In case you missed them, here are some of the most popular articles on PadGadget from the past week (October 3 – 9, 2010).
The Apple TV is already shipping at the very comfortable price of $99. What started as a “hobby” for Apple a few years ago has now become a hot item over the last few weeks. With one-fourth the size of its predecessor, the second generation Apple TV has been touted by Apple as a great way to watch Hollywood movies and TV shows whenever you want.
Over the last week, as we’ve had a chance to inspect the device a bit closer, you could interpret some things as Apple hints that could eventually open the gates for apps developers. The new Apple TV has a lot in common with the iPad, and the “jailbreak” community has already found a way to root the Apple TV opening the door for unauthorized third-party apps.
The Dropbox app has been updated. For iPhone users, there is a UI redesign that takes full advantage of the Retina Display. The iPad version has added full screen landscape document viewing and the support for multitasking to allow files to upload or download in the background.
The new version was designed with the new iOS in mind. It brings automatic offline caching for recently accessed files, several user interface enhancements including a new home screen and progress display, support for HD video and high-resolution photo capture.
In case you missed them, here are some of the most popular articles on PadGadget from the past week (September 12 – 19, 2010).
According to a tweet from popular Microsoft blogger Paul Thurrott, Seattle based Microsoft is working on new iPad specific apps. No word yet from the team in Redmond on what the apps might be, but speculation is that Balmer and Co. will release iPad versions of their existing iPhone apps.
Currently Microsoft has four iOS apps for the iPhone and iPod Touch but none that are iPad native. Micosoft’s current iOS apps are:
There has been some speculation the Microsoft might also introduce an Office or productivity app for the iPad but there has been no official word form Microsoft on their future iOS plans.
[ht 9 to 5 Mac]
Are you ready for some football? Fans around the country can follow their favorite teams, player stats and rankings on their iPads for the first time this season. With 2010-2011 NCAA college and NFL pro football seasons in full swing, you might be wondering how to track the outcomes of games from the Alabama Crimson Tide to the Dallas Cowboys and everyone in between. Here are five of our favorite iPad football apps sure to help you get your football fix this season.
Always wanted to know when is the best time to buy the apps on your wish-list, or even when apps go on sale? Our iPad Apps Tracker now provides a two weeks pricing history of the iPad apps available in the App Store, in order to help you make better decisions about your purchases. Enjoy!
While the iPad is enjoying skyrocketing sales, almost no information has been published when it comes to apps piracy on the device.
According to PocketGamer.biz, apps piracy on the iPad could be much higher than anticipated, based on early figures revealed by Qwiboo, the company behind Aqua Globs HD, a $1.99 game released less than 10 days ago: the game is currently experiencing a whopping 50% piracy rate. In other words, one out of two users of the game simply decided not to buy the app, but is actively using it, as the numbers were collected by looking at scores published on OpenFeint.
As TUAW puts is, this number should be taken with a grain of salt, as a large number of pirates wouldn’t have purchased the game in the first place anyway. Still, the number is significant, and Qwiboo’s experience is unlikely to be unique.
It’s disappointing to see that a large number of iPad users seem to choose not to pay for some of their apps, but this could also be a wake-up call for some developers out there: based on the feedback we received, a lot of users choose to download pirated apps to simply try them, and would be willing to pay for them if given the chance. In other words, providing “lite”, free versions of paid apps, or using in-app purchase mechanisms, may be the best way to convince pirate wannabees that the app is worth paying for.
If you are a developer, or if you decided not to pay for some of your paid apps, don’t hesitate to share your experience with us, via the comments section.
In case you missed them, here are some of the most popular articles on PadGadget from the past week (August 8 – 15, 2010).
The iPad apps market continues its rapid growth and today just passed the 20,000 mark in the App Store. Apple hit the 10,000 iPad apps mark in June, just 70 days after the launch of the iPad. It took Apple just 60 days to add the next 10,000 iPad apps for a total of 20,000 iPad specific or Universal apps in the App Store. This number is particularly impressive considering Apple already had thousands of apps pre-approved for the iPad launch on April 3.
With over 20,000 iPad apps now available, Apple has made the iPad one of the fastest growing application ecosystems in the company’s history. The iPad app ecosystem is currently the third largest mobile apps platform behind iPhone and Android. If you combine all iOS apps, there are nearly three times as many iOS apps as there are Android apps.
The pace of iPad apps continues to grow, with Apple adding 1,481 new iPad apps during the previous week.
*Data from the PadGadget Apps Tracker and Apple App Store.
Apple has silently updated the App Store and added a Genius Recommendations for Apps feature for iPad users. The Genius feature has long been a staple for iTunes users and has provided customized recommendations for music, video and iPhone / iPod Touch applications. The feature has not been available for iPad apps until now.
This feature can be easily activated by launching the App Store application on your iPad. Once launched, simply tap the Genius button on the lower right portion of the screen. You’ll be prompted to activate the feature and warned that “turning on Genius Recommendations for Apps will send information about the apps you download to Apple.” Don’t worry, the information Apple collects is abstracted and only serves to provide you with new recommendations about apps you might like, based on your previous purchases.
The iPad hit another milestone today with the availability of over 10,000 iPad applications (iPad specific or Universal) in the Apple Apps Store. Apple was able to hit the 10,000 apps mark just 70 days after the launch of the iPad on April 3. This beats the pace set by the iPhone in 2008 when it took almost five months to reach 10,000 apps.
If measured separately, the iPad would be the third most popular mobile applications platform behind the iPhone (250,000 apps) and Android Market (50,000 apps).
The rapid rise of the iPad eco-system is truly impressive when compared to the iPad’s competition. It took the Android Market almost 11 months to reach 10,000 apps after it launched in 2008. Palm, RIM and Nokia, based on recent data from Morgan Stanley, all have less than 7,000 apps available in their app stores.
The pace of iPad apps shows no sign of slowing, with over 950 new iPad apps added weekly.
*Data from the PadGadget Apps Tracker and Apple App Store.
If like us you happen to run a website, having the ability to modify the content on your server, and check its health, statistics and popularity while on the go is priceless. The iPad is the perfect tool to do exactly that, so we decided to put together a list of what we think are the 10 most useful iPad apps for webmasters available in the App Store right now. This list is a “basic survival toolkit” that will help most webmasters out there, whether you manage a small blog, or a much larger site.
The tools we selected will allow you to:
Without further ado, let’s kick it off!
Along with the international release of the iPad, comes the release of international apps too. In anticipation of the European and Japanese iPad launch, PlayFirst announced its international release of Diner Dash: Grilling Green.
We posted a review of Diner Dash: Grilling Green a few weeks back and it continues to be one of our favorites. This fast moving game supports multi-touch features, landscape and portrait orientation and 2-player gaming. Localized versions allow users to play in Spanish, German, Italian, Japanese and French. So grab your apron and get in the kitchen!
Flo, the diner owner, needs your help to manage the restaurant. Whether chopping veggies or waiting tables, you’ll stay busy and have fun doing it. Keep your customers happy, earn tips and rack up points allowing you to progress through the game.
Enjoy and Guten Appetit allerseits!
Last night, Apple’s app store surpassed the 7,000 mark for available iPad apps. Apple exceeded adding 7,000 iPad apps in less than 7 weeks, averaging out to 1,000 apps per week which were uploaded by developers and approved by Apple since the iPad’s launch on April 3rd.
When the iPhone app store was first launched on July 11, 2008, it took nearly two months for 3,000 apps to be available. Developers have managed to create more than double this number for the iPad and in half the time. We have been tracking iPad apps via our App Tracker and have seen an average of 150 apps added per day to the app store. This pace has been steady over the past several weeks without any signs of slowing.
The iPad has seen a variety of top apps across a range of categories. Productivity apps and Games have been two of the most popular categories with such hits as Apple’s iWork suite of apps (Pages, Keynote and Numbers), GoodReader for iPad, Real Racing HD, Scrabble for iPad and Pinball HD all placing in the Top 10 for paid apps. On the free side, we’ve seen iBooks, USA Today, Netflix, ABC Player and Pocket Pond HD all rank within the Top 10 for several weeks.
Both the number of apps and pace of growth indicates the high interest by developers and consumers for the iPad. Based on the current rate we’re tracking, we should see the Apps Store hit 10,000 iPad apps sometime this June.
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