macbook enough for iphone app development ?

I decided to try selling few shitty apps after having seen what crap people acutally buy, tho it seems I need a macbook to make those

I don't want to buy an iphone on top of it so is the emulator thingy enough for development ?

Or you could just run OS X inside a virtual machine...

Spent 3 days on vmware and virtualbox,

None of them worked, saying "Operating system not found" or something about frontside bus.

Use Android. It is free (as in free to develop from a PC).

just make an android app and then use http://xmlvm.org/android/.

>>4
Seconding that. Free SDK and emulator, good development environment, not that fucking schizophrenic ObjC shit.

Except, >>1 was talking about selling apps, and frankly, selling on the android market is crap. You won't make anything, because it's trivially easy to get them free. (no DRM or anything, and really lax "return" policy)

>>5
That's against Apple's braindamaged policy that disallows any app that isn't written in ObjC / Cocoa directly.

>>7
it's translated into objective-c and then compiled. there's no way apple can tell the difference.

>>6
1. drm is fundamentally broken anyway.
2. if your app is worth paying for, people will pay for it.
3. it's trivially easy to get one version of an app (install, pull the apk off the phone, uninstall & refund), but after you've gotten a refund for an app once, it won't let you get that refund again. if you want to get updates, you have to pay for the app. this works fine for crappy apps that are never updated (gameloft is one of the worst offenders here), but for most apps, it sucks to be stuck with an old version when the developer keeps making the newer versions better.

>>1
You are an enemy of freedom.

>>1
Don't buy a Macbook Pro. For much cheaper, just buy the lowest end Mac Mini and an iPod Touch. The newest iPod Touch is identical to an iPhone 3GS except for 3G, phone calls (obviously), and I think camera is the only other thing. It will work perfectly to test your iPhone apps (I know because this is what I do.)

If it will take you a few months to finish your app, you could wait for a few months to see if they release an HD version of the iPod Touch. The simulator will do in the meantime. I wouldn't bother if I were you; just get the current one now.

>>4
Yeah, this sounds great to open source developers, but it makes no real business sense. There are 100 million iOS devices now, and the App Store sells shitloads. Android is sparse, fragmented, and the Market is shitty. It will take a few years for Android to catch up.

>>8
If one person can get one version and can distribute it to others who can install it easily on their own phones, then it logically follows that all versions are easily accessible by anyone, at least so long as n_v≤n_p holds true.

What makes things worse is the Android Market has a large number of technically savvy users, and sadder yet, Google has managed to make it difficult to purchase a paid application in the first place, if not impossible depending on location -- you need a Google Account with Checkout, it has to be tied to a gmail.com address, and you have to be in one of the regions supported by the Android Market. The programs on the market are almost entirely free, with a handful of paid apps here and there -- as a result many people expect free, and just skip past any app with a price tag. And those that don't have to put up with currency conversions for a good third of their apps. And, to make matters even worse, there is hardly any quality control, so a lot of the stuff on the market is just garbage. You really have no idea what you're paying for.

Regarding your point #2, no they won't. Don't be naive, people are generally speaking lazy bastards, and having to go through an annoying process of searching for some third-party market and billing system and set up an account there just to give someone a dollar is beyond what a huge number of people are willing to do, however honest they may or may not otherwise be.

If one person can get one version and can distribute it to others who can install it easily on their own phones, then it logically follows that all versions are easily accessible by anyone, at least so long as n_v≤n_p holds true.
the few people actually pirating android apps aren't organized enough to do that.

Regarding your point #2, no they won't.
i have at least 5 apps on my android phone that i paid for. no matter how many times you make that claim, it won't make it true.

Don't be naive, people are generally speaking lazy bastards, and having to go through an annoying process of searching for some third-party market and billing system and set up an account there just to give someone a dollar is beyond what a huge number of people are willing to do, however honest they may or may not otherwise be.
what the fuck are you on about? the android market is run by google, and uses your google account.

>>12
You're an idiot and can't type a proper sentence. That aside, you also didn't read my post correctly.

Next person.

>>13
I disagree with what he says, so I'll just criticize his typing because I'm being lazy at typing up a proper rebuttal.

Android will peter out because Google are basically letting the telcos fuck them up the ass for popularity, while the telcos are desperate to suck Steve Jobs' dick. It'll become the Linux of smartphones, some shitty "free" clones of commercial applications from other OSes that no-one but RiMjobS Stallman will give a shit about.

>>15
multitasking, flash, wifi tether, htc sense, google maps navigation, etc.
also, no robo defense makes iphone useless as a mobile gaming platform.

You can buy a Macbook and get a free iPod touch well, after rebate.

Just claim to go to a college.

>>16
All available on systems other than Android. Phones will certainly continue to use Android, but my prediction is as a platform it'll be splintered into incompatible manufacturer/carrier-specific islands. As a feature it'll only be of interest to neckbeards who'll think "oh golly gee I can run my free software" except you won't be able to as the carriers start mandating lock-in features.

The investment of developing is about the cost of the a mac, a iphone, and the $99 fee to start publishing applications to the iphone market.  If you have a idea for a marketable application and have the ability to obtain the aforementioned things, by all means go for it.

OP here,

$99 fee is just trivial, the thing is, apple products are like 3 times more expensive here than they are in USA. I can't just go for it, I need to confirm if everything will be ok before investing in it.

So,

>>5
>>8

Could you confirm If people can actually sell them on appstore ? I'd LOVE to write in any language other than obj-c (I prefer c++ but java is fine too) and I really hate apple but I need to start making money, doing fine academically doesn't cut it anymore.

And if that's not the case, can iphone simulator do everyting an iphone/ipod can (or "simulate" few others like that accelerometer in xmlvm demo) ? I'm about to bid for a macbook and will buy if it'll be cheap enough but I really don't want to buy an iphone later.

stop being a fag.

just suck cocks for bucks

Ain't that faggotry ?

>>22
not as faggy as using a apple product.

>>5,8,12,16,21,23
Fuck off already, you neckbeard shitposter.

>>14
Basically yes. I was tired, and he's a goddamn blithering idiot and not at all worth staying up late at night for.

i have at least 5 apps on my android phone that i paid for. no matter how many times you make that claim, it won't make it true.
Fallacy: false generalization, and if you did your research you would already know that you're fucking wrong. The iPhone App Store sees roughly half of all users buying a paid app every month, whereas Android sees less than 20%. Not to mention that the userbase for the Market is a fraction of the size, and nearly 99% of the total app downloads on the Android are for free. (see below for link)
There are lots of places to get free "paid" apps for the Android Market. There's a lot of technically inclined users, and the platform makes it dead simple to copy an app from a phone and then install it on another one.

what the fuck are you on about? the android market is run by google, and uses your google account.
Being incapable of reading doesn't automatically give you the right to be abusive.

Obviously it requires a Google account, that is the essential minimum for downloading free applications. However, free apps don't require Checkout. It only becomes necessary the first time you try to download a paid app, and for many, that's just annoying enough to discourage buying. Plus, if you're not in one of the few countries that supports purchasing apps (http://market.android.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=143779), you already lose.
And even if I had Google Checkout on my account, I still would be incapable of purchasing apps, because the Market doesn't work without a Gmail address: http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=2332

Here's some further reading for you, even though you're probably not going to bother reading any of these because they don't support your pipe-dream conclusion that Android is a viable platform for generating revenue.
Android Market sales compared to Apple App Store: http://www.geek.com/articles/mobile/app-store-outsells-android-market-by-1100-a-developer-says-2009091/
Regarding that 99% free statistic: http://thenextweb.com/mobile/2010/03/15/android-market-breaks-250-million-downloads-989-free-apps/
On piracy and some of the annoyances of Google Checkout: http://larvalabs.com/blog/iphone/android-market-sales-follow-up/
Android Market is "pathetic": http://openmoodle.conted.ox.ac.uk/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=2857
"Fundamentally broken": http://www.livedigitally.com/2010/02/01/how-google-can-and-must-fix-the-android-market-experience/

>>18
google maps navigation and robo defense are not available for any platform other than android.

The iPhone App Store sees roughly half of all users buying a paid app every month, whereas Android sees less than 20%.
that's because the average iphone user is an idiot who's willing to pay $20 each for stupid fart apps.

Obviously it requires a Google account, that is the essential minimum for downloading free applications. However, free apps don't require Checkout. It only becomes necessary the first time you try to download a paid app, and for many, that's just annoying enough to discourage buying.
even if you don't already have google checkout set up, it only takes a few seconds to set up and is so easy an 8-year-old can do it. and it's really worth it considering how good some of the paid apps are.

And even if I had Google Checkout on my account, I still would be incapable of purchasing apps, because the Market doesn't work without a Gmail address:
yeah, because you wouldn't be capable of getting a gmail address and typing it in when the market asks you to log in to use checkout. considering how many google services don't work with just a google apps address, i'm surprised you haven't already done that. i use a google apps address for everything i can and only have a gmail address for the services that don't work with google apps.

that's because the average iphone user is an idiot who's willing to pay $20 each for stupid fart apps.
Ad hominem, and terrible one at that. There's more and better quality apps on the iPhone store than the Android store.

Your other "points" are irrelevant and useless because they don't even bother to address the numerous flaws with both Google Checkout and the Android Market that I outlined in my post and which were discussed in great detail in the pages I linked to. Once you do that, and substantiate your claims with any real data whatsoever, I will consider continuing this conversation. Unless you can do that, your posts are nothing but baseless self-validation and threadshitting.

>>26
Ad hominem
I don't think you understand what that means.

>>27
"iPhone users are idiots, therefore none of the apps they buy are worthwhile."

You're right, it really isn't ad hominem. /prog/ made me stupider :<

Nonetheless, it's a ridiculous statement and has no factual basis.

>>25
google maps navigation and robo defense are not available for any platform other than android.

Navigation and tower defense games are available for all platforms.

>>28
that's not what >>25 wrote.

>>29
but good navigation and tower defense games are not.

No, you need a real device. The emulator is incomplete (lacking libraries like encryption and a bunch others that are present in the device) and its speed is extremely different to the real device. Programs that seem to run fine in the emulator will crawl in the iphone. Apple really dropped the ball with it - it's a fucking joke. So, sadly you'll need an iphone.

If you want to play games on the go why are you using a phone in the first place? Wouldn't it be better to get a PSP or DS with actual buttons and better games?

>>20

Just curious, what country ARE you from?

>>33
Belgium

>>34
Of course IHBT.

>>32
i have a DSi, but:
* it's a lot bigger than my phone
* it doesn't have accelerometers
* a lot of games don't support WPA
* dry skin + the texture of the DSi = extreme discomfort after about 10 minutes

re: PSP, can i put a bunch of games on a microsd card, or do i have to carry around huge bulky media for each game?

>>36
I hear the 3DS will be a PS3-killing smartphone. Or was that the iPad? I get so confused.

>>36
You can put games on a microsd card if you download them from the Playstation Store or if you crack it and download them from some place other than the Playstation Store (also emulators for SNES/Genesis/PS1 etc).

You also have to look at the quality of the games when you compare a phone to the portables. Show me a game on the iPhone that can compare to God of War on the PSP or The World Ends With You on the DS.

it doesn't have accelerometers
hipster

You also have to look at the quality of the games when you compare a phone to the portables. Show me a game on the iPhone that can compare to God of War on the PSP or The World Ends With You on the DS.
http://www2.gamevil.com/eng_new/iphone.jsp?game=2 ?

hipster
i suppose you think we should all go back to using punch cards instead of using these newfangled keyboards.

>>39
http://www2.gamevil.com/eng_new/iphone.jsp?game=2
That's nice. Now how many others of similar quality? I can name at least 10 for both the PSP and the DS.

i suppose you think we should all go back to using punch cards instead of using these newfangled keyboards.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jm0KKa6wACQ

You're going to enjoy this a lot.