So at the end of the day, who has the best ROI (return on investment): iOS from Apple or Android from Google? It’s a tough call, iOS more popular in North America while Android is king in Europe. Well to give you a better insight, check out the handy infographic below.

iOS is a very popular platform and hence its updates for its apps are bound to be followed through by millions of dedicated iPhone and iPad users. But sometimes it seems that updates become open to vulnerabilities and security flaws. Despite the fact that iOS is generally hailed as the safest existing OS it is still susceptible to problems such as malware and iPhone spyware.  We have already seen this happen in the past with all platforms, and Apple Corp hasn’t been blemish free either.

The latest story involving iOS and malware issues occurred with the Kindle app. Amazon issued a warning statement some time back regarding some problematic occurrences with Kindle. The latest update for Kindle was officially released but an error popped up with this new version and users had to be told to refrain from absentmindedly installing the update. The reported issues with it were that the new version was responsible for causing issues with user’s library collections. In some cases entire collections of books were wiped out.

Following the awareness of this hitch in the app, Amazon promptly released a note that warned App Store users not to install the update at the moment. Till here things seemed fine and dandy but taking a look back we realize that the update was actually a “fix” in itself that Amazon was pushing in order to sort out some problems with user registrations. It seems it flew off a heck of a tangent if it ended up affecting user libraries instead. Problems occur with all software and as already mentioned the iOS platform is not untouchable but admittedly this was a major flaw. A fix for registration issues deleting entire libraries spells more than just some minor glitches.

The registration issues were perhaps a result of earlier updates that were made available about a month ago. Amazon added multi-colored bookmarks, the option of sharing your reads on social media such as Twitter and Facebook like Kindle fire, and a review prompt option on completion of reads. It is possible that the registration issues resulted due to this update. The then fix resulted in library removal. And now Amazon says it has come up with a repair to undo the damage but it would most likely result in the users losing their registration. And then they would have to re-register themselves. Amazon has been putting a lot of updates out but these glitches, whether you consider them silly or not, minor or not, do raise questions of what developers are really focusing on.

The race to release apps and then to continually update them with added features and novel flairs is turning app development into a rat race. Everyone seems to be out and about to release as many updates and apps as possible. But this constant and hurried release of updates, and in this case for iOS, has users rethinking whether this spells out good or bad news. Just recently, Spotify has put out an update of its app for iOS which is being viewed somewhat apprehensively by the informed apple fan base. The interface is supposed to be revamped and the app is to run more smoothly, something that the Kindle update was also supposed to do too we should remember.

Editor’s Note

Thanks to Jessica Carol for this guest post. She is a prolific tech writer that concerns herself with smartphone technology and particularly how apps figure into daily usage. She writes analytical as well as news based opinion pieces for her readership. She blogs at MobiStealth and can be reached @jcarol429 or you can e-mail her by clicking here.

Gamelot has recently announced the launch and availability of Duo Gamer, a handheld game controller which allows users to experience ‘kick back’, console-style gaming on their iPad or TV via their iOS device. Duo Gamer is a Bluetooth-enabled wireless controller that allows gamers to play fast-paced console-style games on their iOS device, with the familiar controls of a handheld controller. Simply dock your iOS device in the handy Duo Gamer stand, connect wirelessly via Bluetooth, launch your favorite Gameloft game, and then game away using Duo Gamer. In addition, gamers can connect their iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch to a TV for an even more immersive gameplay experience.

“We’ve worked closely with Gameloft to ensure that Duo Gamer is optimized to the fullest extent for their rich, immersive game apps,” said Mike Sievert, CEO of Duo Games. “By providing gamers with the first and only console-style gamepad controller for iOS, we are giving them the ability to enjoy a ‘kick back’ experience while still harnessing the power and graphics capabilities that iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch offer. This will be a game-changer.”

Product features include:

• Dual analog thumb-sticks.
• Six buttons plus d-pad.
• Bluetooth connectivity.
• A handy stand for holding your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.

Duo Gamer works exclusively with a number of popular Gameloft titles currently including Asphalt 7: Heat, Order & Chaos Online, and N.O.V.A. 3 – Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance, with more to come soon. Duo Gamer is available now for $79.99 and can be found at Apple and Amazon.

So, really how big is iOS after all? Well, thanks to the folks over at Tap!, they’ve made a pretty handy infographic that you can see by clicking the image above.

[Tap!]

I’ll admit it, I’m a total news junkie. And to get my news on the go, I need a news reader app for my iPhone. Currently, my reader of choice is Streamified for iOS. Streamified incorporates a ton of awesome features such as a timeline style of reading news which allows you to view news as it’s posted throughout different times of the day. This app also offers more notable features which I will be going over below.

To start, Streamified‘s timeline feature is really handy when reading current event news blogs. The feature allows you to search news stories which are published thorough the day in chronological order. If you’re familiar with the upcoming social network Path, you’ll be used using the timeline feature right off the bat as they’re extremely similar in user interface as well as functionality.

Streamified also features stellar social networking integration. For instance, if you’re reading an interesting news article on Pocket Full of Apps and want to send it to your friends, you can post it to Facebook, Twitter and Path with a tap of a button. Streamified has a bunch of built-in news sources such as the New York Times, The Verge and Engadget, but you can add your own by linking your Google Reader account or by adding blogs manually.

Also, Streamified isn’t just for gathering news from your favorite sources. You can link your Pintrest, Instagram and other social networking accounts to view, comment and like photos and other content from your friends and family.

The last, and most awesome feature that Streamifiedboasts is that it integrates with “Read it later” types of services such as Pocket and Instapaper. This integration allows you to view your saved articles in your Streamified feed.

The only problem I’ve come across with using Streamified is the fact that the app can get slightly laggy when scrolling. For the record, I’m using Streamified on my iPhone 4S and new iPad, so this is highly unacceptable. Hopefully we’ll see a fix in a future update.

All in all, I think that Streamified is the perfect news reader for any social network addicted news fiend. Streamified is currently free in the App Store with premium features and an Android app coming in the future.

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