Super Caller ID

Current Caller ID by Whitepages.com
Free for Android phones at the Google Play store

Like pretty much all cell phones, my Android has built-in Caller ID. But that hasn’t stopped the people at Whitepages.com, the online telephone directory service, from trying to improve on the concept with a clever new Android-only app.

Normally when you get an incoming call from someone who’s not already in your smartphone’s address book, the screen just displays the caller’s number. The Current Caller ID app checks the number against the Whitepages.com database, and brings up whatever it finds. So it’s a lot more likely that you’ll find out who’s calling you.

The app also figures out where the call is coming from, and then displays a weather report for that part of the country. It even flashes a news headline. I’m not sure I see the point of this feature, but it’s rather cool.

If the caller is already in your address book you’ll see all his usual data. But you can also set the software to connect to everyone’s favorite social networks--Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Now when the caller ID pops up, you also get a readout on the caller’s recent tweets and Facebook postings, along with his recent SMS text messages to you.

It’s all seamless, painless and free. Current Caller ID will inspire envy from your iPhone-toting friends, and make your Android phone quite a lot smarter.