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Guardian crosswords go social

The Guardian has launched its first crosswords app as a free trial.

According to the Guardian: The app is a new, convenient way for crossword fans to access their daily fix of the Guardian's crosswords, and enables solvers to share tricky clues with their friends via text, email or social media.

The Guardian Crosswords app for Android - available now on Google Play - provides crossword fans with a daily Guardian Cryptic crossword on weekdays, and Quick crosswords Monday to Saturday.

Users can download puzzles when they have an internet connection, then carry them in their pocket to tackle whenever and wherever they choose.

Hugh Stephenson, the Guardian's crossword editor, said: "The Guardian's first cryptic crossword was published on Saturday 5 January 1929 in the Manchester Guardian, as it was then called. In the last 83 years we have published over 25,000 cryptic crosswords, and this app is a wonderful new way of making our popular puzzles available to new solvers. It's been designed by crossword-lovers, for crossword-lovers, so it offers a range of features to make cracking clues even more engaging, and we can't wait to see the reaction."

Features of the app include:

• Stop watch - solvers can record their puzzle completion times and share with friends or social media to compete against themselves and others

• Share tough clues with friends via email, SMS and social media

• Check or cheat - users can check their solutions, cheat if they're inclined to do so, or turn the feature off altogether if it's too tempting

• Archive of cryptic and quick crosswords from 1 March 2012

• Pinch and zoom - solvers can adjust the screen to suit them

• Flexible keyboard - the keyboard can be pulled up when users are ready to enter a solution

• Clue, grid and keyboard view - swipe clues, adjust the grid and enter text, all at once

The app is available now on Google Play as a free trial for a limited launch period - payment options will be introduced at a later date.

The app has been designed and developed by an in-house Guardian News & Media team.

The app is available in the following territories:

UK, US, Ireland, Finland, Latvia, Romania, Austria, France, Lithuania, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, Greece, Malta, Spain, Czech Republic, Hungary, Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Poland, Estonia, Italy, Portugal, Australia, Bulgaria, Switzerland, India, Singapore, Hong Kong, Slovenia, Slovakia and Canada.