Android hits a 100k "apps", 1 billion downloads

[Fingolfin269]

I finally deleted my FB account and couldn't care less about gaming on a phone. Per at least one poster in this thread that makes it sound like Android is for me.

 

[tatteredpotato]

I've used the Android and iOS Facebook apps. They both suck IMO.

I do agree Android has work to do in the games front, but it's such a large market segment that I'm sure Google will focus on it eventually. I'm not a big gamer on my phone so I don't mind waiting.

 

[sswingle]

and the apps still suck

no game that's really impressive yet. just give us angry birds or something jeez...

Edit: Yes I am an Android user. I'm looking for a fucking Facebook app that brings about chat or lets me delete wall posts. This is pathetic. Even the Facebook app that came out day 1 of iPhone OS 2.0 was better.... sigh

Just use eBuddy. You can sign into a lot of chat providers at once (including facebook) and leave it running in the background. Works much better from what I remember of the Facebook app on my iPod Touch.

 

[SAWYER]

I don't have a fb account so couldn't care less about that app

 

[MJinZ]

I'd like an IM app that didn't fail all the time like Meebo. I use meebo at work. The meebo account links my two AIM accounts and MSN account.

When I sign on the meebo account it seems to only sign on my AIM account. Not sure about the MSN because I don't have it auto-sign in. But either way I can't see both IM accounts' worth of buddies.

So I try to sign on individual accounts sometime. It signs on but my buddy list doesn't load. You can give me crap about AT&T's network sucking or whatever, but this was NEVER an issue on the iPhone who clearly has worse reception than my Milestone (GSM Droid).

I outlined Facebook the other day. I think I commented something I didn't want to comment or I double commented. Wanted to delete. I had to load facebook on my web browser. Touch.facebook.com wasn't enough. I had to switch to the full desktop version on my phone, and AJAX obviously isn't the smoothest thing on a mobile device. I'd like a Facebook app that at least is on the same level as the iPhone one. I don't mind differences. Just make sure it's not like a DOS 6.3 versus Windows 7 comparison....

Games? That's what I used to do all day on my iPod touch. There's ridiculous amounts of games and all of them I feel are very high quality. Even the free ones. I see a lot of basic games like checkers, sudoku and labyrinth on Android, but anything more advanced seems meh. The racing games are nothing like Real Racing. You could claim that Real Racing took til OS 3.0 (1 year) to come out, but the Android Market has been around for more than that. Obviously this isn't the only racer out there as there are other high quality ones. Even basic catchy games like Angry Birds, Plants v Zombies, Flight Control, Tap Tap Revenge, etc are all very interesting to see on the iPhone.

Hell I remember people highly anticipating the Lemonade Tycoon port onto iPhone. I played this in 2003 on my Pocket PC. Odd we don't get ANYTHING on Android... I guess there's Doodlejump.

Bottom line is with the iPhone and iPod Touch, I felt like I was always surfing the iTunes market for something new. I was always reading touch Arcade, seeing the next game. Browsing forums to find out if IM+ was better than Beejive for push notifications... etc. I feel like I have no incentive to really do this on Android. I barely browse for stuff. I feel limited because unless I apply the Apps2SD hack, I'm stuck with limited space on my phone. I rarely look for games and each time I do it's pretty much a letdown. nothing worth buying really on this platform.

It's just flat out night and day difference, and if we had a solid developer force here on Android I'm sure it would be different....

Yea, I don't know about the Milestone but I'm guessing it's not the best Android phone.

And, speaking of, Androids are definitely not video game devices. The only time I could see myself playing a game is if I gave the phone to a child or something, and then only if the battery life would be basically unaffected by hours of playing (yea, we're talking future phone here).

 

[sjwaste]

I've used the Android and iOS Facebook apps. They both suck IMO.

I do agree Android has work to do in the games front, but it's such a large market segment that I'm sure Google will focus on it eventually. I'm not a big gamer on my phone so I don't mind waiting.

Honestly, as long as emulators continue to be available, I don't care about native gaming. I love being able to play games from when I was a kid.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Yea, I don't know about the Milestone but I'm guessing it's not the best Android phone.

And, speaking of, Androids are definitely not video game devices. The only time I could see myself playing a game is if I gave the phone to a child or something, and then only if the battery life would be basically unaffected by hours of playing (yea, we're talking future phone here).

The Milestone is a Droid. It's the exact same thing. It's what the rest of the world gets because not all of us are on a CDMA network like Verizon. I have it clocked to 1ghz. The only thing we lack is custom roms due to the locked bootloader.

It's obvious dlerium uses his phone like a toy. That's fine, but that's not what everyone is looking for. If you are, go iPhone - he's right, the games and time wasting apps are a lot better.

As far as Android not having any good apps? Come on. Here is just a partial list of my favorites, many of which are not available on iOS:

Nesoid
Swype (IMHO, the best app for any phone, considering how much I use it)
Wifi Tether
Titanium Backup
ROM Manager
Yelp
Maps/Navigation
DC Metro Info (very specific to the area, but if you commute here, it helps)
NY Times
Handcent
Gmail

Some of the above, like Yelp and Nav are made even better with the handlers in the OS. Yelp can be the default handler for a URL to yelp.com, rather than the browser, and an address can be brought up in Nav rather than as a web search or just a pushpin in Google Maps.

But yeah, if all you do is play games, update your facebook status, and tweet inane things that no one cares about - Android might not be for you. I personally have no idea how well those things do or don't work on Android because I don't use them.

What I would love though is an app like Rowmote for Android.

LoL. I use my phone like a toy. If you wanted true business features on a phone like awesome e-mail support, you would be using a BB or Nokia's E-series. Quite honestly, the exchange implementation of both blow away what Android has. And seriously, stock Android has nothing even decent to offer like the Exchange app. Even K9 is a step up but is nowhere enough. Yeah I shelled out for Touchdown E-Mail. I push exchange email all day long. I need it. And if you wanted true full blown multitasking, you wouldn't be dealing with Android's memory management decisions and allowing apps to be killed whenever it feels like it. S60 and WebOS offer full blown multitasking where YOU are in control of what you want to remain open. Toy? I don't think so.

The Yelp App was subpar for the longest time. Yeah it finally had the check-in feature. The point I'm trying to make is that the iPhone one is always steps ahead. We're not talking just 1 step ahead kinda deal. It's WAY ahead.

Wifitether, Titanium backup, etc... it's all kinda for root users. It's like talking about Cydia apps. Gosh, you could list a bunch of awesome Cydia apps. I'm talking about out of the box, Market apps for average users. Android just doesn't have the same content offering as the iPhone, and I've said it repeatedly. Rewind 1.5 years with the iPhone. The content back then was still superior.

 

[AMDZen]

Honestly, as long as emulators continue to be available, I don't care about native gaming. I love being able to play games from when I was a kid.

This is the only thing I miss now on my iPhone since it isn't JB'en. This and SBSettings

Other then that, everything I needed a JB phone for has been fixed in iOS4.

On topic though, competition is good. I hope the droid marketplace continues to thrive and reaches 100k apps or more (for real) by the end of the year. It can only be good to push the apple store more.

 

[MrX8503]

For me iOS4 has the total package for me. There are a few things that I wish it would do though, like...

Notification pull down
Better email threading (I have to use gmail mobile)
WiFi Toggle (going into settings is a pain)
Panoramic wallpapers (I miss this a lot)

When I had my EVO, I dug the live wallpapers, but it bogged down the phone too much, so I switched to panoramic wallpapers. Coupled with a 4.3" screen it makes your phone visually stunning. I hope Apple moves to panoramic view soon.

 

[tatteredpotato]

I like the SNES emu on android (and how easy it is to install), however the on screen controls suck on all the emus I've tried and I don't have a WiiMote to test that functionality out.

 

[sjwaste]

LoL. I use my phone like a toy. If you wanted true business features on a phone like awesome e-mail support, you would be using a BB or Nokia's E-series. Quite honestly, the exchange implementation of both blow away what Android has. And seriously, stock Android has nothing even decent to offer like the Exchange app. Even K9 is a step up but is nowhere enough. Yeah I shelled out for Touchdown E-Mail. I push exchange email all day long. I need it. And if you wanted true full blown multitasking, you wouldn't be dealing with Android's memory management decisions and allowing apps to be killed whenever it feels like it. S60 and WebOS offer full blown multitasking where YOU are in control of what you want to remain open. Toy? I don't think so.

The Yelp App was subpar for the longest time. Yeah it finally had the check-in feature. The point I'm trying to make is that the iPhone one is always steps ahead. We're not talking just 1 step ahead kinda deal. It's WAY ahead.

Wifitether, Titanium backup, etc... it's all kinda for root users. It's like talking about Cydia apps. Gosh, you could list a bunch of awesome Cydia apps. I'm talking about out of the box, Market apps for average users. Android just doesn't have the same content offering as the iPhone, and I've said it repeatedly. Rewind 1.5 years with the iPhone. The content back then was still superior.

So you've focused on Exchange support now. What if I don't need it? As it turns out, I don't - so I have no idea how any of these platforms integrate it. Doesn't matter because information from my office can't leave on personal devices. Ever. If something needs to come with me, they will (and have) issued me the proper equipment. You're right, if this was a critical need, I'd be on a BB because that's the industry standard.

As far as multitasking on Android goes, I'm not exactly sure what your point is. It works fine, great actually. I haven't experienced any lag on the device - either in the UI, in applications, or in data passing between apps. Not sure what they could change to bring it to your standards, but I know one thing for sure - the iPhone sure doesn't implement multitasking in any way that is useful to me.

The fact that apps don't communicate with one another, or with UI handlers, is a real dissatisfier for me with iOS. I get it, everything is neatly sandboxed, but I don't like it. My wife does - so I suppose to each his/her own.

If root apps are an issue for you, replace Wifitether with the stock Sprint Hotspot app. Drop Titanium and replace with one of the non-root backup apps. Still better. The US market can't even tether on the iPhone without jailbreaking, right? You might be somewhere else, but most people using the phone are not.

Look, my phone isn't a tool for work. I have issued devices for that. It does, however, need to replace my laptop when I'm on the road or on vacation. For that, I like the data integration with the Google services, the handoffs between applications when I'm looking for something and then trying to get to it, the 4G speeds and large screen (Evo specific, not really Android-specific, so feel free to disregard this point). Video chat on the go (not over Wifi) is also nice. Widgets are really nice too. I don't spend much time playing games, I don't use FB or Twitter or any social networking really. Those are iOS' strengths. Fine if it works for you, but one size does not fit all, despite shiny packaging and clever marketing.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

The iPhone can't tether unless you have an appropriate data plan. You think Verizon will let you tether on 2.2 Froyo just like that? No. Why do you think they're locking down the bootloader of the Droid X finally? The fact is no carrier really wants you to tether your ass off unrestricted....

You're comparing wifi-tether on Android w/ stock iPhone which should be compared to jailbreaking an iPhone and then tethering. A root is just like having to jailbreak. And if anything, all of this has been built into S60 and Windows Mobile devices for a long time. You don't need a hack or a root or a jailbreak to do any of this. It's like people are finally discovering fire when Google comes out and says tethering with Froyo is built in... and all of a sudden it becomes a talking point against the iPhone.

The bottom line is that the apps on the Android platform are not there yet. They can be made much better, and much of this has to do with the number of developers. I saw a chart last week on Engadget and was it a 10:1 or 4:1 ratio or something? Think of it this way. A room full of women want to give a bunch of geeks sexual services. You can pick any. You can bet the hot ones get taken first. Well the best developers ran to iPhone first. Many may be coming back, but it's not that easy to port apps. The leftover ones may have jumped on Android, but many of the first rate top developers are on the other side. It'll take some time to see how the market levels out...

BTW video chat over non-wifi exists already on the iPhone. Fring does it. Just like it does on Android. I may have cited social networking and games, but these are a few examples of apps that the iPhone does well in, but it continues. You can talk about utilities like currency converters, unit converters, etc etc. It's just all done nicer on the iPhone. I mean can we have a unit converter that doesn't look like ass please? ConvertBot is an example of an app on the iPhone. It's quite old but it's visually pleasing yet gets the job done.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

I am a first time Droid user and I have the Droid X and I love it! I haven't really ventured too much into the Market apps.

The Facebook market app is really nice comparing it to the BB storm version. I can't imagine anything than it being better, only equally as good.

 

[charrison]

The iPhone can't tether unless you have an appropriate data plan. You think Verizon will let you tether on 2.2 Froyo just like that? No. Why do you think they're locking down the bootloader of the Droid X finally? The fact is no carrier really wants you to tether your ass off unrestricted....

That appears to be the case so far. My guess as long as you dont abuse the tether there will not be any complaints. PDA-net is a non root app for tethoring and I have not heard of anyone having problems using it on android and verizon.

 

[Red Storm]

Meh, I honestly don't get the appeal with mobile games. I know I must be in the minority here but, I have a desktop at home that plays games that are a million times better and more fun than anything I can play on any phone, so why would I be interested in an inferior platform?

"But you can't play those games away from home!" you say? Who cares, when I'm out and about I'm spending my time working, hanging out with friends/family, etc. I go out to socialize and make a living, not play the equivalent of crappy flash games by myself.

I've loved Android ever since I first got the Droid, and its app market is plenty good for me.

 

[MrX8503]

The Facebook market app is really nice comparing it to the BB storm version. I can't imagine anything than it being better, only equally as good.

BB has a worse Facebook app? I was under the impression that it was better than Android. Anyway if you can't imagine anything better than Android Facebook app, you should check out the FB app for the iPhone.

The FB iPhone app is amazing, you can do almost anything and everything on the app as you could with the full site. It also incorporates FB Chat.

I've loved Android ever since I first got the Droid, and its app market is plenty good for me.

The Android apps are only ok. They are getting there though. Notable apps that I miss from Android are google sky and the one app that puts your phone on vibrate automatically during a certain time of the day. Can't remember what its called.

 

[Red Storm]

The Android apps are only ok. They are getting there though. Notable apps that I miss from Android are google sky and the one app that puts your phone on vibrate automatically during a certain time of the day. Can't remember what its called.

Err, Google Sky (the one that shows you the stars and planets and constellations?) has been on Android for quite a while. And there is an app that lets you customize phone settings based on time and location, I just don't remember what it was called.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

That appears to be the case so far. My guess as long as you dont abuse the tether there will not be any complaints. PDA-net is a non root app for tethoring and I have not heard of anyone having problems using it on android and verizon.

True about PDA Net, but the carriers can't really regulate that when its a non root app on the market. Plus it's an extra step people need to take and PDANet isn't exactly a 1 button solution, so I'm guessing carriers hope people don't abuse it (plus the move to limited data will help them). You also need to install desktop software. I found that a tad annoying. However they have the abilities to limit OS features like Froyo's wifi tether option. I'm pretty sure carriers will take the chance to do it considering AT&T blocks you from installing non market apps.

I really wouldn't consider the tethering option a strike against either mobile OS. Furthermore, I feel as if iOS 4 really levels the playing field or comes quite close, yet continues to retain the advantage in some basic UI stuff like smooth scrolling, etc.

 

[MrX8503]

Err, Google Sky (the one that shows you the stars and planets and constellations?) has been on Android for quite a while. And there is an app that lets you customize phone settings based on time and location, I just don't remember what it was called.

No you don't get it. I had an android phone, which is why I'm saying I miss those apps.

 

[charrison]

True about PDA Net, but the carriers can't really regulate that when its a non root app on the market. Plus it's an extra step people need to take and PDANet isn't exactly a 1 button solution, so I'm guessing carriers hope people don't abuse it (plus the move to limited data will help them). You also need to install desktop software. I found that a tad annoying. However they have the abilities to limit OS features like Froyo's wifi tether option. I'm pretty sure carriers will take the chance to do it considering AT&T blocks you from installing non market apps.

.

They could block the wifi tether in 2.2, but it is also a killer feature.

 

[gar655]

90K porn apps, 9K useless apps, 900 apps that duplicate features on the phone = 10 apps that are good.

And it will only get worse thanks to the "dev kit" that allows any dufus to drag and drop apps together. Yey for the Android App Store!

Sure Apple has a tight fist on the app store but at least it filters out a lot of the crap.

 

[tommo123]

just go by highest ratest on appbrain and other 'recommended' lists.

there's a lot of carp, but not difficult to avoid garbage

 

[zerocool84]

90K porn apps, 9K useless apps, 900 apps that duplicate features on the phone = 10 apps that are good.

And it will only get worse thanks to the "dev kit" that allows any dufus to drag and drop apps together. Yey for the Android App Store!

Sure Apple has a tight fist on the app store but at least it filters out a lot of the crap.

Umm no the Apple store has just as much crap. Different colors for things counting as a new app is just as bad. The iPhone has just as many useless apps as Android.

 

[akugami]

90K porn apps, 9K useless apps, 900 apps that duplicate features on the phone = 10 apps that are good.

And it will only get worse thanks to the "dev kit" that allows any dufus to drag and drop apps together. Yey for the Android App Store!

Sure Apple has a tight fist on the app store but at least it filters out a lot of the crap.

Ton of crap on the Apple store. And I do mean a crap ton of useless apps.

Also, I'd argue that while the Android "dev kit" app may actually increase the presence of niche apps that can be useful. While it will certainly increase the amount of useless apps one hundred fold there will most certainly be a few apps that don't require a lot of compute power but will benefit niche needs.

For example, there is an app on the iTunes store that does optical character recognition of Chinese words and gives you the traditional as well as simplified forms of the word as well as how to type the word on a keyboard using various forms of Chinese typing from Pinyin to Wubi. Probably the most difficult aspect is the character recognition part. It's a highly niche app but useful to some, especially those learning Chinese. I'm pretty sure some of you can dig up other examples of niche needs that don't require a lot of power that currently isn't available on Android or iOS.