App Store stays ahead of rapidly growing Google Play in Distimo’s year-end app analytics report

Analytics firm Distimo is out today with the full results of its year-end 2012 app analytics report (via Fortune). While Apple is still the clear winner in terms of revenue, Google Play showed significant growth in the last four months. Its daily revenue grew 43 percent in 20 major markets. Apple's growth was smaller, increasing daily revenue by 21 percent, but Distimo's numbers show Google still has a long way to go:

On a typical day in November 2012, the revenues in the Apple App Store exceeded $15M USD, while in Google Play the revenues are just below $3.5M USD in 20 of the largest countries in both app stores… Even though the growth in revenues in Google Play in the last four months is close to that of the Apple App Store in 2012, the growth in daily revenues in the Apple App Store was higher than the total daily revenues in Google Play when comparing absolute daily revenue values.

As for the most popular apps of 2012, Distimo said Asian publisher Naver was able to beat Draw Something's record of 1 million users in nine day. Its app, Line Pop, got 1.75 million downloads in the first 72 hours. That's something that took Facebook nine months to accomplish. The app also brought over 1 million in revenue for the developer in 12 days.

To round out the year in review, Distmo breaks down revenue by category in the charts below: the top 10 most grossing cross-store publishers, the top 10 publishers and apps by downloads on the App Store, and the top five highest growing countries by revenue. There aren't many surprises:

Top publisher cross-store = EA

Top publisher in App Store = Apple

Top app = Instagram

Distimo also shared some stats on the top five highest growing countries in terms of daily revenue on the App Store (and Google Play). Some of these countries just received the iPhone 5 in 2012, such as Russia, which saw App Store revenues grow significantly because of it. The chart below breaks down the countries separately for iPhone and iPad apps:

You can view the full Distimo report here.

 

Apple Releases iOS 6.0.2 Software Update for iPhone 5 and iPad Mini, Fixes Wi-Fi Bug

Apple has released an iOS update for the iPhone 5 and iPad mini, bringing the iOS version for those devices up to 6.0.2. The release notes for the iPhone note only that an unnamed Wi-Fi bug has been fixed.

There have been a number of complaints related to malfunctioning Wi-Fi connections on the iPhone 5, so this could be a welcome update for many users.

iOS 6.0.2 Software Update

This update contains improvements and bug fixes, including:

• Fixes a bug that could impact Wi-Fi

For information on the security content of this update, please visit this website:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1222

iOS 6.0.1 was released on November 1, with the fourth beta of iOS 6.1 released just yesterday.

Update: Many users are reporting difficulties downloading iOS 6.0.2, with attempts at over-the-air updates simply yielding errors. Users updating through iTunes appear to be having more success, although even then it may take several attempts.

Math App MyScript Calculator Available for iOS, Accepts Handwritten Input [iOS Blog]

MyScript Calculator from Vision Objects has been available on Android devices for several months now, but as of today, the math app that lets users handwrite mathematical expressions is available for iPhone and iPad as well (via Mac4Ever).

Instead of typing equations into the app, MyScript Calculator accepts written input. Write out an equation with a finger or stylus and the app reads the handwriting. It will translate written work into numbers and digital text, and then solve the problem.

The whole process is quick, intuitive, and easy. It's perfect for small calculations or more complex mathematical equations, supporting the following operations:

-Basic operations: +, -, x, ÷, +/‒, 1/x
-Misc. Operations: %, √, x!, |x|
-Powers/Exponentials: ℯx, xy , x2
-Brackets: ( )
-Trigonometry: cos, sin, tan
-Inverse trigonometry: acos, asin, atan
-Logarithms: ln , log
-Constants: π, ℯ.

MyScript Calculator works with both the iPhone and the iPad, and it is a free download from the App Store. [Direct Link]