- Obviously this must be answered two ways.
First, officially support via BlackBerry world and Amazon, I would say maybe 30-40% of relevant apps are available.
Unofficially via snap and Google play, I would say 90% or more are available.
For me, every app I need works with one exception, the MLB at bat app doesn't play live video.
What is your experience?
Posted via CB1010-03-15 07:13 AMLike 0 - App gap? That's easy you go make a survey and little research that will cost you nothing to see what kind of apps consumers crave. Is it social apps? Is it web rewraps? Is it productivity apps (yeah right pfff)? Is it games?
Then you go on and look for actual name of the apps in those categories. The research would cost you $0 as long as you have some common sense.
BB10 lack of social apps big time, social apps are form of communication, can be overcome by BlackBerry actually taking some action to develop unified social platform just like HUB. Sure you wont get every little feature but you will get one place where you get all your FB, Twittter, Vine, Pintrest, Instagram, Twitch, Thumbler whatever comes next cravings. That's a lot better than nothing and no app switching! You know kind of follow up on your HUB philosophy.
You are missing some web rewrap apps like NBC, CNN, ESPN, Victoria's Secret, etc? No problem! Make a freakin rewrapper that wraps those websites into native app experience on demand. Header goes into Cascade header, bodycopy goes into Cascade bodycopy, Menu rewraps into Cascade overflow or whatever. There you go you made up for some news "apps".
What about Netflix and other services that don't offer public APIs? Well screw them then!
Real problem would be banking apps and office apps and games, there is no way around that but BlackBerry has its own office suite and they are not doing anything about it either.
Bottom line: BlackBerry naively has chosen to play the app game without doing any thinking how they would attract the developers besides the obvious brand name of BlackBerry. But besides that they did nothing to improve their own competitive portfolio of apps such as Docs To Go, etc. The reason BlackBerry never approached things like I mention above to solve the content gap is also because its BlackBerry and they just cant see it.andy957 likes this.10-03-15 07:33 AMLike 1 - You always can find alternative apps which sometimes better, easier and smaller in use. Bank and finance apps always working becuase they don't using google services.
But if you really in need of google apps for datamining just buy an android phone
Posted via CB1010-03-15 07:56 AMLike 2 - Huge. Distance between earth and mars huge.
Your average smartphone user could care less about workarounds. They just want to see 'Get it on Google Play' or 'ITunes Store' , click, and be done with it.
You would be surprised at the number of smartphone users who don't even know to update their OS let alone search an alternate app store for an app that may/may not work.10-03-15 08:10 AMLike 2 - The app gap is huge, you cannot include running Android apps on bb10, they are not native and not a mainstream solution as mentioned above.
For me any app that is available in bbw not through its official developer is considered missing. And although some developers have tried to fill the gap, through native apps on api's the functionality is not the same, and limitations on the API don't make it any easier.
APPS are the future, irrespective if it is gaming, business etc..., if you don't have them, simple you will not survive in the consumer space.
Posted via CB1010-03-15 08:12 AMLike 0 - No problem for me. I have five pages of BlackBerry apps...I won't load anything onto my BlackBerry that won't allow any control over permissions.
No problems in the app department here, sure I may have to dig in BlackBerry World to find a solution...and maybe a little trial and error...but in the end I have what I need and some.
Posted on my Powerful Passport10-03-15 08:28 AMLike 0 - Bill and Anthony appear to disagree on the app gap...or could they be talking about something more personal?
10-03-15 08:29 AMLike 3 - This depends on who you ask and what their mobile experiences are. This is a very subjective question.
I'm certain that if you look at 100 random iPhones and 100 random Android-based phones, you'll see a lot of apps that are common to most, if not, all 200 of those devices. Things like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat are almost guaranteed to be on most people's devices. But you'll come across a lot of apps that address specific desires, too. Mobile banking, office, school, blogging, etc. tools that are specific to the device owner. And then you'll have those "fun apps" that are really personal. People will have different photo-editing apps because they had a choice in their app store and went with the one they liked. That's just one example of what the "app gap" is.
BlackBerry World has a lot of these apps and it includes alternatives for certain apps not officially on the platform (like iGrann for Instagram). But BBW lacks the choice of my last example or lacks many of the diverse tools mentioned in my second example. My university's app isn't on BlackBerry 10, and neither are any of the banking apps I need. My budgeting apps aren't in BBW and certain travel apps are missing too. For me, the app gap is large.
But it's not just about having that one particular application. On iOS, apps get updated daily. Facebook releases an updated to its app every two weeks, if not more frequent. I regularly get prompted to update my apps on my iPhone. But on my BlackBerry apps seldom receive updates. And this is with native apps. Also, how often do new apps release on BBW? People want to know that the next big app will be supported on their device. That guarantee just isn't there on BB10.
Now, I know everyone's saying that Android apps fix the gap, and they do to an extent. Android apps (for me, anyway) have never been a pleasant experience on any BlackBerry I've had. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. They're slow and tend to crash. They don't have access to much of the information stored on the device and it feels like I have to go out of my way to get them. What BlackBerry has failed to answer for regular consumers is the question of whether BlackBerry 10's strengths are worth the simplicity and straightforwardness of the other platforms.
But, like I said, apps aren't enough. iOS and Android are quickly changing the way technology interacts with our lives. They can track your steps, store your vital health information, track your calories and nutrients, tell you the quality of sleep you received, become the central end-user software piece in your car, control the security system, lights, heating/cooling in your house, and replace your entire wallet. When you add these things up, it's hard not to see how far the gap has really become. If you don't need this stuff, then that's great. But if you're a regular consumer and all of this is accessible to you in one package, it's hard to make a compelling case against it.10-03-15 08:36 AMLike 4 - The app gap for me is pretty small, which is why I still use my Passport a lot. The Kindle app, however is starting to falter as it gets updated and the Android runtime remains frozen. Since that's an essential app for me, when it fails, I'm done. It only takes one app to turn the gap into an unbridgeable chasm.
It's a shame the Kindle web reader doesn't work in the Passport browser. It almost does, but not quite.
Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk10-03-15 08:41 AMLike 0 - Every app I used on my previous Android devices work perfectly on the Passport after installing Cobalt's services.
I could get a few of them from Amazon, but I just decided to consolidate and get them all from the Play Store.
I don't game or do any social media, the apps I use are:
OneNote, PocketCasts, Pandora, YouTube, Play Music, Google Maps, Quizlet, Pirate Bay Browser, URL Shortener, Uber, Charles Schwab, and tTorrent Pro.
It would be nice to get an updated runtime, but I'm doing just fine with it as it is.
Posted via CB10 // Passport SQW100-1 // 10.3.2.2339 // Cricket Wireless
Posted via CB1010-03-15 08:45 AMLike 0 - For me there is an app gap. Even if people say I don't need this or there's a workaround for that, it exists. I feel even BlackBerry gets that, which is why they've decided to go Android with the Priv. Some people just want to have all the options available, even if you don't need them 24/7. My personal use is different than others, but I use all OSs and accept the pros and cons of each one. If BB10 could run the Android apps smoothly it would have a better experience overall, which to me is a good thing but it's not something I expecting to happen.FlashFlare11 likes this.10-03-15 08:59 AMLike 1
-
- Its not about volume. Its about quality! Quality applications takes months to develop.
There is no "app gap".
Posted via CB1010-03-15 12:54 PMLike 0 -
The fact is, BlackBerry 10 may not be for the masses, but it would be a great option for 10-15% of users, which is way more than they have now.
If they got that many users, then they would have the apps.
Posted via CB1010-03-15 01:14 PMLike 0 -
anybody that feels ANY stress from the supposed app gap on BB10 already has their answer. that new android phone. done deal. no sense in talking anymore about this- the perceived app gap in BB10 will always exist. Always.kbz1960 likes this.10-03-15 01:37 PMLike 1 - For me there is an app gap. Even if people say I don't need this or there's a workaround for that, it exists. I feel even BlackBerry gets that, which is why they've decided to go Android with the Priv. Some people just want to have all the options available, even if you don't need them 24/7. My personal use is different than others, but I use all OSs and accept the pros and cons of each one. If BB10 could run the Android apps smoothly it would have a better experience overall, which to me is a good thing but it's not something I expecting to happen.10-03-15 01:39 PMLike 0
- Coping strategy? With android apps, most bb10 users have what they want or need. I have a bunch of apps and not a single one I need OR want is missing, with one app haveing a feature missing. That's it.
The fact is, BlackBerry 10 may not be for the masses, but it would be a great option for 10-15% of users, which is way more than they have now.
If they got that many users, then they would have the apps.
Posted via CB1010-03-15 01:40 PMLike 0 - The app gap for me is pretty small, which is why I still use my Passport a lot. The Kindle app, however is starting to falter as it gets updated and the Android runtime remains frozen. Since that's an essential app for me, when it fails, I'm done. It only takes one app to turn the gap into an unbridgeable chasm.
It's a shame the Kindle web reader doesn't work in the Passport browser. It almost does, but not quite.
Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk10-03-15 01:41 PMLike 0 -
Apps or no apps...can't give up on the awesomeness off the BB10 OS!
And no! Not just a "fanboy ", I personally love this OS over Android and iPhone.
Posted via CB10 - Z10 'Powered by BlackBerry'10-03-15 01:50 PMLike 0 - A big factor falls in the general trends of smartphone users. I share common ground with other users here involving willingness to adapt to not only to a new OS (those of us coming from (iPhone/Android), but also to new apps to fulfill a need, or work-arounds like webapps, or installing Cobalt's services, etc, etc. You get the point.
Most people just want to be spoon fed. It's "Me wants Facebook." Click, click, done.
Or they want that one app that does X, Y, and Z, and if they can't get that app, then the sky is falling. Learn a different app? "No! Too much worky for me thumbs."
They don't want to spend time troubleshooting, sideloading a lower version that works within the constraints of a Jellybean runtime, etc, etc.
I like tinkering and I like figuring stuff out. So naturally, there is no app gap for me.
Posted via CB10 // Passport SQW100-1 // 10.3.2.2339 // Cricket Wireless
The problem is that BB10 is not the platform of choice for tinkerers such as yourself, Android is. And tinkerers are a very small minority of total users. Honestly, if "fixing" the app-gap requires one to go read an online forum and do a bunch of workarounds, that "fix" is not a real solution, it is a bandaid.10-03-15 02:08 PMLike 3 -
Posted via CB1010-03-15 02:08 PMLike 0
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How big is the app gap really?
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