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I’m happy to announce that our friends over in the U.K. can now purchase a2b! woot woot! Hopefully this means other countries in Europe will have access to paid apps very soon as well.
For those in U.K. we’d love to hear your feedback! Likes/Dislikes etc :) Obviously the queen digs a2b :)
It’s come to my attention that very few android/G1 phone owners know about one of my favorite features, reading and creating 2D barcodes! First, if you haven’t already done so, download the free application “barcode scanner” from the android market. Now that you have the app, select “menu” => “share” and you can create a 2D barcode of any of your contacts as well as bookmarks. If one of your buddies has a 2D barcode reader on his or her phone they can simply scan the code you just created! Once they’ve scanned the 2D barcode they will be prompted to launch their browser and/or save the contact info. If you want to create a 2D barcode and share it via your website like we’ve done here and here there are several free and easy sites you can use. Here are couple of my favorites: zxing and nokia barcode generator FYI, there are several types of 2D barcodes but the G1/barcode scanner only supports “QR”.
For those wondering how well paid applications are doing, here’s a few stats that I manually pulled from the android market this evening. By manual I mean counted on my fingers and toes :) Nonetheless, this should at least give you “some” perspective….
If I had a dollar for every time I was asked if a2b could be purchased on the iPhone I’d be able to retire :) So why doesn’t Froogloid build software for the Iphone? There are several reasons; not enough hours in the day, not enough capital to pay 3rd parties to port a2b, saturated Iphone app market, but the main and most compelling reason is we feel there is a tremendous amount of opportunity with the android/google platform. I recently touched upon this in my “Calm Before the Storm Blog” but here’s a few more points/things to consider.
In the mobile app world you have 4 main players; 1) the network carriers (T-Mobile, Verizon etc…) 2) the mobile phone manufacturers (motorola, LG, HTC etc…) 3) consumers who buy the phones/apps 4) and last but not least, mobile application developers (Froogloid). What if you had an operating system that was good for all players? Well, that’s exactly what android OS does! It makes everyone happy.
Let me tell you why…. First, the device manufacturers, they love android because the OS is 100% free! That’s right, no more paying symbian and other OS’s millions to license their operating systems. This equates to lower handset prices which ultimately means more handset sales. Network carriers are excited about android for 3 reasons; 1) innovative products equate to more subscribers 2) Android phones use data which equates to more value added services = more $$$. 3) Network carriers get 30% of all fee based application downloads! If I sell an app for $1, T-Mobile gets 30 cent and I get 70 cents…. google gets nothing (sort of). Guess how much of the fee based revenue apple shares with network carriers? 0%! Mobile application developers love android because it’s extremely easy to get your products to market unlike apple’s 6 month application process! Not to mention, once more android devices are released, your app will/can be distributed to almost any carrier in the world! More eyeballs on your apps = more revenue, it’s as simple as that. Consumers love android because they’ll have plethora of android devices to chose from unlike the Iphone. Also, android phones are/will be economically priced. Remember, no more OS licensing costs = lower handset prices! Don’t forget, consumers love applications! With android they’ll have an unlimited supply to innovative apps! So, what does google get out of this? Two words: “Mobile Search”!
If you don’t believe me, fine, but I’m not the only one that sees the opportunity. Android will overtake Iphone by 2012. http://androidcommunity.com/android-os-to-trump-os-x-touch-20090306
What are your thoughts? Technorati Profile
If you’re dying to get your hands on a Google phone but you don’t want to spend $175! You’re in luck! www.letstalk.com is offering a great deal right now. You can purchase a T-Mobile G1 for $97.77 AND it comes with a free car charger and a 4gb micro SD card. The only catch is that you have to sign up for a 2 yr contract. To put this in perspective, I bought my G1 in Oct 08 for $175 with a 2 yr contract. Then I upgraded to 4gb card for another 30 bucks. So, 4 months later you can pay $100 less than I did and get a free car charger . Pretty good deal.
Hi everyone, quick Froogloid status update. a2b has now been available via the android market for a whopping 12 days. Although, it’s seems like much longer! During this time we’ve added a few really cool features such as turn by directions, and emailing location information(google maps link with picture and note). If you haven’t tried em out, you should! Personally I’ve found them very useful.
So, what’s next? Well, We’re working on adding a couple of other requested enhancements. Hopefully we’ll have an updated version of a2b released in the next week or so. Once that’s done, we’ll focus on localizing a2b for Europe and possibly Asia. In parallel with our a2b efforts, a good friend has been heads down working on Key Ring. Unfortunately there haven’t been enough hours in the day to make significant progress on Key Ring to date but this will soon change. We’ve set a goal of April 6th for releasing Key Ring in the android market. With enough red bull and coffee this should be an attainable goal :) I’m really excited about Key Ring. I hope it’s as well received as a2b was/is!
That’s it for now!
I’ve received a few emails from folks in Europe asking when they’ll be able to purchase a2b. Unfortunately, the decision isn’t up to Froogoid. We’re merely pawns in Google’s conquest to take over the mobile app world. Which means, we have to wait for the google market to support paid app in other countries. Google’s communication has been limited, but here’s what they’ve said thus far ~
“We will also enable developers in Germany, Austria, Netherlands, France, and Spain to offer priced applications later this quarter. By the end of Q1 2009, we will announce support for developers in additional countries. Developers can find more information about priced applications in Android Market at http://market.android.com/support/”
Fingers crossed…. google will stay on schedule.
Speaking of Europe … our good friends at www.androidworld.nl Holland have recently reviewed a2b and it appears they like what they see. If you can read Dutch :) check it out. Or, do like I did and use google translator. Thanks Dimitry/Android World for the great review!
At Froogloid we absolutely value feedback from our customers. We received a few a2b enhancement requests, we listened and now we’ve delivered. Check em out! You won’t be disappointed!
Enjoy! :)
