Samsung announces winner of its S Pen App Challenge

Samsung seemed to almost be going retro when it announced that the Galaxy Note phablet would come with a stylus, dubbed the S Pen. While Samsung made the S Pen a feature of some of their marketing (often using it to defeat unprepared iPhone users in ads reminiscent of the Smoked by Windows campaign), they were apparently aware that the long-term utility of the S Pen depends on there being compelling apps to take advantage of it.

Knowing this, Samsung did what any good mega-corporation does when faced with a need to spark creativity and drive demand – they threw a lot of money at the problem. $205,000 to be exact, with first prize netting a cool $100k. Not surprisingly, developers responded with appreciation, and now Samsung has crowned the winners. If you picked up a Galaxy Note, or plan to pick up one of Samsung’s upcoming stylus-equipped tablets, you may want to peruse the list to see if something catchers you eye.

The winning submissions include:


Honorable Mention - $2,000 and a Galaxy Note

• Games – “Speed Draw” by Ferdouse Khaleque and Kabir Khaleque
• Productivity – “Papyrus” by Andrew Hughes (Steadfast Innovation)
• Media – “FlipaClip” by Visual Blasters team members Jonathan Meson and Tim Meson
• Sports – “Playcall” by Sargon Benjamin
• Entertainment – “Colors! For Galaxy Note” by Jens Andersson (Collecting Smiles)
• Travel – “Map Note” by Base 2 Applications, LLC
• Social – “Authorgraph” by Evan Jacobs (To the Reader, Inc)
• Lifestyle – “Makeup Paint” Modiface Inc.
• Education – “iAnatomy” by Anouk Stein, M.D.
• Other – “bConnected @ Ball State for Galaxy Note” by Ball State University team members Kyle Parker, Valerie Morris, Ryan Bitzegaio, Brandon Smith, Ian Gibson and Brice Brenneman

We have to commend Samsung on taking the initiative here – there have been many people who questioned whether the world needs an oversized Android handset with a tablet, but sales numbers indicate the answer is a resounding “yes”, and Samsung has continued to reward owners of the Galaxy Note with a serious investment in promoting the ecosystem around it.

Interested readers can hit up the source link for an app gallery, and links to developer web pages and the Google Play Store.

source: Samsung S Pen Challenge via Android Central