RIM has updated their App World documentation from version 1.0 to version 1.1 and there are a couple interesting changes.
The most interesting feature is the ability to store applications on the SD card to be used later. BlackBerry users will be able to remove applications and reinstall them without paying a second time. BlackBerry App World archives a record of the application to save memory and so that the user does not have to maintain the application on the BlackBerry device.
Some BlackBerry users have complained that the Flash memory on the device is too small, and that it’s stagnating to the app experience and development process. For example, some iPhone games are upwards of 100mb, which until recently wouldn’t make any sense to download. Now we’ll be able to download applications which are much larger in size, and only call them to the device when needed.
From a technical standpoint, the SD card isn’t able to run applications. This would be great in that you could be running very large apps without worrying about using too much of your on-device memory. Currently, it just can’t work because the SD card and the Java “brain” don’t communicate in that fashion. There are also a ton of quality assurance concerns with running an app from an SD card. RIM can’t control the quality of the SD card and therefore would lose control of the software experience. Keeping software running on the flash memory maintains internal control.
In the end, this is a small step in the right direction but we aren’t totally there. On device memory should be in the tens of gigs, in order to future proof the device.
See the official documentation from RIM.
Question: What are some of the larger apps you’ve downloaded?
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