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Are there any Good, Free, No-Ads, Apps for Android on PlayStore?


dencorso

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I try to use as little amount of apps as possible. Even I had the opportunity to scan a QR Code yesterday, but didn't know how to do it. Then someone told me I needed to download an app. I looked into the PlayStore and I didn't really want to download any apps... so I didn't scan the QR Code. :(

Microsoft has an RDP app that works well:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.rdc.android

I mean, as well as you can expect RDP to work on a phone. I use it to test RDP connections in the office as RDP to the public address is blocked from internal connections (including the wlan) but not through the cell phone network.

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Well, I didn't post about it, because I had forgotten about it, that's how much I use it...
It's "Leitor de código QR - Sem Anúncios" (=QR code reader - No Ads) by Sustainable App Developer... it's bare bones and just works.
As for the app title, I don't know whether it's really titled in Portuguese, or if I see it that way because I'm in Brazil (I actually see some apps title in English mixed with others titled in Portuguese, so it's hard to tell)...

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On 11/9/2018 at 4:12 AM, dencorso said:

I'd much like an indication od a simple Notepad-like text editor, but all I found up to now are riddled to the brim with ads or paid-for. TIA.

Does the app have to be on the Play Store?

I personally try to use open source apps whenever possible and/or also lightweight apps. As such, the majority of them come from F-Droid, directly from GitHub / GitLab, and from the Play Store or other sources only if there is no alternative. While it is not always the case, the vast majority of the open source apps are free and also ad-free.

For a text editor, I use MiXplorer which is a simple but advanced file manager with text / code editing functionality. It is not available on the Play Store though, so you would have to download it either from XDA or other source like APKMirror. It is also not open source, but I have not been able to find any viable alternative to it. The text editors available on F-Droid are either extremely barebone and/or buggy, and the ones on the Play Store are ridden with ads.

Edited by tomasz86
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  • 5 months later...

Perhaps worth a look, free editor with syntax highlighting etc.: 920 Text Editor
https://android.izzysoft.de/repo/apk/com.jecelyin.editor.v2
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jecelyin.editor.v2

I see it's now 5MB, but when I installed mine four years ago it was just 1MB. That version runs quite well on my old 0.5gb phone.

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On 11/10/2018 at 4:08 AM, tomasz86 said:

For a text editor, I use MiXplorer which is a simple but advanced file manager with text / code editing functionality. It is not available on the Play Store though, so you would have to download it either from XDA or other source like APKMirror. It is also not open source, but I have not been able to find any viable alternative to it. The text editors available on F-Droid are either extremely barebone and/or buggy, and the ones on the Play Store are ridden with ads.

I mostly just use the editor included inside Ghost Commander.  It's pretty basic but serves my needs. Ghost Commander is ad-free, tracker-free and open source. It's also root-aware, though it will work for unrooted devices too for as much access as filesystem permissions allow. There's even older versions in case your android is very old, I use ver 1.54.1b2 on my old FroYo device (this old version is supposedly compatible all the way back to 1.6 Donut), current version is for 2.3.3 Gingerbread & up.

On 11/10/2018 at 4:08 AM, tomasz86 said:

I personally try to use open source apps whenever possible and/or also lightweight apps. As such, the majority of them come from F-Droid, directly from GitHub / GitLab, and from the Play Store or other sources only if there is no alternative. While it is not always the case, the vast majority of the open source apps are free and also ad-free.

Second this! If I can't find something open source, I do make sure to check the IzzyOnDroid app lists to see how snoop-y it is likely to be or if there are alternatives I haven't considered yet. He does list which problematic libraries are compiled into what apps and if trackers are (not) found in them (look for the gold star icon).  For instance, Office Suites and Text Editors lists a lot of editors you might check into. Another bonus to open source apps is they are more likely to still be compatible with older devices.

A great open source non-google app is Yalp Store. This is a must for androids too old to install the current play store app like my FroYo device (it supposedly works back to 2.0 Eclair), and has active development (a new version was released in response to a bug I posted last fall).

For email there is either K9 (for newer androids) or Squeaky (for older androids), both open source from the same codebase.

I love CSipSimple for VoIP calling/texting over WiFi, it used to be on both playstore and f-droid (see https://f-droid.org/wiki/page/com.csipsimple) but has gone missing since I found it there. One last location survives, http://web.archive.org/web/20180816022955/http://nightlies.csipsimple.com/stable/ which does have the last version.

It's none of Google's business where I hike or drive, so Navit gives an alternative to the preinstalled GPS/map apps. You can pre-download whatever maps/databases you like from several sources (including OpenStreetMaps, or you can make your own) and there is no need for a map server/user tracking/ad serving/whatever. The version on f-droid is older than the playstore version. The UI is rather goofy and takes a bit of getting used to so reading the wiki is a big help. Despite this I found it well worth the time I spent figuring out how to use the app and even extend it a little to show my favorite locations (there are forum posts on how to do this).

There is an android section on http://software.oldversion.com/android/ in case you want an older version that is no longer on the playstore, though this is not an open source repo.

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  • 1 year later...
On 11/8/2018 at 4:12 PM, dencorso said:

I'd much like an indication od a simple Notepad-like text editor, but all I found up to now are riddled to the brim with ads or paid-for. TIA.

Replying to my question: Total Commander exists in the Google Play Store and has a built in simple editor like what I wanted, while also being a great file manager, much better than the one included in Android, at least for those familiar with Total Commander / Norton Commander from way back when. :yes:

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  • 2 weeks later...

Are you rooted? If so, you can block most ads.

About QR codes, the Firefox Preview app has a scanner - when you tap on the address bar you can scan a code.

FX (nextapp.fx) is my favorite file manager currently.

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  • 4 months later...
On 11/8/2020 at 11:48 PM, Raniyah said:

Not on play store but Youtube Vanced is worth trying for a better Youtube experience.It's good, free and no ads at all 

This is a great program, but it's a pity there is no Youtube Vanced on IOS. The only way is to buy YouTube premium or watch two ads in a row

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