Sidwyn has recently launched his own startup, aiming to impart more of his knowledge and experience of building iPhone apps to anyone who’s in Singapore. So if you’re interested to pick up Objective-C and wants to learn from someone who’s really capable and inspiring, visit The Pragmatic Lab for more information now.

Google Analytics
Tracking iPhone apps is actually very similar to tracking websites using Google Analytics. You attach an event to a button action or a page, and it will be logged down by GA. However, there are some things that GA cannot track, and that is the number of Sales and Upgrades the app has, and from which iTunes Store it was bought from.

iTunes Connect
Although iTunes Connect do provide info like number of sales and upgrades, it does so in a very un-intuitive interface and webapp that sometimes hangs. In short, it’s a torture trying to get something simple from the app. It didn’t take me long to go looking for an alternative, which I found eventually – AppViz.

AppViz
Where iTunes Connect failed, AppViz succeeded to some extent. Using the app, developers can easily retrieve total sales, upgrades and revenue from an iPhone App. All you need to do is put in your iTunes Connect login info, and retrieve the latest data from within the app.

A few months after having purchased AppViz, IdeaSwarm released AppViz 2. Customers who bought AppViz 1 were given a discount coupon to get AppViz 2 at $24 off. AppViz 2 claims to have fixed and introduced new features that AppViz 1 was lacking in. However, having to shell out another $24 for an app which I bought to save me a bit more time with analytics reporting doesn’t sit well with me. I went in search for another app since a few months in the digital sphere nowadays could mean the births and deaths of a few hundred apps.

AppStar 2
The first app that I came up with was AppStar 2. An app that is very similar to AppViz and even allows importing of AppViz data. However the Lite version doesn’t feature automatic iTunes Connect syncing, meaning the developer will still have to depend on iTunes Connect to download the latest reports, then upload them into the app to make them into pretty graphs and stats. At $49.95 for the full version, it was an app that I would come to if I can’t find an alternative.

AppAnnie
After looking at AppStar 2 Lite, I found a reference to a webapp that claims to do everything AppViz and AppStar do – but is free for now during it’s Open Beta. The illustration on the website gave me some doubt at first, but AppAnnie is actually the best app out now that does everything I ever wanted for App Store statistics.

After signing up for an account, all you need to do is enter your iTunes Connect login info and AppAnnie will set out to retrieve the latest reports and data from Apple. Reviews are retrieved on a daily basis and would require up to 24 hours to be in AppAnnie. Statistics are displayed with pretty line graphs with the ability to look at details like:

• App Details
• Sales
• Countries
• Daily Ranks
• Rank History
• Features
• Events
• Reviews

AppAnnie will also send an email with a daily report of your iPhone app. What really seperates AppAnnie from the competition though, is the Store Stats features. With Store Stats, developers can view what apps are doing well in a specific country, with options to filter the results by in-app purchases, categories and more.

Distimo Monitor
Thanks Tjimen, for letting me know about this nice little free app. The thing about Distimo that is unique is the ability to pull stats from app stores other than the iPhone app store.

It’s a pretty app that has all the basic features that the other apps have. Setting up my iTunes account was fast and easy. However, the data it loads on first run seem to only from the latest week. A search to see if it can pull data since the app launch proved futile. The app is free and will stay that way forever! Give it a try!

Some unique features that Distimo has over its competitors is the ability to add competitors to your app and compare your app against theirs. This is something very useful if you have a KPI to achieve and will keep your team motivated to churn out updates and new features to better your app.

Tjimen was also kind enough to provide the following features that Distimo provides:

• Distimo Monitor tracks Downloads, Revenue, Rankings, Events, Ratings
  and (translated) Reviews.
• Aggregate or break down by appstore, app, country, device or region.
• View your charts by day, week, month.
• Stack your line or column charts.
• All these parameters can be accessed quickly by saving it as view.
• Track your competitors ranks by day and see who is winning with the
  Command and Conquer world map.
• Importing old Apple reports is supported.
• Exporting all your data is supported.

This is an article that I wrote with my personal experience and the order at which the apps appear are in order of when I tested the apps. Do you know any other apps that does the same but better? Do share in the comments!

Definition
http://itunes.apple.com/sg/app/definition/id398934629?mt=8
Developed by Sidwyn Koh, now 19, this convenient app lets you quickly look up any word in your iPhone’s clipboard. The app looks good too.

F&N Great Shake Up
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/f-n-shake-up/id420699663
Developed by Kinetic Singapore for F&N, this app lets you train your biceps by challenging you to shake as fast as you can and “pop” as many F&N cans as possible within a certain time limit. Great for parties as you pass the phone around and challenge your friends to beat your score!

WheresApp
http://itunes.apple.com/sg/app/wheresapp-sg/id421363014?mt=8
A clone of WhatsApp, but with more features. This one lets you look at traffic cameras in Singapore so you can avoid traffic jams.

Singapore Flights
http://itunes.apple.com/sg/app/singapore-flights/id420867894?mt=8
Very convenient app for those looking to travel. Check arrivals/departures timings.

ShowTimezz
http://itunes.apple.com/sg/app/showtimezz-singapore/id416536728?mt=8
I’m not sure why there’re 2 Zs behind the app name, maybe the creators sleep during movies? Anyway this app lets you check movie timings.

ComfortDelgro Taxi Booking
http://itunes.apple.com/sg/app/comfortdelgro-taxi-booking/id349091682?mt=8
And lastly, this very useful app which I’ve been using to get cabs.

Sencha
Supports mainly iOS and Android devices
License: US$99 for a single developer
Probably has the best documentation and supports touch gestures and more. The default UIs are very similar to what you find on Apple devices. Deploys as WebApp.

jQueryMobile
Supports iPhone/iTouch, iPad, Google Android, Palm, Symbian and Blackberry
License: Unknown
An upcoming framework to recreate UIs for mobile platforms. This will definitely make waves when it is released. Deploys as WebApp.

jQTouch
Supports iPhone and devices that uses browsers that support WebKit
License: MIT Licensed
One of the more popular frameworks. jQTouch has been around for some time and has a substantial fanbase. Documentation is good, and Peepcode has even created a screencast($9) and cheatsheet to get people started. Deploys as WebApp.

DHTMLX Touch
Supports iPhone and devices that uses browsers that support WebKit
License: GNU GPL and Commercial License
Thanks to Paul for bringing this to my attention. DHTMLX Touch is a free HTML5-based JavaScript library for building cross-platform mobile web apps. It’s not just a set of UI widgets, but a complete framework that allows you to create eye-catching, robust web applications for mobile and touch devices.

iUI
Supports iPhone and comparable/compatible devices.
License: Open Source
This is quite a basic framework that supplies users with iPhone like user interfaces. Picking it up might be hard though as there are hardly any documentation or articles on getting started. Deploys as WebApp.

WebApp.Net
Supports iPhone and comparable/compatible devices.
License: Free to use

SproutCore
Supports iPhone and comparable/compatible devices.
License: Unknown
Serves as a plugin to Ruby I think. Sorry I can’t give more info as I do not know Ruby.

Cappuccino
Supports iPhone and comparable/compatible devices.
License: LGPL
This is more than a mobile framework. Cappuccino is used to power applications that sits in a browser. If you’ve tried the popular wireframing tool: MockingBird, you should know how much it feels like a native desktop app. A special mention as it does allow you to create some wonderful mobile apps, if you want to.

Tools
iPhone Web Simulator
Adobe Dreamweaver CS5 HTML5 add-on
The Great Webkit Comparison Table

Credits:
Adrian Kosmaczewski’s excellent slides on SlideShare about Mobile Frameworks

If you think there is a mobile framework that deserves to be on this list, and would be helpful to would be mobile app developers, feel free to leave a comment below.

I’ve just got my iPhone recently, and have been looking around for free apps to install.

Being a Singaporean, the first thing I wanted to do was sift out, from the thousands of US-centric apps, apps that were tuned for the local community.

So here’s the post, and feel free to post in the comments if you know of an app I don’t!

1. SG Buses

   SG Buses is a bus guide for Singapore iPhone/iPod Touch users. SG Buses contains information on:

   - bus routes
   - schedules of first and last buses
   - bus stop numbers (for use with IRIS)

   With SG Buses, you can browse or search for information of a particular bus, or search for all the buses available at a particular bus stop or road.

   

2. SG Malls

   *** WE HAVE ION ORCHARD & ORCHARD CENTRAL ***

   Ever got lost in a mall? Wondering where that Food court, Levis store or MacDonalds was? We have certainly have and that is why we created SG Malls.

   SG Malls is an iPhone application that helps you navigate in increasingly large and horribly layout malls.

   It includes
   · Over 100 Malls in Singapore

   · Location Sensing of which mall you are in

   · A store directory that is searchable by name or catergory of the store

   · A map of the mall so you can easily find your way to a store

   

3. SG Sales

   Bring your Shopping Sales information with you everywhere you go! With SG Sales, you can easily find sales in Singapore.

   From all the price-saving deals offered during the Great Singapore Sale to the myriad of sales from season to season, we bring to you all that you need to know across brands and in different malls.

   A great companion to your wallet, this mobile app will help stretch your money’s worth each time you shop.

   

4. SG Wireless

   SG Wireless automatically logs on to hotspots such as Wireless@SG. The app will remember your hotspot provider, username and password. Each time you start SG Wireless, the app will immediately logs on to the connected hotspot! One click is all you need to get connected!

   Once you are logged in successfully, you may exit SG Wireless and enjoy using the Wi-Fi.

   Similar to AutoWiFi, Easy Wi-Fi, WiFi, devicescape.

   

5. Straits Times

   About The Straits Times

   The Straits Times is one of the region’s oldest English-language daily newspapers. It is the flagship publication of the publicly-listed Singapore Press Holdings group.

   First published on July 15, 1845, The Straits Times is the most widely read newspaper in Singapore. The Sunday Times, which is produced by the same team of journalists, has a circulation of nearly 400,000 and a readership of 1.23 million.

   

6. iToday

   iTODAY is the mobile version of Singapore’s most widely read compact newspaper, TODAY. Launched in November 2000, TODAY has a readership of 698,000 readers. The newspaper has established a reputation for sharply angled news reports and thought-provoking analyses and commentaries, living up to its slogan “We set you thinking”.

   With iTODAY, mobile phone users will be able to read TODAY’s news, features and commentaries on the go, anytime, anywhere.

   

7. Locacity SG

   “Locacity SG” is an application that allows you to find nearby points of interest (POI), such as ATM machines, 7-Eleven stores, petrol stations etc. It’s super intuitive and simple to use. All your settings are saved automatically and search is always 1 touch away.

   Do note this is the Singapore edition and includes the following points of interest:

   1. 400+ 7-Eleven stores
   2. 500+ AXS stations
   3. 600+ DBS/POSB ATM machines
   4. 20+ Hospitals…

   

8. HungryGoWhere

   Hungry and not sure where to feed the urge? Already the #1 Food resource on the web, HungryGoWhere is bringing calorie saving information to you by going mobile. Search for different types of restaurants than read reviews from diners like yourself so you’ll know what to try before you order.

   The HungryGoWhere iPhone app has been brought to you by GTW Holdings in collaboration with the great guys at Xsago Pte Ltd.

   Features

   * detailed information of over 6,000 Singapore F&B establishments (more cities to follow)
   * location based searching of Nearby F&B establishments
   over 20,000 reviews from real diners
   * Bookmark integration with your HungryGoWhere account so you always have the contact information of your favourite restaurants
   * Maps, Photos, Directions and much more …

   

Enjoy your iPhone people!

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