'iTunes Rewind' Highlights the Best of 2011; Instagram, Tiny Tower Win Best of Year Awards

instagramaoty
Apple has released the 2011 edition of its annual iTunes Rewind feature in the iTunes Store. The piece offers a look at what the company has judged to be the best music, movies, TV shows, apps, books, and podcasts of 2011.

Some of the notable winners:

Apps:
- iPhone App of the Year: Instagram
- iPhone Game of the Year: Tiny Tower
- iPad App of the Year: Snapseed
- iPad Game of the Year: Dead Space for iPad

Music:
- Song of the Year: Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People
- Artist of the Year: Adele
- Album of the Year: Wasting Light by Foo Fighters

Books:
- Best Novel: The Tiger's Wife by Téa Obeht
- Best Nonfiction: Boomerang by Michael Lewis

It's important to note that these awards are all for the United States iTunes Store. In some cases, Apple gave awards to different items in different countries. For example, Djay was awarded iPad App of the Year honors in the UK, while Tiny Wings won iPhone Game of the Year in the UK and Australia.

Instagram isn't the first photography app to win App of the Year award. In 2010, Hipstamatic took home App of the Year honors. Plants vs. Zombies won the Game of the Year award that year.

MacRumors covered iTunes Rewind in 2010 and 2009, as well.

Popular Stories

iPhone 16 Battery Life Feature

iOS 26's New Battery Life Mode Available Only on These iPhone Models

Saturday June 21, 2025 9:02 am PDT by
Last week, we reported that iOS 26 introduces an opt-in Adaptive Power Mode on the iPhone, alongside the existing Low Power Mode. Apple says that Adaptive Power Mode can make "small performance adjustments" when necessary to extend an iPhone's battery life, including slightly lowering the display brightness or allowing some activities to "take a little longer." The full description of...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 21, 2025 2:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are around three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices from credible sources. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

iPhone Driver's Licenses: These 17 U.S. States Offer Them or Will Later

Thursday June 19, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Unfortunately, this feature continues to roll out very slowly since it was announced in 2021, with only nine U.S. states and Puerto...
All Screen iPhone 2027 Feature 1

iPhone Reportedly Moving to All-Screen Design in Two Stages

Sunday June 22, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by
Apple has long been working towards an iPhone with an all-screen design, and it might finally achieve the feat in a few more years from now. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that Apple will shrink the size of the Dynamic Island on new iPhone models released next year. A year after that, he expects Apple to release a redesigned 20th-anniversary iPhone model....
ios 26 call holding

iOS 26 Beta is Hiding a New Ringtone — Here's What It Sounds Like

Thursday June 19, 2025 7:25 pm PDT by
Apple is hiding a new ringtone within iOS 26. The new ringtone is an alternative version of the existing Reflection ringtone, which has been the default ringtone since the iPhone X was released in 2017. It was discovered within the code for the first developer beta of iOS 26, but it remains hidden, so you will not find it in the list of ringtones available in the Settings app for now. It...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 14, 2025 5:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X through iPhone 14 Pro have a...
Wi Fi WiFi General Feature

iOS 26 Adding Two New Wi-Fi Features, Allows AirDrop and AirPlay Alternatives

Saturday June 21, 2025 7:02 am PDT by
iOS 26 is gaining two new Wi-Fi features, including Captive Assist and Wi-Fi Aware. MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris discovered a reference to Captive Assist within the code for the first iOS 26 developer beta, but Apple has yet to enable the feature. It should be available by the time the software update is released later this year. In his Power On newsletter last month, Bloomberg's...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro's Alleged Vapor Chamber Cooling System Partly Revealed

Sunday June 22, 2025 6:37 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models are rumored to be equipped with a vapor chamber cooling system, and a leaker known as Majin Bu today shared a photo of an alleged copper thermal plate for the system. Many high-end Android smartphones like Samsung's Galaxy S25 Ultra are equipped with a vapor chamber cooling system, which can manage heat dissipation inside the...
apple watch ultra 2 new black

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Finally Coming After Two-Year Hiatus

Monday June 16, 2025 8:45 am PDT by
Apple will finally deliver the Apple Watch Ultra 3 sometime this year, according to analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities Hong Kong (via @jukanlosreve). The analyst expects both the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 to arrive this year (likely alongside the new iPhone 17 lineup, if previous launches are anything to go by), according to his latest product roadmap shared with...

Top Rated Comments

Mr. Gates Avatar
177 months ago
What the Heck !?!??




What's with the PEDO BEAR on the left photo ???

LOL
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Xian Zhu Xuande Avatar
177 months ago
I guess this means I should check out these apps then?
Keep away from Tiny Tower. Cute, but a soul sucker.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gorbok Avatar
177 months ago
...there are covers of this song that are so much better

Comments like this make me sad.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cvaldes Avatar
177 months ago
I can see a list of "best apps"... but Music? Seriously? Never heard of any of those on the list except for Foo Fighters (and that's only because I am familiar with the band name.)
Are you over thirty?

Both Adele and Foster the People are 2012 Grammy nominees. Their works have been near the top of the Billboard charts. Adele actually won the Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance awards in 2009.

P.S., I am over forty.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bensalama21 Avatar
177 months ago
I can see a list of "best apps"... but Music? Seriously? Never heard of any of those on the list except for Foo Fighters (and that's only because I am familiar with the band name.)

If you just turned on your radio for 2 seconds, I guarantee it would be playing either Pumped Up Kicks or Adele.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
StuddedLeather Avatar
177 months ago
I can see a list of "best apps"... but Music? Seriously? Never heard of any of those on the list except for Foo Fighters (and that's only because I am familiar with the band name.)
Seriously? You've never heard of Adele, at least 'Rolling In The Deep'? Especially when Apple used her song for the "Watch The iPhone 4S video." It's a great song, but I digressed.

Instagram really deserves Best App (which it did receive). I'm seriously addicted to it and picture taking with the 4S are incredible to say the least.

As far as gaming apps goes, I'm addicted (currently) to Temple Run. I need suggestions for more games though! Good quality games.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)