The Online Magazine Focused on App Design, Branding & Marketing

Although the iPhone continues the be the public face of the mobile community (so much so that you’re grandparents probably call your Android an “iPhone” in the same way that they call your PlayStation a “Nintendo”), it would be foolish to say that they dominate the smartphone market. Because they don’t. In fact, it’s not even close. In terms of sheer numbers, Android is the easy king of mobile devices.

Since Apple VS Android debates generally break down into the technological equivalent of “Mine is bigger than yours!”, let’s do everyone a favor and break it down into numbers.

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Mobile apps have sparked a generation of apprepreneurs eager to make a buck developing the next must-have mobile app. However, as the mobile market matures, a number of journalists have hinted at a coming problem of having too many apps, and warn of consumers’ overall loss of appetite. Indeed, App Overload was Forbes’ #9 prediction for 2012, and more recently a writer for the NY Times Blog asked if we are suffering from mobile app burnout? I tend to agree, though I see what could be a problem as more of an opportunity for creative app developers up for the challenge.

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There’s no beating around the bush here: Android is huge. Although no single Android device is as big or popular as an Apple counterpart, the sheer number of Droid-ready devices means that Google’s operating system has become king of the mobile mountain. Because we like Android and we like fancy infographics filled with colors and numbers, we figured you could kickstart this Christmas Eve with a look at just how fast the Android ecosystem is growing. Enjoy!

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The Good: A month after unveiling them in one of their typically flashy press conferences, Apple has finally announced that their new, insanely slim iMacs will arrive on November 30th…at least the 21.5 inch model. Those hoping to snag one of the 27 inch versions will have to wait for an unspecified date in December. Between these, the iPad Mini and the iPhone 5, Apple is poised to clean up this holiday season. Perfect timing, guys.

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Google is all about competition. Their open source Android platform allows numerous manufacturers and developers all over the world to create their own smartphones and tablets, each of them utilizing an infinitely malleable ecosystem. If all they did was continuously update Android, Google could easily sit back and let the money roll in for the foreseeable future, letting other companies live or die based on the quality of their hardware and service. But recent rumors suggest that Google is not content to rest on its laurels: it may want to be your new wireless carrier.

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Did you know that there was a Verizon app store? Did anyone? Not that it matters, though: it’s going to close down and vanish come January. This is the part where I make more jokes about the mere existence of a Verizon app store and say things like “Raise your hand if you’ve ever used it! Anyone? Anyone?,” but it’s also the part where I ask a question that should be on every app user and developer’s mind: is fewer app stores a good thing?

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With hundreds of thousands of apps out there in the wilds of the Google Play store, there are bound to be some that aren’t on the level. But how many of them are actually sketchy enough to be considered “suspicious”? How many are out there to trick you into thinking they’re another app? How many are slopped together to make a a quick buck? How many are built to access your information and cause harm to your account? About 100,000! This infographic goes into detail about the scary number of suspicious apps for sale and download in Google Play, but don’t let it scare you. It’s easy to be a safe and responsibly Android user — if something looks odd, research and read reviews! Hit the jump to learn more!

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We don’t have an iPad Mini yet, but we’re remedying that soon. Our Team at Rocksauce Studios is excited to get our hands on Apple’s latest technology. The reviews are coming in today from all sources and we’re enjoying reading about them from multiple sources. Since it’s announcement weeks ago we’ve been anxious to hear reviews from the first reciepients of the iPad Mini.

Aside from the golden raving reviews we’ve heard we were interested to see the drop test conducted by Android Authority. They put the iPad Mini to the test against a Nexus 7 in a chest drop test. How do these devices fare? Watch the video below to found out. More after the JUMP…

This is an exciting time for Android Users and Google as Music Explorer was one of the new features that was announced this week with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean was announced! The Music Explorer feature was previewed to those who have the Nexus 7 — users could launch the Play Store and Navigate the Music secition and select an artist or album.

Additional features include exploring similar artists and recommendations for other similar artists. The interface is fun and suggestions may lead you down the road of musical exploration, which is something I personally enjoy! It reminded me a lot of the App Discovr Music which has helped me find some of my favorites.

Although there may be some work to perfect the Music Explorer, it seems like a great start for the Google Play Store’s ever-expanding set of features! If you want to check it out watch the video below.

Source: Android Authority

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Recently, you took a break from your iPhone and took an “Android vacation.” Why did you do this? Which phone did you choose for this vacation and why did you choose it?

I chose to take a foray into the Android world because I’ve used an iPhone since the first generation of iPhones! Before this, I wasn’t as familiar with Android as I would’ve liked and my previous excursion across the aisle had been mediocre. However, with Android being a major player now and with the OS having gone through so many major changes, I decided it was time to see how things had changed and whether or not I’d be impressed (I also spent a week with a Windows Phone, but that’s a story for another day). The phone I selected was the HTC 1X, which was brand new and completely up to date. I chose this one because, being able to run Jellybean, it would be a great test device to have around the office for the Rocksauce team to use and experiment with.

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