iPhone apps have been downloaded 800 million times, and there are now more than 25,000 apps in the iTunes store. Apple is detailing some of the new features in the next version of the iPhone OS in apress conference going on live right now. The new OS, iPhone 3.0, will support 1,000 APIs. Apple seems to be giving a lot of extra love to paid apps, which will gain the ability to sell additional levels, subscriptions, virtual goods, or extra content from right within the app.
The new APIs will also support peer-to peer applications via Bluetooth, which will be great for head-to-head games. Maps will be able to be embedded directly into the apps, and apps can now talk to accessories such as an FM transmitter or a blood pressure monitor. But Apple is not opening up background processing, which would allow more than one app to be running at once—a feature already common on Android and other phones. Apple says it takes up too much battery life.
Apple is also opening up push notification APIs for developers. This will allow apps to incorporate email, IM, and other messaging services. Meebo for instance, created a native iPhone app using the new API, which it demoed onstage. Apps will also finally be able to tap into the iTunes music library on the iPhone. (About time). And they will be able to handle streaming video as a feature.
And they save perhaps the most requested feature until near the end (’natch): Cut-and-paste. You double-tap a word to highlight it, drag the edges to highlight a block, shake to call up an “undo” button. Finally. Why was that so hard?
Another much requested feature: landscape support (when you tilt the iPhone horizontally, the screen goes into landscape mode). Now all apps can have it, including e-mail. And email will support MMS. Again, this is all just basic stuff.
Taking a cue from Android, Apple is finally adding search to every app. So now two years later, you can search your emails and think that it is a gift. But it is not just email. Apple is adding Spotlight to the iPhone: one place where you can search across all apps: your calendar, notes, iTunes library.
The IPhone 3.0 SDK is available to developers starting today. CrunchGear has a full rundown of all the announcements.
Some stats from the press conference:
- There are now more than 25,000 iPhone apps in the iTunes Store.
- iPhone apps have been downloaded 800 million times.
- 96 percent of all apps are approved
- The developer SDK has been downloaded 800,000 times
- 50,000 companies have joined the program
- 13.7 million iPhones were sold in 2008
impressive numbers
test
that’s amazing.
800milllions download for 13.7m iphones? that means ~60app downloaded per user…80m download would seem more reasonable to me
Agreed… these numbers sound inflated. However, the 13.7m doesn’t take into account the sales in ‘07 and so far in ‘09.
Note, the 800,000 SDK downloads means nothing because Apple has removed a number of standalone dev tools and now requires you to download the (bulky) SDK instead. I learned this recently when setting up my MacBook Pro as a dev machine for a PHP web app, and have no use otherwise for the SDK and do not plan to build an iPhone app.
Maybe you meant to divide by 30 million to include all of the iPod touches? That would be somewhat over 26 apps per device that runs iPhone OS.
Year..
Year? I’m not sure where that matters. It’s been only 8 months since the app store opened.
30 million is the cumulative figure for iPhone + iPod touch sales mentioned in the presentation at 2:05 in the video available at http://events.a...vent/index.html.
Clearly, the iPod touch matters to people selling applications nearly as much as the iPhone.
how do you get paid for your app and do you know anyone to hire for marketing app?
SHUT THE HELL UP ERIC
Don’t forget iPod Touches. Those bring the total to around 30M devices.
I would guess that each update is counted as one download, so that when I’ve downloaded 1.0.1, then 1.1, then 1.2 of a given app, that scores three downloads.
I’ve downloaded over 300 apps so far.
I’m glad I’m not the only one!
Awesome! Actually watching the live feed now.
These are exciting times!
-Ryan
800… is too fat !!!
Very interesting.
Apple is slowing but surely taking over the mobile world. How will Nokia/Motorola/LG/Samsung etc. compete with them?
unreal… good on them… Lovin’ the innovations.
Well…Apple has taken over the music download world. I’m sure they’ll do the same in the apps download world.
Veteran RIM needs to step their game up.
http://www.blac...y.com/appworld/
Apple barely has 1% of the global mobile phone market. Slowly is right.
subscriptions and incremental payments is going to have a huge impact on games and virtual goods for iPhone apps. Will definitely open up new rev streams for developers.
Hopefully, people won’t get too “creative” like a “$5.00 charge for pressing the fart button.”
I agree with you. This opens up a whole new world of possibilities. I hope Linden Labs makes a native app for Second Life…which I highly doubt would happen since EA is going to release The Sims.
Why would you doubt an SL client for iPhone? For starters, Linden Lab doesn’t necessarily have to be the one to write it since the client has (long since) been released open source. Secondly, what does the sims have to do with SL, it’s like comparing apples and oranges. There’s already been one app that runs SL on an iPhone, albeit it’s a cheat that streams the client running on a pc elsewhere to the iPhone, but, since buying an iPhone (just yesterday), and downloading a bunch of 3D apps, I’m now convinced that the iPhone has the power to handle a lightened version of the SL client. Also, LL maintains a Mac version of the client, which could be used as a base starting point for coding an iPhone version since both Macs and iPhones both run OS X.
When will this new firmware be available to the general public?
Release is sometime in the summer.
Thanks, I was also wondering that.
Even in a down market, Apple pulls these kind of numbers…
Forgot MMS which was also announced
Very good..
@ @teedubya
Innovations? The bulk of this update was just patching items left out for the past 2 years. Is it a innovation when Micro$oft patches a security exploit? Or adds basic functionality and memory allocation? No? Well, all of these inovations are items people including Iphone owners have been begging for. If Apple doesn’t really get off their duff and inovate like they did with the original or the 3g they will fall inot the exact same trap everyone else has. After so long everyone stops playing catch up and starts playing where the heck did [Palm, motorola, RIM, and at this rate Apple] go? In an industry where a new phone is announced every week if not daily, to ride a single model for two years will be optomistic. Especially whn palm shows everyone how “sound” the Apple Multi touch patent really is. I’m not hating, just point out how Apple isn’t reinventing the wheel, they just happen to be in the lead right now, but that will change. Competitors rarely stay happily in second place.
“Competitors rarely stay happily in second place.”
Yeah, like the huge lead Microsoft opened up in the MP3 player market now that Zune’s been released
BTW, the 3G has only been out since last July, dude. How long has it taken the market to just get to touch screen phones, let alone multi-touch? About two years.
Palm’s Treo came out with a touchscreen in ‘04… not a particularly revolutionary feature of the iPhone.
iPhone 3.0 is gonna rock, nobody’d be able to beat this damn pretty thing.
Except maybe the Palm Pre.
iPhone 4.0 is so gonna pwn that crappy version.
micro-transaction opportnities are fantastic…
Who gets the default search box on the iPhone?
@facebook user Franck: you can download and use iphone apps on the ipod touch as well.
iPhone 3.0 is going to rock!
The author is pretty negative about it.
But 30 million users and thousands of developers are pretty happy. 800 million downloads in less than a year is proof.
Of course, if you want the kitchen sink, you should complain that the iPhone doesn’t include auto-suck.
An enterprising developer would, however, can create an app that has it. Then we can all have a happy ending.
Nice post! Be sure to check out my site too at http://macmaniapodcast.com
sooo when will this be available for us to upgrade?
Amazing all the features they are adding into this software for such a tiny device!!!
Amazing what makes Apple and its marketing
What’s amazing is Apple’s mindshare. This audience estimates a total audience of 30 million. Active PC’s and desktops probably number in the 600 million or more. Thus, the iPhone and iPod Touch is only 5% of the total web market. Does Apple have only 5% of the developers?
Don’t get me wrong. I believe Apple’s share will continue to grow, particularly in the mobile space.
Steve Jobs has been an inspirational leader, but it looks like he has trained a core of leaders that can continue the Apple magic. Good news.
So it seem like the 2nd Gen Ipod Touch has bluetooth…
What about the people who have purchased the Ipod Touch 1st generation users….We believed in Apple to take a chance on the 1st generation…If they would have let me know I would have just only bought the 2nd Gen.
Do we know for sure that 1st gen adopter won’t be let out to dry and have to purchase the 2nd Gen version?
I have downloaded about 170 apps … I currently have about 135 on my iPhone.
I’ve only downloaded 2 apps … They seem to be rather expensive for the moment!
…
I like the new options. I’ll be using them allot!
Now if only I had an iPhone…
Ammmmaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazing
As long Apple does not allow back ground processing I will not build an application for the Iphone Bleeeeh(stick my tong out for that).
You can download the iPhone 3.0 here
http://www.live...-download-link/
If you really want to.
our NEW and improved UDID activation site is up and running. If you want INSTANT access check it out. We also provide full sttep by step directions for a fail safe install. Just click on our name to go there
how do you get paid for your application and does anyone have personal experience in using a marketing company for a app