At Furious Tribe we’ve been quietly working away for the last few months on improving our Apptivate platform.

When we first launched Apptivate in 2010, we created a highly disruptive business model that allowed enterprises to build and manage their own Apps for iPhone.

Since then, we’ve sold thousands of Apptivate licences all over the world and we’ve also added multi-platform support and a host of other new features to better meet our customers needs.

Today we’ve added the biggest and most exciting feature since Apptivate’s initial launch and we think it’s going to be a game changer for both our product and our customers.

We’ve introduced an IDE (Integrated Development Environment) into Apptivate so our customers now have total control over their Apps. Using our IDE, our customers now have the power to break free of our pre-built modules and templates and completely customise everything about their App, from the placement of a button to complex user interactions. Now our customers can edit or create code within the Apptivate IDE and make use of web technologies like jQuery mobile, CSS and javascript to make their mobile Apps come to life.

Files and folders are easily created and saved, and users have the option to choose their preferred colour theme to code in.

We’ve changed the user journey for creating new Apps a little bit. Users now have the option to create either a ‘Simple’ or an ‘Advanced’ App. Users can only use the IDE with an Advanced App, however for clients who don’t need the IDE our pre existing modules are still available via a Simple App. Within our new system, users can create multiple Apps within the one account, and you can assign version numbers and notes to go with each App.

We know from working with some of our Enterprise customers both locally and internationally that this is exactly the kind of feature our clients want to be made available to them. All our product development is directly influenced by what we’ve learned by working with clients such as RSA, AXA Global Distributors, Davy and Danone to name a few.

We’ve recognised that there is a strong demand from the Enterprise market for strategic mobile consultancy coupled with innovative technology that allows enterprises to have control over the maintenance of their Apps. We believe the Furious Tribe offering is meeting our clients’ needs but we’re not stopping there. We’ve already moved on to developing new functionality and we’re looking forward to releasing even more innovative features for Apptivate in the very near future.

Three weeks ago, I posted a bit of a rant about the fact there are no Android phones available in Ireland. After reading a post on Silicone Republic this morning, it seems someone out there listened and Meteor are getting an Android phone in November. After hearing this news I decided to do a little wish-list of possible candidates that I would like to see on the Meteor network.

The HTC Dream (or G1) was the first Android device to hit the market and can be seen as the closest of all handsets to a “Google Phone”. This is a bit of an odd design in that it’s got a touch screen and QWERTY keyboard that’s stashed under the screen. The strange design choice of having the screen “swivel” out of the way of the keyboard doesn’t feel natural to me at all. I tried one out in the UK and really didn’t like the hardware design but found it was a solid all-rounder in the same vein as the Nokia E71.

It’s inevitable that every piece of technology will receive an update, and the HTC Dream is no different. The HTC Hero (or, surprisingly G2) is a full touch screen update to the Dream. It’s roughly the same height as it’s predecessor but has a 3.2 inch screen that’s fairly bright and sharp. As Android is an open-source platform, HTC have layered a new user interface onto this device which is pretty spiffy.

Samsung have always shown pretty good mid-range offerings for Meteor and their upcoming I7500 could very well make an appearance. Just like the Hero, this boasts a touch-screen and Wi-Fi. It also has GPS and a 5 megapixel camera. The most impressive thing about this phone is it’s on-board 8gb storage which can be upgraded using a 32gb MicroSD card giving a massive 40gb storage space.

Given the choice myself, I’d probably go for the Hero out of the three phones I mentioned above. While it seems like speculation at the moment, it’s not outside the realms of possibility that Meteor will launch an Android phone. With the Palm Pre launching on O2 and the iPhone becoming available here on Vodafone, Meteor can do some catching up on the smart phone field.

Mobile phones are big business in Ireland. We all have one, with some of us even having two. The ads for the various mobile networks are everywhere and you can’t walk down the street without bumping into someone having a chat on their phone (hopefully they’re not driving at the time). I mean we invented Prepay phones back when Vodafone was still Eircell.

If you look at the phones for sale in America, we have a pretty good deal when it comes to the mid-range handsets available. The Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson phones that you can see in the mobile carrier’s shops do well for the average user. They take calls and texts, play music, ship with games and can access the internet. But what about the person who needs more?

There are many “Smart phones” on the market (most again from Samsung and Nokia) but one in particular stands out from the crowd. Of course it’s the Apple iPhone. It’s easy to say there are no real competitors on the market. The Nokia N series does come close, but the UI and the App Store give the iPhone the edge.

In the UK, the smart phone market is a little more competitive, thanks to the T-Mobile G1 and G2 (AKA the HCT myTouch and Dream). These phones run Google’s Android operating system which is open source. Android is an Open Source operating system which means anyone can develop applications for it or even completely change it.

There is a large amount of mobile developers in Ireland which could program applications that are specific to the Irish market, such as an Irish language pack. One thing I will never understand though is with a large pool of capable developers in this country and 111% of the population with mobile phones, why are there no Android phones?