In the two weeks I have been using an iPad, it seems as if developers are really taking advantage of the larger screen and creating "Super Apps". What are Super Apps? According to Mike Kirkup, RIM's director of developer relations "It's about creating a new class of apps that are rich, contextual and heavily integrated into the other apps on the device." I haven't yet seen any app that really demonstrates this line of thinking on the Blackberry, but I have been very impressed with Good Reader's document sharing and integration of online file storage services on the iPad.
Super Apps is not a term you will find outside of the Blackberry Development community and it shouldn't be confused with specific iPad app - it simply represents a line of thought I have towards the iPad. The early fear before the iPad launch was that developers would merely port their apps to fit the bigger screen and charge for the benefit of making it native. So far developers are now coming to grips with the device, and programming innovative titles that couldn't reach their full potential on a smaller screen. Atomic Web is a desktop class browser comparable to Safari on OS X; the iWork suite puts other mobile office productivity title to shame on any platform.
Create An Ipad App
With the large screen it would be tempting for developers to simply port desktop apps to the iPad, but that hasn't happened yet for a number of reasons. First, the iPad is still a mobile device with limited processing power and finite battery life. Second, with desktop Application pricing averaging between - and iPad apps anywhere from $.99 - .99, how much will a developer risk on building an app that needs a hefty price to make a profit. What I think we are left with are increasingly sophisticated apps that go beyond the iPhone in complexity, but not quite true desktop apps. In the end, these Super Apps on the iPad, represent a new frontier of sophisticated but mobile software solutions.
True Super Apps Are on the iPad, Not Blackberry
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