The total number of iPhone application in the App Store has crossed fifteen thousand. A staggering 4,381 are games. The number is surprising if you look at the number of games available for dedicated gaming consoles such as the Nintendo DS and and Sony PSP. Compare also with the number of applications available for other smartphones such as RIM’s BlackBerries, Nokia’s NSeries, etc. Do you think the iPhone is about to change our concept of gaming? How often do you play games on your iPhone and how good it as a gaming device? Read on to know.

We have already heard many analysts saying that the iPhone is a threat to popular gaming consoles like the Sony PSP and the Nintendo DS. All those predictions seem to be coming true. Sounding more danger to the makers of handheld gaming consoles, rumors have started spreading that Apple is planning for iPhone upgrade. Many analysts are predicting that the upgrade would be game focussed.

Nintendo DS and PSP were launched long before the introduction of the iPhone; for this the iPhone is a lot younger but more advanced in terms of technology. Succeeding in gaming arena was never easy for companies in the past, many have failed. However, for the iPhone, the venture looks all green. The success story of the App Store would continue, except for some small complaints for the silly and useless flashlight, farting and vomiting apps.  The main things that differentiate the iPhone from other gaming consoles are the ideal distribution system of the App Store and the killer accelerometer and the touchscreen features.

The distribution system of App Store is one advantage that the iPhone has over all other gaming consoles. It is because of the ideal distribution system that the App Store today has more than four thousand games compared to the few hundreds for the DS and PSP. The App Store sales mechanism make things easy not only for Apple but for the developers and also for iPhone users. Developers don’t need to worry about all those aggressive sleepless marketing campaigns they usually do when they develop for other platforms. App Store for iPhone users is the repository for finding the games and apps they want. Back in November 2008, Apple marketing executive Greg Joswiak said that the iPhone and iPod touch is the future of gameplay. The devices are very much heading in that direction. The iPhone development tools are comparatively easy to obtain and for developers who are familiar with the Mac, developing for the iPhone platform involve no complications.

At the hardware and software front the iPhone has PowerVR, MBX graphics processor, which are much more advanced than the ones used in other gaming consoles. Open GL and core animation support also help developers achieve consistency and stability in the games and applications they develop. The iPhone’s high resolution multi touchscreen and the accelerometer have the potential of discovering a whole lot of games, and developers are indeed successful in coming up with innovative and exciting ideas.

All these don’t meant the iPhone is a perfect gaming device. The iPhone needs some improvements before considering it as a threat to popular gaming consoles. The next upgrade could address some of these shortcomings according to industry analyst. Some of the major limitations are processing limitations, memory management and graphic capabilities. To enhance powerful processing capabilities, Apple could be using the ARM chips the company is developing in-house.

Even with the drawbacks that the iPhone have at present, the device is considered as a cool gaming device. According to most recent finding, iPhone owners are ten times more likely to play games on their devices than other smartphone users. With the iPhone, the urge to download and play gaming comes by default. There are many polished, high end games in the App Store that make the iPhone a cool must have device for people who love games. If the iPhone upgrade does come and is focussed on enhancing it as a gaming device, we all can say Nintendo and Sony PSP are in trouble. The iPhone without the upgrade already is a threat.