Here are the best Android apps of the past year, according to Google

[sincity]

Parsing through Google Play's extensive library of Android apps is a Herculean task, so Google is saving you the effort by highlighting some of the best to come out in the past year.

The Android maker has announced its nominees for the 2017 Google Play Awards, giving apps across 12 different categories a chance for their share of recognition.

You can see each of the nominees and their respective categories here, with the winners receiving their dues on Thursday, May 18 at the Google IO 2017 developer conference.

To qualify, each app was not only considered exemplary in its individual category by Google staff, but also maintains a relatively high star rating and was either launched or significantly updated from April 2016 onward.

This also explains how mainstays like Netflix and Hearthstone nabbed a nomination for 'Best TV Experience' and 'Best Multiplayer Game', respectively, despite both coming out well before last April.

Nominated apps

In addition to more straightforward categories, two newcomer-friendly awards include 'Standout Startup,' recognizing fast-growing companies like CastBox, Digit, and Discord, and 'Standout Indie,' showing off eye-catching indie titles like Reigns, Causality, and Mars: Mars.

Smartphones apps aren't the only software on parade, with wrist-bound software like Foursquare City Guide and Bring! getting nominations for 'Best Android Wear.'  Virtual reality wasn't forgotten either, as apps like The Arcslinger and the BBC's The Turning Forest received nods for 'Best VR Experience.'

Some not-so-obvious awards are also on display at this year's Google Play Awards, such as 'Best Social Impact' and 'Best Accessibility Experience,' the latter of which highlights apps that interact "in an innovative way that serves people with disabilities or special needs."

Though we don't have a whole awards show planned out like Google, we certainly have ample best Android app recommendations of our own, should you need to know what's worth a-downloading for your Android device.

• Prefer iOS? Here are the best iPhone apps
• What can we expect from Android O?

http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/techradar/software-news/~4/-bNhNzxerKc