Although the iPad’s introduction was greeted by some with a ho-hum attitude, Apple’s new tablet device has sparked developer interest, in January nearly tripling the number of applications created, researchers said Friday.
As iPad frenzy reached a crescendo, development for the App Store nearly tripled, with more than 1,600 applications created in January compared to under 600 in December, said Flurry Analytics. The company’s “Smartphone Industry Pulse” for January 2010 tracked more than 20,000 mobile applications.
“We hypothesize that excitement generated by Apple’s iPad event in January is driving growth,” the company said Friday. “For developers who get a jump on customizing their applications for the iPad, there may be an opportunity to stand out early on, and earn more downloads.”
At the iPad’s unveiling, Apple said its more than 140,000 App Store applications will be ready for the tablet computer when the device ships at the end of March. For Google’s Android, the iPad boosted Apple’s lead at a time when the Mountain View, Calif. company seemed to be catching up to the App Store.
“While Android’s steady new application growth over the second half of 2009 closed the gap with the iPhone, reaching as many as one out of every three new application starts within Flurry for December, the recent spike in Apple iPad support has swung the pendulum back in Apple’s favor to a level not seen at Flurry in six months,” the mobile metrix report said.
[Via AppleInsider]
