I love how Android integrates various ways to contact friends, family, and co-workers using a simple “contact card” metaphor. Today we have so many different ways to be contacted it’s almost comical. Work phone, home phone, work cell, home cell, home email, work email, Twitter, Facebook, Google Chat, Skype, and more! Most Contacts apps that come built-in to the major mobile operating systems today include ways to handle all these methods through which we can connect with one another. Still, firing up your contacts app, searching for the person you want to connect with, then picking which of the several ways with which you can connect with them is a lot of steps — especially if they are someone you contact frequently!
Android has got you covered with a nice, convenient “Contact” widget that lets you place a person on one of your home screens that, when tapped, will open a quick contact card. Simply pick how you want to talk with them and you’re all set!
That works great if you’re already on your home screen and looking at the shortcut, but what if that widget is a few home screens away? Or what if you’re inside another app and really don’t want to go back home, find them on one of the home screens, and then contact them. That still seems like a lot of steps!
Developer Rolf Zölcher felt the same way and went about developing an app that lets you put up to six of your favorite contacts in your notification shade. “From there, you can call, message, email and many other things, without exiting your running application.”
Download Contacts Notification from the Google Play Store (it’s free) and let us know how it works for you in the comments below!
