Based on an analysis of 30 million downloads from Apple’s App Store, only 1 percent of downloaders are still using are still using those apps after 90 days, according to Pinch Media’s CEO Greg Yardley. Pinch Media builds analytic tools designed for developers so they can 
monitor their App Store downloads, app usage time and other data that can be used to develop marketing strategies. Pinch also sells ad space on free, ad-supported apps to advertisers.
You can find the details of Pinch’s analysis at it’s Web site, so I won’t repeat them here. The company’s analysis jibes with my personal app usage, though.
250 Apps and Climbing
I’ve downloaded about 250 apps–about half are free–from the App Store in the last 3 months. At the moment, I have 90 apps, not counting native apps, on my iPhone. Forty-eight of those apps are games. I play four or five of them regularly. I keep the rest on my iPhone just in case I get bored with the games I play most often. I probably have another 50 games in iTunes on my desktop that I’ll never look at again.
The apps I use most frequently are productivity, reference and utility apps. Some of these apps have overlapping features and I could probably rely solely on one or the other, but I keep them all on my iPhone because they have unique features or they entertain me in a geeky sort of way.
Writing
I use Saxnet’s EasyWriter Pro for text-entry in landscape mode because it’s much easier than portrait mode. I can write emails and use the iPhone native app to send them. It also has a spelling checker and contains a list of commonly used phrases such as “Busy, will respond later,” and “Stuck in traffic,” which I can stick into an email with one touch.
I keep notes in Zonk’s Dexy, which works like a stack of index cards. It’s a free form note taker, with landscape mode for text entry. I can also use different typefaces, font sizes and backgrounds.
I use a Automattic’s WordPress to create notes for my blogs and store them as drafts and to fix small writing mistakes when I re-read something I’ve posted. I doubt that I’d actually write a blog entry using it, but you never know.
Reference and News
For news, I use AP Mobile News, NYTimes, USA Today and Rajca’s Gazette for my feeds. I use Lexcycle’s Stanza and Google Book Search Mobile to download and read eBooks (all of them free).
Google Book Search is a Wep App (it doesn’t live on my iPhone). Go to Safari, enter the URL into your iPhone and create an icon for your Home Screen by tapping the plus sign at the bottom of your browser, followed by the Add to Home Screen button. I do most of my iPhone reading when I’m killing time waiting for someone or something.
I use TranCreative Wordbook English Dictonary & Thesaurus, but if I need to check a word’s spelling, I’ll use Achoom Spell Check because it’s faster.
One of my favorite reference apps is Vito Technology’s Star Walk, which I use to identify planets and constellations at night.
Productivity
For Web search, I use vLingo’s vLingo and Google Mobile. You can enter text into a search engine bar using voice recognition. I’ve found vLingo’s VR, which also searches Yahoo! is more accurate and I also can use vLingo to search for contacts, map locations and dial the phone. I use Google Mobile mainly to check my Calendar, Reader and other Google apps.
Utilities
When an app crashes or misbehaves in some other way, it could be that I’m low on runtime memory. Recession Apps’ FreeMemory jettisons the digi-bits still in memory leftover by apps after I close them. It also has an indicator that displays battery level in percent. I use Xcellent Creation’s iNetwork Test to check my wireless and EDGE download speeds.
I can access my PC’s desktop and control it as though I were sitting in front of it using either Jugaari Jaadu Remote Desktop or LogMeIn’s LogMeIn Ignition. Each has their advantages. Jaadu RD streams audio to my iPhone. It’s slick and works on any Windows PC (except Windows Home) with Remote Desktop Protocol enabled. LogMeIn is more versatile, but I can only use it on PCs running the LogMeIn desktop client.
To transfer files between my iPhone and desktop, I’ll use either Readdle ReaddleDocs or QuickOffice’s MobileFiles Pro. Readdle Docs comes with 512 MB free online storage and I can access it via EDGE, in addition to Wi-Fi, which could come in handy when I travel. It also has a built-in browser, which is always useful. MobileFiles Pro works only over Wi-Fi but it also reads and edits Excel spreadsheets, which is the only app I know of that can do that.
Security
I don’t keep sensitive information on my iPhone because it’s too risky. Few of the apps that promise to keep my files from getting out of hand aren’t all that trustworthy either. Mint’s app is one of the worst I’ve seen because anyone can view your online financial data stored at Mint.com. I recently installed Callpod Keeper, which uses 128-bit encryption, and if I ever need to temporarily protect sensitive information, I’ll use that.
Audio, Video and Graphics
Several photo-editing apps live on my iPhone. All of them use filters to tint, blur, colorize or manipulate images in other ways. The one I like most is Tiffen’s fx. I find these apps entertaining and creatively interesting. I’ve used some of them in blogs.
I use Han’s AtHome Video to stream videos stored on my PC to my iPhone and I use AtHome Camera when I want to stream video from my Webcam. Both work over Wi-Fi, so I can be anywhere. If a burglar broke into my house, I suppose I might see him and alert the police, although I doubt that will ever happen. Meanwhile, it’s fun to play with.
I listen to music with Pandora Music. As far as I’m concerned, it’s the best Internet radio app available.
My most-often used graphics app is Sprang’s Brushes. I use it for diagramming and note-taking, mainly. I’m a poor man’s idea of an illustrator and I like pushing Brushes to see what develops. I can save my images online too. I draw using Ten One Design’s Pogo Stick stylus, It was $20, which is over priced, but I can’t draw otherwise.
Entertainment
Games that I’ve looked at recently you might like:
- IconFactory Frenzic (puzzle)
- Cobra Mobile Low Grav Racer (racer)
- Pangea Engimo (build Rube Goldberg-style machines)
- C3 Software ATC 4.0 (air traffic control)
- Blimp Pilots Distant Shore (social networking)
- Namco Time Crisis Strike (shooter)
- Munkey Fun Shift (puzzle)
- Mobigame Edge (puzzle)
