The last decade has been a great time for consumer technologies. We have seen many new gadgets and gizmos, and been amazed as things get smaller, faster, smarter, thinner and lighter. From a software perspective, one of the most amazing transformations of the last decade was the “invention” of the mobile app.

Of course, “apps” have been around for quite some time, as simple lightweight pieces of software, but combined with new mobile technologies, the app has become a stand-alone product that can be created, marketed and distributed in an entirely new way.

How the iPhone Changed the App

Apps are not exceptionally powerful or unique compared to other software applications, but there are a few aspects that make them very unique and important to mobile devices. Specifically, their small size and relatively quick development time means that development costs are usually measured in tens-of-thousands of dollars, or often less, rather than in hundreds of thousands or millions, as would be the case for some traditional custom software.

The low cost is very appealing to many people because it means that you only need to sell a few thousand apps, or engage a few hundred customers, to recover your cost and then anything further becomes profit.

Even before the iPhone™, we did app development for Windows® Mobile and Windows CE, however those were basically small-scale enterprise applications, such as kiosk software or supply management systems.

In the past, the success of apps had largely been hindered by the inability to market and distribute them. However with Apple®’s iPhone, which strongly encouraged mobile application development, developers suddenly had a mainstream distribution channel, as well as financial incentive to invest in app creation. Although the iPhone was not the first app-capable platform, it was controlled, packaged, and tested properly to ensure a good environment for app development. This has made iPhone app development a premier option for many companies.

App Development

As more people have started creating apps, we’ve discovered many elements that make an app successful. Specifically, an app must:

Solve just a few problems, but solve them elegantly, rather than trying to do everything
Focus on the user experience
Be accessible to the target audience

The unique aspect of an app is that it is really about finding the most elegant solution to a single problem. Some apps can do a few things, some apps only do one thing, but the most successful apps prioritize function over features.

Compared to other popular software applications, these points become exceptionally unique. For example, imagine if Microsoft® Excel only did a few things, and had a minimal list of features. When it comes to apps, people’s expectations are different and consumers do not expect the same capabilities from a .99 app as we do from a 9 software application.

From a developer perspective, this is the beauty of the app, but also the challenge. It means that you are rewarded for high quality and intelligent programming, but you also must understand the app from a user’s perspective and make it as easy to use as possible.

Traditionally software developers like to focus on the best way for helping a computer solve challenging problems, so that they work quickly and efficiently without errors. But with app development, developers must also focus on how the user will use the app to solve a problem, and incorporate that into the design.  Apps are much more than an interface placed over good code, and it takes skill and experience to be able to design complex software that will hide that complexity from the user.

Smartphone operating systems, such as the iPhone OS and Android™ have incorporated many features that help enable a good user interface design. This includes helping to determine the difference between a tap, a swipe, a double tap and a long press, and well as interpreting multiple inputs such as “pinch to expand” and “squish.”

The Future

Over the next decade we may begin to lose the simplicity of the app, as smartphones become smarter and apps begin to do more and become full-fledged applications. Perhaps we will see more powerful productivity applications for smartphones and tablets, that will help turn them into content creation devices rather than primarily consumption devices. But even so, there will always be a place for a simple piece of software that solves a few problems elegantly.