News

It’s that time of week again when Life Of Android rounds up the most important news and reviews published on the site over the last seven days.

We’ve seen tested some utterly fantastic apps this week including the likes of Modern Combat 3: Fallen Nation, Super Stickman Golf and Plants vs. Zombies but, as always, we begin with the news.

It was announced on Tuesday that Google’s Android Market now contains over 400,000 apps to download. Around two-thirds of those apps are free to download too, so there’s no excuse for not grabbing something new this weekend.

Another major milestone was achieved by Android and iOS over the Christmas period with a record 1.2 billion apps downloaded across both smartphone platforms. That’s down to a 60 per cent increase in downloads over the final week of December.

Moving onto gaming news and after arriving on Android in December with Sonic CD, Sega’s blue hedgehog is set to return again with Sonic 4: Episode II. As if a new Sonic game for Android wasn’t exciting enough, then the app’s teaser trailer tipped us into overload with its hints that both Tails and Metal Sonic will be making appearances in the hotly anticipated title.

Finally, we rounded up our most wanted Android apps for 2012 with Infinity Blade, Nike+ and Microsoft Office all included in our compilation.

That’s enough of the news though, onto our favourite Android apps of the week just gone…

Modern Combat 3: Fallen Nation

Gameloft’s latest in its eerily familiar Modern Combat 3 series sees you battling it out for the freedom of the United States. With 13 missions to fight through, and a host of different gameplay options, MC3: Fallen Nation looks set to become an Android gaming benchmark…

Soundtracking

Music is there to be shared and Soundtracking is here to help you in this noble quest. This music app for Android can recognise which tracks are blasting out of your stereo and then offers a selection of social networks through which you can share your top playlisting choices.

Plasma Sound

Plasma Sound HD is one of the strangest Android apps we’ve ever had the pleasure of experimenting with. A musical instrument app for your smartphone or tablet, it allows you to construct electronic harmonies by swiping across your touchscreen. Imagine it as a downloadable Tenori-On which costs you nothing and can be carried around in your pocket. Very cool indeed.

Super Stickman Golf

Super Stickman Golf is a free and enormously fun Android app which strips back the titled sport to its most basic components. It also includes 280 courses and numerous Sticky Balls, what’s not to love?

Plants vs. Zombies

Plants vs. Zombies is probably the most popular tower defence game in smartphone history. It’s such a phenomenon that its creators Popcap were bought out to the tune of $650 million by EA in July last year having been the driving force behind Bejewelled as well. Naturally, it’s an extremely polished title to play through.

And if that’s whet your appetite, why not check out more app reviews here.