The alternative app store for Android is now live—however muchApple doesn't like others using the term "app store,"—where US Android owners can download the new Angry Birds Rio game for free, along with 3,799 other apps. It's been years wandering the desert, but Android users finally have an app oasis of their own.
Amazon's got all the big developers names on there, including Gameloft, Glu Mobile and Rovio, offering up apps either for free or a few dollars and cents. Don't want to waste valuable money on an app that turns out to be... well, rubbish? No problemo says Amazon, who will let you "Test Drive" an app for 30 minutes—within a browser. If you like what you see, you can download and pay for it with one click if you have your payment details already on file with Amazon. They'll also be offering one paid app for free every day for the foreseeable future.
As expected, Amazon's using its web store recommendation algorithm to suggest similar apps for download. You know when you buy a camera on Amazon, and they instantly suggest a camera case or photography book? Same thing. Recommendations are of the "people who bought X also bought Y" variety, which means that, just a few hours into the store's existence, you'll mostly see staples like Evernote and Kindle. As Amazon gains traction in the app biz, though, the recs will become more and more targeted. At its most helpful, the service may even show free (or cheaper) apps that do the same thing as the one you were about to pony up for.
