Hasta La Gadget!

Ah, there we go. Right around three months after we falsely suspected that El Goog had crossed the 100,000 mark in its Android Market, the company itself has today confirmed the passing of that line via Twitter. For those keeping count, it took but three months to go from 70,000 to 100,000 and seven months to go from 30,000 to this point. Of course, Apple’s still holding down the lead in terms of sheer numbers with close to 300,000, but there’s no question that the Android Market has nearly everything a boy (or girl, for that matter) could want. Except for a quote generator from Step Brothers. Oh, wait….

Android Market surpasses 100,000 apps: can’t stop, won’t stop growing originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Oct 2010 03:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading Remote control app for Logitech Revue hits the Android Market

Remote control app for Logitech Revue hits the Android Market originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Oct 2010 12:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Our biggest complaint about the variety of Archos tablets? The lack of the Android Market, of course. But while you’ve been able to sideload the Market apk on lots of these devices, there were apparently compatibility issues with Archos’ new Android 2.1 / 2.2 tablets (like the Archos 32 we reviewed just a few weeks). But fear not: ArchosFans to the rescue! A forum member successfully complied a new gApps4Archos.apk that can be easily sideloaded, and installed to give you access to all that Google app and Marketplace goodness. Obviously, we whipped out our 32 and tried it out ourselves. We did have a few issues at first — you must have the latest 1.0.70 firmware and we had to reboot a few times to successfully connect to Google’s servers — but we were finally able to log into our Gmail and download Pandora. If you’re adventurous enough to try it out for yourself, we’d suggest hitting the source link and getting to it. Oh, and feel free to let us know how it goes in the comments.

New Archos tablets get Android Market hack, works as promised originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 12:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Amazon seems ready to get into the app-store business with plans to launch a new Android app store.

The company has reportedly sent welcome kits to some developers to entice them to start signing on to the store, according to reports in The Wall Street Journal and Engadget.

With its plans to offer an Android app store, Amazon may be hoping to take on the Google Market, currently the app store of choice on most Android devices. Exploding sales of Android smartphones and the introduction of new Android-based tablets hungry for apps may have caught Amazon’s attention and had it clamoring for a piece of the action.

Amazon has not yet responded to a request for comment.

Smartphones running Android OS were more popular than iPhones among new U.S. buyers in August, according to a report from the Nielsen Company.

Currently, Google’s Android market has about 90,000 apps, compared to Apple’s App Store with 250,000 apps.

Upstart, independent challengers such as AndSpot and SlideMe are slready trying to create their own Android app stores. It’s all kosher because, unlike Apple, Google allows for multiple app stores to exist on the Android operating system. These independent app stores hope to lure users with the promise of better search and user interface, greater availability internationally and increased revenue.

Amazon may be betting on something similar, and it certainly has the clout and the brand to be more popular than the upstarts. But winning over developers may not be easy.

“From the developer perspective, its trial-and-error to see how effective they really are. A lot of these app stores — whether from Verizon now or Amazon in the future — are yet to prove themselves,” says Paul Chen, director of business development at Papaya Mobile, an Android games developer.

Still Chen says his company is open and willing to embrace any distribution channel that could increase the visibility of its apps.

Though Amazon has been extremely tight-lipped, here’s everything we know so far — based on the leaks — about Amazon’s plans:

Look and Feel

Amazon’s app store is likely to be a lot like Apple’s: carefully curated and targeted at consumers who are tired of the chaos in the Google Android Market. Spam, poor quality of apps, and the inability to easily find apps are major problems in the Android Market. But what Amazon’s app store will be called, look like, or the kind of features it will have are all still under wraps.

For consumers, it will be exciting if Amazon can bring features such as recommendations, wish lists and deals to its app store.

Cost, Control and Availability

Developers will reportedly have to pay $100 to sign up — just as they do with the Apple app store.

Unlike the current Google Android Market, where any developers can publish apps as long as it follows the company’s guidelines, Amazon will decide what will get into its store, according to a report in TechCrunch.

Apps can either be free or paid. Paid apps will have to be competitively priced. That means developers can’t charge more for the same app on the Amazon app store than in other markets.

Amazon’s app store will likely be available only in the United States, though it won’t be long before Amazon extends it to other countries. After all, Amazon has all the necessary payment systems in place to make this happen, even as Google Checkout remains limited.

Support and Distribution

This is where things get confusing. It is not clear which Android devices Amazon’s app store will support or how it will be distributed. Google’s Android Market comes preloaded on all Android smartphones. But Amazon will have to ink deals with device makers to get its app store in there.

We’ll also have to see if Amazon’s Android app store and Google Market will coexist on a device. If they do so, it could cause consumer confusion and give rise to app store fragmentation.

Also, with the availability of tablets and hardware boxes running Google TV, which is based on the Android platform, it will be interesting to see whether Amazon limits its app store to just smartphones or if it is willing to go where Google fears to tread.

See Also:

• Amazon Shows Off Kindle for iPad
• Amazon Sells More E-Books Than Hardcovers
• Social Networking Meets Apps in New Android App Store
• Independent App Stores Take On Google’s Android Market

Photo: (astanush/Flickr)

Amazon’s always worked hard to make sure it’s in the digital goods business as well as its obviously successful physical one, but this might be one of its boldest steps yet: another app store for Android. We heard the rumor a couple weeks ago through TechCrunch, and The Wall Street Journal is now claiming to have proof, including an Amazon document explaining some of the terms to the developers. It’s apparently still unclear when the store will be launched or even what it’ll be called, and since so far it seems like Amazon is mainly talking to developers about this behind closed doors, some of the specifics might still be in the air. According to the WSJ, Amazon stipulates an app can’t be sold for less anywhere else (which was hinted at in the earlier leak), and there’s a stranger requirement that the app can’t be on offer anywhere else for more than two weeks before it’s given to Amazon. We’re guessing that’s an Android only stipulation — or else a bit of a high barrier for iOS ports — but that just brings up more to worry about: is Amazon building a store just a first in an onslaught? And is this indeed part of an Android tablet launch for Amazon?

Amazon app store for Android confirmed by WSJ originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Oct 2010 17:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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