[shakingthrough]

It irritates and saddens me when I see or hear a company advertise their new smartphone app, and they end by saying that the app is available on iPhone and Android devices with no mention of BlackBerry. But I understand that developers put their resources and money into making compatible apps where they can get the most bang for their buck, and with the BlackBerry user base down that means we often get left out.

It wasn't a deal-breaker when I only had access to apps through BlackBerry World; but now that I am on 10.2.1 and have Snap and 1Mobile Market I have filled in the gaps with some additional apps.

However I noticed that a few of the apps that I downloaded through BW have newer Android versions available. I was about to download them (we all want the newest and greatest, right?) but received a message that I need to delete the BlackBerry versions prior to downloading the newer Android versions. And there is my conflict and questions:

I understand that BW and the developers of apps on BW know how many users download their apps. But what happens if a BlackBerry user downloads Android apps? Do the Android devs know that I as a BlackBerry user am the one who downloaded their apps, or do they think I have an Android device? I suppose this question applies more to 1Mobile, as my understanding of Snap is that it is a native BB10 app which is essentially a front to Google Play, and therefore the developer of Snap is likely sharing the number of BB users of his app (and what we download through it) to Google.

On the one hand I want to stay loyal to BW and BlackBerry developers. If I am not being "credited" as a BlackBerry user when I download Android apps then I am going to think twice before upgrading any BlackBerry apps to newer Android versions. On the other hand, if Android devs know how many BlackBerry 10 users have their apps, might they develop future apps that are more likely compatible with both Android and BlackBerry 10 devices, thus raising the importance of the BlackBerry community in terms of a potential market?

I realize I don't understand the technical issues behind how Snap and 1Mobile work, so if someone could explain it in reference to the above I would appreciate it. I also know that as an individual my decision on where I get my apps is not going to make much of a difference to BlackBerry in the long run. But there may be others who also need clarity on this subject as it may impact their download decisions as well. Thanks for your input -

[RazzBerry]

Excerpts from an article I found:

And that's the problem with the two mobile operating systems battling it out for third place right now: Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 and BlackBerry 10. Chances are those platforms don't have the apps you want and will miss out on whatever the next hot app is when it first launches.

This week we learned from AllThings D that Netflix has no plans to make an app for BlackBerry 10 devices. The company doesn't think BB10 will have enough users to encourage more people to buy a new Netflix subscription or appease the minimal number of current subscribers who do get a BB10 phone.

This follows the news from a few weeks ago that Instagram won't appear on BB10 either. (However, there's still a chance the Android version of Instagram could be ported to BB10, but we haven't heard anything official on that yet.)

By now it's become an established trend for developers to ignore any operating system but iOS or Android.

The problem is there aren't enough people using Windows Phone or BB10 to make it worth it for developers to spend the kind of human and monetary resources necessary to bring their apps over. I've had countless developers tell me the same story over the years. They almost always make their apps for iOS first, then move to Android, and then consider other platforms if time and other resources permit. (The latter almost never happens though.)

It's not because those platforms stink. Far from it. Both Windows Phone 8 and BB10 are really great operating systems and make a strong alternative to iOS or Android.

And it's not just the little developers ignoring the alternative operating systems. There are several big companies with plenty of resources that haven't developed for BB10, Windows Phone, or both. That's a big blow to those platforms because a solid app selection is one of the biggest draws to a new phone.

[Troy Tiscareno]

This probably won't be a popular viewpoint here, but the truth is that I don't think it matters what you do as far as the developers go, so you should do whatever is best for you.

It's no secret that BB has reported, as of the end of the latest fiscal quarter, that BB has only sold through about 6M BB10 devices. That puts a maximum on how many BB10 users could possibly be using a given app. Compared to over a billion Android devices, that's not much of an installed base.

The other thing is: if BB users are using the Android app, then developers have no motivation to make a BB version, because they're already serving the BB community with the Android app they're already supporting, maintaining, and enhancing. Why pay to develop, test, and support another app if the one you're already making is doing the job? That's a losing proposition for a developer, from a business point of view.

There's no percentage in denying yourself what's best for you - ultimately, if doing that doesn't make a difference, nothing will.

[BitPusher2600]

And the point you make Troy is exactly why I feel creating the Android runtime, particularly in the long haul, have effectively stunted the growth of BB10's own ecosystem and may never let it grow too far, and why? You said it exactly.

[CHIP72]

It should be noted that the above comments also mean in many cases that if a developer chooses to develop an app for a third ecosystem besides Android or iOS, it is likely they'll develop their app for WP8.

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[jonduran86]

Even when they do have an app for BBW, they still don't advertise. For example, Bleacher Report

[LostOnThePianoRoll]

I've read somewhere that Microsoft is actually developing a mechanism of their own to run android apps on windows phone 8.. even with all their efforts they still have to use the android apps to be on top of the trending apps the moment they start trending..

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[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

It's no secret that BB has reported, as of the end of the latest fiscal quarter, that BB has only sold through about 6M BB10 devices. That puts a maximum on how many BB10 users could possibly be using a given app.

As MANY of these are owned by users that are hard core BlackBerry users that have bought multiple devices... it would be interesting to see how many unique user id's are associated with those devices.


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[sixpacker]

And the point you make Troy is exactly why I feel creating the Android runtime, particularly in the long haul, have effectively stunted the growth of BB10's own ecosystem and may never let it grow too far, and why? You said it exactly.

This all stems from the abysmal launch. Before the launch blackberry had to throw whatever money was necessary to get all the big apps into BW. This could have led to decent sales numbers and devs would have then naturally produced versions for bb10.
The android runtime is just a panic stations measure to fill the app gap. Obviously this kills native consumer app development stone dead.

[Troy Tiscareno]

For example, Bleacher Report

I did work on their new offices a couple of years ago. They WAY outgrew their original office, with 50+ people working in a space designed for 20 max, and they did a nice job with the new office. We put in 26 TVs (24 of which were hooked to DirecTV) and put in their network cabling. In fact, my bedroom TV came from that job - most of the TVs were brand new, but a couple were moved over from the old office, and one of them wouldn't turn on, so they bought a new one and were about to toss the old one out. They gave it to me instead, and when I got it home, it turned out that one of the cables inside had popped off during the move. I've been using it ever since.

https://plus.google.com/photos/11660...83939163080961

[fmb8]

Although I can't really argue the sentiment of this thread (BB10 able to run android apps will hurt native app development for BB10), that didn't stop me from sending Golf Now an email today about building a native app for our mobile OS of choice.
I think for the most part, any native apps that are developed for BB10 now are a bonus as this isn't currently BlackBerry's focus. Until the company stabilizes and hopefully gains some market share with newer more affordable handsets in emerging markets & beyond, we shouldn't be too surprised about the lack of native apps and take advantage of the ability to run & enjoy the android apps. Let's also not forget that it is still early days for BB10 & even though we may lack many native apps, this OS kicks A**!!
In summary, if you think you can make use of an app not natively available, don't be afraid to let the devs/companies know about it. The squeaky wheel gets the grease & the more people that make noise about a missing app in BBW the sooner they make take action.

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