Though there aren’t any specific numbers on Apple Watch units sold up until this point, we do have some exciting statistics on how many apps are available for watchOS. It turns out that ahead of the watchOS 2 public release, developers have shown significant interest in the platform. They’ve contributed an impressive 11,469 Watch apps to the App Store and counting, but growth has particularly taken off in recent months.
The stats, current as of September 7, come from App Annie. Back in June, the app analytics firm found that 6,352 apps were available, which means the number of apps have nearly doubled in the past few months.
Taking the top slot for app categories categories believe it or not is Games. Even for that tiny little screen, there are 1,412 games available. Though that’s not far ahead of Utilities which tallies up to 1,243. The Lifestyle and Health and Fitness categories are understandably topping the charts too, with 863 and 787 apps, respectively.
The spike in apps is likely due to the imminent launch of watchOS 2, which we should see get an official release date today at Apple’s iPhone 6s event. The biggest change coming in the new update is the ability for developers to submit native Watch apps. Previously, all Watch apps had to run via Bluetooth and paired with an iPhone, which made the experience less than ideal. Since watchOS 2 allow developers to take advantage of more Watch hardware like the microphone and sensors, it’s easy to see why devs and users alike should be pretty excited.
The growth is likely to continue once Apple Watch owners start installing watchOS 2. Plus, developers ought to keeping putting the fresh version of WatchKit’s new opportunities to good use.
Lots of new features should be landing on your wrists very shortly.
