Android App growth: 20,000 strong

Maybe the real battle in 2010 will be Android vs. OS/X. I keep wondering if Google will rebrand it as Mobile Chrome. Regardless, I’m glad Google is finally coming out with the gPhone and letting Andy Rubin go nuts.

The growth in Android apps sure is compelling (see above, taken from Mashable). Its all over the Web this week. 2010 is going to be an interesting year for the mobile market. On the one hand, we’ll have an open store for the Android, much like the early days of Atari (if you built it, they’d pretty much sell it). On the other, we have a closed iTunes store with quality control, like Nintendo. Atari lost that battle in the 80’s as the low quality of games hurt the brand image. Nintendo came out of the gate slower, but thrived on high quality. Will history repeat itself?

Both will prosper as brands will be eager to reach their customers, directly, twenty four hours a day, on the go. Apps will be everywhere, apps with real time information, geo location, gorgeous graphics and human-friendly interfaces with haptics and sensors galore. I look forward to writing software for both