Google's formerly-iPad-only Catalogs app now also on Android
Updated to reflect that the iPad version has been out for several months.
Google's shopping-centric mobile app isn't particularly new on the iPad -- we checked in on it in August -- but it's finally made its way to the Android platform. It's called Catalogs, and you can find it as a free download on the App Store or in the Android Market.
The big G has used its Google Books technology to scan and set up links on a number of different holiday shopping catalogs, so you can load up the app, flip through the virtual pages to find something you want, and then click away to buy it directly from your mobile tablet.
The links aren't built in to the app -- they more or less just open up an internal app browser that then lets you buy the product online. But the experience is pretty seamless otherwise; there are over 400 catalogs to browse through, and I quickly saw brands like ThinkGeek, Nike, Sonoma Williams, Sharper Image, and Pottery Barn on display.
It's a pretty specific use of Google's search and scanning software, but hey -- it's free, and it might help with the holiday shopping this year.
[via Engadget]
