It seems the App Store is once again thriving. After a decrease during the holiday season, nearly 80 Skyhook-enabled apps became available for download the week of 1/12.As usual, the majority of these fall under the categories of Local Search, Travel, and Routing, but for the first time in a while, there is a new location-based app in the Games category called iMob Online. iMob is the first free multi-player mob game for the iPhone that lets players engage with other players in their current area.

Applications featured in the new Music category in the App Store are also taking advantage of location.Talk Radio and What’s on the Radio? Both allow iPhone and iPod Touch users to stream live music or talk radio based on current location.This is great when traveling or to eliminate having to use the scan option on your car radio or home stereo.

There are nearly 100 location-aware social networking apps in the App Store.Buddy is unique as it streamlines meetups by both interest and location.Using this app, you can find the “Golfing Buddy” or the “Jogging Buddy” that’s closest to you.

By Courtney Teeling