RIM Perks Up the BlackBerry App World
Overall, RIM’s mobile app presence is a laggard compared to Apple and Android. But when it comes to a web-based app portal, all three could use some improvements. Apple is only recently making improvements for web-based app management outside of iTunes and Steve Jobs yesterday announced that the App Store will be available on new MacBooks.
To improve App World’s standing in the competition, RIM released a new a feature to their web portal, in the form of a tiny browser plug-in designed for direct purchasing. To purchase and download applications, simply plug the phone to the computer via USB. Now that’s a lot more handy than forwarding links to your phone, but perhaps not as simple as scanning a QR code on your computer screen.
Android’s desktop web browser features QR ccodes, which RIM in fact already have, and has no web-based app management tools at all, plus a horrible web portal. Nokia’s OVI store is a lot more organized, but unlike the App World, it does not offer QR codes or shopping by browser feature.
In related RIM news, LinkedIn’s BlackBerry app has recently been updated for OS6. RIM’s CEO also had a few choice words for Steve Jobs when it came to mobile platforms.
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