Camera+ Reaches Over 78,000 Sales on Christmas Day Alone

[firewood]

I'm actually more curious about how 'non-blockbuster' apps do in the store revenue-wise than the well-known super-success stories (i.e. if it's a worthwhile pursuit even if Apple doesn't find/promote you).

For non-blockbuster, non-featured, non-top-100 apps, the word going around is that if you get an app in the top 20% but not in the top 10%, you will currently make in a very wide neighborhood of $10 a day for that 1 app (seems small, but that adds up to over 3 grand per year if the app keeps selling).

Above the top 10% level, an app starts bringing in exponentially more than $10, all the way to blockbuster millions. Below the top 20% an app quickly trails off to few to none downloads per day. I doubt that the average (median or 50th percentile) app sells at all on any given day. So if you aren't planning on creating and marketing a clearly above average app, don't bother.

*** Note to iOS Developers: I have some regression curves plotted for estimating sales vs. popularity, but they need more current data points in more categories. Private message me, and we can exchange confidential data points for curve plots.

 

[SilentLoner]

For non-blockbuster, non-featured, non-top-100 apps, the word going around is that if you get an app in the top 20% but not in the top 10%, you will currently make in a very wide neighborhood of $10 a day for that 1 app (seems small, but that adds up to over 3 grand per year if the app keeps selling).

Above the top 10% level, an app starts bringing in exponentially more than $10, all the way to blockbuster millions. Below the top 20% an app quickly trails off to few to none downloads per day. I doubt that the average (median or 50th percentile) app sells at all on any given day. So if you aren't planning on creating and marketing a clearly above average app, don't bother.

*** Note to iOS Developers: I have some regression curves plotted for estimating sales vs. popularity, but they need more current data points in more categories. Private message me, and we can exchange confidential data points



for curve plots.

Still for a relatively new revenue stream it's pretty decent considering you can still be in school and do this ****.

 

[PatrickCocoa]

Graph Scales?

I had to comment on the bizarre scales used in the graph:
1. Why not start at zero?
2. 5,898 / 25,160 / 44,421 / 63,683 / 82,944 Really?

It offends my delicate sensibility. The visual display of quantitative information should be beautiful, or at least not ugly and freakish.

 

[firewood]

is that an app that is used to see those stats?

There is at least one app, available only to iOS developers, that lets each developer track their own apps, after logging in. (It's confidential information, so each dev can only see their own apps, no others.)

 

[Bevz]

Good grief! That's some serious sales figures!

 

[Full of Win]

IMO, there is markets for both. This is not the land of PCs where purchase decisions made by inane office managers.

Apple has a strong following and the vast majority of their users want to stay in the garden letting letting Mother Hen Apple watch out for them. There are also those that want to run the wild side and recompile their Linux kernel on their patched FrankenDriod as they ride down The Five to LA at 80 MPH.

If anything, the worst is being lukewarm trying to cater to both crowds -- that's exactly what's RIM doing. Do a long term short sell on RIM stock and it will be a very nice 2012 for you IMO.

I just don't think having the option to remap a function to a hardware button is all that wild and crazy. I'm pretty sure most users can handle such a change, from volume to shutter actuation, while an app is running.

Perhaps Apple thinks most iOS users are like this moron in which case they have to protect us from such radical changes.



The marketplace is deciding now, and based on the latest sales numbers, it says that Android is the superior model.

 

[tdream]

That's a nice chunk of change.

 

[dolphin842]

For non-blockbuster, non-featured, non-top-100 apps, the word going around is that if you get an app in the top 20% but not in the top 10%, you will currently make in a very wide neighborhood of $10 a day for that 1 app (seems small, but that adds up to over 3 grand per year if the app keeps selling).

Above the top 10% level, an app starts bringing in exponentially more than $10, all the way to blockbuster millions. Below the top 20% an app quickly trails off to few to none downloads per day. I doubt that the average (median or 50th percentile) app sells at all on any given day. So if you aren't planning on creating and marketing a clearly above average app, don't bother.

Thanks for that info Firewood... and good advice too about making quality apps as that seems to reflect Apple's recent guidance as well.

Still for a relatively new revenue stream it's pretty decent considering you can still be in school and do this ****.

Yeah, especially given the general state of the economy. Based on the latest stats, many young people (in-school or recent grads) are still having trouble finding even entry-level positions and internships. Being able to make a few bucks if you know how to program is certainly a fortuitous occurrence.

 

[santaliqueur]

I had to comment on the bizarre scales used in the graph:
1. Why not start at zero?
2. 5,898 / 25,160 / 44,421 / 63,683 / 82,944 Really?

It offends my delicate sensibility. The visual display of quantitative information should be beautiful, or at least not ugly and freakish.

Had you never thought that the least/most the app sold in a day was 5898 and 82944? It makes more sense than any other scale you can dream up.

 

[ksgant]

You are wrong, pro camera was the first with white balance exposure control.

Also camera+ really dropped the ball with camera+, when not inclduing video in their app. Pro camera after the 3.0 update, is so much better. Shame the inferior apps get the most attention.

And ye its kind ridicolous how much macrumors are writing of tap tap and their apps

Have both apps. Pro Camera isn't used at all now that I have Camera+ back. Just a better all around camera application. Doesn't do video? Okay. I use it as a still-camera app. The great thing about the iPhone, it allows different applications to do different things. Would rather an app concentrate on doing something great instead of having way too many features. But that's just me, others like a swiss-army-knife approach to apps.

And this does warrant a story here because of how it got pulled in the first place...being a popular application and all. You don't like the app, so therefore no one should talk about it or write about it? I don't understand.

 

[giosaccone]

It's fantastic!

 

[Let's Sekuhara!]

I don't understand why this app is even useful. Is it really so hard to tap the screen when taking a photo?
Somebody please fill me in.
Also the GUI doesn't add any functionality it seems, just reduces your viewing room. Ridiculous.

How about an HDR app that is as good as Apple's but works on iOS 4.0 for those of us who don't update for obvious reasons... that would be nice.

 

[twoodcc]

good for them. yeah it seems more and more people are downloading more apps. i wish there was an app download counter

 

[PurrBall]

I don't understand why this app is even useful. Is it really so hard to tap the screen when taking a photo?
Somebody please fill me in.
Also the GUI doesn't add any functionality it seems, just reduces your viewing room. Ridiculous.

How about an HDR app that is as good as Apple's but works on iOS 4.0 for those of us who don't update for obvious reasons... that would be nice.

Clearly you haven't used the app. Check out its description on the App Store and you'll see why it's an amazing app

 

[*LTD*]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Mobile/8C148)

They could I've achieved a lot more had they not been stupid.

Then again, pulling the app (thus choking the supply to create more demand) might have been the best thing for them.

 

[pr5owner]

whaaaaaaaaaat? i thought apple's camera app was "good enough" and all the features other smartphones have are null

 

[jon08]

It's a good app, but I don't understand why they didn't add the recording option....

 

[vivithemage]

wish I knew how to make apps, LOL

 

[CFreymarc]

I just don't think having the option to remap a function to a hardware button is all that wild and crazy. I'm pretty sure most users can handle such a change, from volume to shutter actuation, while an app is running.

Perhaps Apple thinks most iOS users are like this moron in which case they have to protect us from such radical changes.

The marketplace is deciding now, and based on the latest sales numbers, it says that Android is the superior model.

Then why are you here?

 

[phassat]

whaaaaaaaaaat? i thought apple's camera app was "good enough" and all the features other smartphones have are null

If you have tried the app then you'll know why is it better than the native apple camera app...

I love the stabilizer and it can choose exposure after focus lock.... Love the filters as well.

 

[CFreymarc]

I just don't think having the option to remap a function to a hardware button is all that wild and crazy. I'm pretty sure most users can handle such a change, from volume to shutter actuation, while an app is running.

Perhaps Apple thinks most iOS users are like this moron in which case they have to protect us from such radical changes.



The marketplace is deciding now, and based on the latest sales numbers, it says that Android is the superior model.

To be successful in the iPhone app game, you need to think of the median iPhone user. That is ...

* 16 years of age
* female
* socially popular
* a parent of at least one child before the age of 25
* upper middle class to lower middle class family
* college bound
* attention time of 15 seconds at most to an app
* user duty cycle of about 25%

From that, remapping buttons creates confusion. Forget the geeknoids that never had a girlfriend, posts to 4chan and this board. They are not the real market.

 

[CFreymarc]

I just don't think having the option to remap a function to a hardware button is all that wild and crazy. I'm pretty sure most users can handle such a change, from volume to shutter actuation, while an app is running.

Perhaps Apple thinks most iOS users are like this moron in which case they have to protect us from such radical changes.

The marketplace is deciding now, and based on the latest sales numbers, it says that Android is the superior model.

You'd be surprised how idiot savant some Apple users are. They have money on their creativity and it is generational thing, not a fad thing.