So why would anyone actually want to play a slot machine on a mobile device anyway?

Good question, as you can see the market for these type of games has grown hugely over the last few years and now we see that the admen for these games is so huge that it makes total sense for developers to start to look into creating products that fit that demand.

The fact that we see people engaging with these apps in such a huge amount is testament to the ability that a mobile device has to make you feel immersed in the application and game that you are playing.

You can imagine the feeling you get when those lights flash and you win big on your slot machine game and get those noises and the feedback, admit it, its exciting and fun and when people enjoy things they tend to get attached and want to do this more.

We as humans simply love the lights of Vegas and the play-ability of the slots, big city, bright lights and all that jazz, so why not bring that feeling right into your palm on a regular basis as and when you need.

Get into slot games and win big

But lets be clear that online games and apps like casinos and slot machines offer real prizes to those who want to win actual cash so for the gamblers among you who are into actually playing for cash, and again what better way to enjoy the freedom to play than on a mobile device where you can often with many apps simply play until you win (or lose of course) and then go to your account and cash in the winnings and set yourself up for a nice night out or go back into your virtual casino and see if you can enjoy yourself more in hope that you win big again.

Either way the fun to be had with online gaming is way beyond more traditional apps and you can enjoy a whole host of web based gaming via mobiles or on your desktop.

So today, what will you do, simply go on and enjoy your mobile like everyone else or will you see what slot machines are out there for mobile devices and try your luck at winning big and playing with the big boys for real on desktop or a mobile application, your choice!

iOS has Apple’s signature top of the range software.  Research indicates that although Apple has the more diminutive market share, developers still gravitate towards designing their best apps for iOS first, so iOS users can be assured that the best quality games and apps are always available to them.

Whether you are a new iOS device owner, or a stalwart for the brand, we take a look at the best iOS apps being released for gaming in 2017:

1. Shadowrun: Dragonfall

This high-tech game matches the stakes in high fantasy stakes.  It is full of cyborg elves and corporations wielding mega magic.  Players become Shadowrunners, which are highly skilled operatives in black ops for the world’s clandestine conspiracies, governments, and mega corps.

2. Banner Saga and Banner Saga 2

The Banner Saga games combines games from a variety of genres – adventure style decision making via text, and the combat of tactical RPG’s.

In any fight, players are in charge of as many as 6 fighters, selected from a larger group of personnel that varies according to one’s decisions and performance throughout the game.  The battles play out with each move providing the opportunity for the protagonist of the game to move a certain number of places and then do an action for example a weapon attack, a melee or a magic or support action.

3. Her Story

This in an interactive mystery game.  Players take on the role of an anonymous user looking through old interview murder case tapes. You have to go through a load of disorganised video clips, and using these clips, solve the mystery of the murder using your own personal detective skills.

The clips have been transcribed so there is the functionality of searching words using a search box, but otherwise you are on your own in terms of identifying the murderer.

The script for this game is extremely realistic and well written.  One’s gaming experience while playing Her Story depend entirely on the order in which you watch the tapes, how you search, and the conclusions you come to by the information the tapes provide.

4. Monument Valley 2

Monument Valley was one of the best iOS games ever devised, so it stands to reason it now has a sequel. Monument Valley 2 is in keeping with the look and feel of the original game, except the graphics in the sequel are better.  Colour splashes alongside the welcome feature look almost like another character to be controlled. It is as exciting as online blackjack NZ games in that you need to use strategy to triumph and the sequel is a definite improvement on the original.

5. Mini Motor Racing

Mini Motor Racing is a game that features top down vehicles shooting around extremely tricky circuits.  The vehicles accelerate of their own accord, so players have only steering to assist them in navigating the track.

6. Ellie and Max

This is a puzzle game likened to Monument Valley.  The aim of the game is re reunite Ellie, with her dog, Max, in as few moves as possible.

The game is very nice to look at and during play, one can collect all different types of costumes which turn Max the dog, into a variety of different aliases.  There are a variety of checkpoints throughout the game, so even if players experience setbacks, they never have to start from scratch.

When casinos first were established, the experience of visiting an establishment where you could enjoy a few of your favourite casino games coupled with food, drinks and entertainment was a novelty to which many people subscribed. As time went by however, and the modern day hectic pace of life was established, fewer and fewer people could afford to make the time to make a trip to a land based casino – not only because of the time aspect, but for some, their closest casino was too far away geographically to make a special trip. Faced with that problem, casino companies came up with the solution to go online.

When the internet was born, it opened up a world of endless possibilities for most people and casino companies took advantage of this by negating the location and time problem, and brought their games right onto the populations doorstep by establishing online casinos. Players could now enjoy a game of blackjack or poker, or whatever took their fancy, at home, provided they had a PC and an internet connection.

Moving to Smartphones

The introduction of the smartphone into mainstream society however, brought with it an even more significant change. What was previously unobtainable to many people, became commonplace relatively overnight, with smartphones being available to every demographic of person and in every earning bracket.

Some more elaborate than others, but each one a mini-computer with access to the internet for its owner. This opened up a massive new target market for the casino companies, as they were now able to reach this vastly increased audience. To take advantage of this, casino companies quickly began to take their online sites mobile, enabling users to access their favourite mobile real money slots on their handheld devices.

Improved Internet Access

Faster and better internet speeds coupled with wi-fi being widely available have sent the popularity of mobile gaming off the charts. The convenience and ease with which you can now play is chalk and cheese compared to the first land based casinos. Mobile casinos offer the flexibility of playing a game whilst engaging in other activities like having a doctor’s appointment, but squeezing in a couple of games while you are in the waiting room, meaning that you no longer need to wait until you are at your PC, and have an internet connection.

Technology is improving and increasing in leaps and bounds every day, and the casino companies have been careful to stay on top of this. By constantly updating and improving their software, they have ensured that their users have the best quality games and apps at their fingertips at all times. To encourage their wider audiences to play, mobile casinos very often offer bonuses and special deals in order to entice players and because the competition is so fierce, players can be assured that only the very best apps and games are on offer at all times.

The convenience of payment methods is another way casino companies are ensuring that they stay on top of technology as safe payment methods are constantly being updated, and simplified to make sure that your mobile casino experience is seamless.

With new and exciting apps dropping into both the Android and iPhone app stores nearly every day the list continues to grow which even though makes it all the more appealing to customers by offering a much wider range of choice it can make picking out the best a bit of an unwanted chore.

Couple this with the fact that more and more online operators are now unleashing their own casino apps it can be a veritable smorgasbord out there of potential top flight mobile and tablet-based casino gaming apps.

Thankfully we’ve managed to pick out just some of the best which hopefully make your experience a whole lot better.

BET365 MOBILE

Since the turn of the millennium, Bet365 has become one of the leading online betting operators in the UK and it has firmly established its brand with the British public, especially thanks to its in-play sports betting and other excellent features.

In 2012 they partnered with Playtech and launched their very own Bet365 mobile casino app. There is a superb line-up of classic casino games as well as a whole host of quality slot games to enjoy on the app and what’s more is that new players who sign up to the app today will also be able to enjoy a special 100% matched bonus of up to a maximum of £100 on their first deposit.

JACKPOT CITY ONLINE CASINO

There are plenty of apps out there that work great with iPhones and other Apple devices and alternative casino-based apps which work better with a number of popular Android devices.

Jackpot City is a great example of a casino app that is compatible with both and works brilliantly across both platforms.

It’s powered by Microgaming and so the selection of games is impressive and includes plenty of popular slot experiences such as Tomb Raider, Thunderstruck, Game of Thrones and the Major Millions jackpot game. Mobile players will be able to enjoy a welcome bonus of up to $1600 when they download and join the app.

3-REEL SLOTS DELUXE

Slot fans are well catered for in the mobile casino market but there are still a lot of players out there who don’t enjoy the bigger 5-reel video slots games on offer.

Thankfully this more traditional 3-reel alternative is available for those looking for something a little more simplistic and traditional. The app offers 22 different 3-reel slot games each varying with different win lines and jackpot payouts and all very much worth checking out.

PARTY CASINO

The party casino app is the perfect choice for players looking for a straightforward app that they can sign up to and get playing in next to no time at all.

It features no less than 11 different roulette games and variations, as well as a number of different blackjack games and other popular table games such as craps and baccarat.

What’s more is that Party Casino members can also enjoy a special VIP service where you can collect loyalty points and climb various levels each time you play which can then be exchanged for other special bonuses to use at the site.

A report in tech week Europe shows that a certain botnet has been found that is said to affect hundreds of thousands of Android devices, making the hackers a potential fortune every year, this is according to security research firm Symantec and researchers from the North Carolina State University.

New Botnet has two names:

The finder of the “RootStrap” botnet is called Xuxian Jiang of North Carolina State University. Symantec however call the malware another name: Android.Bmaster.

Chinese origins:

This particular malware is spread via 3rd party application markets in China and is seen bundled with some 30 seemingly legitimate applications.

Symantec researcher Cathal Mullaney said:

“Trojanised applications are a well known infection vector for Android malware, as they allow malware to be distributed while retaining the appearance of a legitimate application,”

The controller of the botnet aka the “botmaster”, (what a title) has huge control of the device once it is compromised, with revenue generation coming from secretly transmitted premium rate SMS messages, and the connection to premium rate numbers and pay per view videos.

With the botmaster able to take control of the device and delete texts, numbers, and infiltrate or stop communication warning the owner of the compromised device, yes, this particular style of botnet is seriously canny.

Mullaney said:

“The botmaster has a fine grained level of control over the infected devices, an infected device can be configured to send messages to a particular premium SMS number at a specific rate (three a day, for instance) for a certain number of days. Devices connecting to premium video or telephony services can also be configured for how long they should connect to a premium phone number or pay-per-view website.”

Elevated privileges:

Once the botnet has found its way onto your device and installed itself, it then downloads the gingerbread jailbreak tool and uses this to elevate its privileges on your device, after this it then downloads the Bmaster remote admin tool and malware including DroidLive.

So this is not a simple piece of malware but actually a rather sophisticated little sneak that uses layering methods to get to its goal of making the owner easy money from your device.

Infected devices will transmit data that is easily traceable by the hackers, so they can locate and identify your own device which includes being able to identify you IMEI and IMSI numbers, plus your location area code and mobile network code.

This actual malware has been reported since September 2011, and is thought to be one of a new wave of highly malicious money making Trojans that are slowly equaling the desktop Trojans that have infected so many Windows base PC’s over the years, could Android’s open operating system and less regulated marketplace for apps now be the new scourge of the average Joe?

We must point out that this particular malware is from third party marketplaces and not the Android one itself.

It is reported that around 10,000-30,000 devices are being affected per day.

How much is in this for the hackers?

Mullaney wrote:

“The motivation behind the botnet is financial, taking our two example dates as the lower and upper bounds of the number of active infected devices, we can see the botmaster is generating anywhere between $1,600 (£1,013) to $9,000 (£5,695) per day and $547,500 (£346,504) to $3,29m (£2.1m) per year the botnet is running.”

Talking of the Android operating system as a whole and mobile applications he stated:

“This is not the first example of an active, revenue-generating Android botnet we have seen, however, considering the huge market for Android apps, the availability of third-party app stores without security checks, and the massive revenue which can be generated from this type of botnet, Android.Bmaster’s million-dollar botnet certainly won’t be the last.”

We have covered a few stories in recent months related to Malware in the Android application market and have heard that Google are starting to crack down on the threat to the overall eco-system, though it seems likely that there will be many many more scams like this occurring as we allow deeper and deeper relationships to be forged between ourselves and our mobile devices in all areas of our lives.

Do you know someone who has bought a nice new iPad or iPhone who live in another country than where their bank account details perhaps show.

A very common situation is for people who have permanently left their native land such as the UK to keep their existing bank accounts open for ease of use in many areas where there are still financial ties with the country of origin, in the case of Expats this could be for pension payments or simply paying bills that are perhaps still needed back in the homeland.

And with the selling point of credit and debit cards being the fact that they are universally accepted it appears odd that we have an issue like we have seen here.

But in the case of Cyprus expats (and we assume others) those of you who have bought a new iPad for instance, are finding it impossible to access the market that makes this device so great, the Apple app store.

The reason people are having problems is apparently due to the apple app store not accepting credit card details with an address in a separate country from the one where your issuing bank is located.

A Nicosia resident who owns an iPad and a UK credit card states:

“I can’t get into either the UK or Cyprus iTunes stores. I understand it is because I have a UK card but a Cyprus billing address.”

Apple have stated that you can only register for the Cyprus iTunes store with a Cyprus issued credit card, despite having a change of address from her UK cards stating her new address in Cyprus, the trouble is compounded by the fact that she can not even go back to the UK version of iTunes and the app store and ask for acceptance there unless she had a genuine UK address and changed all these details back which would not be an option in may cases.

Her only way forward is to open a new account up in Cyprus and get a new Cyprus credit card using her address details in Cyprus and go forward using that card, though this seems like a pain in the bu** for many.

License issues appear to be the reason:

As usual when Apple are concerned it all boils down to who owns what and where the legal boundaries lie with content owners rights and the sale of these digital assets in a global world, or at least this is what Apple woudl tell you but I suspect that there is a more worrying reason that Apple try to mitigate with this policy:

App Hustling:

Apple need to know that you as a buyer do not reside in a country other than the marketplace you access to buy content, this makes some sense when there are potentially financial gains to be had from “app hustling” where you would simply find the cheapest marketplace with the best conversion rate for your currency and join this as opposed to being dictated to, the problem Apple would then face would be that potentially only one store would reign supreme as we would all jump ship to the cheapest “per app” store, (where possible).

A few ways around these issues:

As the situation currently stands, the problem Apple may be looking to mitigate is actually causing more problems than it would ever solve as buyers of Apple devices are being barred from the very life blood than makes the gadgets so desirable; Apps, some free and some paid.

There are a few ways around this current issue though unfortunately not one of these is particularly desirable especially if you have no one to call back home who can lend a hand or you are afraid of losing your warranty or scared about tinkering with your devices software….here are your options though currently:

[arrowlist]

• Change your billing address back to the UK or wherever your card originates from in terms of the actual bank if this is causing issues
• Jailbreak – Follow this link and then use your Mac or PC to install this amended new operating system and remove the license restrictions that are currently applied to Apple iOS software, thus allowing you to access a new app store with all the same godoies and get many free applications without the need for credit card details.
• Get a friend to open a new account in iTunes with their credit card details

[/arrowlist]

It has to be said that when users only want to access basic applications that are free it does appear to be pretty damn annoying especially if this is your first apple device, and I wish Apple would look into this matter and allow a little more freedom to people who do not sit perfectly into the safety zone of what Apple deem to be legal when it comes to jurisdictions further away from “home”.

Source: Cyprus Mail

With the news that the iPad is hovering above the 55% of overall tablet sales globally and that Apple for a brief period have become the globes most costly company on paper beating Exonn once again, it is interesting to hear of the actual figures from the transfer of cash to developers that keep Apples iOS platform and app store as the market leader.

Huge amount paid out:

Yes, since June 2010 when the figure was still a staggering $1 billion, the official figure today suggests that Apple have now paid out around $4 billion to app developers globally,

iPad 3 to arrive in two months or less?

This figure is likely to see a surge as new devices are brought out into the market, first to be seen is likely to be the iPad 3 and later on we are told to expect the new iPhone 5 which has been a long time coming but could see a larger screen and totally new design, either way, these new devices will mean an increase in the iOS consumer base.

As a result, the growth and sale of applications should continue growing for some time coming, much to the glee of those very app developers who seem to be onto quite a lucrative thing!

Android catching up:

Of course Googles Android O/S is huge also, and Eric Schmidt is seen stating that their own marketplace will continue to grow as more developers make Android “a priority” over Apple, this is an inevitability of a very popular O/S but will not for one minute mean that Apple lose ground in a way that causes any major issues to the company….for now!

Let us take a look at the product:

And here is the new MPC Fly advert:

The Akai MPC Fly

*Please remember that this new tool is for iPad 2’s not iPad 1’s.

Back in the days when I used to make a few beats myself, the talk was that the Akai series of MPC’s were the “bomb” for making “dope” beats, mainly due to their grainy low bit rate sampling capabilities and also their easy to use method of assigning samples to each pad, with a basic sequencer allowing you to stitch parts together and interact at the same time meaning that you have a virtual instrument at your disposal with only your imagination limiting your output.

Indeed I used to listen to so much music that was made pretty much completely on these devices I actually do not know why I never bought one, but I had my own pretty sweet set up that worked for me at the time.

Now many will know that I sing the praise of Apple more than most, and the reason I do this is mainly because had I gone down the slightly cheaper Windows PC route while I was learning the ropes of being a music producer and engineer then I can tell you right now I would never have made it past rookie stage such is the crap nature of Windows based PC’s then and today, I would have torn my hair out at the thought of all the issues of malware, spyware, slow processing, conflicts with software, accessories etc etc…the list goes on.

So I took advice from a fellow engineer who had been working for a long time on Macs and got myself a first edition G4, with iOS 9.2….and thank the lord I did…..fast forward 10 + years…

Coming back to the point of the article, Apple make products that do stuff well, their competitors usually make products that confuse people and quite often never really “get there”…Apple products also tend to work much better with third parties for obvious reasons.

I think that this device really does show how cool the iPad really is over its competitors, they just come no where near to this kind of fun and functionality.

Akai MPC Fly Review

The Akai MPC Fly houses your iPad and gives it access to an application that allows you to seamlessly integrate the Akai interface with virtual instruments and effects on the iPad screen, a very portable solution to beat making on the go.

With 16 velocity sensitive pads, this truly is a device I may well be looking to invest in myself.

You can sequence four tracks simultaneously and it comes packed with a library of sounds to which you can obviously add more (this is the point of the MPC series) it is the daddy of portable production controllers and samplers.

The device has no need for extra wires unless you are playing to an audience.

Adding samples is done via the 3.5 mm socket as well as having an ability to bring in tunes from an iPod.

With the hinged case providing protection to your iPad, you can also set it up just as you like giving a much more personal touch to the user experience and making it a real lap music making device whoever you have it positioned, flat or as a screen.

With a weight of just over 0.9 kg it is reasonably light and comes with a rechargeable battery.

In the US this device is selling for $299 but the UK sees it actually come in at a decent price of £159.

Now go hit those rhythm stick pads, but not too hard now!

Full spec is here, and remember this is for iPad 2’s not version 1’s sorry!

MPC FLY Hardware:

[arrowlist]

• The first MPC designed specifically for iPad 2
• 16 backlit genuine MPC pads with MPC Note Repeat & MPC Swing
• Fitted compartment for iPad 2 provides fully integrated portable MPC solution
• Create beats on the go and transfer to a Mac or PC for further mastering
• Works seamlessly with the MPC App: sequence & sample editing, effects, EQ and more
• Charges iPad when plugged into wall power
• Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery
• Compatible with virtually any Core MIDI app
• Double-hinged case sits upright, lies flat or closes for transport

[/arrowlist]

MPC FLY iPad APP

[arrowlist]

• Built-in effects: delay, bit crusher, master compressor/limiter
• Record and overdub sequences and create and edit your own Programs
• Sequence four tracks simultaneously: four-track mixer built in
• Note variation slider allows you to manipulate attack, velocity, length, and tuning as you play
• Built in sound library of samples and drum kits
• 16-Levels mode: play one sample at 16 levels of attack, velocity, length, and tuning
• Sample using internal mic or line-in and trim and categorize samples
• Note Repeat: 1/8 note – 1/32T timing
• Time correct: 1/8 note – 1/32T with variable Swing setting
• Sample from your iPod library with turntable interface”
• Supports WIST, Wireless Sync Start protocol from Korg
• Share on SoundCloud, Facebook or twitter
• Supports AudioPaste

[/arrowlist]

Now let us see what an original Akai MPC can do:

Let us face it Google let any old shi* get released into their Application marketplace, and as a result the Apple App store looks so much more refined and worthy of spending time looking around.

Now that is not to say there are no gems in the Android marketplace, but seriously, when you allow anyone to submit an app into the marketplace with no QC then you have got to expect that there will be some seriously poor applications and indeed some dangerous ones that are masquerading around the marketplace as either legit crap, or plain old boll*cks or malware.

Either way I have been saying for some time that Google NEED to clean up their app marketplace, especially now they have those all important numbers to boast about.

No rules at all on submitting Google apps currently:

Now while that is not strictly true, the reality is that there are “some” rules, such as no malicious applications and such like…never stopped this lot though.

But the fact is you can submit and have your application in the Android marketplace in two minutes and it will take a wise user or someone affected by a nasty application for it to then get flagged and hopefully eventually removed.

Freedom proves problematic:

This process is however not quick and needs to improve as we are now moving more and more towards so much data being kept on our devices that there is a danger that a serious issue will emerge from one of these malicious applications that could scupper many small businesses who are entering the mobile market and want people to trust that using applications by and large are totally safe.

So in the vested interests of forward thinking I hope that the news of Google starting to look at a “style guide” will perhaps signal more of an Apple style application process for apps, which aims to improve the overall quality and give app developers that all important HIG – Human Interface Guidelines, Apple headache!

This will be voluntary to start with, but it is thought that it could be the start of Google actually checking applications a little more than they currently do.

I know we all think that Google and Android is this open and amazing platform, O/S and market, and perhaps it is to some people, but seriously, there are repercussions to no rule systems, and I would prefer some rules to be adhered to rather than a “Laissez Faire” approach that we offered the banking industry for way too long, and look where that got us.

Rules are not all that bad you know, it is perhaps how you apply them and what they are that matter most, us humans are both stupid and evil!

The basic android design guide can currently be found here, and we will keep you updated on news of any further improvements or guidelines that are added.

How long have you waited for Netflix to finally arrive in the UK?

Well this bandwidth stealing streaming monster has now finally arrived from the US and we are sure that Lovefilm are pretty damn sacred right now.

And if Lovefilm’s utterly annoying, confusing and long winded method of subscribing for “free” on the XBox is anything to go by, I would say that they may have to start working out a plan to stop this huge competitor from stealing clients they have not already hooked up.

*I have just signed up to the genuinely free trial of Netflix in a few seconds. When will companies realise that humans are lazy and stupid, MAKE IT EASY FOR US PLEASE!…usability is so important.

Lovefilm claim to have 2 million account holders paying monthly fees in the United Kingdom, Sweden, Germany, Norway and Denmark. So are no slouches by any means but Netflix have ten time this customer base.

Netflix massive in the states:

Despite price hikes last year which saw some 800,000 leave as a result, Netflix still has around 20 million subscribers in the US, Canada, Caribbean and Latin America.

Indeed the company is so damn huge that they are blamed for causing slow speeds on the internet with a rumored 1/3 of all data consumed being as a result of Netflix streaming services in the US, this however would appear to be unfounded or more unclear than it perhaps seems.

With Netflix reporting that a loss will be incurred in the first quarter of 2012 due to their expansion into the UK, you can see why some backers of the company are feeling concerned, especially as the film industry quietly wonders if this model will save them, or add another layer of pressure to reduce overall profits after seeing file sharing reduce by around 7-8% last year as a result of streaming services finally becoming popular.

After a couple of bad PR stunts last year, namely the disaster laden Qwikster which was pulled after a few days, and the price hikes which saw Netflix get slammed by consumers in the states, investors appear worried about an aggressive UK entrance which aims to steal Lovefilm customers with costly access to premium flicks as a sweetener for new subscribers.

Netflix in a good position:

Netflix has quite a considerable advantage in being accessible on a huge amount of devices; from the AppleTV right up to smartphones, smart TV’s, PC’s, tablets and many other devices totaling some 700 in number.

Reed Hastings, the co-founder and chief executive officer of Netflix says of the launch:

“We are starting 2012 in the best possible way: by giving consumers in the UK and Ireland an amazing entertainment experience,”

Netflix releases app for UK and Ireland:

After signing up and getting a trial I have downloaded the Netlix app for Android and you can see how it all works below in the video I made.

Netflix Android Application Review:

So as you can see it is a pretty cool application and one that will certainly be used, this is great to see as smartphones and tablets are pretty neat devices to watch a film on, especially if you are next to a power supply!

Questions emerge on market share and TV/Film rights:

As this is pretty new territory for many media organisations, there are questions being raised over just how many competing services can last and be profitable in a market as costly as video streaming, with Amazon offering their own Prime video rental service and also acquiring Lovefilm, there does seem to be some concerns that there is already growing fragmentation in a market that needs a clear shining light, I would not put my money on anyone winning this war right now, but I would be tempted to go with Netflix as a serious contender, to share the market with perhaps one or two more players.

I am unsure Tesco’s 80% share in Blinkbox looks all that sound an investment as their pricing strategy is just way too high in my opinion, and tehir presence of mind is so low, unless they roll out some amazing technology integration and expensive marketing, I see no reason that this will shine above truly established names such as Lovefilm or Netflix.

No room at the inn:

Netflix and Lovefilm are of course already under attack from UK TV networks who currently offer online services such as Sky and Virgin Media and the huge license fee funded BBC iPlayer also taking a fair few eyeballs away from the need to subscribe to yet another paid-for service.

So with this in mind, I can perhaps see why shareholders are concerned about the UK entrance of Netflix wit its associated high costs per acquisition, but It had to be done, didn’t it? Otherwise the company would never have got a foothold in the UK video rental streaming sector if they left it another year, this year and next, I predict will be the year of the Internet enabled TV.

Will streaming save Hollywood:

Now it does not take a genius to see who much money a relatively successful film makes, but it does not stop Hollywood et al telling us about how tough things are in the industry.

So will online video streaming “save” the film industry or force it into an unhappy bondage where it is reliant on aggregation of content in order to make reduced profits per film viewing?

And if this kills off the DVD market and eats into the industries profits even further, will they carry on allowing the likes of Lovefilm and Netflix the rights to be aggregators of their content.

Big decisions ahead on an unknown path:

This is an exciting time for the film and TV industry and I sense a great leveler is about to occur which could see smaller production companies start to earn decent revenues perhaps signalling a rise in independent film making as a genuine option for less well established filmmakers who need to monetize more unique offerings.

So what are your thoughts on the final arrival of Netflix to UK and Irish shores? Are you going to go for a trial and see what you think to the service or are you already happy using other services right now?

Do tell all in the comments below.

Are you feeling guilty after a boozy and fat laced festive period?

If you are one of those people who now feels the need to actually attend that Gym you joined last year, but fear falling by the wayside again. Then why not take a look at an innovative new application called Gympact.

Gympact offers users a way of forfeiting money in exchange for absences from the Gym, essentially if you do not attend the Gym as you agreed in the pact, you will have to pay a penalty.

And you need to check in at least 30 minutes for the agreement to register so no drive by check-ins for you.

Rewards for Gym goers:

This penalty money is then allocated to those motivated individuals who spend at least 30 minutes checked in at their local gym as they intended to in their weekly pact, which is changeable, you can even have a rest if needed!

How was Gympact born?

Gympact is the idea of two ex Harvard university students and co-founders, Yifan Zhang and Geoff Oberhofer, who both attended an inspiring behavioural class while they were studying, they then started a 6 month trial of the idea in Boston at local gyms. This proved to be quite a success and other gyms across the states asked if their area could also be covered in the Gympact scheme.

The idea for an application came as they realised that they could not scale as quickly as they would have liked partnering with other gyms, so the concept became a mobile platform app, allowing users to check into their local gyms using GPS on their iPhones.

How do you get rewarded?

If you meet your goals you will be eligible to receive rewards from a collective pot of “naughty” money from those who made a pact but did not keep all or part of it.

Gympact will take a 3% cut of the transactions.

Social proof:

It appears that even the Groupon CEO Andrew Mason has picked Gympact as one of his favourite companies while attending a pitch contest in Santiago.

Negative emotion is the driver:

I have to say that this application does seem to have blended a good deal of issues that could help motivate people to get off their backsides and go to the Gym.

Instead of the old badge points and rewards affair nonsense, this application actually gets right down to the bottom of it all and penalises where it hurts, in the pocket.

Zhang said,

“Right now, getting people to take action — the first step toward fitness is the unfulfilled need.”

It also rewards you in the best possible way and helps line that pocket if you are a good “Gympacter”.

So where is the proof that all this works?

Gympact claim that users are going to the gym around 80-90% of their agreed time in the pact, and only a $5 commitment is enough to make people actually go to that gym a few times a week or fear losing some of that hard earned cash.

With a very small cash payment for being good, it is not really about getting paid to go to the gym, but it is a nice incentive to have rather than nothing, and working with the penalty system, it does nicely bring home the benefits of getting to the gym.

Read more about Gympact here: GYMPACT

With Apple’s Siri taking the voice controlled services world by storm and proving that you can actually get a decent working piece of software that can enhance the way we work smartphones and mobile devices, it was only a matter of time before competitors surfaced and tried to muscle in on the limelight.

Step forward Cluzee:

This is Android’s first real Siri competitor in the form of Cluzee, which is marketed as your “intelligent personal assistant” and if the video demonstrations are anything to go by below, it looks like Cluzee has some pretty nifty tricks up its sleeve and certainly seems to have a few positives over Siri currently.

For instance in a demo used when asked “What does my schedule look like today” the software not only runs down the usual itinerary that Siri can offer, it also pulls in data from mapping programmes and online data that can potentially warn of roadworks while out and about on that schedule of work.

As a personal assistant more than a voice controlled helper, it can also find bargains, read your emails, and find flights, book restaurants etc among other pretty clever functionality.

Tronton CEO Ashish Patwa said in a statement:

“We don’t need all of the information available, all of the time. We just need the right information at the right time, which Cluzee intelligently provides, making us more productive. Technology created the problem, but we’re using smarter technology to solve it.”

Siri for Andorid?

We already reported on the fake Siri for Android app on the Android marketplace well readers of that article may be glad to know that this application is available in the Android marketplace, with the company behind the application, Tronton, looking to add a cloud based version in the near future.

It does however seem like the app has pretty average reviews by and large!

What do you think of this kind of software, is it the next logical step forward in the evolution of computing, I personally thinks it will be huge and will change the way we work our devices, and also hopefully aim to eradicate unnecessary RSI….I look forward to testing the application out soon and doing a review, so stay tuned.

With the Android application market place growing, there still feels like a certain lack of depth on offer on the Google owned mobile operating system when compared to Apples App store, and also quite a bit of dross, and malware due to the lack of Quality Control that Google place on their own version of the App store, Googles Android market.

With this in mind, Google have attempted to build bridges to new developers who may be keen to learn how to develop for Android but need a little encouragement, so the offering comes in the form of Android Training Classes.

Android Training:

Quite simply called Android training, the tutorials are designed to newbies and seasoned developers to hone their skills and learn how to best develop for the Android operating system.

Optimization:

With Android suffering in certain areas on many devices, area such as battery life will hopefully be improved for users if developers pay more attention and learn best practices from the likes of this course.

While discussing the tutorials on Android developers blog, Android Developer Relations Tech Lead, Reto Meier said the program will:

“help developers tackle problems like designing effective navigation, optimising battery life and managing audio playback.”

And Google plan to add more and more classes to provide a wealth of knowledge to aid Android devs.

“Each class explains the steps required to solve a problem, or implement a feature, with plenty of code snippets and sample code for you to use within your own apps,”

He then went on to add:

“We’re starting small and this is just the beginning for Android Training. Over the coming months we will be increasing the number of classes available, as well as introducing over-arching courses and sample apps to further help your development experience,”

This seems like a good overall move from Google who are known for promoting open source code already, but the sheer fact they are competing with a powerhouse like Apple, means that they need to help new and old developers learn best practices, this should add to the whole experience of the Android O/S, which does currently suffer from quality in relation to its app offerings by and large.

Quality control:

Another step they may want to take since they have the “numbers” is to bring in a little more quality control to the marketplace, as it is becoming increasingly tough to find the gems from the trash, and often dangerous if you do not have our wits about you due to Malware creeping in.

This Wednesday saw the arrival of the much anticipated tablet and smartphone application version of Onlive.

If you have not heard of this technology and service before, and you like your games, then you are in for a treat.

Essentially, the app will allow you to stream high bandwidth (quality) games from their own cloud servers directly onto your device. Now there are a number of benefits to this, which I will come to soon.

What is Onlive?

Firstly let us take a look at Onlive and see how it works.

This free application will stream games via Wi-Fi and 4G LTE, which will enable full HD gaming via low latency cloud streaming anywhere where you can pick up a 4G or Wi-Fi connection.

So what games are currently available, and how have they been adapted for the touch screen devices we are seeing grow in popularity?

Current titles that have had the Onlive mobile device treatment include:

LEGO Harry Potter, L.A. Noire, LEGO Batman, as well as some 25 other titles, this is set to increase as more and more people trial the totally free application.

So let us get on to the benefits, apart from being able to play really cool games!

In their own words:

“OnLive harnesses the power of the cloud to instantly deliver high-end games on demand over the Internet with the simplicity of streaming video, OnLive’s breakthrough cloud gaming technology has enabled gamers on PCs, Macs and TVs to instantly jump into console-quality games on demand, without discs or lengthy downloads, regardless of the performance of their local device. With today’s launch, gamers can experience the same instant-play, top-tier games on tablets and smartphones, despite the fact that these games require vastly higher performance than is achievable on a mobile device.”

As you can see, some of the issues I have raised relating to Battery life on the iPhone 4S and other devices should hopefully see some improvements if high end gaming is what is killing your device, though right now it is unlikely you will be too far from a power source if you are needing to be hooked up to Wi-Fi to currently use Onlive, so this benefit is partially negligible till 4G LTE is more readily accessible, then this benefit should start to really shine through.

Another great part of having an account with OnLive is that you will be able to stop your game on one device and then carry on playing where you left off on another device, which will actually be quite a useful bonus in this world of plenty when it comes to mobile powered “smart” devices.

Wireless controller option:

Another option that is coming soon, will be the ability to hook up a wireless controller purpose built for OnLive and mobile devices which utilises the company’s “exclusive adaptive wireless technology” and will search for the optimum wireless connection for your smartphone, tablet, PC, Mac, TV, Blu-Ray player etc.

“As always, any game purchased on one OnLive app device (TV, PC, Mac, tablet or mobile device) can be played instantly on any other OnLive app device with full cloud save game data intact, allowing users to start play on one device, and continue playing on any other device, whenever and wherever they want, OnLive’s cross-platform capability extends to multi-player gaming, enabling, for example, a tablet gamer to play with TV, PC, Mac and smartphone gamers.”

Android application to be released first:

The first app to be released will be the Android Onlive app, with other app stores taking a little longer to clear up any legal issues and general partner relationships.

This application is however just what mobile apps are all about when marketed right.

A totally free method of gaining access to a new technology that enhances what is currently on offer, with the full functionality provided to you in many ways that suit each person.

Here is how the payment part will work:

There will be an option to rent titles for 3 days, 5 days or gain a “full pass” which essentially means you have bought the game, or a pretty reasonable subscription service which gives you access to a huge growing library of games for $9.99 a month.

So which Smartphones and Tablets support the new application?

This is a preliminary list of mobile devices which will support the application and allow you to utilise the full gaming features that Onlive offers:

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Tablets:

• Acer Iconia Tab A500
• ASUS Eee Pad Transformer
• HTC Flyer
• HTC Jetstream
• Motorola Xoom
• Samsung Galaxy Tab
• Sony Tablet S
• Toshiba Thrive

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Smartphones

• Motorola Droid 2
• Motorola Droid X2
• Motorola DROID BIONIC 4G
• Motorola DROID RAZR 4G
• Motorola Photon 4G
• HTC EVO
• HTC Nexus One
• HTC Rezound 4G
• HTC Sensation
• HTC Sensation XL
• Samsung Galaxy S II 4G

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Let us know your thoughts once you have played around with the app!

In a move seen to celebrate the milestone of 10 billion application downloads. The Android marketplace is offering 10 premium applications for only 10 cents (or 10 pence in the UK) each day for a period up to Christmas.

They will be offering this for the festive period and will change the apps on offer every day.

Today’s offerings include:

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• SwiftKey X Keyboard
• Endomondo Sports Tracker
• Great Little War Game
• Fieldrunners HD
• SoundHound
• SketchBook Mobile
• Minecraft – Pocket Edition
• Asphalt 6
• Paper Camera
• Color & Draw for kids

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With app downloads expected to reach around 18 million in 2012 according to research firm Ovum, this will be an increase from around 7 billion in 2010, and the 2012 figure will be made up of some 8 or so billion Android applications.

Of course this could be seen as a cynical ploy to make sure that as many people as possible have registered their debit or credit card details with the big G, so they can entice you to spend a little more bit by bit. But I say when an offer is around and it looks good, sod it, and grab it now!

So what premium Android applications are you hoping will be offered in this promotional give away?

Or they will do in the next few hours at least!

Thanks to an interesting set of data provided by mobile application search specialist MobileWalla, we can see that as of today the mobile application market for all camps is pretty much at the 1 million mark.

Apple still lead App market in terms of numbers:

The iOS platform still has the largest share of apps in their marketplace almost by a factor of 2 to all the other combined though it is obvious that currently the only real contender in terms of volume of available applications is the Android platform.

We have covered an article about how the Windows App Marketplace is growing, but it can be seen that the current size is almost insignificant compared to the combined total of Apple iOS and Android apps.

In the US, CTIA-The Wireless Association, has agreed to provide a voluntary ratings system which will be launched for all releases of applications and games.

The move aims to help parents and will be backed by the following “storefronts”: Sprint, AT&T, Microsoft, U.S. Cellular, T-Mobile USA, and Verizon Wireless.

A recent report by Common Sense Media, a Californian based children’s advocacy group, has shown that 52% of children between the ages of 8 and under have access to smartphones and tablets.

Voluntary does not mean it will work:

While there may be some good intentions behind the move it appears that Google, who have perhaps the most abused marketplace in Android, and Apple will not be signing up to the system and want to keep things just as they are.

In an email to BusinessWeek, Christopher Katsaros, a Google spokesman, said :

“While we support other systems, we think it’s best for Android users and developers to stick with Android’s existing ratings.”

Apple are also not reported to have signed up just yet which currently means that the system is nigh on useless.

Process in more detail:

When a developer submits an application to a “storefront” they will have to complete a series of questions related to the apps content. Once done, an almost instantaneous result will emerge and the application will have duly been classified and rated.

This process will not need to be repeated again when submitting the app to other storefronts in the scheme.

CTIA said of the process:

“Each rated app is issued a certificate and a unique identifying code that may be subsequently submitted to other storefronts during their respective onboarding processes, avoiding the need for developers to repeat the rating process, this means consistent ratings across participating storefronts and a convenient, cost-free process for app developers.”

The announcement is an addition to CTIA’s 2010 Guidelines for Application Content Classification and Rating, CTIA said.

Do you think this will actually make a difference to app availability and consumption, or is it an exercise in looking like they care, while creating more bureaucratic jobs in the process?

It has been a long time coming, but according to the daily, Microsoft are working hard on delivering official tablet versions of the hugely popular Microsoft Office Suite.

With no actual sources cited this is all firmly in rumour mill territory but looks to be a likely punt if you were a betting person.

The actual date of release looks set to be mid 2012.

Apple and Microsoft Office buddies:

The relationship between Apple and Microsoft when it comes to the Office package has been one of mutual respect. The Apple version on OSX is very stable, capable and works perfectly well, and so this relationship of “quid pro quo” between the two companies has proved to be one area that the competing brands have enjoyed a happy friendship in.

Lack of Office on tablet PC’s an issue:

With reports of tablets slowly taking over laptops as the go to PC for pretty much everything, one distinct area currently lacking is the familiar Microsoft Office package for your every day writing/publishing needs.

Windows 8 version of Office will help differentiate their tablet:

There is an argument that Microsoft should wait until their own tablet is released, prior to an iOS office application going on sale.

It would make sense that they brought out their tablet variety of the Microsoft Office package with their new Windows 8 Tablets. This would give them a unique selling point and add to the differentiation needed for a newcomer to enter a relatively mature market. The common man/woman knows and loves Office, and seeing this available on a Windows 8 tablet first will surely help push units in that all important initial period.

Windows will struggle to gain traction with Windows 8 tablets:

Forrester research analysts are of the opinion that the rise of subsidised, cut-price versions of tablets from Amazon, WhSmith and Barnes and Noble will mean that Windows 8 tablets will face tough competition from cheap varieties and also well established tablet manufacturers such as Apple, Samsung and Blackberry.

Maybe time to start earning from competitors traction:

Let’s face it nothing is concrete in tech land. The shifting sands of fortune have seen two giants falter in the last few years (Nokia and Microsoft), so you can never really tell what is around the corner.

Microsoft have got it tough with the tablet market, but why?

Here is a non exhaustive list:

Latecomers, a new O/S to educate people on, a new application market with currently only a small amount of apps, competitors already on versions 2,3,4 of their own devices O/S and build, and cut price tablets that look nearly as good as the high end versions entering the market.

Yes 2012 will be interesting and tough for Microsoft so perhaps it would be best if they get that Office Application out ASAP and start making some cash from the huge Apple and Android market.

So should Microsoft wait until they release their own Windows 8 tablet and use this application to help leverage their own marketing efforts or should they simply get it released now and sold in as many markets as possible?

You have to love Alex James, the ex bassist from Blur, who I remember well from a gig in 1993 singing with a cigarette constantly in his mouth playing the bass for Blur. The songs were from the album “Modern Life Is Rubbish” and it was at a small theatre type venue in Bradford on a set designed to look like an oversized kids bedroom.

This gig cost me £3 to get in! And if you like Blur, please make sure you get hold of their best album by far “Modern Life Is Rubbish”.

I digress.

So what has Alex got involved in with Microsoft?

As creative consultant for the “into” project he has been lending his name and ideas to an application created by Windows that aims to allow users to enter competitions and share news related to the new Windows 7 phone O/S release.

So “Mango” lovers will be able to access exclusive content and offers if they help promote the operating system.

Prizes on offer are access to video content that Alex has provided and a chance to enter a competition to go on an Arctic adventure, plus a chance to win some Nokia 800 phones.

To take part you must either “like” the Facebook page here, or download the application from the Windows Phone Marketplace (soon to be available)

Demo of Windows Mango in HTML5:

It is nice to see that Windows are getting creative with their marketing drive as they do have some catching up to do in both the Smartphone and Tablet markets, so this idea as well as the “Test a Windows 7 phone on your Apple or Android device” HTML5 experience, is a great way of getting some interest and allowing people to sample their new technology easily.

Alex James is quoted saying:

“Windows Phone offers a pioneering experience which has social and enjoyment at its core. I’m a keen believer in pursuing the extraordinary and my choice of phone is no different. by providing such a personalised experience, Windows Phone draws in all that’s important to me; my hobbies and all my interests, and the ability to keep in touch and share everything I care about with everyone I care about. I’m delighted to be partnering with into by Windows Phone.”

So will you be helping the cause and getting stuck in?

Finally South Koreans can rejoice in gaining access to the full Android game market now that the service has gone fully live in the 2nd largest market for the consumption of Android devices and technology.

So why so long?

Blame can pretty much rest on the South Korean government for the lack of game apps on the Android marketplace in South Korea, as they have historically required all mobile application games to be checked over and audited by the GRB (Game rating board) where a strict set of criteria had to be satisfied, this was met with Apple removing iOS games until recently and Android taking the same stance. Now that the South Korean Government have relaxed this rule the markets are well and truly open again where games are concerned for both platforms.

Developers must check South Korea box now:

This will open up a huge market for the developers of applications and so dev’s submitting apps need to tick the South Korea box option to ensure their work is available in this new market.

Koreans love a good game:

This market is such a crucial money maker for both Apple and Google that both companies will be pleased that this change has come into effect and developers for both platforms will also be feeling quietly confident that their bank balance should see an improved sum as more and more games are consumed in this huge market.

Has the lack of games on your devices default marketplace proved an issue for you in South Korea? Or have you simply gone to other more flexible marketplaces such as GetJar to get your fix of Android and iOS games?

With plenty of thanks to those techy uber geeks over at the XDA-developers forum, we give you the low down on how to get your very own Android marketplace on that brand new Amazon Kindle Fire you just bought!

Amazon Kindle Fire Android Tab With No Android Marketplace Access:

OK, we can see why this could be considered confusing. You bought your new Amazon Kindle Fire after researching for a short period of time and after unboxing and playing with your new toy for a while you went to buy some apps from the Android marketplace, and at this point you realised it was not quite the tablet you had in mind.

You really wanted to gain access to the Android market you use on your Android based phone for apps but realised that when it said the Amazon Kindle Fire was an Android based tablet, you perhaps missed the point that it was only “based” and did not run quite like the Android tablets you are used to seeing.

You see on the Kindle Fire the app marketplace is within Amazon’s own eco-system, not Google’s. Now come on, think…why would a savvy retailer offer you such a great deal?

Because they want to get you by the sort and curlies once you decide you want some more content/apps/videos etc etc, and keeping you tied into their own marketplace ensures that process and monetization is a long standing relationship…bit of a quid pro quo really as the entry fee to this technology is so reasonable.

Well fear not!

Thanks as mentioned to the guys and girls (though I sense mainly guys) over at the XDA forum. Here is the process to gaining root access to your new device and then installing the Android Marketplace.

Warning – Not that easy – But hardly rocket science:

Be warned, any changes/alterations you make to your Amazon Kindle Fire will likely result in your warranty being affected and your device not working as expected.

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• Step 1: Download the GoogleServicesFramework.apk. This is to allow your rooted Kindle Fire to access Google Services. Best way to do this would be to download the whole Google Apps .apk package here. Then extract the GoogleServicesFramework.apk file from the GApps.rar folder archive using a free archive tool such as WinRAR.
• Step 2: Now download the Vending.apk file (version 3.3.11 is latest) this is essentially the Android Market application.
• Step 3: File management application needed: This is to modify read and write permissions on the routed android device, get this package here.
• Step 4: Using a Micro-USB cable transfer the .apk files to the Kindle Fire. Download and install the File Expert app, giving this application “superuser” permissions by simply opening the application and tapping the menu key, looking for the settings menu and opening File Explorer settings and then enabling the Root Explorer option, this will allow you to modify the app’s read and write permissions and thus allow and Android Market app to download and install the Android market applications on to your Amazon Kindle Fire.
• Step 5: With the FileExpert app open, select the GoogleserviceFramework.apk file, and tap to install. After this has completed go back to the Vending.apk pressing and holding this to open the file menu. Select the cut option, and after this navigate to the application folder inside your System folder. Tap the Menu key, open the Mount menu, and mount the App folder as Read-Write. Finally, tap the Menu key again and press Paste to copy the Vending.apk file into the App folder.
• Step 6: Now that you’ve moved Vending.apk into the App folder, tap and hold it to bring up the file-options menu, and select the Permissions option. Change it to match the permissions of the other apps in this folder, which should be: Owner – Read/Write, Group – Read, Others – Read. Once you’re done, tap Vending.apk and install it.
• Step 7: Reboot your Kindle Fire. You do this to ensure you can actually see the Android Marketplace launcher in the carousel, so you’ll need to download and install a custom launcher such as GO Launcher EX. Another way you can achieve this is to download and install the MarketOpener.apk, a custom .apk file provided and written by XDA Developers forum member munday. This will put a shortcut to the Android Market in your Kindle Fire launcher.
• Step 8: So, After logging in to your new Amazon Marketplace account using your Gmail address welcome to your new app store. I hope that this was not too difficult and would ask you to consult the people mentioned and credited right at the top of this page and throughout if you run into difficulty.
• Step 9: Crashes: It does appear that rebooting your Kindle Fire should stop issues when the device freezes which I am hearing is a common theme after this process has been done, but only when accessing the Amazon Marketplace and downloading apps (which is also apparently quite slow at times)

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We hope you enjoy your new Amazon Kindle and its new found access to another marketplace. Please do let us know how you find running the device using this method, though we can not personally help you out technically. Thanks again to the guys at XDA-Fourms for all the hard work.

With so many vendors now tapping into the desire for applications, it is interesting to take a look at some statistics relating to the Windows marketplace and see how quickly they are catching Android and Apple in terms of sheer volume of choice.

Windows app marketplace boosted by Nokia?

With the Nokia Lumia Series on Windows Phone O/S it seems that this has really boosted the marketplace in terms of developers who are looking to write applications for the relatively unadpoted Windows O/S, though with Nokia choosing this operating system as its O/S of choice for the Lumia series, it seems likely that this figure will grow steadily despite predictions that the Nokia 800 will not sell very well in the UK.

All About Windows:

AAWP has delivered reports about the Windows application marketplace using their own tracking system and has some interesting facts to share:

[arrowlist]

• 11,000 Apps were submitted din the last three months
• 5,000 were within the last month
• 68% are free downloads
• 23% were premium
• Reminder were “freemium” models
• Estimated to reach 50,000 apps by January

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Microsoft’s application marketplace still seriously behind rivals:

With Apple boasting over 1/2 a million applications in the “original” app store, and Google’s Android marketplace pushing over 300,000 apps then we can see that the Windows machine needs to start multiplying their current figure by factors of ten or more to start competing in volume….which many will tell you is not the be all and end all.

Nokia Lumia’s to be give out free to developers:

With the drive to compete taking real significance for Nokia now that Ex Microsoft VP Stephen Elop is in charge of Nokia, the choice to dish out 25,000 free Nokia Lumia’s to developers is a wise one.

I have tested out the device and can inform viewers that the O/S is amazingly responsive and potentially quite a competitor to Apple and Android on sheer ease of use and look and feel….but it needs more apps as we all know!

With Google being such a beast, that hides behind one of the most minimal facades on the planet, it sometimes takes a while for people to realise significant changes have been implemented at the search giant.

New search option arrives without any Fanfair:

For instance the news that “Applications” is now a filter choice next to “Blogs” “News” “Images” “Videos” on the left hand side of your google search results comes as a surprise to me. I can however confirm that this feature is not currently working for google.co.uk search options but does work when I switch to .com and there is indeed an “Application” filter in the google result options on the left.

This feature does make a lot of sense as finding “apps” is often a nightmare, though this move does potentially hit GetJar and such like where it hurts.

I say potentially, as it could be a possibility that the sheer rank weight of a site like GetJar may end up giving favourable results for them, its all gravy in the end for Google really.

I have not fully tested how the algorithm might work, another reviewer seems to suggest that only applications themselves are offered with a screenshot to highlight this, but I see blended results of marketplaces and content such as reviews, and Apple are fairing high in the results which suggest it is hopefully not too biased in nature!

A very interesting addition though that should aid developers and users alike to find that perfect application for their individual needs in the swathes of apps out there!

What do you think? Do you have a certain place you find applications? Word of mouth or simply browsing using your chosen devices marketplace?…That is my main method currently though I may start using this more often now.