November 08
If not for application stores, the value of modern smartphones would tumble down in leaps and bounds. We love our mobile devices for what they do - we love our apps. App Store and Google Play offer us about a million apps each, but an average person has about 30-50 apps on a mobile device - rarely would you have more than 60 apps. Let's go further - how many apps do you regularly use every day? Hardly more than 10.
The famous 80/20 rule can be safely applied here. On average we use not more 20% of all applications on our smartphones every day. Other 80% of apps are used as needed, from time to time. Or we could put it another way - we spend 80% of our time on 20% of applications. It's extremely hard to become popular with users, unless the app is truly outstanding in some way and unless it's properly promoted.
A Little Bit Of Statistics
The most recent research by Statista, that covers the most used mobile apps in the world over a month in Q2 2013, shows that 54% of global smartphone owners used Google Maps, which is obviously the most popular smartphone application. Facebook, the biggest social network, had 44%, YouTube had 35%, Google+ was used by 30% of smartphone owners, Twitter and Skype scored 22% each, the instant messaging service Whatsapp had 17%, and Instagram was used by 11%. Actually, the picture is by no means surprising.
Why have we mentioned smartphone statistics? It's no surprise either - smartphones rule on the mobile market. Tablets entered the market later, and aren't as casual, as commonplace as smartphones. Neither are such devices as the iPod Touch.
Smartphone Rules The Mobile Market
It's exactly the smartphone that defines the app's popularity. Yet the biggest and the most popular category on both Android and iOS application stores is games. Games hold major potential for revenue success; and there has been a correct statement that a game might appear out of nowhere and become a success. But with all the competition, it's hard to predict. One thing is certain - perhaps each of us has a favorite game that we devote a few minutes now and then throughout the day, in order to relax and proceed to daily tasks.
What other types of apps do we frequently spend time on? Most notable are social and messaging apps. We scroll through the feed, follow the links that we find interesting, flick through the recent photos and of course, chat with everyone. This takes time. Top social apps cannot be surpassed, but there's an obviously growing trend of smaller social networks that gather people by hobbies and things alike. We could call them 'specialized'. Even more time is spent on social network websites (on desktops, we mean). Nevertheless it's the app that we always have in the pocket to check out, it's the smartphone that makes us mobile and independent.
What Other Apps Are Used More Than Others?
Another type of apps that we use daily and often, is productivity. That is, our scheduled activities, to-dos, the whole variety of note-taking means. A meeting at half past one? Check. A document to be studied and signed? Check. A little bit of shopping on way home? Check. That's what our daily routine consists of.
Utilities and news apps are also very popular. Who doesn't spend much time browsing on a tablet, for example? The most popular news aggregators, such as Flipboard and Pulse, are usually in the top lists of must-have apps on your mobile device. You check news several times a day, don't you?
Although we spend most time on these types of apps, it doesn't mean that other categories aren't worthy of great apps and all the efforts to create them. Apps that are generally used passively, less frequently, with less time spent on (unit converters etc.) aren't less important in making our mobile devices substantially valuable. Some of the categories (such as health & fitness or medical apps) target a less generalized user audience, than, say, Evernote. However, it's the more frequently used apps that tend to generate user loyalty faster.
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