If you spend time with app community “old timers” you may hear stories about the iPhone gold rush, a time when anyone with an iPhone and a dream could make a million dollars. In fact, some people might tell you, back in the gold rush days you didn’t even need to know how to program to make money with iPhone apps. Unfortunately, as many people learned, the reality of getting rich quick with apps was rarely as simply as it sounded.
While the initial App Store Gold Rush may be over, there’s no denying that there is money to made with the right apps. And, in some cases, you still don’t need to know how to program a single line of code. Take, for example, this list of money-making apps. These apps turn the tables on how to make money in the App Store. Instead of you paying for the app, how about letting the app pay you! If your philosophy is “show me the money,” read through this brief i-Ch-Ching to cash in with iPhone apps.
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href="http://www.appcraver.com/make-money-with-iphone-apps/">5 Ways to Make Money With iPhone Apps
So RIM has been talking up its Playbook tablet device for a while now, but today an interesting possibility is developing. RIM is considering which Java VM to use in their upcoming device, and they are looking heavily at the Dalvik VM — the same one Android uses.
If they go the open source route and pick up Dalvik VM, there’s a good chance that the Playbook will be able to run Android apps, provided that you are able to track them down from their sources. Obviously, you won’t be able to just download apps from the Android market on the Playbook. However, according to BGR, who broke the story, RIM is also considering “courting” Google to get some sort of licensing agreement, which would give the Playbook access to the Android Market, Gmail apps, and other Google services.
So, right now this is firmly in the “rumor” category. It makes sense for RIM to be looking into this avenue, but will it pan out? Google seems very unlikely to “license” a non-Android device to run the full gamut of Android apps and the market — especially given that some Android tablets don’t even have full Google support. I’m sure RIM is willing to throw some money at Google in this equation, but they have to be picky about how much they can offer, because while full support of Android apps would definitely help the Playbook sell, they still don’t know how successful it will be in the market. And it seems to me that if people are REALLY buying a tablet based on the ability to run Android apps…well, they’d probably buy an Android tablet. But if RIM can’t provide access to the Android Market, I don’t know how much of a bullet point that would really be for them, even if they could run “sideloaded” apps. So their situation is a tricky one.
All that said, it’s kind of interesting to think about. There’s really no reason they couldn’t go with the open-source Dalvik VM, and that would most likely allow access to at least a lot of the Android apps out there. What would this do for them? Would it hurt Google at all? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
I love checking out applications on my smartphones and I was pleased when Nokia reached out to me asking if I wanted to help check out some apps and post reviews over on the Ovi Daily App site. Of course I jumped on the opportunity to offer some variety over on the site, along with several other writers, and my first review is now live. Please go and check out my review of four Usablenet optimized web apps and then visit the Ovi Store for over 100 more from them.
At first I was thinking there wouldn’t be much to these apps that are essentially optimized websites. However, the four that I selected to check out are directly applicable to my life and actually offer a greatly enhanced web experiences, all for free. Since the current browser on Symbian^3 devices is still the older S60 browser, it helps to find apps that actually make the browser experience good. Maybe when the new updated browser is released you may find it better to visit the websites for these companies, but given how functional and enjoyable these apps were on my N8 I think I will likely stick with them even after the update.
I particularly like the Dell app where I was able to quickly search out the unlocked Nokia deals. The FedEx one is also handy since I send most of my evaluation gear back via my FedEx account. Do you find any of the Usablenet apps useful?
Box.net has redesigned the user interface of its cloud-hosted content management application, as well as expanded collaboration features and real-time notification capabilities.
Shortly after the announcement of Android 2.3 supporting NFC on the Google Nexus S, we begin seeing NFC enabled apps popping up in the Android Market. Taglet is one of them, a Japanese language app, that reads NFC tags and can share that same information. This app gets around Gingerbread’s read-only limitation, and lets the user associate data in an online database. When the tag is read, it accesses the data stored online and sends it back down to the user.
The second is called EnableTable, an English langauage app from the US, which lets restaurants send out discount vouchers and coupons to its clients and customers when they pay their bill, thus encouraging repeat business.
NFC Development kits are starting to become available as well, encouraging development of NFC apps, which will no doubt start to become more mainstream the more Android devices start updating to Gingerbread and up. Merchant360 subsidiary Mobifyer has introduced a development kit for NFC this week.
Merchant360 CEO Steve McRae said the following;
We are in the business of increasing the adoption and acceptance of NFC so with the release of this mainstream phone we developed some reference applications and since we supply mobile contactless tags to companies like MoneyCell and applications for companies like Bling Nation we decided to release this as a solution allowing any Android developer to get engaged with NFC technology and increase adoption
So far, only the Nexus S has that RFID-like feature, but other phones and tablets are expected to have NFC soon.
Near Field Communication enables the exchange of data between devices over about 4 inches (10 centimeters). It combines the interface of a smartcard and a reader into a single device and communicates via magnetic field induction.
Two loop antennas are located within each other’s near field. The phone contains your identity, but the tag is just a magnetic loop. It doesn’t need batteries. It can be embedded in a poster or sticker, and can be stuck to menus or store windows. It’s like RF-ID, with a unique identity number, but doesn’t require a separate reader at the store (like a smartcard) to make a transaction. You just place your phone on the tag and press a button. NFC operates in the unlicensed ISM band at 13.56 MHz.
Your phone provides your identity and security. Of course you don’t want to loose your phone. The security issues may take some time to work their way through general public acceptance. NFC could be convenient. Mobile ticketing in public transport and mobile payment, where your phone acts as a debit/credit payment card, are envisioned.
So you’ve got an older Android device, not running Android 2.2 or up, you’re not due for an upgrade yet, and you don’t have $500 to put down for a new device without a contract. What do you do if your device is full and you cant install any more apps? What do you do if you need to install updates and you get the error that you need to remove apps to make room on your internal storage? It’s a huge pain in the behind to say the least, but there is another way. Install your apps on your SD card. Now there are downsides to installing on your SD card as pointed out here, but really, its something you could at least juggle around until you have a new device with much more storage.
Apps 2 SD will help you with that, letting you move apps from your internal storage to your SD card. The key is to move apps that you don’t need running in a widget, or one that constantly updates itself, running in the background like your gmail app would. You want to keep those on your device so they always keep working. Other apps, like games, or your flashlight, bubble level, etc are great on the SD card, cause they don’t need to run, or rely on any account management in the background.
(Note: For those on Froyo or up, this app is not needed as Froyo includes the ability to install on SD or internal storage.)
Everyone has been patiently waiting for Google to work out their issues with the TV and online media networks and provide updates that will give us access to the Android Market so we can all experience the full potential of the Google TV platform. That hasn’t been good enough for a group of users over at GTVHacker.com who have been working day and night to try and break into the Logitech Revue box and gain root to work around the current limitations. A few days ago they posted that they had managed to root the Logitech Revue box by soldering a few wires and attaching a serial device.
While the solution they found is not something that the everyday user is able to achieve, and we certainly caution anyone who wants to try this at home, they have rooted the device, found a way to bypass the blocks the online media sites have imposed and also side loaded the Android Market application.
The hack is known a the BreakVue hack and they are currently working on a release package to go along with the hack that will significantly increase the functionality of any Logitech Revue Google TV box.
Will all this trickery going on, they have recorded some videos of the device doing much more than it’s supposed to and shared this with everyone on YouTube.
The first video shows a few of the applications they have installed, including the Android Market which is still not working correctly in this video:
The next video shows the bypass system they have been working on to give access to the sites that are currently blocking access to any Google TV devices. The site they are demonstrating is Hulu.
The final video is more of an overview of all the functionality they have managed to achieve so far with some pretty annoying overlay music:
If you enjoyed these videos, be sure to check out GTVHacker.com to find out the latest status, issues and guides for getting the most of your hacked Google TV box.
Now lets just hope someone gets going on the Sony products and gives us the same functioality as these guys have done with the Logitech Revue with Google TV.
The Android market has a ton of ridiculously cool, highly customizable apps. But sometimes, for the TRULY customizable capabilities, you have to turn to the third-party devs working on the customizable apps. To that end, we present to you two very powerful apps created by XDA-Developers.
Up first, ykk_five has created an app that allows you to see not only the time your texts were received, but the time they were actually sent. Follow the steps in the first source article, and you’ll have some help seeing when texts were sent, not just when they were received.
Equally cool, KuRouZu has developed an app that will let you pull from many sources like Megavideo and will stream TV shows and other random video to your Android device. The UI is apparently very intuitive, although it requires Froyo with Flash Player 10.1.
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This morning, Apple announced the stats for the Mac App Store’s opening day—drum roll please—over one million apps were downloaded in the first day.
“We’re amazed at the incredible response the Mac App Store is getting,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Developers have done a great job bringing apps to the store and users are loving how easy and fun the Mac App Store is.”
With more than 1,000 free and paid apps, the Mac App Store is an attempt to recreate the App Store experience for personal computers.
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href="http://www.appcraver.com/mac-app-store-opens-with-1000-apps-and-1m-downloads/">Mac App Store Opens with 1,000 Apps and 1M Downloads
Ford has just announced that their SYNC App-Link technology will be available in Ford Mustang 2012 models. App-Link extends the current abilities of SYNC, such as hands-free calling and music search, by allowing users to control third-party apps on their mobile device using SYNC’s voice recognition. Currently, the service works only with Pandora with Stitcher compatibility coming in early 2011.
Tablature, or “tab” as it is colloquially known, is a notational system for guitar that shows notes and chords according to where they are positioned on the fingerboard rather than using a traditional musical staff. Brian Beam looks at a pair of apps that bring tablature to the iPhone and iPad.
According to the popular list-making website 43things.com, these are the
title="new year resolutions" href="http://www.43things.com/resolutions/most_popular" target="_blank">Top 10 New Year’s resolutions of 2011: lose weight; try something new; save money; be happy; achieve an athletic goal; fall in love; take a photo every day; get a job; read more; and quit smoking. Compare it to the list of
title="popular new year resolutions" href="http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/New_Years_Resolutions.shtml" target="_blank">most popular resolutions from USA.gov and you’ll see a lot of similarities. That’s because, year after year, resolutions are made in January and broken in February.
Folks who specialize in these kinds of things say it doesn’t have to be this way. You can keep your New Year’s Resolution and achieve your goals. Preparation is the key to success with New Year Resolutions. 1) Start with a realistic goal. 2) Make an actionable plan. 3) Have the necessary tools to achieve your new goal.
To help with your New Year’s Resolutions, we’ve rounded up some apps designed to help you achieve your goals in the coming year. Assuming that your resolution is realistic, you’re just a download away from success in 2011.
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href="http://www.appcraver.com/top-new-years-resolutions-apps-for-success/">Top New Year’s Resolutions … and the Apps to Be Successful
Here are the 5 Best Android Apps that we have reviewed for December 2010 in no particular order.
Angry Birds Seasons Android App
The Angry Birds Seasons Android App by Rovio Mobile is a seasons and holiday version of the Angry Birds game. This game features theme and holiday New Angry Birds levels.
Dungeon Defenders: First Wave Android App
The Dungeon Defenders: First Wave Android App by Trendy Entertainment is an online cooperative Action-RPG meets Tower Defense game for the Android platform.
Game Dev Story Android App
The Game Dev Story Android App by Kairosoft Co.,Ltd is a simulation game where the object is to manage your own game company and try to create a million-selling game.
Sketchbook Mobile Android App
The Sketchbook Mobile Android App by Autodesk Inc. is a professional grade paint and drawing app for the Android platform. The app offers a full set of sketching tools and a streamlined and intuitive user interface.
Toyshop Adventures Android App
The Toyshop Adventures Android App by Glu Mobile is a game for the Android platform where the object is to help the shopkeeper find his special marbles that he has lost. To collect the marbles you will make your way through the toy shop over coming obstacles along the way.
Going to a New Year’s party tonight? Of course you’ll be bringing your Android phone along, but did you know that very same little device can help make you the life of the party? We’ve got some apps to help you do just that, so hit the break to find out what they are. Want us to make it even easier? We’ll even line out when during the night you can use these apps.
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Forget, for a moment, that this article is about finding the most expensive iPhone app and complete the following sentence: For $999, you can…
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Pay for five laptops for third-world children;
Feed and intoxicate yourself and five friends at a decent restaurant;
Buy a new wide-screen HDTV
Pay rent or mortgage for a month in middle America; or
Download an iPhone app.
Surprisingly—nay, disturbingly—all five are correct answers. You can pay almost a thousand bucks for an app. But this fact merely begs the next question: why would you?
The answer is not always “because you’re an idiot.”
Lots of these pricey iPhone apps have specific benefits for those who need their particular features; others are just novel ways to spend that Trustafarian tax cut. To sort them out and understand what makes some of the most expensive apps worth the price, read on.
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href="http://www.appcraver.com/most-expensive-iphone-app/">The Most Expensive iPhone Apps of 2010
Tis the season, everyone! For those of our readers who are celebrating the holidays we hope you are having a great time thus far, and with Christmas now literally just around the corner, we wanted to share with you some of our favorite free Christmas apps. So, without further delay, I present to you our top five free Android Christmas apps. Continue reading after the break for the full list.
If you’ve already been keeping up with the latest in mobile web technologies, the guidelines probably won’t have too much new information for you. But if you haven’t already explored the rapidly growing mobile web apps scene, the W3C’s guide makes a good starting place.
The guide covers everything from the (hopefully) obvious, like minimizing the number of cookies, compressing your files and using CSS sprites, to less-well-known tips like using Fragment IDs or caching resources by fingerprinting resource references.
One thing to keep in mind is that this overview is intended for web apps, not just websites. If you just want to develop a mobile-optimized version of your website, check out our earlier post on the best practices for mobile websites.
If you’re building something much more complex and application-like, the W3C’s guidelines make a great starting point to get up to speed.
One of the biggest complaints about the Android Market up to this point has been the lack of ways to pay for apps. Now, however, it looks like AT&T users will be happy to know that they can now bill the price of any downloaded app to their carrier bill. No longer will those on AT&T be forced to pay for an app right away. When they go to check out, under the payment method dropdown box, they should see an option that says “Bill my AT&T account”, which will then simply tack on the amount onto their bill at the end of their cycle. No word on how, if at all, this will affect the new 15 minute refund window, but I suppose only time will tell. Be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Apple announced on Monday that the company’s popular Mac OS X Downloads site will no longer feature third-party software, directing developers instead to the upcoming Mac App Store.
Twinkler Software is in the Holiday spirit, and having a Christmas sale on their best selling apps. Now through Christmas day, you can pick up these apps on sale for 50% off. Here are some of those apps that you may want to purchase, for a great price:
WifFi Hero- Control the state of your WiFi connection automatically to preserve battery power, using cell tower location data
BeSmart- One button solution to quickly access your favorite apps, and acknowledge pending notification in an efficient and hassle free way
AddOnis- Gives your BlackBerry features such as LED vibration control for notifications, call blocking, call logging, enhanced keylock, and more
AddContactX- The easy and intuitive way to add new numbers to existing contacts, or create new contacts
You can pick up all of these apps for 50% off at the CrackBerry App Store. Sale is active now through Christmas day. You can check out all of Twinkler’s applications via the link below.
I LOVE applications and now that the Ovi Store is good on the Nokia N8 I am downloading and purchasing more and more on my device. To celebrate the end of the year and figure out what your favorite Symbian apps are Nokia is holding a fantastic online event called the Ovi Daily App Must Have App of the Year Awards. You can vote for apps in the event from now until 31 December 2010 and by casting your vote you are entering a contest to win a Nokia N8. They will pick from all of those who correctly pick all six winning apps and that device will have those six apps. Check out the contest video below.
Apps are nominated in the following categories: Games, Social Networking, Music, Entertainment, Utilities, and Business & Productivity. Five apps are nominated in each category. I voted for my favorite apps and hope to win a Nokia N8 too.
The winning apps will be announced on 5 January 2011. Keep in mind that the apps for this year’s contest are compatible with Symbian S60 5th Edition devices because that was the main high end operating system this year so you won’t see some Symbian^3 compatible apps. This explains why I did not see Angry Birds in the game category or that would have been the easy winning selection.
Go vote now and good luck everyone. Voting only takes a couple of seconds as you choose your favorite apps in the survey and give them your email address so they can contact you if you win.
In the slew of new things to be included in Android 2.3 Gingerbread, here’s one that the devs will love. It’s a new feature called “StrictMode”, and is designed to monitor an app as it works and watch for calls, commands, or other app functions that could end up slowing things down on your device. According to the Android Developers Blog, it is made to:
detect disk writes
detect disk reads
detect network usage
on a violation: log
on a violation: crash
on a violation: dropbox
on a violation: show an annoying dialog
So what does this mean, specifically? It means that developers will now be able to find out what causes slowdowns and bottlenecks in their apps that would ultimately cause an app to crash or force close. This means a better app experience, and more stable apps in general for the end user. Looks like Google is all about the apps, and they plan to stay that way. Be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments!
I love checking out applications on my smartphones and I was pleased when Nokia reached out to me asking if I wanted to help check out some apps and post reviews over on the 
The App Store just saw its 10 billionth download. Here are the top-selling apps that run on the iPad which helped push Apple past this milestone.
Box.net has redesigned the user interface of its cloud-hosted content management application, as well as expanded collaboration features and real-time notification capabilities.
Tablature, or “tab” as it is colloquially known, is a notational system for guitar that shows notes and chords according to where they are positioned on the fingerboard rather than using a traditional musical staff. Brian Beam looks at a pair of apps that bring tablature to the iPhone and iPad.
Apple announced on Monday that the company’s popular Mac OS X Downloads site will no longer feature third-party software, directing developers instead to the upcoming Mac App Store.
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