Top Google Apps in 2010

Here's a subjective list of Google services that were launched or were significantly improved in 2010:

Top 100 BitTorrent Searches of 2010 Revealed

Here’s an efficient way to put your finger on the pulse of the movie-watching and software-using public: Check out the top 100 search terms for 2010 on BitTorrent.

The Top 40 iPhone Apps of 2010

Editor’s note: This guest post is written by Alex Ahlund, the former CEO and founder of AppVee and AndroidApps, which were acquired by mobile application directory Appolicious. You can read his previous iPhone app picks here and here

The iTunes App Store is huge. More than 300,000 apps huge. I’ve watched this monster start from nothing and turn into a billion-dollar industry in only a few short years. We’ve been approaching this point for some time now, but it’s more apparent than ever that app exposure is of critical importance. A healthy majority of iOS app users discover new applications directly from their device as opposed to using iTunes. If you look specifically at the iPhone, the amount of real estate for discovery is only available to a very small percentage of the total apps.

Samsung becomes top U.S. Android manufacturer, sells 1 million Galaxy Tabs ahead of schedule

Samsung has announced that they have shipped over 3 million Samsung Galaxy S phones across the globe since the handset’s debut in mid June. However, what’s even more impressive is the fact that the Samsung Galaxy Tab has already sold over 1 million units, exceeding Samsung’s 2010 sales forecast a month early. Samsung has changes their forecast and now believes that they will sell a total of 1.5 million Galaxy Tab devices before the end of the year.

If that wasn’t enough, Samsung America is also touting the latest Gartner report which indicates that Samsung’s Android powered handsets accounted for 32.1 percent of all Android phones sold in the U.S. market in Q3. That percentage puts Samsung ahead of Motorola, making them the top Android manufacturer for the quarter.

The Samsung Galaxy S lineup may have its flaws (GPS issues and no Android 2.2 update in sight), but it’s apparent that consumers seem to trust the Samsung brand. Having a Galaxy S phone on all major service providers in the U.S. has certainly helped the phone reach as many consumers as possible. Since I’m not a huge fan of exclusive deals, I hope other manufacturers take notice and follow in Samsung’s footsteps.

Via androidandme.com

Top 10 Android phones, best selling get software updates first

As we count down the weeks till Gingerbread is released the majority of our audience has a phone with Android 2.1 or older and some of those devices will never see a software update again. Many Android handsets have the necessary hardware to run the latest version of Google’s mobile OS (example: myTouch 3G with Android 2.2), but several carriers have decided not to upgrade them in order to provide “the best combined hardware and software experience”.

So what exactly decides which phones get updated? Looking at the Top 20 Android devices report from analytics company Chitika it appears that the phones which sold the most units were among the first to get updated. Check out the best selling phones after the jump.

Top 10 Android devices by traffic from Chitika:

1. Motorola Droid: Android 2.2, Verizon
2. HTC EVO 4G: Android 2.2, Sprint
3. Motorola Droid X: Android 2.2, Verizon
4. HTC Incredible: Android 2.2, Verizon
5. Samsung Vibrant: Android 2.1, T-Mobile
6. Motorola Droid 2: Android 2.2, Verizon
7. LG Ally: Android 2.1, Verizon
8. HTC myTouch 3G: Android 2.2, T-Mobile
9. HTC Droid Eris: Android 2.1, Verizon
10. HTC Hero: Android 2.1, Sprint

They don’t say what period of time this data was sampled, but Chitika serves “over 3 billion monthly impressions across more than 100,000 websites“. Based on our analytics data and Google’s own Platform Versions report it seems pretty accurate.

Four of the top five phones have been updated to Android 2.2. Samsung is updating the Vibrant and LG is updating the Ally, so pretty soon that will mean 8 out of the top 10 Android phones will be on Android 2.2.

The software support you receive on your phone has little to do with the hardware specs or the manufacturer. We have 1 GHz phones in the U.S. that are still on Android 1.6 (Dell Streak, Sony Ericsson X10) and every handset maker has phones they left behind because they didn’t sell well (Backflip, Garminphone, Aero, Cliq XT, etc).

However there is one exception to the rule and that is the Nexus One, which was made by HTC and supported by Google. It was the first device with Android 2.2, which was easily available after Google announced the update in May at Google I/O.

We should also point out that AT&T does not have a single phone in the top 20 and they are not selling any phones with Android 2.2.

So if you want to own a phone that is highly likely to receive software updates just:

• Buy the most popular phone for your carrier
• Avoid AT&T
• Get the Nexus S

Many Android users have been experiencing some frustrating times as they wait for their carrier to provide an official software update, but it looks like the overall situation is starting to improve.

Samsung might extended the wait a little longer for some, but HTC and Motorola have demonstrated they can deliver updates in a timely manner when the carriers really push them. Sprint and HTC rolled out Android 2.2 in July (just two months after it was available) and then Verizon and Motorola announced their update for the Droid on the following day. It took T-Mobile a little longer to send Android 2.2 to the myTouch 3G in October, but at least they came through on their pledge to keep it updated.

We can often predict when phones are going to perform well (Verizon’s dual-core Droid 4G will be HUGE), but the average consumer walking into their wireless carrier has no clue what version of Android any of the phones run or if they will ever be updated.

So next time your friend ask you what smartphone to buy, just point them towards one with the latest version of Android or tell them about the Nexus S instead.

Via androidandme.com