I've previously posted about the benefits of using the custom Contacts/Dialer Android app Go Contacts. However there's also another version of the same app, by the same developers, available called Go Contacts Ex. Go Contacts Ex is a slightly tweaked version of the original with a few graphics updates.

Both apps have a similar base feature set, with Go Contacts Ex only enhancing upon Go Contacts' visual appearance.

Dial Pad

Here is a comparison of the Dialler screens for Go Contacts and Go Contacts Ex. Both screenshots are taken with the included "Dark" theme.

Display Settings

Go Contacts Ex includes a number of extra display options, including transition effects. Here's a comparison of the two and an example of Go Contacts Ex's transition effects.

Other Differences

• Go Contacts Ex allows you to set individual ring tones for each contact. (thanks D K)
• Go Contacts 'merge' function allows you to specify the main contact in use. (thanks Untrusted0)/li>

Both Go Contacts and Go Contacts Ex can be found for free in the Android Marketplace.

If you've come across any other differences, please leave a comment below.

I've had a gMail account for a long time now, but had never paid much attention to my 'Google Contacts'. It was just a collection of email addresses built up from email conversations over the past few years.

However with a new Android phone in hand, Google Contacts becomes a whole lot more useful. You can now have your phone contacts stored in the cloud for easy backup and editing.

Cleaning Up The Mess

I followed this guide to clean up my Google Contacts. It didn't take too long to merge email addresses with phone contacts and delete any garbage. Google Contacts makes it fairly easy to merge duplicate contacts and keep the data you want.

Completing Contacts Social Information

Now that I've got a nice clean contact list, it was time to spruce up the data with my contacts social network information.

Facebook For Android provides integration between Google Contacts and Facebook, but it won't update the data to your Google Contacts.  Luckily, there are other ways to go about it. Rainmaker is one such way. Rainmaker makes it incredibly easy to sync Google Contacts to Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Where are my Contacts Photos?

One thing I did notice lacking from Rainmaker, was the uploading of Facebook Profile pictures to my Google Contacts. Thankfully, there's a handy Android app to take care of that.

SyncMyPix does exactly what its title suggests. It syncs your Facebook contacts profile pictures with your Google Contacts, allowing them to be uploaded.