Palm's US App Catalog tops 3,000 apps, total apps over 4,000 46
While Palm's Official App Catalog still doesn't quite compare with the number of iPhone apps or Android apps, we hear from a few readers that the number of apps available in the US App Catalog has just topped 3,000. By our estimate the 3,000th app is the aforementioned Agile Messenger IM app, which we're going to go ahead and say was a nice choice.
Meanwhile, when we factor in international apps, web-distributed apps, beta apps, and homebrew apps we see the count of total apps available has crossed the 4,000 mark. Bravos, congratulations, high-fives, and daps all around!
In sheer numbers, Palm isn't like to catch up to the big guys anytime soon, so for now they need to play a quality over quantity game - making the argument that the essential apps are here and that they are quite good. We tend to believe that. We also tend to believe that it will be a lot easier to talk about the quality of webOS apps and games when people in the US finally get webOS 1.4.5 and are able to install games like Galcon and ExZeus.
Thanks to everybody who sent this in!
46 Comments
And about 1000 of them are from Brighthouse Labs, AppBookShop, and Dijit. Hip hip hurray.
It's sad that Dijit is starting to look very tolerable recently with AppBookShop putting out so much trash. Sigh.
Palm really needs to fix up their AppCatalog. Those 3 are going up on my "don't show in AppCatalog" list as soon as I can do it.
I was just going to write a similar post. Spamtastic!!
How is Palm supposed to "fix up their App Catalog"? Apple has the most stringent App Store around and they get just as much (if not more) spam from the same producers, as well as others. How is Palm supposed to defend having a more open approach if they ban appmakers that even Apple allows?
He means that Palm should improve the App Catalog App so we (the users) have the power to filter out spamming developers.
Agreed- like Preware were we can filter out some of these developers or search easier for specific apps we are looking for. I understand there will always be some App Spam, but a better way to filter it would be great. Some people might want to invest in AppBookShop's entire collection.
It is tiresome tryng to find new apps when there is two new apps and thirty new Spam Apps(IMO).
Agreed. This overly optimistic, pat-on-the-back, fanboy circle jerk post made me throw up in my mouth a little. 3000 after over a year is a joke. I want apps like the ones I see on http://alternativeto.net/mobile and http://bestapps.com/. Sucks that this platform can't attract developers. I'm a little embarrassed to be holding onto my Pre for so long given the alternatives out there. Lack of apps is what prevents me from really recommending the phone to anyone.
I hear you - I am in the same boat. I sat in line in the rain June 6th and was super excited, devlopment has been way to slow and it doesn't seem like Palm/HP is trying to fix any of the issues we, as a community, have presented or implemented any of the patches that are required to make it a better OS in their updates.
It took over 6 months to get us video recording, still no flash support which was promised early on, still no editable documents app, and anyone else remember the limit on the apps when this phone came out - you do not have enough memory for this app. Don't get me wrong I like the WebOS experience, but the device was half-baked when it was released and still doesn't seem like it is done. Some of these things we get promised just take waaaay to long to implement. Who is in charge of deadlines? You are losing more and more WebOS users daily especially seeing Sprint customers aren't locked into their phone anymore and can upgrade yearly. I am waiting, but might be jumping ship by the end of the year.
The nice thing about living in a free country is that you don't have to hold on to your Pre or recommend it to anyone. If another platform suits your needs, go there.
The crude reference was uncalled for. Should everyone here complain that we don't have 5,000 apps to choose from or be glad we have more than 1,500 apps? Just curious.
If there aren't more quality apps by this time next year, you can call me out publicly on this forum. Whining because there are not as many as Apple or Android, (both whom have been out longer) seems be a 'logical disconnect' at best.
"Should everyone here complain that we don't have 5,000 apps to choose from or be glad we have more than 1,500 apps? Just curious."
Answer: Be glad that there are apps. Be angry that there are only 3000.
"Whining because there are not as many as Apple or Android, (both whom have been out longer) seems be a 'logical disconnect' at best."
No logical disconnect here. And I'm not talking about just the number of apps. I'm also looking at rate of growth. I'm also looking for quality, level of developer interest, etc. I have to compare WebOS to what else is on the market. If it's not fair, tell me what in your mind constitutes a fair comparison, then? Is there no fair comparison because there's no other company that's exactly like Palm that's been out for exactly the same amount of time, at the same point in time, with the same resources? Developer interest in WebOS has decreased over time. Decreased. And this is with whatever million dollar contests Palm throws, new SDKs that come out, and HP buying them. I think that says a lot right there.
Being angry there are only 3,000 apps does nothing to:
1) produce more apps
2) solve my problem if I need an app on another platform
The issues with marketshare, mindshare, and old hardware are not exactly new. Six months ago, shame on them. But by now, if a user doesn't know where he is if he's a Palm user, it's shame on you.
If I'm not happy with a product, I just move on. There are much more important things to get angry over. It's just a phone. People who stay with Palm /HP are betting things will get better or are happy enough with what is currently available.
Of course with the same hardware which was introduced at launch, there is little to recommend the Pre. This is pretty much true with any phone which is 18 months old in an environment where the landscape changes every 60 days. The next phone will tell the tale for what their prospects will be. As fickle as many phone users are, come out with something compelling and they will all come back. And even if not, there are millions yet to join the smartphone world.
HP has had control for all of 3 weeks. Too early to call it a failure. So developer interest at this point doesn't say much at all about how they are doing. I'm not saying they will become world beaters, they may ultimately fail. But they may very well still be successful, so all of the doom and gloom is a little premature.
That first site seems to be all IM/Twitter apps... How many Twitter apps do you need? The second site, there isn't a single app I'd want off their front page, it mostly looks like the sort of stuff that is aimed at niche users (adwords) or that you would use once and never again.
Kind of strange, because the lack of apps is not why I wouldn't recommend it. I wouldn't recommend it just because it's less responsive, has inferior hardware, and a questionable future.
Seriously, appwise give me these apps and I'm good:
Facebook, Twitter, Yelp, Jogging App, Timer/Stopwatch, Weather, News reader, Shazam, Barcode reader, fantasy sports, various fun quick games.
And webOS is only really lacking Shazam, barcode reader, and fantasy sports apps, some of which should come on the next update (cuz then the SDK would allow it). A lot of my friends have iPhones and their mess of apps, and playing with their phones, again, the apps listed above are the only ones I miss.
Personally I think WAY too much is made out of "apps".
Before the HP purchase, questionable future would have been very valid. But HP is a bigger company than Google, Palm's future is more solid than it's been in several years.
The fact that mind share for webOS is almost nil is troubling. Even tho they have HP behind them, you have to remember that the competition is FIERCE. webOS is going against:
Apple iPhone. Love them or hate them, but they're the current king of the roost. Adding more and more users by the day, very high satisfaction rates. People can hate on it all they want but in the end of the day it's the phone that a great majority of people lust after. Yes, tech geeks can easily see the weaknesses, but the "common person" will love it. And guess what? The "common person" is the one who matters, not tech geeks since there's more "common people" than tech geeks.
Blackberries. Bleeding market share, but the market share they have now is awesome. webOS isn't even CLOSE to competing with their market share. If they can even get half of RIM's current market share (and not bleed any), HPalm is fine.
Android. The up and comer. Already doing quite well, and looks like they're just picking up more and more speed. Their future is bright since Android just gets better, and all phone manufacturers make them and are competing with each other to make better and better phones.
Nokia. Well... negligible in the US, but they're a serious road block for breaking into the market in the rest of the world.
Microsoft. WinPho7 is rebuilt from ground up just like webOS. The hands on we've seen of it so far show it far surpasses webOS in terms of smoothness and responsiveness if not utility.
Even with HP... I still have to say webOS's future is a bit iffy. Can the smart phone market support six smart phone operating systems? webOS is arguably the best phone OS out there, but if no one is buying it, it'll still fail. Can HP's marketing team beat the other marketing teams? Only time can tell.
Don't forget tEarn Media. Well, there a lot more spam app companies, actually. I hate going to the app catalog and seeing that there are a bunch of new apps, and then to my unfortunate surprise, almost half of them are spam apps. I hope there will soon be a way to block certain apps you don't wanna see by genre, company, date, etc.
it would be great to have something like black list in preware
Huh? Find the feed!
Yay! The next 3000 will be before the year's end. Just being positive. PAAAAAAAAAAALM!
Wow, Agile Messenger looks like the real deal! Bummer I wasted my money on Mundu IM the other week as it and IM+ are just garbage.
Is it the real deal? Does it actually do voice chat? That would mean Agile got access to the microphone...
I still want Audible and a word processor. Most other apps are there, though. I love the games.
Scratch Word is a great basic WP app. I use it all the time.
I only see 2455 in Canada :(
3000 apps that's cool you guys think there waiting for new hardware to open flood gates. It could go from like 4320 apps to like 10000 after announced and drop of new hardware and software. Could be me dreamin but anything is possible with palm
"...Could be me dreamin..."
Yup, must be dreamin' ;-)
The way the app cat is set-up anyone not in Germany, Spain, UK, US or Canada cannot access paid apps. As much as I wish to spend money on them, no Dutch providers catch up on this intermediary deal...
Please devs, include an option of unlocking a free trial version with a code payable through paypal (Credit Card, Google Checkout, etc) and the rest of the world will buy your apps. At least I could get Classic that way.
I want that app that I seen on Android where you can BBM blackberry ppl without having a blackberry.. I was jealous when I saw that and I was wondering why hasnt this been made for the Pre/Pixi yet? smh I guess I need to become a developer..
As someone who absolutely loves WebOS it pains me to say that this article is way off base in it
Not all apps have to be essential to be good. Like Need For Speed. It is a good app, but its not 'essential'. So your argument is going NO WHERE, buddy.
3000 apps that's cool you guys think there waiting for new hardware to open flood gates. It could go from like 4320 apps to like 10000 after announced and drop of new hardware and software. Could be me dreamin but anything is possible with palm
Until the rest of us get webOS 1.4.5, rest comfy with the knowledge that I've taken the top score in ExZeus. Score one for the USA!
Wow. Most of what I thought was already posted...
Out of 3000 (4000) apps... how many do you actually use, or have a practical use for? 12? 24? 50? ... or 3? :)
How many apps do you think you would use if there were 150.000 available? 12? 24? 50? ... or 3?
Let's be serious, please. There are a few holes right now in the App Catalog, but this doesn't means that 150.000 apps will raise your app usage.
Correct, but quality apps would. There are definitly some quality apps I use, but the crap ones don't make it very far on my PRE. I use a lot of my apps - if I don't use it it is deleted.
Quality app competition would help too - photo effects is a great app, it's free (limited functions), but there is no competition for this type of app.
Having some competition would also force more quality apps into the catalog and force some of the crap ones out.
I don't understand why apps cannot just be made. Many of the great apps for the iphone and android were amde because developers wanted an edge over the competition. An example is something like facebook, facebook makes an app for the iphone and android. WebOS has their own developers making the app because facebook isn't going to support webos until it has users. Facebook is one of the better apps on the webos platform. By that rationale, HP should just hire 50-100 developers at 50-60 thousand a year (peanuts to HP, they pay more in pencils), and give them apps to produce. I honestly believe way to much is made of the app store and android market. The fact is that most platforms really only have a few hundred apps that are worthwhile to the general public, and the rest are mostly niche fields (medical and legal comes to mind). Just spend 1-2 years paying devs to make those apps. it's simple.
WHERE IS FLASH!? The Adobe site is back to saying "First half of 2010"
To avoid the spam in the app catalog you might try UberAppCat. You can easily put publishers on the exclude list. It's free and available in the app catalog.
If I use Preware's new blacklist feature to include almost every 3rd party feed imaginable plus the app catalog feeds and filter out stuff either because it is spam, a theme, or it is a category I am not interested in, I get 3,188 apps. (Patches are included).
I am running WebOS 1.4.1.1 on a Sprint Pre.
My blacklist: Brighthouse, Dijit, appible, PalmAgent, Upward Mobility, tEarn media, cellHigh, AppBookShop, EHYP productions and Ultralingua
I guess this means we've hit the big time now. I still don't see how test prep custom written for mobile gets us on the category. If you were studying for a specific exam, you'd be excited to find our app. I feel like you've got to be looking for something pretty specific to run into one of our apps...
Make medical clerkship and USMLE apps and you're a winner in my book (hint, hint)
Isn't 1/3 of android apps really themes? We should add the number of themes to our homebrew app count at least.
I went into the catalog this morning. It said that there were 3001 apps in the catalog. Then I came back into the app catalog this afternoon to find that its now 2999 apps available. WTF? Well, idk what happened, but technically this article is false. But it's not the writers fault. So I'm sure in a little while they will add more apps in the catalog, so no big deal.
Just checked again. The catalog is now down to 2998. WTF?
BAHAHAHAHAHA!!! It went back to 2999 if I were palm I'd make a really sexy app and put it out as 3000
Welcome, I offer you the most reliable and offers the lowest prices site
to purchase drugs, such as: Xanax, Viagra, and so on. Always excellent
service, fast delivery. Always glad to help you.
http://ibuycheapcialis.org
app request: please write an app that lists all the spam apps so I don't have to hunt through the official app catalog to find them... thanks!