Yes, that's sarcasm in the title. Here's the latest: over 85,000 iPhone apps available, 10,000 apps for Android devices, 80 for Palm, and who knows how many for BlackBerry (update: someone heard me, it's 2,500 apps). As of right now, there isn't a Brands category in any of these app stores and I don't foresee that ever happening (wouldn't really make sense anyway). As more big brands release mobile apps, it's becoming harder to keep track of who is doing what.

So I created a Google spreadsheet to try and organize all these apps in one place. I've decided to only focus on the iPhone for now, but should be moving on to the rest soon if there is interest. I'm also probably missing a lot of apps right now but this will, of course, be an ongoing (and hopefully collaborative) effort.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE GOOGLE SPREADSHEET

Some trends

1. Out of the 200+ apps listed so far, only about 15 have an average rating of 4 stars or better
2. AndroLib shows 64% of all Android apps are rated 4 stars or better. Are branded apps in general worse or just on the iPhone? As soon as I build the Android list, we should have a better idea
3. In general, it's pretty obvious the total number of ratings should be a good indicator of the apps overall popularity (not downloads)
4. The biggest category by far is Lifestyle, News being the second
5. Brands are consistently improving apps because I rarely noticed an average overall rating that was lower than the latest version's rating
6. Not surprisingly, free dominates branded apps (about 90%)
7. Top 5 most rated apps: Facebook, Zippo, Barclaycard, Weather Channel, and Google

Update: Steve Smith from MediaPost's Mobile Insider wrote a great article titled Your Brand App Hit Parade that references my spreadsheet. Make sure to check it out if you didn't come from there. Please let me know what branded apps are missing by using this form or send me a reply on Twitter @jsmakr with the brand/app name.

This iPhone app from Absolut is very impressive. Drinkspiration was obviously carefully planned to try and take over the already crowded category of drink recommendation apps (most of which aren't even free). It was developed by a Swedish agency by the name of Great Works. Before you read further, watch the demo video if you haven't yet: Download it here (iTunes link). I personally paid for a few similar apps a while back and have since removed them because I found them confusing and they really didn't help me easily answer the big question, "What is a new drink I can order or make instead of the usual?" I'm pretty sure almost anybody that drinks and who isn't a bartender has this problem. Drinkspiration does a better job at helping you answer that question and at the same time it went above and beyond by adding several other social and location-based features which really sets it apart. The number one complaint we've been seeing lately from developers is the challenge of app exposure now that it's very crowded in every category. Until there are changes made, the most obvious answer to that question is to create something worthwhile for the user with unique features that are worth talking about. Of course that's easier said than done.

What Drinkspiration does right...

1. Useful functionality

This app solves that common problem among drinkers in several different ways. Some features also leverage the iPhone's built-in GPS and other available API's. The different options that are presented allow you to get drink suggestions based on things like your location, desired taste/color of the drink, the time of day, the weather, liquor type, glass type, and even the type of bar vibe. They also included two other unique options: see what other people are ordering in real-time across the world (I am 99% sure they got this idea from the popular Ocarina app but there is no harm in that) & recommend a drink by background volume (my favorite one that worked well when I tested it).

2. Well designed user interface

A must IMO for any iPhone app to be taken seriously.

3. Social network optimized

Linking to Twitter and Facebook worked as expected (except it got my location wrong but I don't think that's Absolut's fault). One small change I would make: the Facebook status should also be updated so it says "I just had an Old Vic" like it does on Twitter or else your friends will be probably be confused. I do like how they link all updates to absolutdrinks.com, the online version of the app where you can search, browse, and find more tips on how to mix the drinks. If only they would have figured out a way to hook up with the already popular Foursquare app, that would have put the app over the top.

4. Good app name

Drinking + finding the inspiration to try something new = Drinkspiration.

5. Free download

There might be a few other exceptions but for the most part, people won't bother paying for a clearly branded app. One of the exceptions might be paying for subscription based apps from magazines or newspapers that will have frequently updated content (and most likely replace a paper subscription).

Other Thoughts

Some of the early reviews for Drinkspiration on iTunes aren't so great but it looks like they are mainly from people who are pointing out some of the bugs that Absolut will likely fix with future versions. I did notice it crashed on me a few times but that's usually the case with a lot of the new and complex apps I try these days. Besides the iTunes store, the mentions on Twitter for Drinkspiration have been very good. I imagine that Absolut will create the same app for Android, Palm and maybe even BlackBerry sometime in the near future (Update: already plans to release an Android version as this article points out). They created an app that people will likely show off to friends at the bar which will lead to more downloads. There is a huge opportunity for a major beer company to create something similar for the beer category. I'm also wondering since Bluetooth enabled accessories will be a huge part of the iPhone market very soon if it would be possible for Absolut to develop an iPhone breathalyzer which would allow you to blow into it and display your blood alcohol level within the app. Let me know your thoughts on this or any other recent examples of branded apps which you thought were well-done. Some others that come to mind right now are Dunkin Donut's Dunkin Run, Oakley's Surf Report, Charmin's sponsored SitorSquat and Kraft's iFood.

How are they changing the Web? The obvious is iPhone apps are increasingly allowing people to access online content during times when they didn't have access to it before, therefore continuing to speed up the rate of information sharing. Where apps are having trouble is keeping the users interested after a few uses or a short trial period. Social networking apps like the ones for Twitter and Facebook don't have this problem because they are allowing people who are connected on the web to continue their relationships away from their computers. The rising popularity of iPhone apps with location-based capabilities (and soon to come the iPhone version of Google Latitude) are creating useful ways for people to access relevant data about events, businesses, and even people that are nearby. How are they being used by brands? The smart brands are the ones that have already thought of ways to connect with a large base of current iPhone users (Kraft, Obama, Audi, to name a few). Most other major brands are most likely in the process of or just starting to think about developing an iPhone app because of the successes they are continuing to hear about. But only a select few out of the rapidly growing database of 20,000+ apps with be successful because they will either be really useful, linked to a well-liked brand, or very creative. Of course the longer it takes for the app to be released, the smaller the chance of it being successful. It's worthwhile to note that companies like Remember the Milk, Salesforce, Mint.com are creating iPhone apps to supplement their web services as an added benefit to offer to their customers. Some of the most impressive apps aren't just displaying content in a mobile-friendly manner, but also paying very close attention to creating a sleek user interface and coming up with unique ways to engage people using the iPhone's features. What about publishers? They need to recognize that besides an electronic reading device like the Kindle, people are already browsing their content frequently on the iPhone (and most likely not having the best experience if nothing has been developed for them). Even though it will take time, the iPhone will be a big advertising platform for publishers in the future. Besides newspapers, I think most major magazines will have iPhone apps soon. What they will need to figure out is a revenue model that makes sense because as of now the app store does not allow publishers the freedom of charging readers a recurring monthly fee to subscribe to the latest content downloads. The first successful magazine app will owe a lot of it's success from free PR and it looks like Lucky Magazine and People Magazine are very close to launching. Update: Apple has announced that the 3.0 software update will allow subscription based purchases to be made within the app. Great news for publishers. How are they affecting the gaming industry? The cost of the app plays a huge factor, but not as much as you might think. We are starting to see more findings that indicate increases in spending for apps on mobile devices. People are willing to spend $5-$10 on good game because it's an inexpensive alternative when compared to most video games that cost over $40. It's only a matter of time before more games that offer online play gain in popularity just as we saw happen for all the major gaming consoles over the past couple of years and the classis example of the iPhone game Tap Tap Revenge. While no one is sure yet if increasing sales of iPhone games are damaging the sales of the major players, it doesn't take a genius to realize that the iPhone's popularity is already hurting the sales of other handheld gaming devices. Some further reading: 8 reasons for building an iPhone Web application, Mobile ROI: You get what you pay for, and Apple iPhone controls over 66% of all mobile web use.

It's been approximately a year and 3 months since the iPhone was released here in the U.S. During that time, there has been lot's of hype for competitor phones like the LG Voyager and the Samsung Instinct, but that's all it was, hype. How many people have you seen carrying one of those phones today? Pretty soon, we will have two new contestants on the market... The BlackBerry Storm is looking great and I like the sounds of the T-Mobile G1 running Android but both have major weaknesses. It's too bad we can't combine the strengths from both and make what I think would be the first real iPhone competitor to put out Apple's fire. The iPhone is far from perfect, but I don't think anyone else has yet been able to offer a package close enough to really compete. Things I like about the BlackBerry Storm: great design, large screen, Verizon network, and 3MP camera. Major flaws: no multi-touch, no application store (Update: Looks like there is plans for a BlackBerry marketplace which is great), won't be easy to store/play music and videos. It's not that there is anything wrong with the BlackBerry OS (I would take it over Windows Mobile any day), but they still have not announced any plans to offer an open marketplace for third party apps. It will be more difficult since BlackBerry offers their devices on several carriers, but they need to do whatever they can to figure out a similar app solution quickly. It took them a while, but Google will soon have their own app market with some amazing apps like ShopSavvy, which will allow people to scan bar codes and compare product pricing information from their phones. BlackBerry has always been very successful at targeting business users. The problem is the iPhone now handles the business functions BlackBerry users need while also providing the storage and features to playback hours of music and video, something BlackBerry needs to start doing. They may not have cared about this when they first started, but they need to suck it up and realize their market share will continue to get smaller if they don't. Otherwise, Blackberry clearly stepped up their game for the Storm. Everything from the teaser website to the flyer I got the other day in the mail is well done and actually has me looking forward to being able to play around with it. The fact that it will be available on a more reliable network is a major plus. Things I like about the T-mobile G1: open source marketplace, free apps, and the ability to run multiple apps at once. Major flaws: no desktop syncing app, no multi-touch, no internal storage for media playback, and no headphone jack. This device looks like it was designed by geeks for geeks. The hardware design and user interface (from the pictures I've seen) is where it's definitely lacking a polished look. An Ex-Google Product Manager even came out and said the design didn't change in the 2.5 years it took to release the phone. With a $180 price tag, many people are quick to automatically assume that cheaper will equal more sales, but I disagree. I don't think I need to go into detail here, just think about why any high end brand does well. Most people just want a nice looking phone with cool functions and they will pay more if need be. I attended an iPhone vs. Android iBreakfast event the other day and the general response was positive on how the mobile industry in general is advancing. Allowing developers to be creative has really begun changing the way people are using their mobile phone for things like travel, social networking, and commerce. You can watch the full T-Mobile G1 press event here, which will also give you a very good idea of what Android is about. Also, many more great examples of apps can be found here. It will be interesting to see how Android evolves on other handsets around the world and if more manufacturers will jump on board to support Google. If that happens, will Symbian and Palm just disappear? Other Thoughts It's important to remember that when Apple announced the iPhone, they started a wave of innovation that has had a huge impact not just on the mobile industry, but also the marketing and advertising industries. Although there is not enough solid data yet, the responses we are starting to see and hear about from the brands and developers who have gotten on the iPhone early have been better than expected. One developer even made $250,000 in just two months from selling a simple game. Who could have ever predicted that? I still recall being on the phone with the Verizon rep about a year ago while he was trying to convince me to stay with Verizon and consider the LG Voyager that wasn't even available yet! I was still locked into a 2 year contract with Verizon at the time, but because I already had my mind set on the iPhone, I did what I needed to do to get out of that contract. If either the Storm of the G1 were as compelling, I would do the same. I'd love to see just how many people left other carriers to get the iPhone. Now more than ever, I see the full benefit of why Apple keeps their product release details under strict secrecy and I think it really paid off for them more than ever with the iPhone. They gained a huge advantage in the smartphone market here in the U.S. How long do you think it will take before their fire is put out, if ever?