TweetCaster for Android

Handmark could also work on speedier loading. The app can take almost 10 seconds to load when you activate it after powering the phone on. Fortunately, the process was quicker on subsequent launches, but you'll be forced back to the longer start screen the next time you turn off your handset.

The slick, satisfying TweetCaster offers nearly everything you'd expect from Twitter in a user-friendly design, including support for multiple accounts, Twitter trends, retweets, searches, and posts from people nearby, and Twitter lists. You can block and report spam, and quick-follow, add a photo, shrink a URL, geotag a status update, and, once you get the navigation worked out, follow and unfollow.

We like the visual interface with its five tabs for your full tweet list, tweets that just mention you, direct messages, your favorites, and any lists that you follow. Switching among Twitter accounts took a little navigation; we'd prefer to jump between accounts with a horizontal finger swipe. Small yellow dots on the first two tabs let you know you have new tweets or mentions. That's helpful, but we'd prefer seeing the number of new tweets as well. Fortunately, Handmark promises that a release scheduled for the next few weeks will correct that problem.

Even with our interface gripes, we think TweetCaster is at the top of the Android pile of Twitter apps. Its intuitive interface design, loaded feature set, and quick performance make it a must for any Tweet-happy Android user. There's also the premium, ad-free version, Tweetcaster Pro, available from the Android Market.