If you've ever wanted to have your own app in the Apple App Store or Google Play market but don't know how to program, AppMachine may be the answer. Showcased at Mobile World Congress 2013, the platform makes the app building process easy, allowing users to import content from existing sources such as Twitter, Facebook, Flickr or RSS feeds to building a beautiful and customizable native mobile application.
There are three complexity levels available within the AppMachine, which make the platform available to both novices and advanced users. The most basic version, dubbed Gorgeous, allows users to insert their content and change the appearance of the application using provided themes. In the middle is the designer version, which provides complete access to the visual design, providing the user with smart PSD files that can be edited and added to the app. The most complex customization is the developer account, which gives full access to the databases and allows custom relationships and direct data entry.
The platform is ideal for users wishing to expand their online presence, including bands and artists or even writers or bloggers. Since the final version of the app is native, meaning the app is written in the intended programming language for each platform, performance is fast and fluid. We created an application for LAPTOP Magazine and had a working version within minutes. Customization of the app takes a little bit longer, but no where near the weeks or months of contracted app development.
Once the app is created, AppMachine will even help you get your application submitted to the Apple App Store or Google Play, a process which is fairly long and complicated. AppMachine even has some apps for popular DJs in the store currently, a testament to the final app's quality.
The AppMachine is currently in closed beta, but should be opening up to the public in the coming weeks. There are three pricing tiers for each of the complexity levels: Gorgeous coses 399 (~$520), the Designer version costs 699 (~$915) and the Developer version 1499 (~$1960). These prices may seem high, but they're pennies compared to the usual cost of app development, which often costs the equivalent of a nice car.
