Welcome to the 353rd edition of Android Apps Weekly. Here are the headlines for the past week:
- Netflix is increasing its prices on its most popular plans. The regular HD streaming plans went from $ 12.99 per month to $ 13.99 per month, while the 4K streaming plan went from $ 15.99 per month to $ 17.99 per month. Netflix says it's to make sure people get more TV shows and movies. The price hike hurts a bit, but luckily it's nothing too insane. The last time Netflix raised prices was in January 2019, so it's actually been a while.
- Spotify is increasing its prices sooner rather than later. The CEO confirmed this earlier this week. We don't know how much the price increase is or when it will take place. However, it is inevitable at this point. The family plan included price increases in select markets not long ago, so this shouldn't come as a big surprise to anyone. Click the link for more details.
- Google Messages got a new feature this week. Users can schedule text messages for any day or time they want. This is kind of a niche feature, but it can help with how some people write text. The feature has already been rolled out to some users who are likely to have a major rollout planned for later. In addition, this feature works with both RCS and regular SMS text messages.
- WhatsApp had some announcements last week. The first is a set of new storage tools. The first allows you to remove files larger than 5MB and files that you've forwarded multiple times to save space. In addition, the service is making Disappearing Messages available to users worldwide this week. Click on the various links to find out more.
- Activision Blizzard announced a series of mobile games last week. It wasn't a special game, but the gaming giant said it would make mobile games for virtually any game characteristics in existence. We already know that Diablo Immortal is coming one day. However, the developer also has features like Spyro, Overwatch, StarCraft, and others that don't yet have a mobile feature. Hopefully they'll do it well and don't screw it up.
Mechanical instinct
Price: Play for free
Mechanical Instinct is a mobile fighting game. Players choose from six pilots and begin to customize their fighting style with various melee and ranged weapons. You level up over time to take on tougher opponents. The game also includes a leaderboard, an alliance system, and a loot box system. The free to play elements aren't bad, but at some point you may be under a lot of pressure to buy things for real money. Either way, the controls are simple and the game is fun to play in an arcade-like manner.
Starlink
Price: Free
Starlink is a management app for SpaceX's upcoming satellite internet service. The app does a variety of tasks, including helping you set up your Starlink setup, running speed tests, and troubleshooting connection problems. We couldn't fully test this app as we don't have a Starlink, but the app gives you a good idea of how it will run for people. The setup process in particular looks pretty straightforward and neat. Most people won't be able to take advantage of this, but it's nice to see as it signals that the service may actually start at some point.
Tera: Endless war
Price: Play for free
Tera: Endless Wars is a new strategy game with elements for building the kingdom. You basically build your troops and face opposing armies. It uses a hexagon style grid map that you can build your defenses on and wage your battles on. The controls are pretty simple and the graphics are quite decent. However, we've seen some complaints about the performance of lower-priced devices, so this is something you should consider. You spend most of your time watching battles instead of fighting them, and that's a bit of a boring thing, but the game is a decent time killer for fans of the genre.
Zenchat
Price: Free
Zenchat is a chat app mixed in with a to-do list app. It basically fuses the two into a single idea. Each message can become a task with a due date, reminders, notes, and anything else you might need. There are separate sections for managing your chats and tasks, as well as decent chat features. This is mainly intended for business purposes and is a great way to stop switching between administrative services and chat services. It's still young and has a long way to go, but the idea is pretty good and we hope they get it right.
Shadow arena
Price: Play for free
Shadow Fight Arena is the newest game in the popular Shadow Fight series. It is a 2D side scrolling fighter where you form teams of fighters and face off against enemies. The game includes an element of online PvP as well as some single player activities. The different heroes have upgradeable skills and there is a lot to collect. We also like the controls very much. You have a lot more control over your characters than some mobile arcade fighters. This one is pretty decent and early reviews praise the game, too, despite its early flaws.
Thank you for reading! Check out these too:If we missed any big news or releases about any Android app or game, let us know in the comments.
