Naturally, no one can force you to switch to another phone. But if you’ve found that the iPhone isn’t working for your personal situation, you might want to think about getting a nice Android phone and just transitioning from iPhone to Android outright.

One of the biggest things that may be different as you go from iPhone to Android is using Gmail by default. If you want to keep using a webmail service like Hotmail, you certainly can. However, Gmail is seriously integrated into Android, which isn’t going to go away anytime soon. You have to sign in with a Google account or create one when you initialize your Android for the first time, so you might as well get an account anyway.

From there, you will need to think about your contacts in your iPhone. The last thing that you want to do is lose your contacts, but you don’t have to go without them. You just need to make sure that you sync the contacts to your computer first through the iTunes app (which you should have if you have an iPhone!). There are instructions on Google’s website that go into more detail on this, but you basically go into your iPhone settings menu and sync contacts with your Google account.

Making the transition from iPhone to Android is a bit more complicated than just settings. It does require getting used to having things in different places, and also having the ability for more buttons to be used instead of being all touchscreen all the time. You will still have plenty of applications to choose from, so it’s not like you’re going to lose all the goodness from iPhone that you were used to.

Overall, the transition isn’t as painful as some super iPhone fans would make you believe. If you really take a few steps at the beginning to save your contacts and get started with email, you will have no trouble getting the most out of your Android phone!

Yes, but it’s much more than that. The speeds can get pretty incredible, depending on the carrier you’re talking about. For example, Sprint’s 4G network runs on EV-DO, which naturally is CDMA/TDMA dependent. However, the latest version can reach speeds approaching 3.1 Mb/s. That’s not a slow data connection at all — videos get to your phone faster, web sites get to your phone faster, and transfers are pretty painless. Sprint has been rapidly expanding their 4G network, which means that as more phones that support the new generation become available, you’ll actually be able to take advantage of that speed.

When it comes to phones on the Android platform that support 4G at this time, your choices are a bit limited to start with. However, the Android trend has swelled in popularity to the point that it’s fast becoming the best selling smartphone around — giving BlackBerry and iPhone something to think about for sure!

As mentioned before, your choices are pretty much the Sprint EVO 4G and the Samsung Epic that has not yet been released. That won’t be released for another few weeks, but it’s part of the Samsung Galaxy S series. It’s called the Samsung Epic, and it will also be offered for Sprint networks.

Does that mean that T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T are staying out of the Android craze and the 4G frenzy? Definitely not, but it looks like they’re focusing more on spreading out their network before they jump forward with more phones. They could pick up the Epic for their network in a GSM version, if Samsung feels there’s enough demand for it.

Is it time for you to upgrade to 4G? Well, if you’re someone that really cares about speed, it’s definitely something to consider. Going 4G will make things a lot faster, but if you’re not due for a handset upgrade, you might want to think about whether or not you really have an extra hundred or two burning a hole in your pocket. If not, stick with 3G — 3G support is pretty strong now, so you shouldn’t have a problem.

Indeed, Kindle for Amazon truly does give Amazon customers more options than ever before. The app is free from Amazon, and has several interesting features that are worth mentioning.

For starters, the app saves the last pages that you read on your Kindle and immediately marks that spot in the new app. It’s done via Whispersync, their special synchronization feature that truly makes your Kindle books more portable. There might be times where you need to leave your Kindle at home or leave it with someone else. This would still give you the ability to read all of your Kindle books without missing a beat. Turning your Android phone into a second Kindle through this app is actually quite clever, and gives you the ability to never miss reading your favorite books and magazines.

One of the first concerns about the Kindle for Android app was whether or not the books would resize themselves for the difference in screen space. After all, you’re getting a bit less space on an Android phone than you are with the actual Kindle. Howe3ver, that concern is unnecessary — Kindle for Amazon does indeed adjust everything — from the text size to the bookmark view — to fit your Android phone.

Even though the app was first created to support the current library that you have, you don’t have to live with never being able to buy another Kindle book again. You can go directly to the Kindle store from the Kindle for Amazon app and pick out new books whenever you like. You will still pay the same flat 9.99 for each book, which means that you won’t have to worry about any hidden charges just because you’re using a different app.

Overall, the Kindle for Android really gives you more options about how to interact with your Kindle books, but you have to check out the app in order to unlock the benefits!

Indeed, eyeSight is not a native Android application, but something that had the libraries ported over to the Android platform. It’s just another example of how flexible Android really is — developers are really getting into moving things over to Android and then working on making them even better than they were on other platforms.

But that’s enough Android praise — you probably want to know what the eyeSight actually can do for you, right?

Right. The eyeSight system allows for the creation of Android apps that can change tracks, selectively choose which calls to answer and which ones to ignore, and show all your text messages with a simple wave of the hand.

Google has been rumored to be interested in the technology, but it looks like nothing has been announced on that front about doing anything with the technology as far as making it an official part of the standard development package.

Why report on something that’s still in its infant stages? Well, a lot of great technologies started out in this form. The eyeSight platform has a lot of potential to really change the way you interact with your phone. For example, the ability to simply use your hands and gesture at your phone will remove a lot of the accidental damage problems that plague cell phones in general. A quick example can be found in the moments where our hands are busy doing other things, like taking something out the oven or working with sticky flour. Instead of trying to wait for the perfect moment where your hands aren’t busy, you can simply gesture quickly and go back to taking care of the other things in your life.

Anything that takes away from the distractions of life without adding to them is definitely a good thing. Will developers get the message and develop something other than a fart detecting app? Only time will tell.

Twidroid

For the Twitter-heads Android offers Twidroid which is a mobile application to the social networking giant Twitter (obviously). Even though it currently lacks the support for multi-accounts, it still allows you to navigate around the site as if you were sitting at your laptop or desk top. Any Twitter user will instantly fall in love with the ability to stay connected while on the move.

WordPress for Android

As blogging gets bigger and bigger with the correlation to Internet marketing and everyday information in general, we have WordPress for Android. With a very simple navigation system, WordPress allows you to publish new posts, approve comments, edit pages etc. Being a blogger will only get easier with this application and keep your interests mobile.

Google Shopper

Price comparing is made easy with Google Shopper. It truly is something out of a Star Trek movie.  Even though simple in design and idea it supports the ability to scan barcodes and automatically search for information regarding the product – prices, reviews, ratings, and other related products. Makes wondering if you’re paying too much a thing of the past.

Translate

Translate is a mobile version of the Google program Google Translator. Perfect for any traveler or person interested in, or in need of, communicating with people who have language barriers. It offers 150 language pairs and translates into English or your native language – pretty neat, to say the least.

Notepad Apps

Notepad apps can be invaluable, however, due to their dull tone and basic design, we rarely use them. Google takes this a step farther and uses AK Notepad which spices up the interface and makes it a more fun/friendly app to use as opposed to the traditional notepad.

The Google apps will do nothing but evolve over the next several years and if you are currently seeking an Android, or interested in learning more about applications and the functions they offer, the Internet is the best place to start. You can learn everything there is to know about the creation, development, and purpose of any Android app.

BT Wireless was in fact a conglomeration of telecoms companies from all over the world. These included amongst others BT Cellnet, Digifone of Ireland, Viag Interkom pf Germany, Telfort of the Netherlands, and ?eský Telecom of the Czech Republic.

To state that Telefonica is a large organisation would be an understatement. The company employs 250,000 professionals, operates in twenty five countries, has revenues of nearly €57 billion. As well as the O2 and Telefonica brands it also has Movistar and Terra as separate brand identities.

The O2 brand was conceived as O2 being the chemical symbol for oxygen, and indication that it was something that was fundamentally essential for life. The braqnd was perceived to offer promise, prized values and inspiration.

They say that they are a breathe of fresh air that places customer experience as their principal focal point. They claim that the brand is dynamic in everything it does and says, that it provides open space for new thinking, that it is well trusted by customers and that it is clear in how it talks to its customers.

O2 are now one of the market leaders in providing contracts and services for new mobile phones and internet services.

This means that there will be large numbers of people upgrading their phones as soon as their contracts permit them to do so, or if they can afford to do so, then sooner. Upgrading to 4G is likely to mean that you will need a new SIM card, but before you recycle your old phone, Dialaphone, a leading uk phone retailer warned you should be very careful about what you do with your old SIM.

Naturally you will erase any important data from your card such as your address book and test messages to eliminate any possibility of them coming back to haunt you, but just deleting them is no longer sufficiently secure.
Currently there is a piece of software around that can access a SIM card from which all data has apparently been deleted and recreate all the original data on a computer. If that is not bad enough, it can do more with this data than you were able to on your phone, particularly if your phone had GPS. Data from your GPS will appear on your SIM and this programme can extract that data and discover information on such things as your usual route from office to home and the evenings on which you might have diverted from this route.

You don’t even need to upgrade your phone to be in danger. Nowadays there are a number of firms advertising on the internet who can extract all this data from any SIM card, and they are offering to their services to spouses who might suspect their partners, or employers who might suspect their employees.

There are phone applications around that can perform safe deletes by overwriting data rather than just erasing it. These are effective but they are not totally secure; data shadows can still remain. The message is simple: take care of your SIM card.

The major difference on the surface is that when looking at both from afar you will see Apple using a closed method of app sharing while Android uses an open method keeping the distribution completely in the hands of the users. In a closed system, Apple takes applications from developers and filters them through the Apple development team before they are released or shared. This is good because it keeps malicious and pointless apps to a minimum. However, they have total control over everything and have the power to dictate premiums and altercations to any app submitted.  On the flipside to this, Android Market is allowing apps to be developed and distributed without the filtering process that takes place in a closed system. Android Market uses a comment and community rating system that allows people to look at the history of a said app and take the appropriate actions based on the experience of others.

Refunds are also another huge factor in the differences between the two gadgets.  Apple will not allow you to refund the download of applications.  Even though the Apple apps are screened and deemed safe, you are still stuck with it no matter what the end result, whether loving it or not having use for it.  Android will allow you to sample the app for 24 hours after purchase and refund you the money if you uninstall it within that time frame.  This is a much better way to go about purchasing apps you are up in the air about.

Still comparing the two stores, we will look at the Developer Initiation Fee and see that Android has the competitive edge on Apple in this department as well. Android does charge you $25 for being a developer, creating apps, and releasing them on the Android Market. The key to this is that your apps are released on the open market to be shared with other Android users. Apple charges $99 and there is no guarantee your app will be published on the AppStore.  The other notable difference is that Apple will keep 30% of your publisher sales should there be a premium and Google uses this 30% to pay out to wireless carriers.  This in turn creates a wonderful working relationship to market, promote, and sell Android phones to consumers.

The driving force in the Android application world is the room for improvement, advancement, and upgrade. Apple does charge more, cost more, and have five times the amount of apps. They have earned there place at the top as the innovative company in the beginning of the 21st century. However, Google is making strides with their involvement in the Android phone because they are now aspiring to be the user friendly, cost effective gadget for the advanced mobile phone user. With there only being an estimated 20,000 apps on the Android Market compared to the 100,000 apps that currently exist in the AppStore there is definite room to make modern day strides at improving the sophisticated mobile phone market.

Installing Android apps is easy and let’s go over it to see just how simple it truly is:

Installing Applications

1. Open the Android Market from the Applications menu

2. A list will appear showing you Applications, Search, Games, and My Downloads.  Select what you would like and a new list will appear.

3. You will also be able to search specific applications with the search tool.

4. You can also see the number of downloads and user comments on any application that is available.

5. Installing these apps is as easy as clicking the “Install” option.

6. After selecting to download, it will give you a list of the particulars and functionalities of the app in question.  Click OK to finish the installation process.

How to Implement Applications

Now that you have downloaded your new app, you will have the option of leaving your own feedback for future down-loaders.  Accessing your new app is easy.  Just go to app menu and select the application you want to initiate. The My Downloads option is used for apps you have already downloaded.

Uninstalling Applications

1. Open the Google Android Menu

2. Go to Settings and select Applications

3. Click on Manage

4. You will then see all the apps you have downloaded.

5. Select the unwanted app and click uninstall.

The installation and uninstalling of the apps at the Android Market is a fairly simple process and anyone with a slight knowledge of how gadgets work will be able to figure it out.  This is the beauty of the age we live in.  While things become more sophisticated, they become more user-friendly.

The Android applications are growing as fast as the iPhone apps and one thing can be certain – Android apps are only going to evolve and become more user-friendly than they already are.  Having devices like the Android should make you happy to live in the time that you do because little gadgets like this are already changing the way we use mobile phones for communication, gaming, business, etc.

The Android software development kit (SDK) makes it easy for game developers to enhance the gaming features on an Android phone.  Since this is such an easy program to work with we see game applications blossom at an unbelievable rate.

With the support of Google and the help of Android SDK, you can personalize your mobile device however you see fit.  This innovative software comes to us from the fine people at Google and Open Handset also leaving the Android as an open source program.  One of the main reasons the Android platform is so capable of developing innovative applications is due to the Java support that exists with the Android.

The evolving world of Android applications is redefining the uses and necessities of the gaming industry for mobile devices.  Android developers are opening the door with never before seen ideas using the latest technologies and mobile game development software.  Aside from gaming applications serving an entertainment purpose they are also starting to be used in conjunction with movie promotions, multiplayer online games, and even business motives such as advertising.

Now that Google has released API documents showing samples and examples of game development, many Android supporters are using this information to its maximum potential.  In addition to the gaming aspect of the Android you will also see this device support media formats like pictures, songs, videos, etc fueling the mobile entertainment industry.

With the plethora of technologies and platforms that are being used in correlation with mobile gaming, or application development, we see developers using tools like Windows Mobile, Symbian OS, Sun’s Java ME, Palm OS, Google Android platforms, etc.  We have come a long way from solitaire on a desktop so these developers need to be on the top of their game with graphics, game play, and sound effects.  This is not a difficult chore with the recent development of Android applications.  We are starting to see the Android shape the future for what handheld devices will be capable of doing, and if you are a tech-nut then hang on to your seat because the next fifteen years are going to be a wild ride.