Apple gets more new apps than Android, widens app gap

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014


Fresh data released on Tuesday suggests that the number of new apps entering the Apple App Store outpace those from the competing Google Market three to one, with developers leaning toward iOS partly because of Android's platform fragmentation.



Citing a study by Flurry analytics, Business Week reports that despite taking a modest lead in worldwide smartphone marketshare, the Android operating system's app selection is being outnumbered by offerings designed for iOS, and the gap is only widening.



The Flurry study, which tracks app developers using the firm's tools, discovered that Google's push to match or outperform Apple's App Store is slowing down, possibly due to the difficulty developers face in programming for the fragmented Android mobile OS.



“We saw a greater migration to iOS,” says Flurry Vice President of Marketing Peter Farago.



As of January, iOS held a total of more than 550,000 apps in its arsenal, while Android's blitz to the top has introduced over 400,000 since the platform's launch in 2008.



More than 65,000 new projects were started by the over 55,000 developers tracked by the 2011 study, and the growth of new apps for iOS during the year roughly doubled efforts from Android app makers.



The trend away from Android could be industry-wide, as a 2,000-person survey conducted by Appcelerator and IDC showed that in November fewer developers were "very interested" in writing code for handsets running Google's OS than in June. Interest in iOS remained constant during the same period.





The number of new apps hitting the Android Market slowed down in 2011. | Source: Google







According to the app coders, the fragmentation of Android's ecosystem is to blame for the lackluster interest. Some note that Apple's iTunes system allows for a comparatively streamlined process that can quickly move an idea to a finished product, thus allowing companies to generate revenue with less overhead.



For example GameHouse, makers of the games 'Doodle Jump' and 'NCIS the Game,' claims that it makes three or four times the revenue on an iOS game when compared to its Android counterpart. This is in part due to the Google OS version taking two months more to complete because of the various optimizations needed to accommodate the available as well as constantly-changing OS versions.



Apart from platform fragmentation, the Android Market has multiple app stores whereas Apple relies on iTunes, which stores users' credit card data to make purchasing a simple and fast experience.



“Developers can make more money on iOS,” Farago says.





Apple's App Store within iTunes offers a seamless purchasing solution. | Source: iTunes







The mobile app industry sees iOS as the reigning champion of app distribution, however the sheer number of Android devices in the market make a compelling argument for the platform.



If and when Google can consolidate its partner handset makers and create a unified store that is as simple and monetarily integrated as iTunes, Android may well be the new industry leader.



[ View article on AppleInsider ]

«1345

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 82
    Lol. App gap. Got a rhyme theme going there.
  • Reply 2 of 82
    irnchrizirnchriz Posts: 1,616member
    I had a customer smash his Galaxy SII phone in front of me this week.



    It had, for the 4th time, failed to load email through the Exchange Activesync account. To add insult to injury it would pop up that he had new mail and display the new message count but would show the inbox as empty.



    We made sure it was on the latest firmware and the only way to fix it was to delete the account and set it up from scratch no amount of resets fixed the issue. We had also seen this issue on a couple of HTC Sensations.



    He went ballistic and launched it across the room into a brick wall. It was quite an impressive sight to be honest, the screen literally exploded.



    He now has an iPhone 4S, which to his glee, we setup by pushing the settings to it remotely. It's quite funny as he has now downloaded dozens of apps compared to the 3 or 4 he had on the Galaxy. He was going to suggest he download 'breathing' to chill him out a bit but feared I would have to pull an iPhone out of my skull.
  • Reply 3 of 82
    with developers leaning toward iOS as partly because of Android's platform fragmentation.



    The fragging of android is both on the user space and developers side. How much percentage of iPhones are running current OS compared to Android side of the equation. It seems that on the iOS side the devs can write for the state of the art while on the droid side its for the past. HTC is sometime in the future go to ics, like when???? Some hw will never be capable to run ics. Consistency in platform must be driving droid devs crazy. So many hoops (OEMs) and then hurdles (providers) it seems like a knock down drag out compared to the iOS publishing. I could be wrong, but I don't think so.....????
  • Reply 4 of 82
    Quote:

    If and when Google can consolidate its partner handset makers and create a unified store that is as simple and monetarily integrated as iTunes, Android may well be the new industry leader.



    Lol that will never happen not as long as google has there version and oems have there version and phone companies have there version. Android is a total fragmented mess and unless something drastic happens it will always be that way.
  • Reply 5 of 82
    Quote:

    HTC is sometime in the future go to ics, like when????



    And by the time they do go to ics it will be old and outdate and they will still be putting old oses on there phones, and still oems will be creating there own front ends and phone companies will be putting there garbage on the phones as well. Android has way too many fingers in the pie.
  • Reply 6 of 82
    pokepoke Posts: 506member
    How can this be? I was assured that Android would quickly close the gap and people would stop developing for iOS!
  • Reply 7 of 82
    solipsismxsolipsismx Posts: 19,566member
    I didn't see it mentioned that there are likely still more iOS-based devices in user's hands as well as a clearly dominate installed base.
  • Reply 8 of 82
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    Developers will go to where the money is.



    And some developers also have pride and they will refuse to release their app on Android if it means releasing an inferior version that is not up to par with the iOS version, due to technical limitations inherent to Android. A perfect example of that is audio apps.
  • Reply 9 of 82
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mechanic View Post


    Lol that will never happen not as long as google has there version and oems have there version and phone companies have there version. Android is a total fragmented mess and unless something drastic happens it will always be that way.



    <sarcasm> the only reasons for android app store numbers being down is because android is an open system, and users are just writing their own apps, something they can't do on iOS. what really needs to happen is to include the numbers of self developed user apps, then you'll see the real dominance of android!!</sarcasm>
  • Reply 10 of 82
    I don't even bother designing apps for Android. Buncha cheapskates.
  • Reply 11 of 82
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by JBFromOZ View Post


    <sarcasm> the only reasons for android app store numbers being down is because android is an open system, and users are just writing their own apps, something they can't do on iOS. what really needs to happen is to include the numbers of self developed user apps, then you'll see the real dominance of android!!</sarcasm>



    Where is Slapppy....



    He promised us that Android was going to turn iOS into a second class citizen by the end of the year...



    Then, there's DaHarder who, likely, has purchased 3 x 3 of every Android device...
  • Reply 12 of 82
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleZilla View Post


    I don't even bother designing apps for Android. Buncha cheapskates.



    I'm not a developer, but neither would I, if I were one. I would proudly declare on my homepage that Fandroids are not welcome and that they shouldn't hold their breath waiting for an Android version, because it's never going to happen.



    I use a lot of music apps and sometimes I visit music forums and it's always pathetic to see some new cool app get released for iOS, because there's always at least one ignorant person who pops into the thread and asks "What about an Android version?" Not gonna happen, suckers! And if they had any clue, they'd realize why it can't happen.
  • Reply 13 of 82
    ssquirrelssquirrel Posts: 1,196member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Apple ][ View Post


    I use a lot of music apps and sometimes I visit music forums and it's always pathetic to see some new cool app get released for iOS, because there's always at least one ignorant person who pops into the thread and asks "What about an Android version?" Not gonna happen, suckers! And if they had any clue, they'd realize why it can't happen.



    That would require them to educate themselves on the inherent latency problems in the core of Android. They don't have similar API layers that Apple has in OS X and iOS to minimize that. There is a reason I'm building a small home recording setup focused around a Mac, an iPad 3 (as soon as they're available) and either an Alesis I/O Dock or Behringer iStudio. The Behringer has all the knobs on the front and everything else is the same feature-wise. Actually they have an extra footswitch option over the Alesis, plus the Behringer will be $150 vs $200. If it's out by April I'll check reviews. If not I'll get the Alesis.



    Add a Arturia MInibrute, Moog Minitaur, Korg Monotribe and Moog Moogerfooger Freqbox and I'll have a very interesting little setup to pair w/things like the Korg iMS-20, Animoog and Sunrizer.
  • Reply 15 of 82
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SSquirrel View Post


    That would require them to educate themselves on the inherent latency problems in the core of Android. They don't have similar API layers that Apple has in OS X and iOS to minimize that. There is a reason I'm building a small home recording setup focused around a Mac, an iPad 3 (as soon as they're available) and either an Alesis I/O Dock or Behringer iStudio. The Behringer has all the knobs on the front and everything else is the same feature-wise. Actually they have an extra footswitch option over the Alesis, plus the Behringer will be $150 vs $200. If it's out by April I'll check reviews. If not I'll get the Alesis.



    Add a Arturia MInibrute, Moog Minitaur, Korg Monotribe and Moog Moogerfooger Freqbox and I'll have a very interesting little setup to pair w/things like the Korg iMS-20, Animoog and Sunrizer.



    It sounds like you'll have yourself a nice little studio there. And yep, Android has nothing similar to Core Audio and Core Midi, and the latency on Android is just a nightmare. Nobody with a functioning set of ears or anybody who considers themselves a musician would be able to tolerate using an Android device for any musical purposes.



    I'll be getting an iPad 3 too, and I'll also be keeping my iPad 2. So then I'll have two controllers with which to control my other musical gear and computers. iPads are one of the best things to happen to music production in a while. NAMM 2012 was all about the iPad. Almost every manufacturer was releasing products that were either for the iPad or made to be used in conjunction with an iPad.
  • Reply 16 of 82
    Maybe Google is going to drop Android in Moto's lap, then any Android failure can be racked up to incompetence in the Moto division.
  • Reply 17 of 82
    gtrgtr Posts: 3,231member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SSquirrel View Post


    Arturia MInibrute, Moog Minitaur, Korg Monotribe and Moog Moogerfooger Freqbox, Korg iMS-20, Animoog and Sunrizer.



    Excuse me.



    I find this highly offensive.



    A little moderating wouldn't go astray, Moderators.
  • Reply 18 of 82
    blastdoorblastdoor Posts: 3,258member
    sorry developers -- turns out that Android is just an embedded OS for use in feature phones, not the basis of a mobile computing platform.
  • Reply 19 of 82
    I always knew iOS got more apps first than the Android Slappp market.
  • Reply 20 of 82
    daharderdaharder Posts: 1,580member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by irnchriz View Post


    I had a customer smash his Galaxy SII phone in front of me this week.



    He went ballistic and launched it across the room into a brick wall. It was quite an impressive sight to be honest, the screen literally exploded.



    He now has an iPhone 4S, which to his glee, we setup by pushing the settings to it remotely. It's quite funny as he has now downloaded dozens of apps compared to the 3 or 4 he had on the Galaxy. He was going to suggest he download 'breathing' to chill him out a bit but feared I would have to pull an iPhone out of my skull.



    Sounds like quite the spectacle... Surely you took a pic or two of that 'impressive sight' i.e. the smashed Galaxy S II ?
Sign In or Register to comment.