Apple Thoughts - News & Reviews on all things Apple

"Apple announced this morning that App Store downloads have officially broken 3 billion, and it happened in less than 18 months."

According to the press release they have the App Store available in 77 countries, and, quoting Steve Jobs, "...this is like nothing we've ever seen before. The revolutionary App Store offers iPhone and iPod touch users an experience unlike anything else available on other mobile devices, and we see no signs of the competition catching up anytime soon." Quite a feat in under 18 months.

"App Store downloads for iPod touch devices eclipsed those for iPhones for the first time on Christmas Day, December 25th, 2009. Analytics firm Flurry released data Monday showing that apps downloaded for iPod touch grew 1000% Christmas Day compared to an average of the previous Fridays in December."

Sounds like quite a few people got an iPod Touch for Christmas! Either that or they sold a heckuva lot of iTunes Gift Cards.

"While 2009 was generally another awesome year for Apple's iPhone App Store, it was another trying year for some iPhone developers, who found themselves victim to Apple's app reviewers."

Consistency seems to be the problem, and while not as bad as it was before, it still is causing some PR problems over at Apple as well as some disgruntled developers. But, as the article states, there is some light at the end of the tunnel as the Apple fine tunes some things. I'm pretty sure Apple isn't going to let this go down in flames, but it sure makes you wonder, as you go through this list, just what was Apple thinking??

"Apple and its partners were completely surprised by the huge success of the App Store - with the implication that others in the smartphone biz were similarly unprepared for the level of pent-up demand for customizable features on handheld devices."

I would guess they weren't too upset, and probably pleasantly surprised at just how much of a demand there turned out to be for something like the App Store. Granted, there have been and still are problems, but for the most part you can't argue with the success they have achieved. Especially when you see stories like this one about the success of the start-up Tapulous.

"IAN LYNCH SMITH, a shaggy-haired ball of energy in his late 30s, beams as he ticks off some of the games that Freeverse, his little Brooklyn software company, has landed on the iPhone App Store's coveted (and ever-changing) list of best-selling downloads: Moto Chaser, Flick Fishing, Flick Bowling and Skee-ball."

Mr. Smith earned over $180,000.00 USD on his game Skee-Ball alone so he seems pretty happy with the opportunity that the App Store has given him. Can't say I blame him, there are all kinds of resources out there for anyone that wants to develop a program for the iPhone/iPod Touch and who knows, you could strike gold too. That seems to be the draw, for companies large and small, it kind of evens the playing field when it comes to app development. This is a 5 page (well 5 pages on the web) article, general overview of the iPhone and the App Store and what it all means to those involved. The author seems to say that this is the standard for mobile app development, Apple is leading the pack and it is their race to lose. What are your thoughts? 

"James Thomson of PCalc fame noted late yesterday on Twitter that the App Store's again updated the way it deals with app sorting: 'Looks like sort by release date in [the] App Store only sorts by original release date now, not update date. Say hello to page 342 of Utilities...'"

Basically what they have done is changed the way the apps are sorted, using the original release date instead of the last date the app was updated. From what I gather, there was some abuse of this by developers, doing minor updates to get their app higher on the sort list. I'm all about fixing the abuse, but this isn't the right way. Perhaps an option to display the list you want, as in last updated, new release, etc. What are your thoughts, good? Bad?

"The impassioned pleas of one developer e-mailed to Steve Jobs resulted in a quick reversal of his app's rejection. The launch of the app today is the first known approved app that can stream live video directly from one iPhone to another, and the first approval for an app with known use of private APIs. Apple's change of heart came "directly from the top," and is a sign that real change in the App Store approval process is in the works."

He must have really written a good email to get Jobs involved. Either that, or in combination with that, Jobs liked the app and wanted to see it succeed. I don't know how much of this can be attributed to a "real change" in the App Store approval process though, sounds to me like an isolated incident. What are your thoughts?

"According to Techcrunch, iDroid, an app by Swavv Apps just got rejected from the App Store. It was a pretty innocent app as all it did was display the glowing red Droid eye and some slides about the Droid's capabilities, but you must admit that the refusal is not very surprising. I just don't know why Apple really cares though."

I don't know why Apple cares either, seems silly for something like this to be rejected, but I guess an app advertising a competing product crosses the line. What are your thoughts?

"While some say Apple never wanted the iPhone to be a gaming device, the company knows which way the wind is blowing and wants to get involved. Apple is looking to hire a game and media software engineer for its iPhone and iPod touch team, which could mean it wants to make games of its own."

Conjecture actually on the gaming aspect, but they are looking for someone with gaming experience to fill this engineer position. According to the job posting they are looking for a "skilled software engineer who wants to work as part of a small highly motivated team to work on interactive multimedia experiences on the iPhone and iPod Touch." Sounds like Apple may want to tap into that growing market and get some of the dollars they are seeing go to developers. What are your thoughts?

"Apple today announced that developers have created over 100,000 apps for the App Store, the largest applications store in the world. iPhone and iPod touch customers in 77 countries can choose from an incredible range of apps in 20 categories, including games, business, news, sports, health, reference and travel."

And over two billion downloads. Yes, I agree there are some apps that are crap in that mix but even with all the problems and complaints, it is still the main reason the iPhone is such a success. 

"Apple today announced that more than two billion apps have been downloaded from its revolutionary App Store, the largest applications store in the world."

Two billion downloads, impressive number and no other devices has such a resource. And it keeps on growing, with "85,000 apps available to the more than 50 million iPhone and iPod Touch customers worldwide" as well as 125,000 developers that have registered in the iPhone Developer Program.

According to Steve Jobs, "The App Store has reinvented what you can do with a mobile handheld device, and our users are clearly loving it."

"Apple has launched an online a resource center for registered iPhone developers. The only problem is that it gives them nothing new-except more frustration, that is."

I'm not a developer, but with all the news about problems in the app submission and approval process I would have expected a little more. Gathering all the available documentation that has already been distributed and organizing it into one spot is a nice bit of housekeeping but it certainly doesn't do much for the developers and their complaints. Seems like they all want something concise instead of the apparent randomness of the process, and I can see their point.

"As David Barnard of AppCubby points out in a blog post that even the staunch advocates of the $10 price point for premium apps may be giving in and reducing their prices."

Super Monkey Ball started the ball rolling, so to speak, for the $9.99 USD premium app pricing point. According to the article, they have found that the price point developers are settling into is the $3.99 USD to $4.99 USD range but they think consumers may be shopping with the wrong focus. The focus seems to be comparing the price of apps to one another instead of the value you will get out of the app. I think it may be a combination and those two points aren't exactly mutually exclusive. If I can find an app that gives me what I'm looking for that is a buck or two cheaper, isn't that focusing on both value and price comparisons? What is your limit on apps? How do you judge what you will spend?

"Earlier this week, Apple took a step towards making iPhone and iPod touch apps easier to find. Specifically, developers can now add comma-separated keywords to their apps, up to 255 characters."

This should certainly help in finding specific applications, especially since there are over 55,000 active apps in the store according to 148apps. But already there are problems according to the guy in charge at App Cubby, David Barnard, based on his two most recent tweets. One says he "can't put in more than 10 characters" in the 255 character box, and his second voices his frustration at not being told about the update and then Apple "botching" it. I guess we shall see soon enough if this is isolated incident or just the beginning of problems with the new feature.

"As of July 11th, the iPhone/iPod touch App Store housed 56,081 different apps according to Jeff Scott of 148apps.com. Taking a quick look, I found over 400 different fart apps. This alone is pretty scary and would lead me to believe that any app that might be either useful or funny, or even totally pointless, has so many variations that without knowing an app name, searching for something that interests me would soon become a Herculean task."

I have to say, I agree that the search function in the App Store isn't the greatest, and I often get a long list of apps when searching for just that perfect app. Not exactly easy to run through them all either to see if they suit my needs. The five websites they refer to are freeappalert.com, Appshopper.com, 148apps.com, Iviewer.com and Macworld's App Guide. They are good resources, and I especially like 148apps.com since they go through free and paid apps, and have a games section, but I'm sure you can get something from each of these sites!

"And while Verizon is romancing developers, the carrier isn't as solicitous of its handset partners. Verizon's Ryan Hughes, VP Partner Management, said in an interview Friday that the network operator's app store will be the sole marketplace on devices sold by the company, meaning stores such as Research In Motion's BlackBerry App World or Microsoft's Windows Mobile Marketplace won't get placement on Verizon handsets unless a consumer downloads them. Hughes also said that Verizon is focusing on aggregating content from four different developer communities: Windows Mobile, Palm, Android and BlackBerry."

It continues to amaze me how little reaction these sorts of things elicit when other carriers do them. AT&T is constantly being derided for taking too much control over the user experience with the iPhone and yet here is Verizon pretty much taking an even bigger level control over their own handsets. Everyone wants a Verizon iPhone so they can get off AT&T and use the much "friendlier" network. Face it, folks. Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint... They're all the same.

"Fortunately, Best iPhone Apps: The Guide for Discriminating Downloaders guides the way, shining the light on over 200 gee-whiz apps that delight, empower, and entertain. Author Josh Clark stress-tested thousands of titles from the App Store emporium to select apps that will make the biggest difference in every aspect of your life: at work, on the town, at play, at home, and on the road. “I wrote this book to help you stay current,” notes Clark."

Okay... I'll say it.

I don't get it.

A book about the App Store? A resource where hundreds upon hundreds of new applications are available to people every day? While I get the general idea, and can appreciate the work involved in reviewing all those apps to choose them for a book, I don't understand why anyone would want a dead tree reference for the App Store. It'll be out of date by the time you get it home!

I don't get it.

"How much would it cost to buy all 55,732 apps in the app store as of yesterday (7/6/2009)? $144,326.06 .. or $2.59 per app ($3.34 if you don't include the free apps (12,538 of them)"

Interesting stuff. Sometimes I feel like I've easily paid that much. I have 98 apps on my phone, and another 70+ on my desktop that I've removed from my phone. I'm totally app addicted, but it's at least for a good cause. Most of my apps are paid, also, and I'd like to think that developers are making a few bucks off my addiction!

"Light a candle and cue the music. Okay, forgive us for sounding like doting parents, but we're just so proud -- having watched the App Store go from a promising newcome to full-fledged revolutionary. To celebrate its first birthday, we've gathered some of our favorite games and apps. Part fun. Part function. Entirely amazing."

Head over to iTunes and check out the best of the best. It's hard to believe it's been a year already, isn't it? And in that one year, everyone is jumping on the App Store concept. RIM, Microsoft, Palm, and Google are all trying to replicate the success Apple has had with the iTunes, but so far none have even come close.

Simply amazing stuff. Hit up the link and check out Apple's picks of the litter on the one-year birthday of the App Store.

"Eucalyptus has been finally allowed to appear in the App Store after being rejected by Apple. The e-book reader for the iPhone and iPod touch was rejected because a person could get sexually oriented books like the Kama Sutra, even though the book is in the public domain and freely available on the web."

Seems pretty ridiculous that this app was even denied, based on something that it "could" download, rather than content that it provided as part of the application. Thankfully Apple reversed their decision, but it seems like it always takes some heat from blogs or news articles about the ridiculousness of the process before they change course on an application approval. I totally understand why developers are less than happy with Apple about this kind of thing.