The 15 best mobile apps of 2011

Sixty-two percent of U.S. smartphone owners have downloaded mobile applications in the past 30 days, with 83 percent of those downloads originating via devices running either Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iOS or Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android, according to Nielsen's latest Mobile Media Report. Smartphone applications downloaders report an average of 33 apps on their device, up 22 percent compared to year-ago totals; iPhone app downloaders lead with an average of 44 apps, followed by Android at 32. Android app interest is growing, however: 49 percent of all Android device owners downloaded an app in the last month, up from 4 percent two years ago, Nielsen adds.

The numbers and percentages add up to one simple conclusion: Consumers like mobile apps, and they like them even more than they did a year ago. And why not? Mobile developers made enormous strides between the end of 2010 and the end of 2011. It seems like each new day brings an application with the potential to change your life, or at least make it a lot more fun.

The sheer volume and range of noteworthy new apps released in 2011 meant that selecting the year's very best was no easy task. Some apps grab you right away and never let go; others reveal their brilliance slowly, over time, and others fail to retain their initial value over the long haul. In the end, I gravitated to apps and games destined to continue entertaining, engaging and enlightening consumers for months and years to come. Suffice it to say that if there are just 33 apps on your smartphone, these 15 should be among them.--Jason

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