Android

HTC Wildfire, HTC Desire Z, Samsung 551, Alcatel OT-980, Wildfire, Alcatel OT-980, HTC Desire Z, Samsung Y Pro… These are the Android phones I’ve had since I made a leap of faith last 2010. Somewhere in between I acquired an iPhone 4. That lasted less than a week.

To me, what makes Android absolutely unbeatable is 1) the fact that I am able to access my Contacts [via Gmail] without ever having to input a single name or number on the actual phone and 2) being able to back-up all SMS and Call logs within my Gmail account. Everything else that Android can do (which is A LOT) is icing.

To Cynthia, Anna, Tony, and Chi (and other Android converts out there) …Here’s my simple (suggested) tutorial for you to follow to make the transition as painless as possible. Just trust me on this.

CONTACTS

1. On your Android: Go to Settings –> Accounts –> Add account –> Sign-in (to your existing Gmail account). This takes a while so be patient. It’s worth the wait, I promise.
2. On your Gmail account: Go to Contacts and start inputting all your names/numbers manually. DO NOT INPUT NAMES/NUMBERS ON THE ACTUAL PHONE.
   If you are using a Mac and already have your Contacts stored in Address Book, download Syncman and sync all your names/numbers from your Mac’s Address Book to your Gmail account’s Contacts (you can download the trial version since, presumably, you will need to sync only once).
3. On your Android: Go back to Settings –> Accounts and make sure that there is a “check” on Gmail (if your Gmail is your e-mail client of choice), Contacts, and Calendar (if you use this), at the very least, so that these always sync on your phone.After this whole process, your Contacts will magically appear on your phone! Also, this means that even if you switch to a new Android phone tomorrow, all you will need to do is log-in to your Gmail account on your Android (step #1 and #3 above) and you’re good to go!

   Make the habit of updating names/numbers on your Gmail Contacts NOT on your phone. If someone gives your their number and you must store it on your phone, look for the option (before pressing Save) where it says you are actually saving it to Google. If you save your names/numbers on the phone and you lose/switch phones, you will lose all your names/numbers.

SMS BACK-UP (if backing up your SMS is important to you; because you can)

1. On your Android: Go to Market and download “SMS BackUp+” (it’s the one with a Gmail envelope on the icon). Once installed, check on Connect and Auto Back-up then configure which items you want backed-up and how often, etc.

RECOMMENDED APPS

1. SHUSH (Thank you, Chino, for this)
   Once installed, the moment you put your phone on Silent, it will ask you how long you would like to keep it silent. This is great for when you are about to watch a movie or enter into a meeting so you don’t forget to put the Ringer back on.
2. WHATSAPP
   iOS (Apple) users need to pay for this. For Android, it’s free!
   Once installed, just register and you will instantly be able to find friends to chat with since this is based on people’s numbers which appear on your phone.
3. KIK
   Once installed, you will need to create a Username. To find friends to chat with, you need to know their usernames.
   Pro:
   Privacy, since people need to know your Username to be able to contact you;
   If you change cellphone numbers, you are still connected via Kik since your Username remains the same;
   Con:
   It’s takes more effort to give out your Kik Username and find others
4. KKB (Thank you, Cynthia, for this)
   A great Pinoy invention for people who, when dining out, want to pay Dutch.
5. Pinoy Henyo (Thank you, Gang, for this)
   A fun Pinoy game.
6. Facebook, Twitter, Plurk, Foursquare (if these are not yet pre-installed; if you subscribe to these)

Curtsy.