This is rather interesting for devs because first it reveals how many downloads per day you’d expect to see at this level, about 1600/day. If you’re interested in Lite-to-Full conversions then that would translate into roughly 16 downloads/day for a full version. That calculation is based on a very rough rule of thumb that 1% of people who download a lite version will buy the full version.

The next target of interest is the Top 50. Because most people download entertainment apps directly onto their iPhone, rather than through iTunes, the exposure level should pop at around the Top 50 to 10 000+ downloads/day. In Top 10 you’re golden with 100 000′s downloads/day.

Top 100 is a stepping stone for a Lite-to-Full business model. It gets you exposure and downloads that you otherwise wouldn’t get. However, the revenue on a 99 cent app wouldn’t be enough to sustain a business at that level. You need to be in the Top 50.

Note to self: we don’t have a full version of Lametard IQ so who is really the lametard?

For still unknown reasons our Lametard IQ app [App Store] has taken off like a rocket in the App Store, surpassing 1600 downloads a day. This wasn’t supposed to happen. It’s a half-baked app which should’ve been dead on arrival. So what’s going on?

In the App Store there are a few so-so reviews and about 2 1/2 stars. Google “Lametard IQ” and there’s nothing but links to fake App review sites. You know, the sites which mine data from the App Store and republish it hoping to get 5% commission on click-through sales. A Twitter search reveals nothing.

Originally this app was released at 99 cents to get the price-drop effect, where people download it just because the price drops to free. Thereafter downloads gradually dropped to in-line with what you’d see for free apps, somewhere below 200 a day. But then about the 26th the downloads started taking off.

My guess is that Lametard IQ showed up on a list somewhere but I don’t know where just yet. Although 1600 downloads a day isn’t huge, compared to the 10, 20, or 30 thousand a day some apps get, it still aint bad.

Meanwhile, we’ve submitted to Apple a fully baked update for Lametard IQ which should help it keep moving up the charts.

The first release has, for still unknown reasons, rocketed in the App Store. It was actually a half-baked app that I wasn’t particularly anxious to advertise. It was one of several apps just sitting in the queue waiting to be finished. Faced with the decision to either shelve the project or wrap it up and release I decided on a compromise — release as-is as a free app. It only had 10 questions and no scoring after completing the test. I thought maybe a few people might download it for giggles and kicks.

So here’s the new version, the completed app. It has some new graphics, 20 brain-teasing questions, a final IQ score, and a special surprise at the end known as a liar’s paradox (for those who can’t figure it out).

The new Lametard IQ Version 1.1 should be available in the App Store about April 10.

Enjoy!