Smartphone users gobbling up game apps

Americans are increasingly stuffing their smartphones with apps, with games leading the way and productivity apps in the middle of the pack.

According to the latest Nielsen Company Apps Playbook survey of more than 4,000 people, 61% of smartphone owners reported using games within the past 30 days and 52% of feature phone owners said they did.

The average number of apps on smartphones rose from 22 in December to 27 in August, with the average number increasing from 37 to 40 on iPhones, from 22 to 25 on Androids and from 10 to 14 on BlackBerries (Nielsen didn’t break out Windows Mobile apps). Good news for the iPhone users is that Apple has just promised to make it easier for its App Store developers to understand its mobile app approval process. 

Don’t Miss: 22 Best Android apps slideshow 

After games, weather apps are the next most popular apps, followed by maps/search, social networking, music, news and entertainment. Productivity apps rank 11th.

The most popular single app on iPhones and BlackBerry smartphones is Facebook, and it is the second most popular on Android phones after Google Maps. Google Maps is also one of the top 5 most popular apps on iPhones and BlackBerries. Pandora, Twitter and the Weather Channel are among others consistently in the top 5.

The iPod Touch actually leads all devices in app downloads, according to the survey.

Follow Bob Brown on Twitter at www.twitter.com/alphadoggs

Read more about anti-malware in Network World's Anti-malware section.

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