Android Market overhauled, but what does it have to offer?

As with iTunes and the iPhone, the Android Market is one of the best bits about owning an Android phone, letting you download thousands of applications to cater for almost any need. Google is set to launch an overhauled Android Market, however, with a Windows Phone-esq design. Read on to find out what it has to offer.

The Android market is arguably one of the best app markets available, offering hundreds of thousands of apps and a lot more freedom than Apple’s own iOS offering. It’s one of the biggest reasons that lots of people opt for Android over rival smartphones, yet Google has felt the need to refresh its Market. Here are some of the things it’s changed.

Brand new designFor a start, the whole look and feel of the Android Market has changed, with new icons and finger-friendly sections that fill the whole of the screen. With different sized icons, it looks suspiciously like Windows Phone, but that’s no bad thing.

Rent moviesAt the moment, this feature is only available in the US, but Google is looking at rolling it out in more countries. You’ll be able to download films, and you can also set them to work offline, for when you don’t have a data connection or are trying to eek out extra battery life.

eBooksThe Android Market now offers the world’s largest collection of electronic books (according to Google), with over three million titles available. With the latest handsets like the Samsung Galaxy S II and Sony Xperia Arc offering screens that measure over 4 inches, they’re perfect for taking advantage of eBooks.

New descriptionsApps are better labelled than ever before, with a comprehensive description of what you’re getting, along with user reviews, so you know beforehand whether it’s worth downloading or not.