Mobile gaming is quite popular these days, and there are quite a few Android gamers out there. Here are some free games for Android that won't completely annoy you with microtransactions while offering superb gameplay.
Heroes of Dragon Age
If you love collecting and also happen to be into the Dragon Age universe, then this game is perfect for you. Heroes of Dragon Age is essentially a squad based strategy game, where you build your squad by collecting hundreds of 3D figures of characters from Dragon Age and pitting them against the computer or your buddies.
Dead Trigger 2
Think of this as Dead Island on your Android device, without the island. A stunning first person shooter that dumps you right in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. This is undoubtedly one of the best looking games on Android, especially if you have a powerhouse of a phone.
Asphalt 8: Airborne
Need for Speed on Android has some big competition in the blazing fast Asphalt 8, that lives up to the Airborne in its name. As you take up to 47 supercars on high speed tracks with ramps to propel you into the air, where you can pull off outrageous stunts. Best of all it's free. Plus, you get to take the race multiplayer with 8 opponents.
Magic 2014
If you love Magic: the Gathering, Magic 2014 will be right up your alley. It has all of the cards from the newest series out right now, and has all the depth you would expect from a typical Magic game. Along with a single-player campaign, Magic 2014 also has ad-hoc multiplayer capabilities.
Dungeon Hunter 4
Well, Dungeon Hunter 4 is the closest you'll come to playing Diablo 3, wherever you go. Featuring some excellent graphics and hack and slash action as you choose from 4 warrior types and blaze through some beautiful looking dungeons in the quest for some loot... and yes to rid the world from evil. There's also a multiplayer team deathmatch.
Galaxy on Fire 2 HD
Galaxy on Fire 2 HD brings Freespace and Wing Commander like space combat to the mobile, for free. Featuring a superb comblex ship battle system, amazing touch controls, and a massive galaxy of over 30 star systems and hundreds of planets and space stations, for you to explore or set on fire.
Vector
Sadly, the brilliant Mirrors Edge is not available on Android, though there's an alternative, Vector. A parkour free running game where you play a silhouette in a suit, who is being constantly chased by an evil totalitarian regime. With stunning graphics, with excellent animation and some wicked level design, Vector is a must play. However, beware of the tonnes of microtransaction pop ups thrown at you.
Let us know what your favourite free Android games are in the comments below.
Bluestacks is a Silicon Valley-based software company that produces BlueStacks App Player and BlueStacks Cloud Connect. Both products are designed to enable Android applications to run on Windows PCs, Macintosh computers and Windows tablets. The company was founded in 2008 by Rosen Sharma, former CTO at McAfee and board member of Cloud.com. BlueStacks App Player is a versatile program that bridges the gap between mobile and desktop by allowing users to run their favorite Android apps on their Windows or Mac OS X devices. An innovative "Cloud Connect" feature allows you to push apps from your Android device to Bluestacks, and vice versa. First released to the public in 2011, the program has continued to grow, and is currently free for download in its current beta form. Want to get a taste of Android on your desktop? Here's how to set up BlueStacks, as well as a rundown of some of its controls and interesting features
BlueStacks APP Player is available for Windows and OSX computers, and is a quick, compact install to your boot drive (there's no option in the installer to go to a different drive or directory). The only choice you make during the install is whether to allow the program to make notifications, as well as the option to opt in to BlueStacks Spotlight, which holds daily app giveaways.
2. The Home Screen
Once installed, BlueStacks will boot up to its Home Screen, where you can access your installed apps, look up apps in the "Top Charts," search for apps, and access settings. You can use the mouse for basic touch controls here, with clicking and holding to simulate basic tap and swipe controls. From here, we'll need to do a bit more setup before you can get around to installing apps. You'll need to set up access to the Google Play store and associate a Google Account with BlueStacks.
3. Setting up the App Store
With BlueStacks installed, the first thing you'll want to do is associate a Google Account so that you can get onto the Google Play store and download apps. Go to "My Apps" and click on "1-Click Sync Setup," which will bring up a wizard interface that will guide you through the process. Basically, you'll need to either create a Google account, or sign in with your existing one.
4. Setting up BlueStacks Cloud Connect
An optional step for users with an ANDROID smartphone or tablet is to set up BlueStacks Cloud Connect, an app that allows you to push apps from your Android device to BlueStacks, and vice versa. Download Cloud Connect for your Android device, and then go to the Settings button on BlueStacks and click on "Cloud Connect".
If you have an Android phone, input an email address as well as your phone number. You will then receive instructions via email and SMS on how to connect your phone to Bluestacks, push apps, and sync SMS.
If you're running an Android tablet, you instead just use an email address to synch BlueStacks with your device. After registering BlueStacks Cloud Connect, you should receive an email containing a PIN number, which you input into the Cloud Connect app.
You should now be able to push apps between your device and BlueStacks. You're essentially istalling the same app on your desktop and mobile device, without syncing app data (such as login credentials or game progress). Still, it's an easy way to copy apps from your device to BlueStacks, or vice versa.
5. Installing & Running Apps
If you're not going to sync apps to and from your Android device, you can just use the built in App Search to search for and install apps from Google Play, Amazon, or 1Mobile.
It may seem confusing at first, but BlueStacks won't let you get to its three built-in app markets directly. You'll need to go through the App Search button. Type in the name of the app you're looking for, and it will search 1Mobile, Amazon, and Google Play for matches, and give you the option to install apps from any of the above three stores.
Once you've accessed one of the three app stores, you can then navigate that store. Within Google Play, for instance, you can take advantage of the store's search and other features.
Once you return to the Home Screen, your newly installed app should be ready to run. BlueStacks can run an impressive variety of apps from social networking tools and multimedia apps to games. However, BlueStacks won't run everything, so expect a little trial and error for compatibility.
6. Controls & Settings
You should now have everything you need to install and run apps from BlueStacks, so we'll finish up with some extra notes on in-app controls, as well as settings. Unless you happen to be running a touchscreen rig or a Windows 8 tablet, you're going to need some way to approximate pinch to zoom, as well as tilt controls.
Pinch to Zoom: Control +, or Control -
Tilt Controls: 'Z' or 'X' can be used to simulate tilting a device left or right.
BlueStacks supports the use of gamepad controls for many apps, which will be a godsend for users looking to play Android games on a PC. Plug in your controller, and Bluestacks should inform you if a particular app supports a controller.
Finally, the Settings menu (gear icon) contains assorted system settings for language, keyboard settings, contacts and account management, and an app manager for uninstalling applications and setting their default sizes.
There's your quick visual tour of the BlueStacks App Player. It may not run every ANDROID APP perfectly, but BlueStacks puts you just a mouse click away from thousands of compelling choices.
Blackmart Alpha is a alternative market to the Google Play Store for tablets and smartphones running Android, from Blackmart you can download many applications, without the need to have an account Google, without the need for any kind of registration .
Blackmart Alpha : Functions
This market is very simple to use and offers many features to be able to download many free applications .
On this market all applications can be downloaded for free, on the market Blackmart there is no application “trial ” or ” test ” , there are only complete applications and free.
The Google Play Store is a market that offers very comprehensive range of applications , but unfortunately on Google Play Store there are many applications for a fee and often some are not downloadable on certain smartphone or tablet even if they could be compatible.
Blackmart don’t have problem is not there, just download the application and try it, there are no limitations .
Its market is very intuitive and has functions for custom search application.
Blackmart Alpha Download
To make the download of Blackmart click the Download link at below :
To install this alternative Android Market on Android smartphones and tablets , in most cases need to go to the settings menu , select ” Unknown Sources ” and check the box .
In this way the market alternative to Google Play Store ( Blackmart ) can be installed.
This problem in the Android arises when you try to install an application that is not from the original market (Google ), so by default the box for ” Unknown sources ” is unchecked , then dull it is advisable not to have more problems with the installation of applications from unknown sources such as Blackmart Alpha .
Blackmart Alpha: Information
Blackmart Alpha contains many applications, but unlike Google Play Store does not occur only applications compatible with your system and your type of smartphone or tablet.
In some cases, applications downloaded from this market as an alternative to Google Play Store may not be compatible with your system , so you will not be able to start them and use them .
Luckily in the market Blackmart some applications are available in several versions , so if an application is not compatible , it is recommended to download another version and then if you need to upgrade from within the app .
You try to stifle back a tear as you pick up your phone, noticing just how broken it really is. Suddenly, all of the good times you'd had together flash before your eyes. You and your partner in crime... and now it's gone.
You have insurance through your carrier and you'll have a new phone in two weeks, but what you didn't have was the insurance that your memories with your smartphone remained intact. You had never backed it up, not even once.
Of course, I'm talking about myself. In second person.
All of my photos text messages were gone, never to be seen again. After that realization, the biggest blow came. My Flappy Bird score, gone. Along with my Candy Crush level progress, because I refused to sign in with Facebook.
All gone.
One day, you too will know my pain. Unless you back up your phone.
Most of the applications you’ll find below are capable of doing much more than just backing up and restoring applications. To keep things simple, I’ll be discussing how easy it is to back up and restore applications first and foremost, and go on to more notable features from there.
Helium
Helium was released a little over a year ago and has become a fan favorite. Not only can you backup your apps and data to your phone or cloud storage services, but you can also sync data from one device to another.
By default, Helium backs up only app data so your file size is smaller, saving you time in the process. Of course, it’s just a swipe and tap away to save the entire application to the internal storage of your phone, if it’s not a protected application.
Outside of regular apps and app data, you can just as easily backup SMS conversations, Wi-Fi connection settings, user dictionaries, and more. For simple backups and restores directly onto the phone, it doesn’t get much easier.
Backup has been around for many years, and is one of the most popular backup applications among those who like to mod and hack their phones. It requires root out of the gate, so this isn't the app for unrooted or inexperienced Android users.
While Titanium Backup may be one of the oldest and most comprehensive applications found on the Google Play Store today, someone needs to tell the developer that applications can be both powerful and pretty. Seriously, this app makes any calculator application look like an elegant and sophisticated work of art.
No one said that a utility application needs to be beautiful, but Titanium Backup would greatly benefit from a dramatic UI refresh.
I wouldn’t recommend this application for someone that’s just looking to back up applications and app data. It almost offers up too much for the unseasoned Android user.
Another Application that’s been around since the early days of Android, My Backup used to be my go-to application.
Easily backup applications and media or app data to your phone’s internal storage, or Rerware’s cloud servers (you're given a limited amount of space). Upgrading to My Backup Pro will allow for application data backup and data migration between more than one device.
Outside of applications, My Backup Pro allows for SMS backups, along with system settings, alarms, access point names, and more. Really riveting stuff going on with this app.
Other applications may offer up more functionality for the same price, but this is an option that’s easier to use than others. That has its own value.
Ultimate Backup offers up a ton of options and is possibly the best-designed app in the category.
The app offers of a ton of utility features, and even a few UI tweaks. You can set the layout of how applications are displayed, but also choose what screen transition animation you’d like to see when swiping through the panes. This is hardly helpful, but it’s a nice touch. Titanium Backup could learn a thing or two from this app.
Apps, app data, SMS, contacts, and other phone data options are all accounted for, and rooted users can even restore from Nandroid backups.
It's ok to judge this app by its looks. It knows it looks good and it has the features to back it up.
This is by far the simplest application on this list, and it does exactly what it claims to do and little more. Consider this one the baby backup app.
Very few options are available, and that’s actually a good thing. If you want a way to simply back up your applications with no fuss and don’t care for saving app data, this is going to be the easier option for you.
There are a few modest features that you’ll have access to, like the option to auto backup applications every time you install one, but nothing out of the ordinary for a free application.
If you’re just looking to backup applications and no data, My Backup and App Backup and Restore might be what you’re looking for. If you’re rooted, the former can backup data for you, too.
The middle of the road app for content backup is Helium. It’s well-designed and powerful without being overwhelming. Helium also doesn't require root to backup your application data, which is a big plus. After all, you can easily re-download your apps; it's the app data you don't want to lose. Still, this is the only app that allows for app data backup without requiring root access.
Ultimate Backup and Titanium Backup are definitely on the advanced side. Both applications can backup and restore applications easily, with Titanium offering up more functionality and Ultimate Backup bringing more style to the table. Of course, between the two, I’d probably go with Ultimate Backup. I'm a sucker for pretty things.
A sharper display, wireless charging, quad-core processor, and rear-facing camera: Google’s 2013 edition of the Nexus 7 proves you can get plenty of bang for your buck, even though its latest entry in the budget tablet market now exceeds that magical $199 price point.
But what’s an extra $30 between friends? Google’s new cost-of-entry isn’t so much a price increase as an acknowledgement of success: You loved us at $199. You really loved us. So take our hand, and let us show you what we can really deliver for just a few dollars more.
Android fans have been waiting months for a hardware update from Team Google. Thecompany’s I/O event in May was conspicuously lacking in tablet or phone reveals, but on Wednesday, Google finally pulled the curtain on the latest iteration of its flagship Nexus hardware. Though the Nexus 7 tablet bears the same name as its predecessor, its new look and long list of feature updates—including the much-anticipated Android 4.3—give it the aura of an entirely new gadget.
The only similarity between 2012’s Nexus 7 and this year’s model is its 7-inch diagonal screen size. Indeed, the two tablets are so different, they really should have different names. Google’s new tablet is thinner and sleeker—Hugo Barra, vice president of Android product management at Google, explained that the side bezels were reduced by 3mm on each side so that the device would be easier to hold with one hand. Shaving off that 6mm provides a “much more comfortable grip,” Barra said at the event.
Google also stuck with a pure black-on-black design with the same soft touch that Barra says “everyone loved in the original Nexus 7.”
Today’s announcements also pushed forth a new processor architecture for the Nexus 7. Rather than stick with Nvidia’s quad-core Tegra 3 chip, the Asus-built device now features a Qualcomm 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro processor. It’s the same chip featured inside the Nexus 4 handset announced late last year, though according to Android Police, initial Nexus 7 performance benchmarks show the processor performing just a bit better inside the tablet. This particular chip should help increase battery life, as well as speed up software multitasking. The tablet’s RAM has also been increased from 1GB to 2GB to help support processing power.
Photo-frantic users will appreciate that the new Nexus 7 adds a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera to the mix, complementing the front-facing 1.2 megapixel camera that was available in the original model. There’s also a Slim Port on the back of the device that enables you to pipe 1080p video to your TV with an HDMI cable.
The new Nexus 7 will also be the first device to feature the 4.3 version of Android. The new OS version is still called Jelly Bean, and is merely an incremental update with the inclusion of features like restricted profiles for individual user accounts and Bluetooth LE support, a standard that makes Bluetooth connections more energy-efficient and thus less taxing on battery life. You’ll also be able to take advantage of the new graphics capabilities—lens flare effects, richer texture and more—made possible by support for OpenGL ES 3.0.
The Nexus 7’s new 1080p display is also a huge improvement over the last generation. With a resolution of 1920 by 1200, and a pixel density of 323 pixels per inch, display sharpness is a big leap forward relative to last year’s 216 ppi, 1280 by 800 display resolution. Applications, pictures, games, and movies will appear clearer and brighter, making the Nexus 7 a true contender among other entertainment-focused tablets like theiPad mini.
And to help add to that experience, the new Nexus 7 will feature dual speakers on each side of the device. Google teamed up with Fraunhofer, a German engineering firm, to integrate virtual surround sound for the onboard speakers and any connected headphones. Barra compared this new features to a “5.1 surround sound system… just using the device speakers or any pair of headphones.”
Other hardware perks include the ability to wireless charge the device with an Qi-standardized wireless charger, a feature that is only available on a limited variety of Android devices. You’ll be able to simply plop down the device on a compatible charging base and have it refuel overnight. The Nexus 7 will also have NFC capabilities, and unlike its predecessor, Google and Asus will only offer a 16GB and 32GB variant of the Android tablet, priced at $229 and $269, respectively. You can also pick up a 32GB LTE version for $349. Last year's Nexus 7 is now listed as "no longer available" in the Google Play store.
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This post is about installing android in pc
How to install Android on your PC
Windows 8’s bold grab for tablet relevance may snatch headlines, but it isn’t the only operating system looking to extend its established supremacy over a whole new class of devices. As the PC market hemorrhages, more and more manufacturers are turning to Google’s Android OS to power PCs that once carried Windows alone. From hybrids to all-in-ones to an Intel-promised flood of incredibly cheap “Droidbooks,” Android cometh.
Fear not, all ye curious. The intriguingAndroid-x86 project has ported Google’s open-source OS from the ARM processors common in smartphones and tablets over to the x86 chips found in everyday computers, so you can take Android for a spin on your PC before plunking cash down on one of the latest examples of computing convergence. And even if you have no plans to buy an Android PC, playing with Android on your current PC is just plain fun.
We can run android in pc by two ways..
BY VIRTUAL MACHINE
BY REGULAR OS INSTALLATION
How does Google’s mobile-focused operating system stack up on a full-size, not-so-mobile computer? You’ll know firsthand after giving Android a test drive in a virtual machine.
Why a virtual machine?
Admittedly, virtual machines aren’t as peppy as physical ones unless you have a bunch of system resources to toss around. And yes, you can install Android on your computer’s hard drive—but I don’t recommend even dual-booting this particular OS.
Hardware support for the operating system can be hit-and-miss, though the Android-x86 project mitigates that somewhat by providing several ISO files built around specific hardware, such as Asus and Lenovo ThinkPad laptops. Even so, running Android in a virtual machine is more consistently headache-free than dual-booting it. (Trust me—I tried it on three different machines.)
If you want to dual-boot Android regardless, the steps for doing so are basically the same as dual-booting Windows 8, at least up until the point of actually installing Android. From there, you’ll want to pick up from the “Install Android on your PC” segment below.
Before we begin, note that you can click any image in this article to expand it to full size.
Get VirtualBox up and running
Once you’ve downloaded all the software, open VirtualBox and click the big blue Openbutton in the toolbar to begin. A Create Virtual Machine window will appear. Name your digital Android PC anything you like, but be sure to select Linux as the type of operating system, and Linux 2.6 as the version. Click Next.
In the option screens that follow, you have to configure your VM’s hardware allocation. Give it at least 512MB of RAM if you can, though Android-x86 can run on 256MB of RAM if you’re using a resource-strapped PC. The more memory you can spare, the smoother the results will be, though you don’t want to allocate so much to Android that your native experience suffers while the VM is active.
Create a virtual hard drive using the default options, adding more storage if you wish. (Remember: Android was made for phones, so it doesn’t take much space, even with multiple apps installed.)
Boom! The VM appears in the VirtualBox manager.
Next, you need to point the VM at your Android-x86 ISO. Click the Storage button in the VM manager and, in the window that appears, select the Empty option underneath ‘Controller: IDE’ to bring up various ‘Attributes’ options to the right. There, click the disc icon to the right of ‘CD/DVD Drive’ and select Choose a virtual CD/DVD disk file from the drop-down menu that appears. Simply browse your hard drive and select the Android-x86 ISO to load it in the virtual machine, and then click OK when you’re done.
You’re not quite finished yet, though. Click the Audio option, and in the window that appears, click the drop-down ‘Audio controller’ box and select ICH AC97. If you leave it on the default Soundblaster 16 setting, your Android VM’s audio won’t work properly.
Got it? Great! Now you’re ready to install Android on your PC. The process is a bit trickier than your standard Windows installation.
Install Android on your PC
Click the name of your Android-x86 VM in VirtualBox’s left pane, and then click the big green Start arrow. After clicking OK on any dialog boxes that pop up—be sure to read them!—you’ll quickly notice that you can’t use your mouse during installation. Use the arrow keys to scroll down to Installation, and then press Enter. Press Enter to selectCreate/Modify partitions on the next screen as well.
If you usually stick to graphical interfaces, the next menu may throw you for a loop, but it’s nothing to be scared of. Just navigate to New and press Enter again. Select Primary as the partition type, and then press Enter once more to set the partition to the default size. You’ll see the following screen.
Press Enter on the Bootable option, which should add ‘Boot’ under the ‘Flags’ listing, next to the computer name. With that done, select the Write option. A warning appears, threatening that writing to disk will wipe any data already on the disk. Who cares? This is a virtual machine, you silly installation software. Type yes, and then press Enter yet again.
Highlight the Quit option and press Enter to return to the Choose Partition screen, which now lists the ‘sda1’ partition you created on the virtual hard drive. Press Enter again. You’ll see a list of formatting options. Select ext3, press Enter, and select Yes when asked if you really want to format the disk.
Do you want to install boot loader GRUB? Yup! You also want to install the /system directory as read/write when asked.
Aaaaand there’s the screen we’ve been waiting for. Run Android-x86.
Assess Android
You’re going to set up the operating system the way you would on a new Android phone or tablet. It’s pretty straightforward, and you can even connect the Android-x86 VM to your Google account. But before you do that, you need to coax a mouse cursor on screen, because trying to navigate a touchscreen-optimized OS by keyboard is maddening.
Click Machine in VirtualBox’s toolbar, and select Disable Mouse Integration. Dialog boxes may appear; if so, click through them and continue. Disabling mouse integration allows you to manually control whether your mouse is controlling your primary OS or Android-x86. Pressing the right Ctrl button on your keyboard switches between the two operating systems. To swipe, click and hold the mouse button, and then move the mouse.
With that taken care of, you’re free to explore Android on your PC!
Don’t expect a flawless experience with Android-x86. You can’t sync your Google account’s apps to the VM, despite what the setup process implies—at least not yet. (Fortunately, Android-x86 ships with Google Play installed, and most apps I’ve tried work just fine, though you might notice the occasional wonkiness.) Nor does the virtualized OS work with any of the touchscreen displays I’ve tried. And yes, performance can be kind of poky, no matter how much RAM you toss at Android-x86.
That being said, giving Android a whirl on your PC will nevertheless give you a good feel for what’s possible on an Android-powered laptop. The result isn’t perfect, but if you give it a shot, I think you’ll wind up pleasantly surprised. Android wasn’t made for big screens, but all those smartphone-optimized apps hold up okay, and a ton of them are completely free, completely awesome, and can’t be found on proper PCs.
And hey—for what it’s worth, the Android Gmail interface blows away the ugly webmail UI.
