Is Genius for the App Store a Joke? (iPhone OS 3.1)
Of all the announcements at the “It’s Only Rock and Roll” Apple event, I was initially most excited for Genius for the App Store. As an iPhone-lover and friend of more than a few iPhone developers, I was really hoping this could add discoverability to the App Store and help some unsung heroes get attention.
No such luck. It mainly seems to recommend apps that do exactly what apps I already have on my phone do.
I have Tweetie, so it recommends other Twitter clients. I have Mint, so it recommends other money-management software. I have Kayak, so it recommends other plane ticket programs.
Other times, it fares even worse, making flat-out irrelevant recommendations: I have Public Radio Player 2.0, so it offers Lollapalooza, the guidebook for going to a music festival that took place in early August.
Even weirder, Genius only makes recommendations based on a small handful of my apps — maybe six out of the 30+ on my phone. For some reason, it thinks that Shazam and Flickr are more instructive for recommendations than every other app I own. I check it almost every day, and I still haven’t downloaded a single recommendation.
Couple this with the fact that OS 3.1 broke Internet Tethering and has noticeably reduced the speed of scrolling in Mail and iPod, and I regret ever making the upgrade (note to Apple: it’s a bad idea to release software that makes your speedier sequel to the iPhone 3G significantly slower just a few months after launch).
Anyone had a different experience? I’m seriously looking into downgrading back to 3.0.1.
