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