Android Development Tutorial

Make an App and Win a Phone

117 Comments

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 GiveawayIt is time to give away another Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and a Galaxy Gear smart watch!!!

To get an opportunity to win, you have between now and July the 31st, 2014 to enter. The rules are very simple and I’ll list them below. I was able to perform these contests because of the wonderful people at the Samsung Developers Program. I decided to hold off for a bit because my site was starting to look like a contest site, but I’m ready to go again. I wish everyone the best of luck.

Specific Rules for Entering the Next Contest

  • The Android app must run on any Android device
  • You can only submit 1 app
  • Within the app you must provide proof that you made it, by way of email
  • The app has to have been made since the beginning of the month of June 2014 if it is on the Android store
  • You can make the app using any tool (Eclipse, Android Studio, App Inventor, Cordova, etc.)
  • You must post a link to the apk file in the comments below ( Only on this Specific Page )
  • If you post the apk file on any other page on my site you won’t be qualified to win
  • You must post an email that I can contact you on in the comments. (I don’t care if it is a throw away as long as you use it in the app)
  • I will not contact you through this email unless you are the winner
  • I will announce the winner in a live YouTube broadcast (If you aren’t able to get through to me on that broadcast the prize goes to the 2nd place winner)
  • During the contest other strange events may force me to make changes to the above rules, but that isn’t expected

I wish you all the best in trying to win about $900 in prizes. I pay the shipping as well. This contest is open to anyone world wide as long as your country allows me to send electronics like this to you.

Feel free to share this contest with anyone you’d like, or just keep it all to yourself 🙂

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117 thoughts on “Make an App and Win a Phone”

  6. Hi Derek,

    Can I send you an apk file with the email that you require and upload to googleplay another apk file without it.

    Regards,
    Manuel

    Reply

    1. Sure that will work. Feel free to use a throw away email on the app. I’m not doing these contests to gather emails. I’m just doing them to give back to my community.

      Reply

  8. Hi..
    is the Youtube brodcast really necessary??
    i’m just worrying that will be my sleeping time 😀
    and how about people who has no internet connection in their home? they won’t be able to connect internet anytime they want.

    *Sorry for my compliment

    Reply

    1. I had not thought of that. I will contact the top 3 or 5 ahead of time and verify that they can be on the live broadcast, or I’ll pass on that idea. Thank you for bringing that to my attention.

      Reply

  10. i have done little bit java programing can you please guide me how to make app and take part in competition.

    Reply

  13. what if many people creates a very good app before the deadline, and all instructions are obeyed. What will you use to judge who the winner is??

    Reply

  18. Hi Derek. Here is my app I’ll explain it a little bit.
    Its a simple database where the user should introduce the basic data from the vehicles like brands, models, etc… and also you can take 6 pictures by taping the black rectangles in the UI. This process should be done usually at the moment the car reach the mechanical workshop (My workplace).

    I would like to implement this in my workplace but I need to add more features in the future so it can become a really powerfull tool, I need to learn more though.

    If u have any question or I’m missing something please tell me.

    Name: Adrian Pirela
    Country: Venezuela
    Email: fx.adrian@gmail.com
    Link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/wybz17y81hrua2d/adnfx2_app.apk

    Thx for the opportunity.

    Reply

  20. Could you specify The Android app must run on any Android device

    Does this mean Android Wear? Or phones back to Android 2.3? Or something else I might mhave misunderstood?

    Reply

  22. Hi Derek, I’ll explain some features of my app:
    It’s an app create to be used in the place where I work (a mechanical workshop).
    -Can save, delete & edit the basic data from a vehicle (Brand-model-ect).
    -Since its needed to take pictures of the vehicle the app allow you to take this pictures by tapping the black rectangles in the “Add vehicle UI”.

    I would like to add more features in the future some its can become a really powerfull tool in my work.

    Thx for the opportunity 😀

    Adrian Pirela
    fx.adrian@gmail.com
    Link: http://www.dropbox.com/s/wybz17y81hrua2d/adnfx2_app.apk?n=6021423

    Reply

      1. Hello Derek,

        By mistake i uploaded an older version of my app which does not include the email functionality .

        It is mandatory to include email address in the application so i included it later but unfortunately i uploaded the older version here.

        Kindly accept my apologies and accept the new application which i will be commenting here in few hours.

        I hope you will consider my request.
        Thank you so much

        Reply

  26. It is a android web browser invented using App Inventor 2.

    here is the link to download my app:
    https://doc-00-88-docs.googleusercontent.com/docs/securesc/241e2qih4r002ndocpk72lmgrp8meki6/gl5vuilomu2bhsf7qo5b5rqgie4lrjf6/1406383200000/11259829546297132563/11259829546297132563/0B6RlEfJIa71iWWNsX2ZfUG9fUXc?e=download&h=16653014193614665626&nonce=gpe88degaps1u&user=11259829546297132563&hash=f7qdb15elo5kstucmdk5of66iqv1qefm

    Email: davideinstein24@gmail.com

    Reply

  28. Hello Derek, and also everyone !

    Here is my entry for this contest :
    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.yumegames.unturnedcompanion

    Maybe some of you have heard about Unturned, a free to play game from steam greenlight developed by a 16 years old Canadian guy (who turn 17 today !). The game is now the 4th most played game on Steam !
    So, I decided to make an app about it, because there is a lot of things to know about this game. My app lists every item and crafting recipes in the game, as well as some guides to take a good start when you’re new to the game that I personnally wrote. There is also a Patch Notes section, so the users knows what are the last added things to the game quickly !

    Here is my mail address : yumedream57@gmail.com

    Good luck to everyone, and thanks a lot to Derek for his awesome tutorials and for this contest !

    Reply

  29. Okay, here is my very first android app. I have made it using your tutorials about fetching finance quotes from yahoo and parsing them. I had to call 2 APIs and for one I used XML parsing and for 2nd I used JSON parsing (I was implementing what I was learning). I am a complete newbie to app development.

    It’s a minimal weather app, developed and tested on Nexus 5. I hope it will work properly on your device as well.

    https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7dPi4LD5K2eM3lmaTZOdG5RMk0/edit?usp=sharing

    Reply

  30. Hello Derek,

    Here is my app submission for the contest. I made an app for all of your fans and the app is called “New Think Tank Tutorials”. It is a dedicated app for your YouTube channel and for your website.

    Download Link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/3nj4b39xp57tey5/NewThinkTankTutorials.apk

    The main features included in the app are:
    – Playback position memory. If you stop a video and come back again later it will start where you left off. Also you will get a progress indicator of videos that have been watched (Shown in screenshots)
    – Bookmarks. You can add and remove bookmarks to videos that you want to watch later or save to watch again later.
    – Articles. The app uses the RSS feed of your website to download the list of articles.

    Screenshots of the app: http://imgur.com/a/zYdsh

    Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this contest. It really gave me the motivation to get off my butt and start learning Android programming. I’ve been interested in starting app development for awhile now but you know how it goes..sometimes lazy beats motivation.

    I had been working on this app almost every single day for several hours a day since you announced the contest. I learned a ton about Android development and lots about Java too. I am a self-taught Python programmer for several years now and this was my first time dabbling with Java. Good thing it’s mostly the same as Python. I ended up rewriting the app from scratch 4 times as I learned more and more about Android development.

    Here are some of the advanced things I had learned about while creating this app.

    – Dynamically loading fragments (This app only uses a single activity and everything is fragments)
    – SQLite Database Provider (Everything is stored in a database so the app loads quickly)
    – Content Provider (All interaction with the database is done through a content provider)
    – Intent Service (I had initially used an intent service to interface with the YouTube API. But have since changed to a Sync Adapter)
    – Sync Adapter (I switched from using an Intent Service to a Sync Adapter to implement notifications when new videos are posted. Unfortunately the notifications feature isn’t working as intended and I don’t have much more time to work on the app before the deadline.)
    – Cursor Adapter (All the grid views are loaded using a custom Cursor Adapter that interacts with the Content Provider)
    – Navigation Drawer – (All navigation is done using a slide out drawer)
    – And much much more…

    If I have your blessing may I post the app to the Play Store as my first app ever? I didn’t want to post this app without your permission since it does interact with your property. Of course it would be completely free as well as ad-free since I wouldn’t be so presumptuous to make money off your efforts. Or if you’d prefer I could certainly donate all the source code to you to upload to the Play store. Or if you’d rather the app didn’t go on the Play store that’s totally understandable as well. I got what I wanted out of this app and that was learning a ton about Android development.

    Thanks again for the contest 🙂

    Reply

    1. Wow thank you very much Jeff!!! I can’t wait to check it out. Yes feel free to post the app. Everything I do here is to try and help people. Feel free to sell it if you want. I won’t ask for any money. Good luck 🙂

      Reply

  31. Hello Derek,
    Please access my app (made through App Inventor) at:
    https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5B-_hJbUm3PcW9xSW01ODdOQ0U/edit?usp=sharing

    It is a simple game for children. The app has help and about options to explain everything about the game. My email address is also in the about option.

    Thanks
    Manish

    PS: Seeing your recent comments about health, I would like to send you a health article that I had written few months back. It would be beneficial for all readers and if you feel it is appropriate you can publish on your website. Please send me your contact email address. Thanks.

    Reply

  34. Hello Derek,

    My app is called Easy Feeds, it is a Feed reader application.It is a tool to optimize the process of checking your favorite blogs and websites. keep track of the latest news in your area of interest: technology, movies, gaming, bussiness, fashion, etc.

    In the process of making this app I had to implement, Sharedpreferences, NavigationDrawers, Viewpager, Fragments(obviously), JSON data parsing, etc. I basically used a google API to obtain the data I wanted in json format, then I just parse this data and show a lot of dynamic information.

    This is a very dynamic app, everytime you use it you will find new things to read.

    I have to thank you Derek Banas, the fact that I am able to develop such a mobile app like this is due to your first android tutorials, following these tutorials were the first step for me to get into android development. I also learned so many new things developing this app, thank you again for doing this contest.

    The google play link is for everyone. The googledrive link is for you Derek, there you will find a special version with the email you require at the welcome screen and at the bottom of the main screen (next to the page number). In the google drive link there are also some screenshots of my app.

    Googleplay: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.manustudios.easyfeeds

    GoogleDrive: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B-yr_smr_L6OM3ZoN3lfOHZlUWM&usp=sharing

    Regards,
    Manuel

    Reply

  35. Hello Derek,

    This app basically helps you learn foreign languages with a much better accuracy and speed. It is similar to flashcards, but you can add new words, delete words if you already learned them ( and this is on your android device so you don’t need to struggle with physical cards 🙂 )

    In the Menu there is a “Sample”, and “Help” button to explain how the app works.
    My contact info is in the “About”.

    The app was inspired by your Android Studios and Address Book App tutorials. 🙂
    Thank you for the opportunity and for your awesome tutorials!

    https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B3pxoNGYamSacTJNQVo5TDRlRzQ

    Reply

      1. Quick Info: I just noticed App Inventor has a bug where if the App is set to Portrait and you are using it Horizontally(you are lying down), whenever you click a button in my app the notifications are really small and the next screen also appears small. Just a heads up.

        Reply

      1. Dear Derek,
        if you havent decided yet, you could download the file again, missing some bugs I found and fixed in the meanwhile.
        Thank you
        Frank J.

        Reply

  40. Hey Derek,
    I made the classic peg board game found in mom and pop restaurants or where I first saw this game as a kid, inside Cracker Barrel. I’ve been learning java programming for a while now on my own with the help of your videos and other resources found on the internet and finally after 3 months of programming and figuring things out, I have a game that is ready to play. I wanted to do more but the deadline is today and I had to get what i could done. So here it is!

    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dydrm.pegboardgamefree

    my email is under the “about me” section in the app.
    apps@dydrm.com

    Thanks for the opportunity,

    Jesse

    Reply

    1. P.S. I just published my app on google play store so it could take several hours before it is displayed. Hope this doesn’t cause any problems with the deadline of the competition.

      Thanks,
      Jesse

      Reply

  41. Hi Derek,

    Just to tell you that it would be nice to know with antelation the date and time for the youtube broadcast.

    Regards,
    Manuel

    Reply

  46. Hi Derek here is my application link.
    link
    I noticed some bugs in it while testing on some devices. But it is working on some devices too. I will correct that bugs.

    Reply

  47. Here is my app link
    While testing on some devices it had some bugs . But it works fine on some devices too.I will correct that bugs.

    Reply

  50. hey derek,
    Is this competetion still open?
    btw,Its very nice of you to reply every comment. And thanks for your every videos and codes ,you made another developer [kinda 😉 ]

    Reply

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