Android Wear apps 1-5
Launched less than a year ago, Android Wear is now coming into its early golden age with devices such as Sony's Smart Watch 3, LG's G Watch R, Motorola's Moto 360 and more.
There are now several hundred apps available for the OS, augmenting your Android Wearable's powers beyond the standard notifications 'n' fitness realm. Here are 20 of your favourites, in no particular order…
1. UhrArt WearFaces
Free
One of the simplest yet key USPs of a smartwatch is being able to customise the display. This app lets you pick from a packed gallery of round or square faces from the WearFace community - http://ift.tt/1pcLxgo - and you can also create and share your own designs. An essential first purchase for any new Android Wear user.
2. Wear Mini Launcher
Free
Opening and using an app on an Android Wear device can be fiddly; this takes the hassle away by letting you quickly launch any app without heaps of scrolling and swiping. It also helps you quickly access settings, such as brightness, Wi-Fi and ringtones for your smartphone, while granting access to loads of customisation options. Hundreds of thousands of downloads can't be wrong.
3. Tinder
Free
You know the deal: swipe right to like, left to pass, like a horny modern day Roman Emperor. But what you might not know is that the phenomenon that is Tinder and Android Wear is a match made in heaven. Just say "Start Tinder" to start swiping, send messages and view profiles all from the privacy of your wrist.
4. IFTTT
Free
Named as one of Google's best apps of 2014, IFTTT stands for "If This Then That" and lets you link your 'Channels' - i.e. Facebook, Instagram, Gmail etc - by creating 'Recipes'. So, for instance, you can set things up so when you like an Instagram photo it's instantly saved to your Dropbox. You can do this, get alerts and more straight from your Wear device.
5. Flopsy Droid
Free
Billed on Google Play as "an experimental game inspired by a certain other Bird-based game", the graphical style and aim of this side-scrolling title will probably ring some bells (hint: it's Flappy Bird). Fine tuned for Android Wear devices, you must navigate a floppily limbed droid through a series of pipes to rack up the points. So long, social life, we hardly knew ye.
Android Wear apps 6-10
6. Glympse
Free
Over a million Android users swear by this location-tracking app, which lets you keep in touch with friends and family, helping you safely find and notify of your exact whereabouts. The Android Wear optimisation lets you view any active Glympse simply by swiping, and you can easily send info to social media accounts and to your contacts without touching your phone.
7. Evernote
Free
The hugely popular productivity app lets you view all those notes and checklists while your phone stays pocketed. Create new notes using voice commands, tick off completed tasks by simply tapping, find entries by speaking the text you're searching for and receive calendar event alerts on your display. Your very own digital secretary right at your fingertips.
8. WearCalc
Free
Harking back to the mathematical Casio wristwear of yore, which what many of us would consider our first foray into the world of the 'smartwatch', WearCalc lifts the burden of complex sums and restaurant tip calculations from your phone and gifts the responsibility to your timepiece, complete with a stylish, clean design.
9. Duolingo
Free
Another of Google's picks for best apps of 2014, Duolingo on Android Wear lets you learn another language on the go, for free. You basically earn achievements by answering linguistic conundrums correctly in fun, bite-size lessons. The Android Wear application keeps it simple, displaying flashcards for you to have a go at when you're, say, on the bus. Take enough bus rides and one day you'll realise you're fluent in French.
10. Advanced Wear Visualizer
£1.49
Designed purely for aesthetic fun, this app features 42 different music visualizers that bounce and twist along to your tunes, to mesmerise and celebrate your smartwatch's vibrant screen. Simply swipe left or right to switch the pattern and swipe vertically to increase or decrease the sensitivity. Yes, it's a simple premise, but sometimes they're the best. Try the 8-visualizer free version for size first.
Android Wear apps 11-15
11. Golfshot: Gold GPS
Free
Placing aerial flyovers, precise yardages and statistics to more than 40,000 golf courses onto your wrist, it's no wonder that golfers around the world rely on Golfshot to improve their handicap. Android Wear support means you don't have to hold your phone while you take your swing, something we find improved our game immeasurably.
12. PixtoCam
£1.20
This apps lets you view and control front and rear cameras from your watch to take snaps and videos, regardless of whether your phone is on or off. Just voice command "start viewfinder" to launch, double tap to zoom and easily set flash, light torch or activate the self-timer. It's also "Spy Ready", so no shutter sound or phone notifications when in use.
13. Runtastic Pro
£4.99
A clearly laid-out, easy to read running app for joggers who don't like fiddling with their phone but who also don't like the complication that some dedicated running watches present. Features include one-tap operation, start and stop with voice commands and easily viewable time, distance and calorie stats. Over 40 million registered users are ready to be out-healthed by you.
14. Find My Phone
Free
Just because you may not always need your phone these days, you still want it nearby at all times. Stray too far from it and, thanks to this app, your Wear watch will start buzzing. Tap "tap to find!" and, even when on silent, your phone will launch into the alarm and visual signals you've set it up with, leading you quickly back into its metallic, cold embrace.
15. Android Wear 2048
Free
One of the most popular Android apps of last year, the Android Wear version brings a simpler 4x4 square interface to this highly addictive puzzler. Swipe to move the tiles; when two tiles with the same number touch, they merge into one. The aim is to get higher sums and when a 2048 tile is created, the game is won. Double tap to display your current score.
Android Wear apps 16-20
16. Wear Tip Calculator
Free
If you're exacting enough to want to work out the precise 12.5% of your bill, but polite enough not to want to go waving your phone around the table, the Wear Tip Calculator offers a discreet alternative. Just type in your bill, then the tip percentage, et voila, the total amount you need to pay. And everyone thought you were just checking the time.
17. InstaWeather for Android Wear
Free
Choose from multiple attractive weather faces, satellite view (visible and infrared) and have 24-hour forecasts a wrist lift away. Receive notifications if a shower's heading your way, with distance details included. There's also the option to run in low power mode so your obsession with meteorology doesn't drain your battery.
18. Google Fit
Free
If you want to become generally a bit more active without having to wear a secondary tracker or fitness band, Google Fit - now compatible with all Android Wear devices, as you'd expect - can provide just the motivation you need. Set daily goals for over 100 activities and control them from your watch. It'll connect to third-party apps to keep all your data in one place.
19. Task Manager for Android Wear
Free
It's easy to lose track of what's running on a relatively small screen. Task Manager cleanly lists all programmes and processes running on your watch, helping you stop tasks easily and quickly, saving you potentially hours of battery life. Just say "Start Task Manager"and take it from there. You can even close all opened tabs with one tap of the "Close all" button.
20. TetroCrate
Free
An addictive falling bricks game, TetroCrate (sounds familiar…) challenges you to drag blocks around, spin them and land them to fill spaces without leaving gaps. Guess what happens when you create a gap-free line? Yep, bye bye line, hello points. A old-school concept for a cutting edge device, and - partly because it's attached to our arm - we can't put it down.
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