PositionApp

Last night saw the release into the AppStore of ustwo(tm)’s latest offering, PoitionApp(tm). Now There has been quite a bit of buzz generated by this app on Twitter so it was an instant download for me and here at Razorianfly we wanted to give you the lowdown straight away.

If you’re not familiar with ustwo (I’m going to dispense with typing tm after their products, please just take it as read) they are responsible for some of the hardest apps to find on the AppStore, namely, .tm, ..tm and …tm. PositionApp is a break from this line of addictive casual games, firstly, because you can actually search for it, and secondly, because it isn’t even a game.

According to ustwo, PositionApp “is the world’s most in-depth, intuitive app discovery and performance tracking tool available today”. Now, I don’t know about you but that’s a big claim, especially as there are already a number of app discovery apps available on the AppStore.

So what makes PositionApp so different from that which has come before it? Well, for one, it is powered by historic app store data and offers remote access to all chart positions for the top 300 apps in all categories, and their movement in all countries. Allowing you to instantly see what the biggest movers and shakers are in the AppStore today.

Upon loading the App you are greeted with the dashboard which shows the latest top movers in your countries AppStore, giving you an instant lowdown on the biggest movers at present. You also have the option of browsing through any store, and any genre to get the current top 300 free or paid apps along with any recent chart movement (white indicates it’s holding position, blue means new entry, green means it rising and red means that, alas, it’s slipping down the chart). Pressing on the info button in the top left brings up the AppStore description and price, from here you can mark an app as a Favourite or by pressing the price you can be redirected to the AppStore to purchase.

I found this means of browsing was in fact intuitive as claimed and I can already see this app getting daily use by me as I continue to try and distil the great apps from the downright mediocre. The interface is relatively simple, but perfectly suited to the iPhone and is generally a pleasure to navigate. Scrolling on my iPhone 3G seems a little jerky at times, but I don’t know if this is a device issue or an app issue, either way it really hasn’t put me off.

Perhaps, however, the bigger tool here is for the developers out there. As not only can you check out the charts, you can also search for any individual app to get it’s current position (providing it’s in the top 300 of its specific genre). By adding an app you your favourites list you can keep a track of it from your dashboard. For any developer who wants to get quick and easy access to the rise and fall of their apps this has to be the best way to do it.

By default, PositionApp will show you the movement over  the past week, but, if preferred you can switch to view the last 6 weeks or even 6 months. Found an interesting app? You can share this via email but not on Twitter or Facebook. I found this to be a little strange as almost every app these day’s seems to come with these abilities.

With over 100,000 apps in the AppStore and this number growing almost by the hour, the job of navigating is becoming harder by the day. Thankfully, with PositionApp, ustwo have given us exactly what we need, a great tool for any iPhone (iPod Touch owner) and a must have for any app appreciator or developer. Oh, and did I mention it’s currently Free?