I just stumbled across an article on the PC World magazine detailing what they see as the main obstacle that could halt the Motorola Droid in it’s race to be the iPhone killer that people are hoping it will be. I read on, hoping for an insightful article on the flaws inherent in the Android Market, only to find that…well, I’ll let the article do the talking.  Here’s the first point I found interesting-

“There is still significant room for improvement though. What if I want an app that will convert between various currencies? Should I look under new apps, paid apps, or free apps? The answer is ‘none of the above’ and ‘all of the above’ and underscores some glaring issues with the Android Market.”

Well, I’ve just opened the Android Market and done a search for “currency converter” and I’ve been given 19 different options, in a wide variety of prices, but I found them.  That’s what the search function is for after all – finding what you’re looking for quickly, rather than randomly browsing the market in the hope that eventually you’ll find what you’re looking for.
Next up, this gem-

“…But, users should be able to view all of the apps together (in addition to the three views available now), and Android Market needs a search function (Google does search for a living so that shouldn’t be a problem).”

Ummm….then what’s this button, second from the bottom?  You know, the one with the magnifying glass and the word “Search” next to it?  I’d imagine the comments section of this article will start to fill up fairly quickly with allegations of iPhone-fanboyism or of it’s writer being on the Apple payroll.
Then this-

“Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, Android Market needs to categorize the apps and enable users to browse by type of app such as games, productivity, etc.”

Has the writer even seen the Android Market app???  The apps are categorized exactly as described!  I suspect the writer may have based his observations on the Android Market website, rather than the Android Market app on an Android smartphone, but the Android Market site is not a repository for browsing and/or installing apps, it’s just a showcase of some of the more popular apps.  As the site itself says, at the top-

“Check out our site for some of the more popular applications and games available in Android Market. For a comprehensive, up-to-date list of the thousands of titles that are available, you will need to view Android Market on a handset.“

To be fair, the main thrust of the article is correct, the Android Market is definitely flawed, for both users and developers alike.  As a user, I found I was unable to purchase apps until I got myself a credit card as Google Checkout, the only method of paying for apps bought directly from the Android Market, doesn’t support UK debit cards.  As a developer, losing precious sales at the checkout stage must be hugely frustrating and the market itself is wide open to exploitation by pirates – as things stand, a would-be pirate can pay for an app and download it, crack it if necessary, and prepare it for distribution.  After all that, if they then use the return function within 24 hours, they’ll get their money back.

If you would like to add your opinion on the article, you can see it here.