Hidden Gems: You Got Social Networking In My App Discovery
AppConnect, which just hit the store a couple days ago, is an important step in the right direction toward making it easier to find quality hidden gems in the App Store.
When the App Store hit a billion downloads last month I complained about how difficult it is to discover cool apps. To summarize my points, Apple isn't providing enough tools to find quality applications. I said, "maybe the answer is a genius recommendation system. Maybe it’s a featured iPhone user’s section that lets anybody see what an iPhone power user has installed on his or her phone. Maybe it’s a premium store. Maybe the solution is an app itself."
Yeah, I just quoted myself. How pompous is that? I'm sorry.
AppConnect is the first app I've seen to really begin to fill this very important hole left by Apple. Sure there are apps like our own BargainBin, AppSniper or PandoraBox which help you find popular apps that go on sale, but AppConnect introduces a very important element to the mix - social networking.
The problem with bargain hunting apps is that they're limited to what information they're able to scrape from Apple's App Store. That's basically limited to what information can be deduced from the changes to the price of the app and their position in the top lists.
If a decent app is poorly marketed, or worse, not marketed at all, it will disappear into App Store oblivion.
However, these apps can get a second chance with a social network helping to promote them. iPhone app reviewers like myself or power users could easily share with the masses what apps they use and/or like. It could be like Yelp for apps. In Yelp there are regular reviewers and then there are "Elite" reviewers who deliver enough quality reviews to be singled out.
In essence, an App Store social network would allow you to share app interests with another person. You could follow or become friends with them and then be notified of whatever apps they think are worth downloading. If you agree, you share it too. And thus, it's possible to crowd-source the quality of iPhone apps while giving you the power to only take recommendations from people you feel are good sources.
With AppConnect, you create a username and then become friends with other users to see their apps and share tiny reviews.
Unfortunately, AppConnect is slow, a little bit glitchy and I'm not exactly a fan of how the friend's process works - you have to manually enter in a username. Really, who needs to remember another username? Not to mention the the developer doesn't seem to have a good grasp on the English language. From the description: "Check out people's suggestion about good Apps. After become a friend, you will be notified their new finding."
While AppConnect doesn't fulfill my dream of an App Store social network, it's a step in the right direction and, as far as I can tell, the first of its kind.
Hidden Gems
1Password (Free until June 5)
1Password is a handy little utility that is somewhat well known and has been in some of the top lists before. But if you've missed it, version 2.0 just hit and is an absolute a must have. Everyone has need for this app, as long as you're willing to put your personal information inside of it. There are two layers of protection - a 4 digit numerical password to log in and an optional secondary password you can put for things you want really locked down tight.
You can use 1Password for virtually every log-in, password, identification number, credit card number, bank account - essentially anything you have to memorize or look up.
I've gone to visit a friend or family member's house and had to ask them countless times to look up their wi-fi password so I could get on the Internet. With 1Password, the information is permanently available.
It even has a built-in browser so you can use 1Password to automatically log into many of your accounts without using Safari.
1Password also syncs over wifi with the Mac desktop version, available separately for $40.
If you don't plan on using it, just download the app for free anyway and leave it in your library in case you change your mind.
UP (Free)
Given the popularity of the movie, I'd be surprised if this game doesn't hit the top 10 lists.
UP, of course, is based on Disney and Pixar's newest animated film of the same name. It's a very simple game and I don't understand why it clocks in at 43 megabytes. All you do is pop balloons. Really, that's it. Try to tap as many balloons as you can in 45 seconds.
This is the perfect game for a movie like this. It doesn't attempt to tell any of the story of UP, so there's no risk of spoilers, and it's simply a minigame to waste a bit of time. Absolutely perfect for the little ones or the easily entertained.
You might think it's lame, but I've seen my little niece entirely enthralled by one of those bubble wrap popping apps.
