The App Store, Apple’s Golden Ticket

With more than 2 billion downloads, the App Store is likely to be Apple’s most unique creation yet, according to Joseph Menn from Financial Times.

The iPhone’s performance has proved to stand tall in an economy where even the technology industry struggles.  These App’s have managed to create their own industry along the same lines as computers, music and phones. In turn, the developers for these iPhone Apps have found their golden ticket to success from servicing budding entrepreneurs with unique ideas, all the way up to CEO’s of a established corporations.

The iPhone sales continue to climb as users now average 10 new downloads per month. With over 100,000 apps now available in the App Store and over 50M in iPhone and iPod Touch sales, businesses feel enticed to ride this wave and bring their app idea’s to life.

This influx in the App Store has by far exceeded the predicted forecast by Apple investment firms Such as Kleiner, Perkins Caufield & Byers.  “We had no idea there would be 2 billion downloads by October,” according to Matt Murphy, manager of the then $100m fund. “Most people within Apple, if you had told them it would be a fifth of that by now, they would have been pretty happy.”

Apple could have never anticipated what was going to come from tapping on a small square icon on the iPhone Home Screen.  Not only an array of your programs of interest but a successful communication tool between iPhone App developers and users. The developer can set the price and Apple will manage the sale for a 30% cut.

Many of Apple’s competitors, including Blackberry and Android, are offering an app store now although they all lack in the number of apps available for download.  These competitors also lack in functionality which is why the iPhone still remains very popular in the mobile industry.

NYC Free Parking iPhone App Competes for Award

The free iPhone application NYC Broken Meters, uses city data to find broken meters in Manhattan. Under the city law, motorists are able to park freely at a broken meter for up to one hour.

According to The New York Post, the broken meter data is obtained by Scout 311, a company responsible for finding traffic related equipment needing repairs in New York City. Scout311 has developed this iPhone app to utilize the phone’s GPS, which results in under 1,000 meters being broken.

As of Monday, NYC residents are voting for the best app in Manhattan. The NYC Broken Meters Application is just one of the many Manhattan based apps that have entered into this competition which features a grand prize of $5,000, according to the New York Post. 

This competition is intended to shed some light on iPhone Apps that help make Manhattan more attainable. Quit a few of the finalists are similar to NYC Broken Meters in the sense that they use city data to inform the people in the city about current events. IPhone Apps such as Hey Walkie, a dog park locator and Trees Near you, a map of a all trees in the city; are several among the many competing Apps.

The winner for the best New York City App will be recognized at an awards ceremony after the competition ends on January 7^th.

iTunes Rolls Out New App Store Layout

Apple always likes to improve and iterate iTunes. Last week the App Store rolled out a new layout. Now the background is white, there are several scrollable areas, and a more usable review section.

The new design now shows a few screenshots of each app. iPhone App Developer info and support websites are at the top of the page and are much easier to find now. 

Some developers appeared unhappy with these changes, but sometimes change is good and just takes a bit of getting used to.  However, for most users of the App Store, these simple usability modifications will be welcomed.

Boating Weather iPhone App

We recently found a neat little app that will display the NOAA marine forecast right on your phone. We like this app beacause its real simple, one tap and there’s your forecast.
The Boating Weather app doesnt have all the bells and whistles like some of the other weather apps, which is why we like it!

Download Boating Weather at the app store.