Full offline Mauritius map now available in Nokia Here Maps for Android.

Google Maps is a great navigation tool on Android and so far competition has either been lame or inexistent. But that has changed with Nokia making its popular Here Maps available for Samsung devices first, and for other Android devices recently. Don't go look in the Play store, you won't find it there. Here Maps for Android is still in beta and can be downloaded on Nokia's official Here site.

Since you will be downloading a file outside the Play store, make sure "Unknown sources" is enabled in your phone settings. If it is not activated, your phone will offer to take you there after you tap the download link. Once the download is complete, go ahead and install the app.

Tap the Hamburger inside the app (that's the three horizontal lines stacked upon each other) and tap "Download maps". In order to download, you must sign in with a Facebook or Here account; A sign up link is also available. After you authenticate, the app will get a list of maps. Tap "Download new". Select Africa > Mauritius. The file is 126.4MB in size, double the size of the Windows Phone version.

I will compare how Here Maps work on Android and Windows Phone in another post.

Enjoy offline maps of Mauritius.

Searching and sharing gets easier on LinkedIn for Android.

The professional network, LinkedIn, has been updated today that makes it easier for its members to search and share in full screen mode. Users will thus be able to see more results. The change log also mentions a new location-based jobs search. Finally, it is now possible to share articles directly from the home screen.

An update that feels like LinkedIn is playing catchup. I have an account there but hardly use the app I have installed on my Android and Windows Phone. Do you use LinkedIn?

Download LinkedIn free on Google Play.

Amazon Kindle: Start playing narration before audiobook download completes.

The app that brings over a million books at your finger tips has been updated today with the ability to start playing narration before the audiobook download is complete. No need to wait for the book download to complete before you can enjoy your audiobooks.

Amazon also updated Kindle app with localized support for Dutch and the ability to tap on highlight to edit, plus the usual bug fixes. The app is available free in the Play store.

Google Play Newsstand gets material design and more.

Yesterday, Google blessed the Play Newsstand app with its material design which basically makes images bigger and transitions smoother. Make no mistake, material design is not just making Android and apps look flat. It is a completely different experience. In a blog post, Mussie Shore, group product manager for Google Play Newsstand, writes: "You can swipe left and right between topics, and swipe up and down to dive more deeply into a particular topic. Play Newsstand puts the news you care about front and center with big images that jump off the screen."

This update also adds topic cards in the Explore section that lets you easily subscribe to topics that are of interest to you. "Topics deliver a personalized and up to date reading experience on your passions and interests. And our new Android app is faster than ever."

Google Play Newsstand is available free on Google Play.

Source: Android Blog

Waze for Android introduces Waze Places.

Version 3.9 of Waze was published today and it introduces a new feature called Places. The largest community-based traffic and navigation app now gets even more social with the ability to make information about local places available for everyone. Members of the community can now share such info as the availability of parking lot or drive-thru. The addition of photos is also supported to add more details to the place being shared. 

Who hasn't ever been in the situation of not remembering where the car was parked? That changes with Waze which will automatically save the location where you parked your car. And there's more. Waze will even learn where to find parking and how much time to account. 

The update also includes the usual bug fixes and the search auto complete is now a worldwide feature. Waze is a multiple platform app available on Android, iOS, Blackberry and Windows Phone. Google has recently announced that they are stopping development of the app for Windows Phone.

Waze is available free in Google Play store.

TuneIn Radio updated with multiple bug fixes and improvements.

TuneIn Radio has around 50 million downloads in the Play store, so if you do not have it in your app list then head over to the store now as TuneIn Radio brings the world's largest collection of radio stations to your Android device, that's over 100,000 stations from around the world . Note that the app is multi-platform, therefore available on Windows Phone, iPhone, iPad, Windows etc. and also has a social touch in that you can share what you're listening with your followers.

TuneIn Radio has been updated with bugs fixes and improvements as listed below:

• Fixes a bug with Intel devices.
• Multiple bug fixes and improvements across the app to improve user experience.
• Improvements to social push notifications. See what friends are saying when they echo content.
• We are removing the explore feature from the menu and integrating that functionality elsewhere in the app.

TuneIn Radio is available free in Google Play Store.

Official F1 App updated with race-by-race purchase of premium features and more.

You will very likely have this app installed on your Android device if you're a big fan of Formula 1, especially now that the competition excitement is at its peak with Hamilton having finally claimed the lead last week over team mate Nico Rosberg in Singapore.
 
The Official F1 app for Android is a definite source that brings exclusive content such as team radio transmissions, DRS usage indicator, live tyre information and more. Besides live data, you also have access to before and after race stories and session commentary from Formula1.com.
 
To make the experience even more exciting, the app has been updated today with the following features:

• Event Store update to allow you to purchase Premium features race-by-race.
• App translated to Russian and Japanese.
• New permissions that allow 'at event' notifications for those attending a race.

The Official F1 App is available free for download in Google Play and includes in-app purchase.

See you in Japan.
 

Google Maps Navigation Beta available for most of Africa and Mauritius.

It's been a while since my last post. I had an exciting time working on and completing some projects that I cannot write about here. Now that those are behind me, I'm glad to be back and share with you the readers some great news about Android. The latest is about a new offering from Google.

Yesterday, Google announced the availability of their Navigation service in many African countries including Mauritius. The service is still in beta and offers turn-by-turn navigation. Google is not the first to offer similar service in Mauritius, the first being Waze, a community based traffic and navigation app, which has since been acquired by Google. I spent a few minutes with the app today and I recommend you treat it as a beta. However, for visitors, if you plan on using it, be careful as I found that some directions were inaccurate. I hope Google fixes that with the loads of information gathered by Waze.

How do I get Navigation Beta?
There is no app to download. Google Maps app is already installed on your Android phone. Activate your data connection and launch Maps and accept the use-with-caution note and you are good to go. It is that simple. Bear in mind though that Google Maps Navigation is a beta and all precautions should be taken while driving.

Source: Google

YouTube Gets autocorrection of search mispellings.

In an update posted today in Google Play store, YouTube received two new features and the same amount of fixes. The first new feature as listed in the store is the ability for YouTube to autocorrect search misspellings. The second feature  is a video quality selector to choose between different resolutions; very useful when you have a slow connection.

On the fixes front, the voice search issue is now resolved. Finally, YouTube gets the "many other bug fixes and improvements" treatment.

Source: Google Play

Outlook.com for Android gets full server search and offline access.

Microsoft has updated its Outlook.com email service for Android that lets users make server side search on their devices when connected. Before the update, searching emails was limited to what was synced to the phone or tablet. However, if you worry about such a feature taking its toll on your data plan, Microsoft also added unlimited sync of emails for full offline access. Another useful feature is the ability to use Outlook.com aliases to send your emails. An excellent addition for those who use more than one Outlook.com email address.

The other features include the addition of eight colors for the customization of the app interface; the ability to set and manage vacation replies. Finally, Outlook.com gets support for traditional Chinese language.

Microsoft's Outlook.com app and service for Android is available free in Google Play Store.