Google's Android has been enjoying healthy growth over the past six months. Android has attracted a strong base of application developers, and both carriers and OEMs appear to be getting the message that Android is steadily increasing its mindshare within the handset market.
Google has been cagey about releasing the number of available applications on the Android Market. Recent analyst estimates put the total catalog somewhere around 6,000-7,000 available apps. However, a new "Stats" feature on AndroLib.com, a site that allows Android users to browse and buy applications for the open-source platform, puts the number of available Android apps at more than 10,000.
As mobile apps are increasingly seen as the counterpart to native smartphone functionality, the number of available apps has become a yardstick for success. Customers have clamored for the iPhone, in part because of the 70,000 available apps at the App Store. Palm received widespread criticism for releasing the Pre to only a handful of titles at its store.
The AndroLib stats show that a majority (64.2 percent) of the store's 10,126 apps were free.
According to AdMob, the average Android user spent $8.63 in the month of August, contributing to a total market for the month valued at $5 million. Meanwhile, the iPhone and iPod touch accounted for a total August market value of $198 million, according to the same AdMob report.
The Andro.Lib numbers come just ahead of improvements for the Android Market. Google recently said the market will undergo changes to improve overall user experience.
Thanks in no small part to HTC, Android has increased it ranks significantly on the device side as well, beginning with T-Mobile's launch of the Android-based myTouch 3G. Meanwhile, Sprint just last week announced its first Android devices, the HTC Hero and the HTC Touch Pro2. And today, HTC announced the Tattoo, initially available in Europe, which focuses on personalization by allowing users to create their own unique "skins" for their devices.
It appears the hoopla will continue into the fall, as Motorola prepares to unveil a line of Android devices at GigaOm '09 in San Francisco this week. Motorola has high hopes that Android will help right the company's ailing handset division.