As a kid, my sister and I would play Monopoly and I loved the game.  We even played it through the mail when she moved away for college (not email, but the postal service) for about a year!  I am not recommending that way but looking back it was a fun way to play.  Well times have changed and Monopoly is still around. Now you can play it on your Android phone with EA's version of this classic.  

While you can play multiplayer, there is no online version for playing against friends and family.  We can hope that EA will add this into future versions. But if you want to play and hand your phone or tablet back and forth you can certainly play with human opponents.  I have been playing this game almost daily since I downloaded it.  It was recently the Amazon free app of the day so I snagged it then.  If you go to the market now it is $4.99. I will say even at that price it is a steal.  The game play is fluid and entertaining. They have plenty of options so that you can turn sounds on and off, make the dice roll without having to shake the phone and several game play options such as having all of the properties given out at the beginning of the game.  There are three levels of difficulty to keep you challenged.  I do find the AI players to be a little too predictable in the manner which they skip your hotels it seems on many rolls.  But that makes the game last longer, right? The game allows you to make trades and the AI players are eager to get properties so that they can put you out of business.  You see how the trading works and you can get the properties you want most of the time by offering good deals to those players.

I like that you can start and stop the games which makes playing against the AI fun allowing you to sneak a few turns in when you are stuck waiting somewhere.  If you love Monopoly and you don't want to play through the US Postal Service, then this might be the app for you. Download it today.

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.eamobile.monopoly_na_wf&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5lYW1vYmlsZS5tb25vcG9seV9uYV93ZiJd

ESPN ScoreCenter - With the playoffs already going in the NFL along with hockey and basketball seasons started you might want to keep up with the games while on the go.  ESPN's ScoreCenter app is an easy way to stay up with the action.  I use this app to see game scores while I am out and cannot listen to a game. The app is easy to setup and gets you right to the thing you want, scores.  When you start the app you can add your favorite teams and not just pro teams but college too.  You can add baseball, football,basketball, hockey, rugby, soccer and cricket!  There are other sports that you can get information on as well, but just not stored in the My Teams page.  Once those are loaded there is a window with the latest scores from those teams. Quick and direct access to your favorites just by opening the app.  If you scroll to the side you can see "the Lead" window with upcoming sporting events for the next day or two. Another flick of the screen and you have the NFL followed by MLB and more apps and links to ESPN.

When a game is playing it updates the scores and time left in a game.  By clicking the scores of a game it takes you to a stats page showing scoring drives. There are also tabs on some of the screens to give you even more information such as news and standings.  This is great if you are a fantasy sports fanatic.  This is a free app and one that you will want to have so that you can keep up.  Go download it now in the Android Market.

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.espn.score_center&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5lc3BuLnNjb3JlX2NlbnRlciJd

I didn't tell the story of buying the phone today. I bought it through RadioShack.com (highly recommend) since they offered the phone for $219 when everyone else had it listed at $299. I decided to head into a store to see if I could get it for that price somehow locally and not have to wait for shipping.

When I got to the store they had a non-working display model on the shelf. I patiently waited for the Radio Shack Employee, Rick to finish up with another customer. He soon came over and asked what I was looking for and got excited when I asked about the Galaxy Nexus. He told me how it was a great phone and listed the hardware specs (pfft!, Like I didn't already know) so I let him do his script. I told him I was really excited to get an official Ice Cream Sandwich loaded phone. That's when he proceeded to tell me about the "best feature" of ICS......Face Unlock! 

Really? Face Unlock? I know it is new and all but am I really that far out of touch with normal users that Face Unlock is the big feature? Heck, I still have not used the FFC on my phone. It may not even work for all I know! There are so many great features of ICS and the phone but this is what he got from the training they received?

I then talked price. I mentioned that on the website it was $80 cheaper. Could they match the price? They could not. Rick told me my options were to get a credit card and save $30 or to trade my old phone in for credit. He asked what I had and I said a Vibrant. He talked about what a nice phone it was. That's when I blew him away and told him mine was running ICS. He was amazed. He asked if he could see it and I think I could have sold him my phone! After showing him ICS I told him that I was giving the phone to my son and not trading it in. At that point I was out of options other than buying it online or paying an extra $80 to get it right then. I waited and ordered online. The ordering process with the website was easy and they kept me informed of the status at all times. I was happy that I ordered it that way. 

Still happy with the phone and glad I bought it.

S

I was once again a guest on The Android Vibe.  Check it out!

http://www.theandroidvibe.com/category/podcast/

https://plus.google.com/b/106287423561376256412/102611688899947347374/posts/McJD29G8QWX

ClockworkMod Tether (no root) - We all have (or most of us) these smartphones with data plans these days. We all likely have a laptop with no data plan. So wouldn't it make sense to be able to put these two things together and use your data plan for not only checking in at the local Starbucks on your phone but also responding back to emails on your laptop? As you may know the carriers frown on this. They would rather sell you a more expensive plan for tethering on your phone. Go figure.

If you would like to put it to "the man" and tether your computer to your phone but not have to pay an additional tethering fee ClockworkMod Tether is the app for you.  This app tethers your PC, Mac or Linux computer to your Android phone without needing root access or sending red flags out to your carrier that you are actually using the data on a computer.  Even better, it should work with any carrier and is not blockable. There is a piece of software that will need to be installed on your computer and the app on your phone. A data cable and some drivers are required too.  But before you say this is too complicated go to the market page or the developers page for the complete walk through.  It is very easy and painless.  

Once you have the drivers installed and the app installed on your phone and computer, you are ready to start tethering.  I started the PC app first then I turned the phone app on.  You will know it is working from the phone when you see the sent and received data readings show up.  I was surprised it let me run the app with my wifi still connected on the phone.  Other tethering apps normally force you off of it.  Be aware that even though the carriers cannot detect a laptop or device other than your phone is downloading data, that your usage may be an indicator to them that something is up.  I would say this is best used in short bursts or in emergency situations more than a daily thing.  But it is up to you how you use it and as always carriers may throttle your usage after you hit your cap, limit on that unlimited data plan. That being said I am happy that I didn't have to root my phone and I can connect my laptop on those rare occasions where I need something and have no wifi available.  

The app is written by Koushik Dutta who also publishes the ClockworkMod rom app. If you have rooted and put a rom on a phone you likely installed this at some point.  He is an important part of the Android development community. I say that because the app is free to download and try but the full version is $4.99. If you travel and have a need for this type of app I would say it is a good investment.  I know there are other apps that allow you to tether and may have more bells and whistles.  But buying this app you are getting an app that will also help support future development endeavors for more than just tethering.  You can follow him on Google+ too.  

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.koushikdutta.tether&rdid=com.koushikdutta.tether&rdot=1

VIPRE Anti-virus

I use VIPRE antivirus from GFI at work and I like the desktop product. The desktop version is quick and effective. So when I saw there was an Android version I tried it. First off,  let me say I don't really think that I need an antivirus client on my phone. But VIPRE is free and I wanted to see if I had any viruses or malware on my phone.

When you install the app it lets you create an online account. This is important so that you can manage the settings from a computer.  The app does what you would expect from a virus scanning app. I ran a scan and it was very fast. As you install apps it scans them as well.  In addition, the website will let you wipe the phone remotely or track the phone via GPS.  Since I just got the Galaxy Nexus and na now working GPS I can accurately tell you where my phone is.  With the Vibrant it would have shown my phone in Tampa Bay no matter where I was!  You may not need an antivuris app for your phone but VIPRE does seem like a good choice if you feel you need one.

Evernote - With phones and tablets it surprises me that they don't come stock with some sort of note taking app. Manufacturers sometimes add apps but they never seem to be very good.  Evernote is a great app for note taking on the go.  The one thing I love about Evernote is that there are apps for almost all platforms. Evernote allows you to create notes on different platforms and sync them in the cloud between all of the devices. I create notes on my Windows PC and can update it on a Mac and read it and update it on my phone or tablet.  What a concept! I even write these reviews in Evernote. The files sync automatically between the devices when you load it.  I love apps that work without having to think about it. 

With Evernote you can take pictures on your phone and send them to the app.  This is helpful when you want to snap a picture and be able to keep it in your notes. In addition, Evernote has partnered with many vendors that offer apps that can be purchased to enhance your experience.   There are expense report add ins, CRM enhancements and so many more. 

Evernote has a free version and a upgraded paid version. I doubt most people will need the paid version since it is based on amount of data synchronized.  I have almost 500 notes including some picture notes. I still am nowhere near my limit each month.  The free version will probably work for most people. At least getting started it should let you try Evernote and be sure it will work for you needs.   

There are so many more features but I really think you need  to try it out to see how it will work for you.  It won't take you long to see why it is one of the most popular for note taking.

https://market.android.com/details?id=com.evernote&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwyLDEsImNvbS5ldmVybm90ZSJd