News, reviews and software about and for Google's open source Android mobile operating system.

What's This?

Phandroid

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
phandroid.com/ (xhtml-mp)

One of the biggest and oldest Android sites, Phandroid, which launched 2007, has a new responsive design.  When viewed in a browser with a viewport width less than 800px, the site's shape shifting custom WordPress template performs a complete visual makeover. The sidebar and desktop ads disappear and the header's traditional masthead is replaced by a faux-mobile app menu. The transformation all happens on the fly in the browser using front end logic.

Phandroid's content includes reviews, rumors, tips, tricks, and tutorials for Android Phones, Tablets, Apps, Games. Phandroid is also the home of the AndroidForums, the second largest. after XDA-Developers, Android dev forum. The forum is another responsive web design, powered by a custom vBulletin style.


Screenshots:

Phandroid Homepage AndroidForums Homepage


What's This?

Android Authority

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
m.androidauthority.com/ (HTML5)

Android News blog dedicated to providing expert tips, news, reviews, Android Phones, Android Apps, Android Tablet, Rooting


Screenshots

Android Authority Homepage Android Authority Item Page


What's This?

Android Beat

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
www.androidbeat.com/ (xhtml-mp)

Stefan Constantinescu (@WhatTheBit on Twitter) is one of the best known and IMHO best online journalists (although he prefers to call himself a blogger) covering the mobile scene. Stefan spent a couple of years working at Nokia in its better days and over the years his byline has been seen at Intomobile, Engadget, Android Authority and lots of other major sites.

Now he's running Android Beat, a new site that launched in March. Stefan says the site will provide daily updates of everything Android releated that he finds interesting - and that includes sharing the best stuff from other sites around the web.  To keep the site humming he's enlisted the help of another well known blogger, Steve Litchfield of The Phones Show and All About Symbian fame.

Android Beat uses device detection to serve a separate mobile template to mobile browsers. It loads quickly and is easy to navigate in the Android browser and Opera Mini and I suspect just about any modern mobile browser.


Screenshots

Android Beat Homepage Android Beat Single Post Page


What's This?

CyanogenMod

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
www.cyanogenmod.org/ (HTML5)

CyanogenMod, the oldest and most popular community built alternative Android distribution has a new responsive website. It's now easier than even to learn about and contribute to Cyanogenmod directly from your smart (or not so smart) phone.

The new design, created by Glitch Agency draws design cues from the Android Holo Light theme. It looks good and adapts to virtually every browser from the Opera Mini and Nokia Xpress proxy browser to all modern smartphone, tablet and desktop browsers.

With this redesign most of the cyanogenmod.site is has a mobile friendly design. The  main page and blog use the new design, the Invision IP.Board based forum serves a mobile friendly template to mobile browsers. Only the Wiki makes no concessions to mobile support, although it's easy enough to use in mobile browsers.

For more about the redesign, see this Cyanogenmod Blog post.


Screenshots:

Cyanogenmod Homepage  Cyanogenmod Single Post Page


What's This?

Android Police

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
www.androidpolice.com/ (xhtml-mp)

Android news blog featuring Android  tips, tricks, tutorials, reviews of devices, apps, and games and the latest custom ROMs and hacks.

Broken browser detection only serves mobile formatted version to Android and iOS devices.


What's This?

AppBrain

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
www.appbrain.com/ (xhtml-mp)

AppBrain is the latest web based service designed to make it easier to find, install and share Android apps and games that are available in the Android market.

The desktop and mobile webapp lets you quickly browse and search available apps.  You tag the ones you want to install and then launch AppBrain's companion Android native app which makes recursive calls into the Android Market app to install all tagged apps with a single tap each.


What's This?

Android and Me

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
androidandme.com/ (xhtml-mp)

Android and Me, which claims to be the largest Android community on the web, is a major Android specific news and tips site featuring Android news, phone, app and accessory reviews and tips, tricks and hacks for the Android user. It's published by ad company, turned online publisher SAY Media, whose other properties include ReadWrite, Techdirt, and gdgt.

The WordPress based site uses a separate mobile template that is served to mobile devices from the main androidandme.com URL.  There's a regular site link at the bottom of the mobile pages for users who prefer the desktop layout.

The mobile edition's design, which is dominated by a large image slider on the homepage, looks modern, distinctive and inviting. The site adapts well to different viewport widths and renders correctly, with no usability issues on everything from the Nexus 7 to Opera Mini running on a feature phone with a 176x220px screen. Larger tablets, including the iPad, are served the desktop version.


Screenshots:


Android and Me Homepage Android and Me Post Page


What's This?

AndroLib

Content: ****  Usability: XXX
m.androlib.com/default.aspx (xhtml-mp)

AndroLib Mobile

An independent front end to the Android Market. Browse and search the Market using a responsive and lightweight web interface instead of the sometimes problematic Market App. Usability suffers because there doesn't seem to be any way to install an app from its AndroLib's listing.

Listings include all the information you normally see in the Market listings like ratings, reviews and permissions plus the app's file size, package name and estimated number of downloads to date.

AndroLib's browser detection is a bit flaky, often redirecting non-Android mobile browsers to the desktop site even when the user explicitly specifies the m.androlib.com mobile URL.


What's This?

AndroidGuys

Content: ****  Usability: XXX
www.androidguys.com/ (xhtml-mp)

Android news and opinion. App and phone announcements and reviews.  Mobile version uses the WPTouch WordPress plugin which looks great in the Android browser.  However the browser detection seems to be broken. Except for the iPhone and Android devices most mobile browsers are not detected and get the desktop version with no way to switch.


What's This?

Android Central

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
m.androidcentral.com/ (xhtml-mp)

Part of the Smartphone Experts family of sites, Android Central offers News and Reviews about Google's Android Smartphones. There is also a link to the site's (non-mobile) forums.


What's This?

Androinica

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
androinica.com/ (xhtml-mp)

Androinica, aka "The Google Android Blog" offers app and phone reviews, news, tutorials, and tips for Android users. The attractive "Touch" web site with page sizes up to 200 KB works well with Android and other smartphone browsers and with server assisted browsers like Opera Mini.


What's This?

DroidDog

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
www.droiddog.com/ (xhtml-mp)

DroidDog is part of the PhoneDog network, it's updated around the clock with the latest Android news, reviews and rumors.


What's This?

Android Tips and Tricks

Content: ****  Usability: XXXX
android-tips.com/ (xhtml-mp)

Android specific blog offers software recommendations and tips for optimizing your Android phone's power and usability.


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Ratings Key :

Content - 0-5 *'s indicating the quality of the site's writing, depth, timeliness and accuracy.

Usability - 0-5 X's indicating the usability of the site on a mobile device, based on ease and intuitivness of navigation and lack of excessive scrolling through ads etc. to reach main content.