TUAW picks the 10 worst App Store search phrases
Recently Fortune picked the 10 dumbest iPhone apps for 2009. In response, I thought we should pick ten search phrases that are more or less guaranteed to produce a list of horrible applications.
Our list follows. Are they the worst possible search terms? Probably not. But they're certainly guaranteed to return subquality results in your App Store search. (Yes, it is the weekend.)
So join in and add your favorite (bad) search phrases to the comments. And remember, unless a search phrase returns at least three or four really appallingly crappy applications, it does not qualify for the title.
- jiggle: While not as salacious as you might first imagine, this search does bring up both Wobble iBoobs!! [sic], iJiggles Your Mom, and Bikini Fart.
- pong: We love pong, but we hope we've moved past its retro appeal as far as the App Store goes. Current pong search results include Beer Pong (in several forms), iBlow Ping-Pong Ball (from CLapps!), and Cow Pong Beef.
- gross: No, we're not talking about items that come 144 per case. An App Store search for 'gross' returns such winners as 101 Gross Sounds, Gross Facts, and (strangely enough) Speed Muscles MD, a game that challenges you to point to specific muscle groups on a cadaver. (Okay, the reviews for this last one aren't bad but the idea is just freaky unless you're a medical student.)
- stupid: What did the great F. Gump say on this topic? One is what one does? Or at least something like that. A search for stupid returns an absolute bonanza of applications from developers who clearly have a sense of humor. Titles include Make a Face, Stupidity Test, The Idiot Test, Are You Stupider than a Kindergartner and the $0.99 A Stupid Button, which says "That's Stupid" after you have already bought and paid for it.
- annoy: From dog whistlers, to random noise, to apps targeted to irritating our furry friends, bad App Store entries abound. There's a "Wooo!" Button app, a Free Turkey Calls app, and even one called Annoyance!. The exclamation point is courtesy of the developer.
- jared: I know it's a little disingenuous for me to include Jared as a search term, given how I love that insanely stupid little app. But after searching for it on the App Store and finding Top Sexiest Men-Jared Leto, Screen Cleaner (from Jared Judd), SupaFan for Supernatural Fans, and The Book of Mormon Plants and Animals (no insult to LDS members, it just seems like a poor choice for an iPhone app), I knew I had to add this phrase to the list.
- calm: I don't care how much you love your iPhone, it's not going to deliver a light spa day, provide ultimate relaxation or iSoothe your soul. I'm sure those apps are well intended but I'm also sure they're...well, see the title of this piece.
- pickup: Without being overly insensitive, if you're carrying around an iPhone full of pickup lines, you've probably missed the point. Standouts include Lovetricity, iWingman, and (yes, you knew this was coming), Coed Spring Break
- strip: If you're sensing a theme, well so am I. Soft pr0n seems to sell a lot of iPhone applications. Items on this search include iStrip (including its Sexy Pen edition), Poker vs Girls Strip Poker, and of course some sort of Hooters app. Sheesh.
- fart: Yes, no worst search list would be complete without a search for "fart", including such marvelous cultural treats as Fart Shaker Deluxe, Juicy Fart, Fart Lighter, and Atomic Fart. With about 500 fart-related apps in the store, it's a benchmark of goofy that other app categories can only aspire to meet.
So, that's our list. Now let's see your picks for the worst searches in the App Store.
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Recently Fortune picked the 10 dumbest iPhone apps for 2009. In response, I thought we should pick ten search phrases that are more or less...
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Nice to see our "Poker vs Girls" made the list :) We thought "How do we better market our existing Poker app?" [ tinyurl.com/app-headsupholdem ] After working a lot on the poker engine, adding the "strip" part made sense.
And we're equal opportunity, "Poker vs Guys" is pending approval by Apple.
How about "lite" or "free?" Guaranteed crap.
July 12 2009 at 4:02 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyHonestly, what is the point of this article? To bash the apps or give them more press?
Secondly, being a developer, I am offended that you would even make a list like this, regardless of whose apps they are. Anything takes time and work to make.
Yuck Erica said Fart!
July 12 2009 at 6:35 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI just want to know why the story is tagged "Microsoft"?
July 11 2009 at 7:27 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyThe "SlowNewsDay" tag says it all...
July 11 2009 at 6:25 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply>unless a search phrase returns at least three or four really appallingly crappy applications, it does not qualify for the title.
I think the keywords "erica sadun" qualify for #11?
Let's see... the App Store has problems on its first anniversary with Sale apps that are in limbo. Those sellers (like Edovia and Junecloud) who altered their listing with special sale prices to mark the anniversary are not seeing the sale prices, nor can anyone complete a transaction for these apps at the regular price. Customers have been getting an error message - 'This item is being modified. Please try again later.' - for the last 14 hours.
Does TUAW cover this issue? No. Were they apprised of the situation? Yes.
No, instead of covering actual news affecting readers - TUAW did after all billboard these anniversary sale specials yesterday - we get this silly prattling about Worst Searches.
"Does TUAW cover this issue? No. Were they apprised of the situation? Yes."
James, I've reviewed our tip mails and tweets for the past 24 hours and I see no messages about this issue, nor any suggestion that there is a pricing/editing problem on app store purchasing. We did cover store issues earlier in the week. Perhaps you submitted this news tip to another site instead of us.
I do believe that your favorite hobby is providing edgy and insightful constructive feedback for our bloggers...
http://www.tuaw.com/profile/5883/
but perhaps in this case you can see clear to cutting us a little slack for not covering a story that, despite your suggestion to the contrary, we actually hadn't heard about.
Yeah, Michael is right, and you kind of sound like a jerk in all of your posts. Just saying, might want to work on that...
July 12 2009 at 11:09 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyC'mon Erica, you're **BETTER** than this.
How about an article on the current state of the jailbreak, minus spoilerz for lazy AAPL folk?
Or the state of the crAppStore, and how they seem to be killing off every camera app in iPhoneOS 3.0.
Honestly, if TUAW goes the way of TIRED I will ... throw a tantrum. Or jump up and down and spit rubber nickels.
One of the two. -- D. E.
In the old days, we used to go to MySpace to lower our IQs. Now we have apps that do that for us.
July 11 2009 at 1:56 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyHot Apps on TUAW
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