Android Market Hits 10 Billion Downloads, Games Dominate 178
New submitter sandeepabhat tips news that Android Market recently saw its 10 billionth app download, reaching the milestone less than a year after the App Store accomplished the same feat. New downloads through Android Market are proceeding at a rate of roughly 1 billion per month. Google has now created an infographic to break down the information further. Games outpace any other type of app, accounting for more than a quarter of all downloads. The top five countries in downloads-per-capita are South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the U.S., and Singapore.
Paid Vs. Free? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Paid Vs. Free? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Paid Vs. Free? (Score:4, Insightful)
Nobody mentions Amazon's AppStore? If you can sideload it works just like Google's Market except they have more stuff that you can pay for to get rid of the adds so a developer is not tied down completely to the Android Market.
Re:Paid Vs. Free? (Score:5, Informative)
Nobody mentions Amazon's AppStore? If you can sideload it works just like Google's Market except they have more stuff that you can pay for to get rid of the adds so a developer is not tied down completely to the Android Market.
Only useful for US Residents. The Amazon Appstore doesnt work outside the States.
Re:Paid Vs. Free? (Score:5, Informative)
This also means that people of course download way more apps too.
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Also, you make much more money on ads. Instead of getting a one-time payment of 99, they get continuous flow of money for much longer.
Re:Paid Vs. Free? (Score:4, Informative)
Um... you were doing great until you hit the piracy part. That isn't why apps are less expensive on Android. The issue is that Android's market (small m market) are competitive because there are multiple ways consumers can buy (Google, Amazon, etc)
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It's called common sense. You get apps for a large price that you find on the iphone as well, then you find some apps that do the exact same thing cheaper, and you can find again other apps that do the very same thing but for free, sponsored by ads or something else. Why would I buy some app when I can get it for free, or so cheap I can buy dozens more instead of just a very expensive one.
The fact that there are so many price ranges, business models and markets, speaks in Android's favour. That's competitio
Re:Paid Vs. Free? (Score:4, Insightful)
why would you pay for something that you know is available for free and took some guy couple of weeks of spare time to create? a _LOT_ of apps fall into this category. for example the "enable/disable wifi-hotspot"-widget that i'm using. it's such a basic thing, really, it should come with the os itself. even if you made a paid version of it, how are you going to differentiate to justify anyone paying for it?
you should rephrase it that piracy is easier on android since you don't have to pay the os provider to enable sideloading, as is with other some other platforms(ios, wp7, bb..).
"cheaper" implies there's something more expensive out there though. wp7's are in the same price brackets, you don't really pay much for the os there either. apple sells iphones that are not of the latest generation too if you want "cheap" and high end androids cost about the same as the most fresh iphone at any given day anyhow(about 750-800 bucks).
and a lot of the cool stuff that's worth warezing is based on stolen gpl code anyways!
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Incorrect. Piracy is easier on Android because it's trivial to get APKs off the platform, and APKs are not DRM-encumbered (unlike say, Amazon APKs). Other platforms like this include WebOS.
iOS, WP7 DRM the files - that's why you can download apps via iTunes or Zune Market and install them on your phone from your PC (really useful for
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that's why they bought a cheap Android in the first place.
If they were richer they would have bought The Real Thing...?
Re:Paid Vs. Free? (Score:4, Insightful)
Umm. My android tablet cost more than the iPad with the same amount of disk. It was not 'a cheap Android'. I got it because it had features few others had.
Mind you, at the time I thought the iPads were still more expensive, but even had I known I could have gotten an iPad for $50 less, I'd still stick with the Android I have for the features it has, that the iPad lacks.
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I didn't say all Androids were cheaper. Just that there are many people on a budget, and those people can more easily afford a cheap Android than an iOS device. And when they've done so, they are less likely to be prepared to pay for apps.
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It still sounds like broad speculation (ie: flame bait) to me... unless, of course, you can provide a link to a study.
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OK, how about this [androidcommunity.com], or this this [mobilemark...gazine.com].
From that last one,
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They offer a free app every day and most of the free offerings are games. There have been some really good non-game apps offered for free too, though - Quick Office and Printer Share are two that come to mind that have recently been offered for free. I'm not surprised that games come out on top (although I suspect Apple's market also is dominated by game downloads).
With a free app
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Your point is valid. However, you are missing one thing: cause and effect.
The reason there are so many free apps in the Android market nowadays is because developers have moved to "freemium" and ad-supported model on that platform. The evidence suggests that this is precisely because people were not willing to pay the price of apps in the Android Market, so developers adapted.
This appears to be mostly an Android phenomenon, since even the same developers tend to offer the same apps on the iOS App Store fo
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Those are promotions, not sustained prices. Or are you suggesting that Android users will just forgo the use of an application with the hopes of one day it appearing in the "free app days" listing?
If that's the case, it just reinforces the assertion that Android users will not pay for software (though I don't necessarily think it's to that extreme), and that this is an Android-specific phenomenon. There are plenty of free apps in the Apple App Store, yet people still buy the pricey ones.
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...Or are you suggesting that Android users will just forgo the use of an application with the hopes of one day it appearing in the "free app days" listing?
If that's the case, it just reinforces the assertion that Android users will not pay for software (though I don't necessarily think it's to that extreme), and that this is an Android-specific phenomenon. There are plenty of free apps in the Apple App Store, yet people still buy the pricey ones.
-dZ.
Well, as I said in my original post, the majority of what's offered as the free app of the day on Amazon is games. I'm not a gamer and don't use my tablet for games (not to mention that's it's just not powerful enough top run most of the newer games), so I'm not willing to pay for them. I'm willing to download them for free and try them, though. I'm doubly interested when I see a productivity/utility app offered for free.
I suspect I'm not alone, but who knows. Do most Android users use their tablets/phone
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Um... My epic 4g is still better than the latest iphone in everything that matters except battery life.
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You seem to think Android is a platform for cheapscates. The truth is that Android is the platform for people who don't give a fuck. Its target market is the same as MS Windows on the desktop -- those who take whatever is preloaded on the hardware instead of thinking about what they want from their software.
Just in case you weren't alive in the MS-DOS days, this turns out to be the far most dominating factor in the size of the markets, and determines the fate of the industry. It overwhelms all other cons
Re:Paid Vs. Free? (Score:5, Informative)
Mobile developers quickly learned that piracy on Android is much larger problem than on iPhone and that they couldn't just sell their software.
This certainly isn't true for me. I used to pirate all kinds of apps for Windows Mobile and for PC, but with Android it's easier to pay 99 cents for an app and get perpetual updates than to bother trying to pirate an app and keep it updated. Kind of like STEAM. I've bought a lot of apps already and I plan to buy almost all of the apps that are going on sale for 10 cents this week.
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Relax Coward, you seem to have skipped over the first sentence: "This certainly isn't true for me". He/she wasn't trying to claim that it was true for everyone.
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As others have mentioned, being free doesn't mean not monetised. For example, I remember Rovio a while back announcing that it was making more money through ad revenue from the free versions of its games on Android than the paid versions on iPhone.
Yes, they were making about as much money from new sales on iOS as they did from people playing their already downloaded ad supported apps on Android.
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Let's not forget ad revenue will continue as long as people use the aps, but people only buy the aps once.
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You're trying really hard to twist that fact to a pro iOS slant, but it's not working. More money on Android (ads or from wherever) is better than less money off iOS.
That was a good one - accusing me of "twisting a fact" while pretending that "making about the same" means more money on Android.
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I found it funny that of all the available data Google has on the Android Market, they chose to ignore the one that a lot of people track. Voting with dollars is a good way to see which apps/developers are producing quality; and it tends to signal whether the market is sustainable since developers, like everyone else, have rent to pay and at least one mouth to feed.
10 cent downloads for 10 days (Score:5, Informative)
Just in case anyone hasn't noticed, Google are celebrating by making selected apps are available for 10 cents for the next few days (it started a few days ago so there's something like 7 days to go).
The selection changes each day so it's worth having a look. I picked up Toki Tori today.
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is google paying the difference to the devs, or is this similar to amazon's daily free app thing? (in which the store just gives stuff free, devs get nothing)
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I would assume it's like the steam sales, where the dev agrees to sell their app for crazy cheap (because a download doesn't cost them any money) and the number of sales explodes so they end up making more money.
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now this may be different to usa but I live in uk and had this issue alot instead I'd get charged £1 and it got charged on most apps since most don't charge in my local currency so often would end up paying more to the bank than to the actual game developer, this is soemthing i truely believe google needs to fix as ios does not do this but anyway what i did was get myself a pre paid master card and that does not charge the £1 fee I think only a 2% transaction charge or something which is hardly
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I don't get it, how does your bank charge you more for a transaction than the price of the transaction? Do you have one of those setups where every purchase is rounded up to the next dollar and the difference is put in a savings account / donated to charity / etc.?
If not, why on earth do you still have an account with a bank that would just steal from you like this?
iPhone vs Android (Score:3)
The other day in another thread someone touted the "obvious" superiority of iPhone over Android. I called him on it, asking what would make the iPhone wrth its higher asking price. The only answer he could come up with was "app availability." (note, I was in a Sprint store yesterday triying to get my phone fixes, and it appeared some Androids cost more than iPhones, but that may have been part of the cantract, with the iPhone subsidized)
It looks like he was trolling. But I am curious, guys, wht with this thread and all, which one has more apps? More important, which one has more apps that are actually useful? If iPhone has 2 million apps and Android has 1.5 million apps, but 1.5 million iPhone apps are all Angry Birds clones, the "iPhone has more apps" would be a red herring; they're not all useful.
Note that these numbers aren't real, they're only illustrations. I'd really like to know which platform is better, iPhone or Android? How well are each built (and I realize that Android's quality is probably all over the board, since there are many different manufacturers).
And does the difference between phone company crippling make the question of Apple vs Android moot?
Re:iPhone vs Android (Score:4, Interesting)
At some point, app count becomes irrelevant.
First, most good apps are on both platforms, right? But more importantly, how many thousand apps can you run on your phone? And specifically, how many thousand barcode readers do you need, for example? Quantity of apps seems quite irrelevant, especially when there is so much redundancy.
From my experience, the distinction between the iPhone and Android is about interface. Maybe it is just because I am more used to the iPhone, but when using an Android, I find the experience to be downright hostile. It is as if I have to fight the interface to get it to do what I want.
With the iPhone, I feel like it is working with me. There is no doubt that sometimes the iPhone tries to be "too smart" and do stuff for me that I'd rather it not do. But on the balance, I find everything about its interface to be smoother, more elegant, and a much more pleasant/productive experience.
Given that both systems have basically the same feature set and basically the same apps, interface and industrial design are the major distinguishing factors.
Price seems like a rather minor factor. At least in the US, price of the phone is nothing compared to the price of the service.
Some apps are system sellers (Score:2)
But more importantly, how many thousand apps can you run on your phone?
Some apps are system sellers. To take an example from another market, if you want Super Smash Bros. Brawl, it doesn't matter how many games the Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, and PC can run; you need a Wii. I don't own an iPhone and am therefore not familiar with the apps considered system sellers on that platform, but I imagine that they exist.
And specifically, how many thousand barcode readers do you need, for example?
If the device that you already own or can afford has a fixed focus lens, then barcode readers that require an autofocus lens won't work. For example, Google's barcode scan
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Some apps are system sellers. To take an example from another market, if you want Super Smash Bros. Brawl, it doesn't matter how many games the Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, and PC can run; you need a Wii. I don't own an iPhone and am therefore not familiar with the apps considered system sellers on that platform, but I imagine that they exist.
I don't think the platform killer-game analogy works with iOS versus Android. Nearly everything is developed for both platforms, and in the rare case that one is not available on the other, there are hundreds of alternatives.
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Nearly everything is developed for both platforms
That certainly wasn't the case last year: http://mashable.com/2010/07/02/ios-android-developer-stats/ [mashable.com]
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But more importantly, how many thousand apps can you run on your phone?
That's an excellent question; how many apps can fit on each phone? And I also wondered why both platforms need apps when a computer can just use the web site for most things (radio stations are the first to come to mind). Why do you need (for instance) a Google Maps app when all you should have to do is surf to Google?
Maybe it is just because I am more used to the iPhone, but when using an Android, I find the experience to be downright h
Re:iPhone vs Android (Score:4, Interesting)
Why do you need (for instance) a Google Maps app when all you should have to do is surf to Google?
I find most embedded apps to be better than their web counterpart on any smartphone/tablet device.
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It's trivial to check the user agent and redirect a user to a mobile friendly version of the website with a much better layout for phones. Or in the case of some sites, IMDB comes to mind, when I browse to the site with an Android device, it prompts me that there is a native app and gives me a link to go get it, or I can go to the mobile friendly version of the website.
For more complex a
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My experience with interface is the reverse; I struggle to get iOS to do what I want, while Android makes perfect sense to me and operates smooth as a whistle (smoother, since whistles have little holes in them to make the sounds). This leads me to believe that as far as the interface of the two goes, it really is just personal preference and what you're used to, rather than a clear-cut "one is definitively better than the other" situation.
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It's interesting that you feel iOS interface is easier to use. I suspect this is more about habituation and accustomisation to your current platform's UI tendencies than it is about one UI paradigm being markedly better than the other.
By way of support, I'll say that I first had an iPhone (3G), and got a Nexus One after that. I felt lost for a little bit using the Android UI, but after a few days, I had the hang of it. Now when I go back and use iOS, it's like every app puts the Back button in a differen
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But price is a minor factor because most of the phones are about the same price, and all of the service providers charge about the same price for the service. $200 for a phone (regardless if it's an iPhone or and Android phone), is completely irrelevant to comparison shoppers because, a) all new smarthphones are roughly the same price, and b) they less than 10% of the total cost over the two year period. So if somebody is bickering between a $199 iPhone and a $99 Android phone, both with a Sprint/Verizon/
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Imagine how different two peoples lives would be, if they started out identically, but one took the lower cost route like this on everything and the other said it was a non factor and spent t
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Your talking about a 2% difference over two years. Lets cheat a little on the compounding of money and say that's a 1% per year difference. That's not a bad improvement.
1% on $50 over the two year service period? Yes, I consider that a mind-numblingly-insane minor factor. It would be a minor factor even on the full cost of a phone + service contract for two years. If one service provider approached me and said, "but our service is 1% cheaper than our competitor", it wouldn't sway me one bit. If there service was BETTER, and just happened to be 1% cheaper, that would be great.
If there was a guaranteed way to increase the return on any retirement savings you have by 1% per year would you still think that's a minor factor?
My retirement savings have been averaging around 5-10% return a year over the past 15 years, so aga
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If "app availability" was all he could come up with then he wasn't thinking hard enough, although ultimately the choice between iOS and Android is largely one of personal preference assuming you get a decent Android phone, although Apple closed the gap a little on the cheap Android handsets by keeping the 3GS around and discounting it.
I personally prefer the iOS app market, but it suits my needs just fine. YMMV.
One platform is no better than the other - I think iOS is slightly more polished, but it's mainly
Six months out of date much? (Score:2)
And does the difference between phone company crippling make the question of Apple vs Android moot?
For one thing, all phones with Android Market have Android Debug Bridge, letting the user sideload over USB. For another, half a year ago, AT&T relented and reenabled "Unknown sources" due to overwhelming customer demand for Amazon Appstore.
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For one thing, all phones with Android Market have Android Debug Bridge, letting the user sideload over USB.
Interesting, can you sideload over bluetooth or wifi as well? That would be a big selling point for me, I bought bluetooth dongles for both my computers (the cat lost the dongle for the notebook, it was on a table and when I got home the stuff was on the floor, dongle missing, damned cat must have used it for a toy) to transfer photos, recorded sound, movies, etc from my dumb qwerty phone.
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The other day in another thread someone touted the "obvious" superiority of iPhone over Android. I called him on it, asking what would make the iPhone wrth its higher asking price. The only answer he could come up with was "app availability." (note, I was in a Sprint store yesterday triying to get my phone fixes, and it appeared some Androids cost more than iPhones, but that may have been part of the cantract, with the iPhone subsidized)
No, many of the latest Android phones cost the same as the latest iPhone. As for older models they may be cheaper, but they don't receive OS upgrades as often if at all.
It looks like he was trolling. But I am curious, guys, wht with this thread and all, which one has more apps? More important, which one has more apps that are actually useful? If iPhone has 2 million apps and Android has 1.5 million apps, but 1.5 million iPhone apps are all Angry Birds clones, the "iPhone has more apps" would be a red herring; they're not all useful.
Note that these numbers aren't real, they're only illustrations. I'd really like to know which platform is better, iPhone or Android? How well are each built (and I realize that Android's quality is probably all over the board, since there are many different manufacturers).
And does the difference between phone company crippling make the question of Apple vs Android moot?
I would say Apple probably has more higher quality apps but that's also because Apple has more pay-for apps. Android has more free apps that are ad supported or games that are free to play but try to sell you in game upgrades. I have noticed recently some of the bigger name mobile developers that were previously iOS only have started port
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Who cares which one has more apps? This is the same argument as the mid-90s "Windows is better than Mac because there's more software" argument. Exactly how many word processors do we need again?
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Whatever you value more. I value compliance with open standards and customizability. As far as markets go, android market is better for me because I need only a browser to automagically install an app to my phone. App store requires iTunes for that for which I need to set up Windows somewhere (or buy a mac).
Having compared both platforms, there are other points favouring android in my eyes:
- network management in iphone is horrible compared to andorids
- It is more convenient for me to charge with external c
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You should be in sales, you just sold me on Android. Of course, I was leaning that way anyway, but what you listed is what I'm looking for. I'm running Linux on my main computer, and I have no desire to install iTunes after seeing it on other people's computers (shudder).
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Remembering a few years ago, in the PC vs Mac debate, that PC fans argued that their platform was superior because there was much more software available.
And they were right. That is the primary selling point of Windows, and in that regard, Windows is superior.
To what Mac fans replied that it was quality, not quantity that mattered, and that it was better, for a given application type, to have one good program rather than ten mediocre ones.
And they were right too. Provided the particular app category was served by a Mac app developer, then the app on Mac was probably better than any of the apps on Windows. In that way Mac was superior.
The difference here is that iOS has both the app quantity AND quality. It's superior in both ways.
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Remembering a few years ago, in the PC vs Mac debate, that PC fans argued that their platform was superior because there was much more software available.
And they were right. That is the primary selling point of Windows, and in that regard, Windows is superior.
And it's an even more stupid argument today than it was in 1995.
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It's stupid with categories where there are many alternative apps on every OS. It's not stupid when you hit a niche where there is no software except for WIndows. These niches are very small and specialised, but they do exist even now. And there were lots more of them back in 1995.
It's not an issue for the vast majority, but it is for some. And thus Windows is superior, in that way.
Heck, I hate Windows and don't give it credit fr much. But this one's undeniable.
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I don't buy that claim. Even back in 1995 it was pretty rare to not be able to get an alternative application for something that was "Windows Only". It's such a non-issue now days, that using the word "superior" in this context is laughable.
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Think specialist business and technical apps. e.g. Optometry. Rechargable battery management. Tiny niches, but theres an awful lot of tiny niches.
Yes, it's rare, and for most people it's not an issue - now more than in 1995. But yet it was and is one of the few points of superiority for Windows.
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I think you need a new adjective. "Benefit" of Windows is much more plausible than "superiority" of Windows.
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I'll go with that. "Superior" was inherited from the post I originally replied to.
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10 Billion would be 100 Billion... (Score:2)
...if it were not for the fragmentation that has reared its head in Android land.
After dismissing this issue, Google, I thought, appeared to be creating a solution with ICS 4.0. It seems I am under some kind of delusion. How can Google expect to be a force of change if Android devices are as numerous as OEMs in both hardware and software? It defeats my understanding.
Re:10 Billion would be 100 Billion... (Score:5, Interesting)
Perhaps it would be easier to keep all the phones up to date if the Microsoft Patent Licensing deal didn't involve renegotiation for each new Android version that you want to install on the phone...
Oh hey, guess what? MS charges LESS for a full install of WP7 than their bogus Android license fees. This is the same sort of behavior that got them in anti-competitive trouble LAST TIME. Funny how immediately after their DOJ anti-trust oversight expires, the ramp up the anti-competitive practices.
I hope B & N tears them a new one. [groklaw.net]
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It wouldn't be easier or harder because the fees are not the reason. The reason is the manufactures don't want you to upgrade the OS, they want you to upgrade the phone. It's planned obsolescence.
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what fragmentation?
just make your app for 2.2 - test that it works with high dpi tablets, maybe make a different layout for them if you feel like it. and bam, you're there. less fragmentation than on ios by now. if your app is targeted at doing some device specific shenigans by running things in the linux-side, I guess there's more fragmentation. for most kind of apps there's not really that much fragmentation to talk about, unless you count varying resolution as fragmentation.
(granted, you can make things
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Do you also complain about PC fragmentation?
Re:10 Billion would be 100 Billion... (Score:4, Insightful)
Version options? (Score:2)
Have they given a way to use an old version of the Marketplace yet? Trying to do so normally just results in the app auto-updating itself.
The current application is so slow and unresponsive that it is virtually unusable on an N1 with more than, say, 8 apps installed.
It's been like this for the past two or three revisions.
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Google sucks at customer support so naturally
Preffered App Metric (Score:3)
And only 5 months (Score:2)
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In a few days, or maybe already. They were on 18 billion in October, and increasing at about a billion a month.
i.e. iIn the last year there have been as many iOS app downloads as in the entire life of Android.
Market(s) (Score:2)
I hardly bother looking for stuff on the android market anymore, the splash page when you hit it is a giant
"OMG DON'T CLICK AND BUY ACCIDENTLY"
I just try to menu to updates and (after checking comments) update.
Amazon's app of the day has been actually pretty cool.
I like having choices for which market(s) I use.
If you add in amazon, and other markets, I think probably more downloads than apple...
Google, please take my money. Pretty please... (Score:2)
I have an android phone, so I've been enjoying this since I first heard about it. Was sad that I missed the first day, but what can you do? The biggest gripe I'm having now though is that Google will not even let me buy some of the apps on sale here today or yesterday. Keeps on saying my current phone is not compatible with the app.
So? Does Google think that I will never upgrade my phone? Or that just because I do not currently have an Android tablet I will never get one?
Please just let me buy the app
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I'm on Froyo. That is Android 2.2, which is really not that old yet. There are builds of CM7 available and I know that people are busy working away at porting over ICS as soon as it can be accomplished. I stick with Froyo though, because it seems to be the best built for my phone. I don't think the issue was so much operating system related as much as it is hardware related, my phone is an LG
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I guess for certain, atypical definitions of "spyware," and vague definitions of "dominates." I mean, you could define most free Android apps as spyware if you take the broad view that anything that calls home or displays targeted ads is "spyware." I personally have trouble buying that definition when using the app is strictly opt-in and you're told what the app can do when you opt in.
What exactly do you mean and have you the evidence to support it? Sorry, my impression is that you're just trolling/flamebai
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Breakdown of my iPhone usage (I was a holdout until 18 months ago):
25% Googling for things I'm wondering about when chatting with friends / to resolve a disagreement / to make sure I'm not telling my daughter untruths
25% Facebook/Sickipedia when I've got 5 minutes to kill; general surfing
15% Calculator/Wolfram Alpha when reading, accounting, doing bills, etc.
15% Dilbert, xkcd, news with the morning smoke
10% Texting, emails
5% Taking photos/vidoes when out and about
4% Miscellanous (Shazam, DSL diagnostics, ro
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25% Facebook/Sickipedia when I've got 5 minutes to kill
Some smartphone owners put gaming into this 25%.
My games console is for gaming. My "phone" is for everything else
Let me guess: no games from indie developers too small for Nintendo's developer program interest you.
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I used to say that. Then I got a smartphone.
They're extremely useful in all kinds of situations; for example, I needed to buy an odd-sized battery recently, and couldn't find anything that matched the markings at the store. Pulled out the phone, Googled it quick, found out exactly what the lettering and numbering means, and could choose a battery. I don't game on mine, other than cards occasionally. And it functions better as a phone than any dumbphone I've had.
Back when the first iPhones came out, I reall
Hundreds of dollars a year (Score:2)
[A smartphone is] extremely useful in all kinds of situations
But is it useful enough to be worth hundreds of dollars a year? I pay 7 USD per month for dumbphone service because any call that isn't about arranging a ride can wait for an unmetered land line. The same carrier's smartphone plans go for 35 USD per month, in part because they include more minutes in a month than I use in a year. Let me know when there are smartphone plans for less than that per month.
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Well, I bought an HTC Wildfire for 100 Euros, granted it was a used one (my neighbour bought a new one and I thought I give android a try). Worth every cent, I must say. And I don't pay monthly fee with my cell phone operator, only for usage. Now with the added bonus of having a navigation (great deal for me, especially to find points of interest around myself in a new city), flashlight, e-mail, jabber/facebook chat, remote control for pc, weather forecast, voip-capable phone with apps to locate mail boxes,
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The only reason I have yet to upgrade is that I don't want an additional charge for data. I haven't looked around recently, but can you get a smartphone that does not require a data package? Or, I guess the more appropriate question would be a carrier that does not require a data package with a smartphone.
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Different strokes. I use mine on a fairly regular basis to perform administrative tasks using VPN, ssh, Remote Desktop, etc. It's not a laptop replacement, but when you're in the middle of nowhere, and suddenly have a database or web server spitting out errors, it can be a life-saver.
Granted, I've got plenty of games on there as well.
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On-The-Go web searches are awesome. Especially when you are in Best Buy and you want to see if you can get that item cheaper from Amazon or you want to find the closest Italian restaurant.
Navigation is a huge bonus. You don't need a dedicated navigation unit or have to pay the extra $2000 for the "option" in most cars as well.
Weather information at your fingertips...
I use mine as a streaming audio player/mp3 player while docked on my desk at work. (granted, I am grandfathered into Verizon's unlimited dat
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People ask me why I don't have a smart phone. Its because the majority of people just use them to play games or pass the time. Its more toy than a useful appliance. I make an occasional call or text with my old flip phone. Maybe a camera would be nice on occasion but I can count that number of times on one hand.
One comedian whose name escapes me had a great comment about the way people observe things now. They don't see things for themselves. They see things through the miniature screen on the phone instead of their own eyes.
Will I upgrade to a smart phone? Maybe eventually, but I'd rather have $200 in my pocket than a game system with poor phone capabilities.
Believe me I was the same way, up until a couple years ago all I used for a disposable phone that I loaded with prepay cards. Then I upgraded to a more expensive "semi-smart" phone that had a camera, web browser and google maps. It could only run java based apps so it was very limited in "apps". It was still extremely useful when my girlfriend and I went on vacation. It replaced our normal gps for navigation, It replaced my digital camera and took equally good photos. The web browser was useful for fin
Re:Pretty old news for being Slashdot (Score:4, Funny)
Pretty old news for being Slahdot
Heh, you must be new here...
Slashdot used to be quicker than this.
Oh, never mind, you must be really old here.
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cydia is just a drop in the bucket.
you would need to start counting ziio-store etc downloads to android then too.
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I'm not sure how true it is, but I was told that Hong Kong is fairly independent even though it's part of China. It's considered by some to be a separate entity under different laws/rules.
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Is Hong Kong a country?
Depends on whether you are Chinese or the rest of the world.