"There's an app for that." The overwhelming success of Apple's App Store--1.5 billion downloads in the virtual storefront's first year alone--has nurtured a mobile environment where it does indeed seem that there is an application for any situation or context, no matter how uncommon or absurd. But for all the boundless creativity and ingenuity of the mobile developer community, rare is the application that delivers consistent value and utility days, weeks and months after it is first acquired--in fact, multiple studies have confirmed that smartphone users download many more apps than they actually use, with a February 2009 report by analytics firm Pinch Media indicating that consumers stop using the vast majority of iPhone apps almost immediately.

FierceMobileContent's fourth annual Top Mobile Applications Awards (click here for 2006, 2007 and 2008) honor apps designed for the long haul--apps that simplify your life, not once but on a recurring basis. These are applications that promise to improve the average day of the average user, pinpointing tasks that are woven into the fabric of modern life--for example, navigating the morning commute, finding a place to eat lunch or more effectively communicating with contacts and colleagues. These are not applications you'll download, use once and then never access again. These are apps you'll come to rely on, each a pointed reminder of why it's called a smartphone in the first place.

While the focus of the Top Mobile Applications Awards shifts each year in conjunction with the evolution of the industry they celebrate, the process for determining the finalists remains consistent: After evaluating hundreds of apps according to guidelines including technological innovation, revenue potential and competitive edge, we've come up with an eclectic roster of downloads spanning multiple devices and operating systems, connected by their originality, practicality and personality. They are all applications designed for life. --Jason

And the winners are...

• Aha
  
• MotionX GPS
  
• Put Things Off
  
• Sherpa
  
• Snac
  
• 3deep
  
• Vlingo
  
• WeatherBug Elite
  
• Wertago
  
• Zagat to Go '09