20 best Android apps this week

It's time for our weekly roundup of brand new and notable apps for Android smartphones and tablets.

It covers apps and games, with the prices referring to the initial download: so (Free) may mean (Freemium) in some cases. The equivalent iOS roundup will be published later in the day.

For now, read on for this week's Android selection (and when you've finished, check out previous weeks' collections).

Angry Birds Friends isn't a new game, as such: it's been available to play on Facebook for some time now. This is the new mobile version though: Angry Birds given a social refit so that you're competing in weekly tournaments against your Facebook friends. Bragging and gifting is built in, as are in-app purchases.

Another big freemium-game hit makes its way to Android courtesy of EA and PopCap. Bejeweled Blitz is a reengineered version of the classic match-three puzzle game, with rounds lasting 60 seconds each, and the emphasis on power-ups and high-score tables of friends.

Second-screen TV app Zeebox has been available on Android smartphones for a while now, but this week it made its way to Android tablets too. The app is part TV guide showing you what's on, but it also pulls in tweets and lets you know what friends are watching, with some shows getting interactive content and shopping features within the app too.

Tech. is magazine publisher Future's digital mag focused on gadgets and technology – a spin-off from its TechRadar website. Having launched originally on iOS, it's now on Android too, offering weekly £1.49 issues (plus subscriptions) for news and analysis of all things techy.

AVG's latest productivity app for Android aims to clean up people's devices, erasing browser, call and text histories, zapping unneeded cached app data, and monitoring memory usage to spot processes that are slowing down your smartphone. At least, that's the promise.

The latest in a new wave of "personal assistant" apps (think Siri), Sherpa was released in the UK this week after an earlier US debut. "TELL YOUR CELL PHONE WHAT YOU WANT AND TADAA! IT IS DONE" bellows the Google Play listening. Thankfully, you don't have to shout when asking it questions or giving it orders. It sends messages and emails, searches flights, gives directions, posts to social networks and other tasks.

This app wants you to contribute to a "world-wide citizen science project" that's aiming to measure light pollution and star visibility. "Just look up to the sky, find certain stars, and tell us whether you can see them or not," explains its Google Play listing. All measurements are sent anonymously to the Globe at Night database, which is aggregating the data.

Good news for Android-owning learner drivers in the UK: this is the latest version of the Driving Test Success app, which its developer says has been used by more than 4m people to revise for their tests. It's based on the latest 2013 driving theory test, with questions, mock tests, feedback and performance-tracking to ensure you're ready on the day.

Punch Quest was marvellous fun on iOS, and looks just as good on Android. It's also the first game (to my knowledge) that lists one of its key features as the ability to "punch an egg that turns you into a magical gnome". It's a quirky, creative action game with a stripped-down control system that works perfectly on touchscreens.

Dextr is one of a clutch of startups trying to improve the way we read and send emails on our smartphones. Its Android beta aims to "cut out the clutter of your inbox and focus solely on conversations with the most important people in your life". With email overload a real problem for a growing number of people, if Dextr can nail it, this is sure to be popular.

Looking for a high-quality podcasts app on Android? Player FM might just be it. The app aims to be a way not just to play podcasts from a range of sources, but to find new ones that you might like. It downloads new episodes to your device, but you can also stream – and if you have several Android devices, it'll sync your subscriptions across all of them.

This handy app ties into the Fixya community, and aims to help you with broken products. "Ask almost anything by using your device's video camera to easily communicate your problem instead of trying to describe it with just text," explains the Google Play listing. "Helpful Fixya community members will watch your video problem and will try their best to provide you a solution." Potentially a godsend if you're not handy around the home.

It's fair to say there are quite a few angry Android users because of this app, which Microsoft launched as a way for Android owners to check if the apps they like are also available on Windows Phone before switching. Criticism is focusing on how exact the "matches" are – sometimes they're similar apps rather than the same ones.

I know a number of Android users who swear by the Beautiful Widgets Pro app as a way to customise their home screens. This brand new (separate) version is free, enabling more people to give it a go. Weather, clocks, themes and other useful features are included, with in-app purchases to unlock them, or the option to earn virtual currency by downloading other free apps.

Sega's latest Android game is definitely a keeper: based on console indie game Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit. It's a side-scrolling adventure game that puts you in the shoes (well, paws) of "Ash, a devil rabbit and the Prince of Hell". 60 levels across six worlds provides a decent challenge.

Blogging platform Weebly now has an Android app, aimed at getting a few more of its "millions" of users blogging from their smartphones as well as their computers. The app lets you post, check stats and respond to comments, and can be used to start a blog if you're not already a Weebly user.

Kids love Talking Ginger and the rest of Outfit7's Talking Friends characters (Talking Tom Cat, Talking Angela etc). Now the first of those is back with a new birthday app: children will be blowing out candles, feeding Ginger and getting him to squeakily repeat their words.

Here's another app aimed at children, in this case pre-schoolers. It's a combination of storytelling and gaming based on hero Dave's adventure with his cat. The app, which is available in English, Dutch and German, has kids finding hidden objects, exploring mazes and learning more than 250 words and objects.

Well, this is certainly intriguing: a free mobile game released by Bosch to promote its range of DIY products that it describes as "the endless runner for real professionals". That translates to running a jigsaw along planks of wood, avoiding obstacles and collecting coins to upgrade yourself.

Finally, another app to help with your groaning inbox. In this case, it "automatically categorises your email" if you're a Gmail user, although it also supports other POP3, Exchange and IMAP accounts.

That's this week's selection, but what do you think? Make your own recommendations, or give your views on the apps above, by posting a comment.