iPhone app downloads top 3 billion

As if to take the wind out of Google's sails following the announcement of its recently announced Nexus One smartphone, Apple has announced that over 3 billion applications have been downloaded for its iPhone and iPod Touch in less than 18 months.

Apple's CEO Steve Jobs said that the Apple application store "offers iPhone and iPod touch users an experience unlike anything else available on other mobile devices, and we see no signs of the competition catching up anytime soon".

Apple's application store is available to iPhone and iPod Touch users in 77 different countries, with applications spanning several categories including games, health, travel and business.