The App Store

The App Store is an online software store where software can be purchased. The software, also known as apps, includes programs for smartphones and other devices like tablets, car radios and media players. In the App Store you can find apps for free, but also paid. They can be very useful, but also foolish.

Worldwide, there are four major suppliers of Apps. The App Store of Apple with more than 500,000 applications, the largest online software store. Second is the Android Market of Google Android with approximately 350,000 applications. Other well-known online software stores are BlackBerry App World, about 50,000 apps and the Ovi Store by Nokia, about 50,000 apps.

The sales volume shows that Apple is the biggest, but they lose market share through the rise of new players on the market.

Nowadays you hear very often the surprising question ‘Do you have a Nokia?’ or the statement ‘Android is the future’. All together there is a big supply and it is not clear which supplier is the best. So what is the difference, advantage and disadvantage between those four suppliers?

Apple

The Apple AppStore opened on July 10, 2008, and has already had more than 3.5 billion downloads. The applications in this store can be used on the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. Statistics show that the iPhone AppStore platform is the most popular of its kind. We can therefore simply say that Apple is the market leader in the development of Apps. It all works just a little easier, better and faster than other providers. See how Steve Jobs, former CEO of Apple, explains the Apple App Store:

Android
The Android Market was launched in October 2008. Android is, unlike the other suppliers, an open-source supplier. Android says about that: ‘We wanted to make sure that there was no central point of failure, so that no industry player can restrict or control the innovations of any other.’ The software from Android is also available for all phone manufacturers and functions on expensive and cheaper smartphones. On Android phones is it also possible to place your own widgets and to chose your own lay-out. Android works with the integration of Google. When you start your Android phone for the first time you log in with your Google account and it gets synchronized on your phone. See this movie for the explanation of Android: 

Nokia

Nokia OVI Store was opened in March 2009. The applications in this store can be used on the Nokia Series 40 and S60 and the new Nokia Lumia. The Nokia 800 Lumia is the first Nokia smartphone that runs on Windows Phone 7.5. Nokia and Microsoft have worked closely together and the Nokia Lumia is the first result. Windows Phone 7.5 ensures that you can use internet on your smartphone, that you can exchange files and maintain social media.

At the moment Windows Phone is slightly behind the competition in terms of availability of apps. The most used apps like WhatsApp, Teletext, Flickr, Facebook and Twitter are available as usual. The availability of apps is growing, and both, Microsoft and Nokia, are working hard to create more available apps. See the preview of the Nokia Lumia 800: 

The Blackberry App 

World was launched in April 2009. It is an application distribution service and application by Research In Motion (RIM) for a majority of BlackBerry devices. The service provides BlackBerry users with an environment to browse and download. It was presented as the businesslike phone to call, email, browse or as pda. Anyhow, it is also popular for the young ones. Blackberry is a smaller supplier and the expectation is that part of Blackberry further decrease. They offer less (free) applications. Unfortunately, in 2011 Blackberry got negative attention because of the three days interruption.