Jenna vosang Young
In 2008, Apple's move to open the iPhone to external programmers launched a software --writing frenzy.
Big companies and bedroom decorators are scrambling to put their apps into the App Store and install them on their phones. 5-
Inch touch screen.
These developers will now enter a much larger phase --
Or at least a larger screen.
Apple's tablet, expected to launch on Wednesday, will run apps designed for the iPhone, an app from the data point of view
Tracking companies are taking information from devices used around Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, California.
But the bigger screen
The most likely 10 inch diagonal-
Other features of the tablet can inspire developers to create new twists on the app, such as games where two or more people can play easily on the same device.
Gene Munster, senior research analyst at Piper Jaffray, said: "Given the success of the iPhone, developers will start investing in resources to develop a larger format . ".
"The big screen really took the imagination and apparently gave the app developers a new canvas.
Wang Ge, advertising agency
The founder of Smule, Ocarina and I are T-
He said he expected the tablet to be better than the iPhone in detecting the touch of many fingers.
"There are up to five touch points on the iPhone . "Wang said.
"You don't need more because that's all you can hold on the screen.
Tablets with larger and better multi-touch screens, he said, "could mean a whole new user interface, screen layout, instruments, devices, and games. ” Mr.
Wang said his company did not do any specific work for the Apple tablet, but was eager to start trying.
Other developers of IPhone apps believe that tablets are a way to take a bigger share in the broader software market.
Some analysts estimate that the App Store generates up to $1 billion a year for Apple and its developers, and that larger devices may expand the cake.
"We are always competing with the TV in the living room," said Bart drumham, chief executive of tapulus, a start.
In Silicon Valley, the iPhone and its mobile-less cousin, iPod Touch, make games and other apps.
"In the time of our users, we spent a lot of time fighting rock bands, guitar heroes and even YouTube.
Tapulous said the company is profitable and its sales revenue from popular tap is growing rapidlyto-the-music games.
Its Tap series Revenge game has been downloaded more than 25 million times.
"A new form factor closer to a PC or TV screen like a tablet can help us gain more market share and thinking share," he said. Decrem said.
Tapulus will adjust its current range of tablet applications, but will wait and see how the tablet is sold before investing resources to develop new applications for itDecrem added.
The tablet is expected to be available in the spring, and it is not yet known how much Apple will price.
Some clues about the types of apps Apple employees try on tablets are from Flurry, a mobile analytics company that provides developers with a free tool to collect about the use of their apps
With this data, Flurry can generate reports about the user location of the application, for example, or how long it will take for the user to complete the game level.
AD Apps With Flurry software built in will also send a unique code to identify which device they are running on.
In last October, the company's system began testing a new device, Flurry said.
Peter Farago, Flurry's vice president of marketing, said about 50 devices have been detected so far, most of which are used near Cupertino.
"We 've seen a lot of testing of apps for everyday media consumption, like news, books, streaming music, and radio . "Farago said.
"But we 've also seen a lot of social apps like multiplayer games you can play with friends.
Although he said he was under a contractual obligation to prevent him from making a specific application
Farago said the data also showed "what people can do during these times, which is very much emphasized --
Moments in transit "-
For example, use the app to find a restaurant or save a shopping list.
Laura DiDio, Apple's independent wireless analyst, said she expected the tablet to showcase some innovations in navigation and weather forecasting.
She also wants to see apps that use tablets as teaching tools that allow people to hold video meetings while sharing media, she said.
There are signs that Apple may want tablet computers to do some business --
Applications that require complex interaction with the screen.
A former Apple designer says the company's programmers are working on a multi-touch version of iWork, the equivalent of Microsoft's Office software suite.
Apple declined to discuss plans for any tablet.
It's not yet known how many of the iPhone's 100,000 + apps will run on the tablet.
However, Flurry's data shows that the tablet will run an upgraded version of the iPhone operating system and may run the old application in a small window on the screen.
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"Apple has just spent a year and a half training developers to program their devices," says Carl Howe, director of consumer research at Yankee Group, a technology consulting firm.
"I don't think they will break that pattern. ”Mr.
Howe added that while he thinks most of the current app store products are available, they may look a bit unusual. “Taking a 3. 5-
Inch experience, and it will distort things to enlarge it to about 10 inch ,"Howe said.
"But the original iPhone app guide mentioned planning for more device sizes, so developers have considered how their app can be converted into a larger screen.
Marc Strohlein said: "The advertising of tablets may also bring changes to the economy of the app store, where developers who choose to charge for the app are under pressure to maintain a low price, one analyst at the market research company has more sales than that.
Many of the most popular paid apps cost 99 cents.
"More memory and new features will encourage the development of higher quality and more complex applications, which will push up the price," he said . ".
If the tablet does not meet the public, the developer's excitement about the tablet may quickly fade.
"Historically, tablets are not big sellers . "Strohlein said.
"No one has fully understood it before.
"A version of this article was printed on page B1 of the New York edition on January 25, 2010 with the title: Playground for tablet World apps.
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