Apple just celebrated 50 billion apps downloaded, but that number pales in comparison to the number of app updates they’ve delivered. So I thought I’d examine the version history of every app currently on my phone, and even make a best guess of how many megabytes it took to keep all my apps up to date.

Since I don’t have the size of historical binaries, I’m only going to use the size of the latest version, which will probably overstate the true number of megabytes since apps tend to grow in size over time. I’m also assuming that I owned each app starting from version 1, which isn’t always the case. On the other hand, I’m not going to count the vast number of apps I’ve downloaded and then ultimately removed from my phone.

​Here goes:

App name	Number of versions	Binary size (MB)	Size over time (MB)
Fantastical	8	7.8	62.4
Google Maps	2	7.2	14.4
Google Earth	13	25.7	334.1
CARR	18	4.4	79.2
Living Earth	23	43.1	991.3
Sigalert	4	4	16
Find iPhone	10	16.2	162
Flashlight	4	3.5	14
AirPort Utility	4	4.4	17.6
Speedtest	14	7.6	106.4
hue	4	19.6	78.4
Camera+	27	23.2	626.4
FatBooth	20	21.2	424
AgingBooth	19	17.2	326.8
Instagram	41	12.2	500.2
Amazon	28	7.3	204.4
Yelp	41	17.5	717.5
Apple Store	17	5.8	98.6
Redfin	34	16.3	554.2
CrimeReports	5	3	15
Homesnap	11	25.1	276.1
Fab	13	10.2	132.6
livingSocial	40	9.6	384
Groupon	41	25.8	1057.8
realtor.com	25	15.6	390
Passport	6	4.9	29.4
Airbnb	27	30.3	818.1
Word Lens	11	29.9	328.9
MemorableMeals	9	9.5	85.5
Congress+	29	94.3	2734.7
Google	34	19.3	656.2
Google Translate	7	2.2	15.4
Walkee	9	41	369
NearestWiki	6	0.3	1.8
myAT&T	25	9	225
Articles	22	14.9	327.8
Evernote	41	36.3	1488.3
LinkedIn	41	23.7	971.7
CardMunch	3	10.4	31.2
Facebook	41	30.5	1250.5
Twitter	41	20.8	852.8
Path	41	23	943
Google Voice	10	2.4	24
Find My Friends	5	19.1	95.5
Cards	8	91.9	735.2
TheIceBreak	19	6.8	129.2
Eventbrite	11	13.9	152.9
Pages•	13	30.3	393.9
Skype	31	25.2	781.2
Google+	23	27.2	625.6
Bizzabo	22	9.7	213.4
Vine	8	11	88
Remote	19	17.9	340.1
Netflix	33	19.9	656.7
Pandora	41	14.2	582.2
Flixster	41	12	492
IMDb	27	9.5	256.5
YouTube	4	10	40
Shazam	40	8.1	324
iMovie	10	473.4	4734
GarageBand	7	560.8	3925.6
Podcasts	8	7.2	57.6
CNN	20	8.8	176
Capture	6	27	162
#sworcery	8	158.6	1268.8
Angry Birds	29	34.1	988.9
Mini Piano	9	5.2	46.8
Paper Toss	18	18.3	329.4
RecklessRacing	4	57.9	231.6
Cut the Rope	19	24	456
DoodleJump	41	31.4	1287.4
FlightControl	13	17.9	232.7
TalkingCarl	24	41.4	993.6
Tiny Wings	8	13.9	111.2
Fruit Ninja	21	41.8	877.8
Minecraft PE	4	4.3	17.2
Pages	13	245.1	3186.3
Opera Mini	14	4.8	67.2
Chrome	11	19.7	216.7
Keynote Remote	4	2.5	10
Gmail	12	11.6	139.2
Clear	6	4.6	27.6
Github Issues	6	1.3	7.8
Gain Fitness	33	36.2	1194.6
Lift	17	3.6	61.2
Keynote	15	304	4560
GoalSponsors	11	7.2	79.2
Google Drive	9	26.9	242.1
Mailbox	5	8.8	44
Square Register	41	28.1	1152.1
Mint.com	25	12.2	305
PayPal	41	15.5	635.5
iBooks	21	41.1	863.1
iTunes U	5	18.3	91.5
Our Choice	4	52.7	210.8
Flipboard	34	14.3	486.2
Scanner	35	1.9	66.5
QRReader	11	11.1	122.1
Scan	14	6.2	86.8
Eventbrite Entry	22	8.1	178.2
Fooducate	29	10.5	304.5
ShopSavvy	39	24.6	959.4
MogoTix	7	5.9	41.3
RedLaser	14	7.1	99.4
Smoopa	23	4.2	96.6
M.dot	5	8.7	43.5
Ticketmaster	11	13.6	149.6
Live Nation	13	17.1	222.3
Fandango	33	9.4	310.2
United Airlines	31	8.4	260.4
Target	36	15.1	543.6
Walgreens	24	16.7	400.8
PayByPhone	11	0.4	4.4
YappBox	16	4.6	73.6
Yahoo! Weather	2	8.5	17
Note	2	1.2	2.4
Jawbone UP	11	41.1	452.1
Squarespace	14	26.5	371

 

The totals

2,193 versions averaging 31.511 MB each, for a total of 58,925.5 MB ​or 58.9 GB.​ That’s an average of 1 GB per month of app updates since I downloaded my first app. It’s no wonder the App Store is the largest percentage of traffic on iTunes—more than music, movies and books combined.

I spend about 6 GB per month downloading web pages. But that comparison isn’t entirely fair, because the figures above would be much higher if they included the data I download while using the apps.

 And since I only use about 10% of my apps in a given day, the question I wish I could answer is: how many of those updates came and went without me ever opening the app?​ How many of them were just wasted bits?

Apple has placed design guru Jony Ive in charge of the look and feel of iOS, and speculation has never been hotter. The upcoming iOS 7 will likely feature the most significant visual upgrade of the platform ever. One rumor says that privacy filters are required during field testing to prevent onlookers from catching a glimpse of the new design.

But we don’t have to wait until Apple’s announcement to imagine what could be in store: users of Dribbble, a “show-and-tell” for designers, have been hard at work reimagining iOS with a clean new design.

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Manu Gamero has produced a set of refreshing, minimalist iOS icons that breathe new life into a tired home screen.

(It’s not functional to leave out the app name, but it sure looks nice.)

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Newar has created similar icons that share the clean, minimalist motif:

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Could the iOS keyboard use a visual update? Pieter Goris might say yes. His take on the Messages app most notably shows off a white-on-black keyboard, which I find both visually striking and easier to read.

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The iOS app switcher is unintuitive and contains little useful information. Designer Jesse Head has mocked up a much better one, with built in search and music controls.

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The “Slide to unlock” gesture hasn’t changed at all since the original iPhone. Anton Kudin’s “Fold to unlock” seems much more intuitive.

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Similarly, Messages hasn’t changed much since 2007, and I find it visually lacking. What would happen if we added some faces to the experience? Justin Nurse found out.

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Another shot from Justin. Could the Contacts app be more than just a simple alphabetical list of names?

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Bonus shot: we’re seeing slide-out navigation (sometimes referred to as a “hamburger menu”) everywhere. This visual metaphor from Álvaro Carreras looks fun!

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UPDATE:

Another awesome shot from Pieter Goris for a new lock screen. It’s crisp and clean. I love it.