Reason #1 to Make The Switch: Google+ for Android

Not convinced about Google+? You're missing out on the slick and silky smooth feature fest that is the Google+ app for Android. Here's why:

User Experience

When you're using the +Google+ app, you'll notice that posts (or "cards") fly into view as you scroll down the stream. It sounds silly but the subtle effects actually makes for a really pleasant experience. It's really fast, and reliable too, you don't have to worry about seeing a never-ending loading screen here.

Advert free

If you're a Facebook user, you're probably used to seeing ads that take up the whole screen on your news feed right?

What ever happened to seeing posts from your friends?

On +Google+, there are no advertisements (or "sponsored posts") to clutter up your stream. You heard me right, with Google+, you get a completely ad-free experience.

For tablets, too!

If you've tried out the Facebook app on an +Android tablet, you know that it doesn't look great. It's actually just a scaled-up version of the phone app, it's pretty mediocre to say it best. It's like they don't even try (they don't).

Facebook on a tablet; not exactly a fantastic user experience

It's a different story with Google+, it looks and feels just as beautiful on a tablet as it does a mobile. It's clear that the Google+ team has put a lot of work into making a truly stellar experience for users with 7" and 10" tablets.

One of the benefits of Google+ on a tablet is that you can see multiple posts/cards at once, and the content really pops out.

Google+ on a Nexus 10, beautiful isn't it?

Features

Tap the Google+ icon on the top-left and the ribbon menu will slide into view, inviting you to select from a wide array of features.

Hitting "Profile" takes you to your profile (of course), where you can view all the posts you've made, and you can edit your "about" section there too.

Photos

You can view all the photos you've been tagged in, as well as photo albums that you've created (including photos from posts and profile photos).

Instant Upload

You can set the app to automatically upload your photos as you take them, it's called Instant Upload. Here's an example of why it's a good idea to turn this feature on:

Want to learn more about Instant Upload? Check out our Photos How To.

Hangouts

Hangouts is a really cool feature that lets you video chat with people you've added to your Circles. Don't know what Circles are? Click here to learn more.

You're not restricted to just WiFi when you're hanging out, you can use your cellular (3G/4G) connection too, but I recommend sticking to WiFi if you don't have a large bandwidth allowance.

Communities

Communities is a great way to discuss with others who share your interests. To learn more about getting started with Communities, we've wrote up a how-to for you here. Once you've found a few which take your fancy, you can catch up and participate in the discussion on-the-go.

Events

You can view and create events on your devices, and there's a cool little feature which I think you'll love, Party Mode.

When you and your buddies are on a wild night out, and an event has been set up on Google+, any one who has switched on this feature can take a photo and it will automatically show up on the event's stream. This means you don't have to ask your friends to see the photos they took that night any more, pretty neat right?

Download

I've only touched on a few features and benefits of what Google+ has to offer on your mobile devices, if you've heard enough and would like to check it out for yourself now, hit the download button below!

If you don't already have it pre-installed on your +Android, you can grab it straight from +Google Play using the download button below.

Got an iOS device? No worries, you get roughly the same set of features as its Android counter-part, and you can download it from iTunes here.