iPhone apps hit the racks at the iTunes store

Not only does today see the launch of iPhone v2: This Time It's 3G, but Apple has also flung open the doors of the iTunes Application store, meaning punters disinclined to hack around with their handsets can now purchase legitimate applications. Apple originally intended the iPhone to be restricted to running applications …

[Chris]

Huh?

"Very few of the applications genuinely need to be native, though in some cases producing a native version is easier - a to-do list can be done through a website, but it's easier for the publisher to manage a stand-alone version."

Who wants a to-do list that is only available when you are online?

[Joe K]

Six quid for Bejeweled??

Same again for a version of Sudoku?

While the apps are (in some cases) cheaper, they appear to be little more than toys, no better than the many that are freely available on Installer.

Not the type of stuff thats going to have me un-jailbreaking my itouch just yet.

[jai]

@webster

i'm sure webster (being a sick and twisted individual) will get his rocks off on this image

http://images.macrumors.com/article/2008/07/10/110549-ipd_400.jpg

myself, i feel somewhat physically sick looking at it - oh the humanity!!!

[Jim Coleman]

What no Java?

So the phrase becomes, "Write once, run anywhere except on an iPhone"

As a Java developer I can only sit back in amazement that this "Jesus" phone will not be able to run the wealth of operating-system independent apps that are out there. What a wasted opportunity. I guess I'll have to get me an HTC Touch Pro then. *sigh*

[Anonymous Coward]

FAR too much shite

I've spent half an hour just looking at itouch apps, and am still only on page 8 of 24, if theres anything worth buying amongst the crap, i can't see it.

They should really have been more strict, adopting the PSN "quality counts" model instead of the Xbox marketplace "throw everything in as it'll make more money" model.

Pointless little toys that shouldn't cost anything, godawful apps obviously knocked together in an afternoon to rip people off (all the GoLearn fitness series), lots and lots of £18 dictionaries.

Ugh, i can't be arsed anymore.

[vincent himpe]

How can one browse the apps ?

So far all i could find is that you need iTunes installed ...

That's interesting: you need Apple approved software (that spies on you and installs all kinds of other stuff you son;t want like being forcefed safari) to browse Apple approved ( and heavily restricted: they dictate what application can and can not run on the phone. like no VM or no real GPS applications ) software to run on your apple Hardware only.

And some people say Microsoft is monopolistic ... Bwahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaa .

[Anonymous Coward]

Moment of genius

Download/buy any app you care to via iTunes yes - sync and install to your iPhone currently no! They haven't released the new blasted firmware yet so you can download to your hearts content but not stick them on the blasted Jesus phone. Fnaarg.

[Martin Eriksson]

Get your definitions straight

@ Vincent

You should check up on your definitions of monopoly... Sure the iPhones app store is somewhat monopolistic in that they control the market, but the smartphone market isn't. If you don't like the jesusphone - get something else.

Mine's the one with the padded seat built in for the morning queue at O2...

[Maliciously Crafted Packet]

iBeer...

It's the new killer app.

[Gilleain Torrance]

Never seen the point of PDAs anyway

There was an announcement on the pdb mailing list about a molecule viewer:

http://www.sunsetlakesoftware.com/molecules

which looks good, and I suppose I can see some uses (the post-vert suggested showing people at conferences. hmmm) but how often do people really need to browse the web on the move?

Or use a dictionary...or whatever else the 1001 other apps do.

[Mike]

@Chris

"Who wants a to-do list that is only available when you are online?"

The whole point of the iPhone is that you are always online and you always have a good web browser available. That's the killer feature.

[Martin Lyne]

Erm..

"Free apps include an AIM client as well as mobile versions of Facebook and MySpace"

Could someone explain this to me? iPhones "thing" is "LOOKY INTERNETS!", those of us in the know already comprehend that this Inter-Net place is where you find MyBook and FaceSpace.. thusly making them mobilular without the need for an independent app that claims mobilularity. Web Apps - but Offline. The Future!

Am I missing something?

[vincent himpe]

@mike

That's really spooky !

especially with the new law on using cellphones while driving ...

Cant be calling with it (except when using handsfree) but you can write textmessages, look at youtube or surf the web whiledriving ....

I'm going to order a new pair of shoes .....

I saw Wall-E last weekend.. a sign of what to come ?

@martin :

They lock you down hand and foot. I am actually interested in the 3G iphone , but there are a couple of things i want to find out to decide if it is the right thing. right now i can not go to the apple app store and check it out ( itunes is not a standard application in a corporate environment ... ) they should at least have a web interface to the store.

Other stuff i can not get answers on.

- Can i beam contact information using bluetooth ?

- can i beam a file using bluetooth

- can the iphone mount as a removable drive ( like the ipod touch can) so i can use it to store business information ( presentations, documentation , spreadsheets ) without needing itunes. ( again in a business environment very few if any computers have itunes unstalled.

- will the worlds best audio player finally support A2DP so i can listen to my music in the car ( i have a car stereo that has bluetooth on board. ) without fussing with cables, or using my stereo headset ?

- will there be a real GPS application ( read : Tomtom like ) so that in areas with minimal cell coverage i can still navigate ?

- I also want 3d view like all moderne gps systems have these days. Actually tomtom has their stuff ready for ihone , however Appple won;t let them release it becasue of licencing restrictions on the SDK ( can't tap into the gps you know ...)

My suspicion is :

They want you to use google maps, most likely because if you click through to a business via that system it is ka-ching for apple.

The blocked on purpose file exchange via bluetooth ( to stop all those baaad people from swapping information like audio or ringtones .. come buy them at our store. ka-ching

They blocked stereo audio via bleutooth lest alone somebody would record it via that method..

Yeah i would like a gizmo like the iphone. because of the big screen. If only Samsung would make a blackjack with such a large touchscreen and 16 gigs of memory .... ( i have a blackjack now. It does everything i want and need ( including all the bluetooth stuff, file mounting etc ) its just a cramped little small screen.... and fussy keyboard. I pair it with a little nokia GPS receiver and run tomtom on it without problems.

[Andrew Roberts]

"Other stuff i can not get answers on."

Yeah alright...

[Daniel B.]

Re: What no Java?

Same here, seems like the iPhone's too "good" to have Java. Never mind that any self-respecting Smartphone out there has some kind of Java support, like the BlackBerry.

Apple's stance with Java is even more stubborn than anything Microsoft has ever done. Sheesh.

[Antidisestablishmentarianist]

@Vincent

"( i have a blackjack now. It does everything i want and need ( including all the bluetooth stuff, file mounting etc ) its just a cramped little small screen.... and fussy keyboard. I pair it with a little nokia GPS receiver and run tomtom on it without problems."

Clap Clap

[Adam T]

It's not all bad

"The restrictions that Apple places on applicaions are significant, such as the restriction on emulators, meaning no Java Virtual Machine, or an iPhone version of StyleTap's Palm emulator - at least not yet."

Oh it's not the end of the world for developers, after all there don't appear to be any restrictions on quality judging by half the stuff I've downloaded so far. It's put me off paying cash for anything other than monkey ball (which is great - and bloody bloody hard, just like playing the original for the first time!).

I can see further restrictions being introduced, such as package sizes. I downloaded an entire EFIGS (european languages for the uninitiated) audio phrasebook for free (likely paid for advertising, branded Lastminute.com) ... and two minutes later found a set of £5.99 EFIGS audio phrasebooks (screenshots were nigh 100% identical). Apple stuck up two virtually identical products, one free and one commercial...I'm sure the commercial guys will be happy to see the free competition in the top 10 on the home page :p

There's a handful of genuinely useful apps (not just AIM, which I don't bother with anyway - I make phonecalls), iRemote being obviously a gem (and you can see they're going to try and jump the Orb bandwagon soon), and PhoneSabre is a great way to fight your way through buys queues in Brixton, or fend off the knife wielding GTA generation in Croydon.

Best of all though, you can now delete multiple emails at once.

Still can't cut and fucking paste though. Or use the file system. Cunts.

[Adam T]

Re: Moment of genius

The 2.0 firmware is available via url, check macrumors.com

Just remember to back up your dog first 'cause it formats it.

[James Butler]

Ha ha!

iPhonies have no problem paying through the nose for everything because the whole point of having an iPhone/iPod Touch is to demonstrate their superiority to other lamers.

The iPhone is like the Cadillac EXT "pickup truck": One purchases it, not to use as a pickup truck, but rather to impress those who see one driving it.

They're even selling the 3G model here in the U.S. ... even though AT&T has a very limited 3G network! T-Mobile's is much more expansive, and even that is nearly limited to "major metropolitan areas". Forget about 3G "roaming".

"Access to the App Store requires the iPhone 2.0 Software Update for iPod touch, sold separately." With an iPod Touch, you even have to pay to get a look at what's in the store!!!

Ha ha! Suckers.

(Should find a better Jobs photo ... that one looks too much like Steve Balmer with glasses.)

[Rolf Howarth]

Always online?

Well, mostly online. I'm not generally online when my train goes through a tunnel, or when I'm on a plane. But even if I was always online, my personal to do list is my own business, and I have no intention of sharing it with the operators of some online service.

As for Apple's monopoly, they do seem to be letting pretty much most things on (including free apps, which they're hosting and not getting any money for) so I don't think there's too much cause to complain (at least, not yet). In any case, isn't the situation exactly the same with other phones and you can basically only install whatever the mobile operator provides?

[Adam T]

Re: Always online?

"In any case, isn't the situation exactly the same with other phones and you can basically only install whatever the mobile operator provides?"

So very true, carriers are tighter than a mole's sphincter. And the AppStore revenue share is jaw dropping - I thought someone had got the numbers the wrong way around when I first heard of it.

The doors will open over time, and to be honest looking at the pretty shambolic efforts of some developers, if they had access to the file system and and a glass house they'd probably A) Make it impossible for Apple to certify a product, and B) Destroy your phone, the network, and civilisation, all because they can't spell in code.

Let them make their money for a while, and the shackles will loosen naturally over time as they gain confidence.

Heck, I remember wishing I could make iPod games five years ago - I never imagined we'd have what we do now.

[Graham Lockley]

@Rolf Howarth

>In any case, isn't the situation exactly the same with other phones and you can basically only install whatever the mobile operator provides?

Based on my experience over the last 7-8 years of a variety of Symbian and Windows powered phones the answer would have to be no. Both OS's have a wealth of free and paid for apps that have bugger all to do with the operator and can freely downloaded from a variety of sources.

This is the reason I dont regard the iPhone as a smart phone, the ability to customise the phone with your own choice of software is sadly lacking, unless you count jailbreaking (with its attendant risks/pitfalls).

Mines the one without an iPhone in the pocket, damned rare if you listen to Apple :)

[Sam]

Meh

I was quite excited about Apps being released. Now I've looked at them, I'm wondering if I can even be bothered getting out of bed first thing to go and queue for an upgrade.

[Rob]

Yummy

hurrah I have a shiny new boxed sealed iPhone 3g in my pocket, now I just have to spend a da at work before I can go home and activate the thing, o2s network, quite predictably, crashed within minutes of opening, they were doing everything on paper

[Jamester]

Getting out of bed

I hope you had a long lie - I wandered over to the o2 store in town and there was a queue of over 50 - had started at 1am apparently. I arrived at 8am, so no chance.

While really wanting to get my mitts on the 3G, a lot of people want it more!

When is this firmware update coming out then?

[Jamie Hylton]

I'm in the queue outside Apple store

and have been for over an hour and no one has walked out with one yet

something wrong with the O2 network apparently

[Jamie Hylton]

I'm in the queue outside Apple store

Now the server had gone down and is being rebooted. Been told that will take 15minutes

[Anonymous Coward]

Meanwhile, in Jobs nightmares

Thank to Installer, on a jailbroken Iphone/touch, i currently have:

MXtube: Download YouTube vids, in high quality, to keep and view offline

iZoo: Bejewelled clone, with lovely touch controls

MobileCast: Synch podcast feeds and download them over Wifi

PuzzleManiac: 30 puzzles, complete with minesweeper, sudoku, and more classics

iPhysics: Amazing Crayon Physics conversion with touch screen drawing

Snes/NES/Megadrive and PS1 emulators: and lots of roms

SCUMM emulator, with CD versions of Monkey Island and Sam & Max (AWESOME!)

Drummer/Pianist/Guitar: Brilliant touchscreen music makers

Band: Full blown music sequencer containing TONS of instruments

Last.FM Scrobbler: rate and shuffle my music according to my online account

And various more apps and tools. All these, freely available, and each worth more than any of the crap i've seen on the App store so far.

[David Cantrell]

Re: always online?

@Rolf Howarth and Adam T:

I don't need T-mobile or Palm's permission to install whatever the hell I want on my phone. I have a wide choice of GPSish software, a Java VM, and can install emulators and even programming languages on it.

[David Mantripp]

skip

no MMS

no Flash Lite

crap camera

huge size

= no sale.