The best new apps of January 2012

The mobile application ecosystem entered 2012 with a full head of steam. Mobile application analytics provider Flurry estimates consumers activated 6.8 million Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iOS and Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android devices on Christmas Day 2011 while downloading 242 million apps, obliterating previous single-day records in the process. The momentum continued building through the end of the year: Flurry reports that between Dec. 25 and Dec. 31, subscribers activated more than 20 million iOS and Android devices in all, with app downloads topping 1.2 billion--both new single-week records, and the first time downloads eclipsed the 1 billion milestone over a seven-day span.

Flurry expects iOS and Android downloads to shatter a billion a week on a regular basis as 2012 unfolds--credit that trend not only to increasing smartphone penetration but also mounting demand for tablets. It's no longer just about Apple's iPad, either: Less than three months after its retail release, Amazon.com's Kindle Fire already leads rival Android-powered tablets in terms of end user application sessions, according to a separate Flurry report. As of January 2012, the Kindle Fire now represents 35.7 percent of app sessions, edging past Samsung Galaxy Tab at 35.6 percent. Flurry adds that total Android tablet sessions in January more than tripled compared to November, with Galaxy Tab sessions surging by more than 50 percent.

Which apps will capture the consumer imagination in 2012? That's up to developers. It's their job to innovate and keep subscribers engaged. With one month now in the books, they're off to a good start. Click here for the best new apps of January 2012.--Jason