[asherwiin]

Very interesting article posted on BGR today, discussing results released by A.C. Nielsen regarding measured (not reported) app use on Android mobile devices.

Most Android apps sit idle, top-50 apps make up 61% of all usage

Basic summary of the article is that despite the 250,000+ apps that are currently available, the top 50 (fifty!) account for 60% of all app usage, and the top 10 apps accounted for a huge 43% of all app usage.

Based on this analysis and extrapolating it a bit, I would not be surprised to learn that the top 200-300 apps probably account for 99% of all app usage. The remaining 249,800 apps make for a very, very long tail of distribution...

Yes, the Playbook is still missing some of the key top apps. But once they are available, any comparisons that go on and on about how much better the Apple or Andriod app market is compared to the RIM's is really very misleading in terms of relevancy to the average user. If specific users have a pressing need for one or two specific apps that are only available for Apple or Android then they should get one of those devices.

Otherwise, all things are pretty much equal (or will be in the near future).

Just sayin... cause statistics don't lie!

[Cozmik]

I agree with you. The need for 100,000+ apps is not necessary. I have approx 10-15 on my iPad and use maybe 5 of them regularly. The other 249,985 apps available I don't have time to sort through.

I think the issue with the PlayBook isn't necessarily lack of apps per se, but lack of the big name apps that people want. And once those become available I think we will see a lot less complaining regarding the PlayBook.

[ifarlow]

Yep. I don't care if there are 100 apps for the PlayBook or 1,000,000 apps for the PlayBook. I just want the short list of apps that I find useful. Currently, App World is sorely lacking in apps that I find useful.

[OMGitworks]

Misleading thread title. I don't think anyone is surprised by what is reported in the article. However, there are 6-8 very important Apps that I use almost daily that are not available yet for PB. It's not quantity, it's quality of the apps. No surprise the dozens of fart apps sit silent
Statistics surely can lie,

[lnichols]

Yeah I don't need a bajillion apps for the Playbook. However they haven't really been working hard to get us those 50, even 20, that people use the most on other platforms. That's where RIM's focus should be for the Playbook in the app development dept. Get the top 20 to 30 from iOS and Android over on the Playbook. Go to the "Drop and give me 20 App" thing that Crackberry did for ideas on what people want.

[biggulpseh]

I doubt any playbook owners care about quantity of apps, all that really matters is quality... but right now we have neither.

[bembol]

Am I missing the joke? Every thread that knocks BlackBerry's App World, this Fart App always comes up. Seriously, I don't know anyone with iOS and android Tablets that has it.

/rant.

ifarlow is right, App World doesn't even have some of the Basic Apps people need. Using the Browser to do my banking can be a PITA.

[Economist101]

Yes, the Playbook is still missing some of the key top apps. But once they are available, any comparisons that go on and on about how much better the Apple or Andriod app market is compared to the RIM's is really very misleading in terms of relevancy to the average user.

If we just replace "PlayBook" with "BlackBerry" it feels like 2009 all over again.

[frfghtr]

Blackberry Travel for the PlayBook would be a good start. Ironic that it's not available.

[JAGWIRE]

quality over quantity. one of my coworkers got an ipad2 and the amount of the exact same app is staggering just done by different people and slight changes.

[knightfall]

Finally good to see a post and article like this. Like many, I've grown tired of hearing there aren't many apps compared to Andriod and iOs.

So what?

How many different apps is the average user actually using? On my iPod Touch, I kept using the same 10 ten apps and a few other random ones.

It's good to see some numbers showing the reality and low importance of a high-app-count.

[ubizmo]

One reason for having the kind of browser that the PB has is to make certain kinds of apps superfluous, i.e., the ones that just pull information from a web site. For example, one of the most popular Android apps is Mint. I don't have a Mint account, but I assume that I could easily just go to the Mint site with the PB browser. On the other hand, some web sites, such as Pandora, aren't so user-friendly in the PB browser.

The point I'm leading up to is that if we are indeed expected to get used to using more web apps and fewer native apps, then our ability to organize web bookmarks needs to be greatly enhanced. We can create desktop bookmarks, but we can't create folders to sort them into. We can't organize the bookmarks within the browser either. But bookmarks proliferate--all the more so if we need them to take the place of apps. So the ability to organize bookmarks, within the browser and on the desktop, should be a priority.

[ifarlow]

quality over quantity. one of my coworkers got an ipad2 and the amount of the exact same app is staggering just done by different people and slight changes.

How many different apps is the average user actually using? On my iPod Touch, I kept using the same 10 ten apps and a few other random ones.

While there are often multiple versions of the same type of app, choice is important. I currently use OmniFocus on my iPad. Others use Things. Others still use Taska, ToDo, RTM, Toodledo... the point is that while all of these are "task managers" to one degree or another and therefore (generally) very similar, they satisfy different consumers looking for slightly different features and functions in their apps.

So, while I don't care how many apps are in App World as long as I can find the apps that I want, I'm not convinced that everyone wants the same apps that I do. Therefore, there should be a large number of apps in App World just to make sure more and more people can find the apps they are searching for... even if they are crazy enough to want apps that I don't!

[slingxshot]

My number one app I am looking for is something like VLC Player which android already has a similar app. The 2nd is of course native email, calendar, etc.

[OMGitworks]

Finally good to see a post and article like this. Like many, I've grown tired of hearing there aren't many apps compared to Andriod and iOs.

So what?

How many different apps is the average user actually using? On my iPod Touch, I kept using the same 10 ten apps and a few other random ones.

It's good to see some numbers showing the reality and low importance of a high-app-count.

I sort of agree. But look at the 10 apps you use and see how many are available on PB. I think then you will see the issue. If it was an Ipad then you would definitely see the issue not sure with an ipod since they are used differently.

[Beakman]

Am I missing the joke? Every thread that knocks BlackBerry's App World, this Fart App always comes up. Seriously, I don't know anyone with iOS and android Tablets that has it.

/rant.

ifarlow is right, App World doesn't even have some of the Basic Apps people need. Using the Browser to do my banking can be a PITA.

Fart apps are sooooo yesterday. What's hot in the hipster crowd are Magic 8 ball apps, and if I don't have 15 of them to choose from, how can I tell which one should be in the top fifty?

[OverShadow417]

Man, I think you have an idea of what good apps should be - if only we had a shot at.......BEAKMAN'S WORLD!!!

DAHAHAHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAH!!!!!!!!

Ah, oh **, oh yeah *wipes away tear from laughing so hard from his own AWESOME joke setup* - but really, Bill Nye was better.

[Donnee]

must admit i only actually use 1 app on my playbook regularly, the rest are all built in. Only thing im missing at the moment is an app for MSN (oh where for art thou im+?) have to rely on my curve for that at the moment, which works dont get me wrong, but itd be nice to have on the pb

I was the same when i had an iphone, i only had 2 or 3 apps installed, i guess im just not an "app guy". One thing i will say though is that the pb browser does a lot better job of replacing apps than ny iphone ever did, then again that was a 3gs so i cant comment on what its like these days (before im jumped by a militant jobsian i'm aware an iphone isnt an ipad, but its the same os so close enough for these purposes)

[rickgainsmith]

Refer back to Rambo... better to go to war with 5 lions than 100 sheep...

:-)

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[lawguyman]

We need a handful of good apps. How hard could it be to put that handful together?

[blackjack93117]

Very interesting article posted on BGR today, discussing results released by A.C. Nielsen regarding measured (not reported) app use on Android mobile devices.

Most Android apps sit idle, top-50 apps make up 61% of all usage

Basic summary of the article is that despite the 250,000+ apps that are currently available, the top 50 (fifty!) account for 60% of all app usage, and the top 10 apps accounted for a huge 43% of all app usage.

Based on this analysis and extrapolating it a bit, I would not be surprised to learn that the top 200-300 apps probably account for 99% of all app usage. The remaining 249,800 apps make for a very, very long tail of distribution...

Yes, the Playbook is still missing some of the key top apps. But once they are available, any comparisons that go on and on about how much better the Apple or Andriod app market is compared to the RIM's is really very misleading in terms of relevancy to the average user. If specific users have a pressing need for one or two specific apps that are only available for Apple or Android then they should get one of those devices.

Otherwise, all things are pretty much equal (or will be in the near future).

Just sayin... cause statistics don't lie!

Exactly right - which is why comparing platforms by number of apps available is just plain idiotic.

[blackjack93117]

Fart apps are sooooo yesterday. What's hot in the hipster crowd are Magic 8 ball apps, and if I don't have 15 of them to choose from, how can I tell which one should be in the top fifty?

A better question is which magic 8 ball app should you believe has the correct answer?

What's even cooler is the "free" magic 8 ball app that won't let you see the answer until you pay lol!
.

[Beakman]

A better question is which magic 8 ball app should you believe has the correct answer?

What's even cooler is the "free" magic 8 ball app that won't let you see the answer until you pay lol!
.

Really? That's a new low. The schmuck probably got a free PB for it too.

[blackjack93117]

Really? That's a new low. The schmuck probably got a free PB for it too.

Seriously! - my first question to the magic 8 was "should I pay"? I think it said "My sources say no", but I'm not sure, wasn't willing to pay to find out..
.

[ssbtech]

I'm just waiting for a proper copy of Adobe Reader...

Hello? Anyone?