Available in separate versions for the and , Netbot takes the bulk of Tweetbot's look, functionality, and even sound effects, and gloms them onto the App.net service. Each app costs $5.

Tapbots is one of many developers seemingly stung by , which limit how large third-party apps can grow. Of course, App.net-focused Netbot won't immediately be able to match the size of the company's Twitter-based business; while Twitter boasts of millions of users, App.net's user base hovers around the 20,000 mark.

"We're making Netbot as an investment in the future," Tapbots's Paul Haddad told . With the service's current size, "we certainly don't expect Netbot to fully support our company," he said. "That being said, we expect App.net to continue to grow, and hope many more users sign up now that Netbot is available." Haddad's wish may just come true; Netbot's release comes hot on the heels of earlier this week.

While Netbot isn't the first App.net iOS app to enter the App Store, it's perhaps the most polished of the bunch. (We'll publish a review roundup of several such apps, including Netbot, soon.) Having a functional Twitter app in place already certainly simplified work, especially because, as Haddad says, "the parts of the [App.net] API that are currently implemented are fairly similar" to Twitter's API. Even better, he says, the App.net API offers "a few bits that aren't publicly available on the Twitter API," which lets Netbot show stars (like Twitter's favorites) and reposts (like retweets) for a given post.

On the other hand, Haddad adds, "Twitter has support for streaming and direct messages (DMs), which are likely going to be the biggest things people notice as currently missing" from App.net and Netbot by extension. That said, "App.net has been implementing new APIs on a weekly basis, so I expect those to be available relatively soon."