Link to App store with no redirects?

Question

Apple recommends an itms:// link for native applications linking to the app store, however a link such as the following ends up opening itunes first, then redirecting to the app store:

itms://itunes.com/apps/Reactors

How do you open the app store directly with no redirects to iTunes or Safari? It appears that even the usage of phobos.apple.com is being depreciated.

On fast devices it can take several seconds to animate the native app away, animate itunes in place, find the redirect, animate itunes away, animate the app store in place, and find the app. It makes the app seem poorly designed to have all that page flipping occur before bringing the user to what they requested.

Example code:

[[UIApplication sharedApplication] openURL:[NSURL URLWithString:@"itms://itunes.com/apps/Reactors"]]

Solution 1

Instead of using "itms://" use "itms-apps://".

Solution 2

This has already been answered within a different thread, but the easiest way is to simply use Apple's Link maker at http://linkmaker.itunes.apple.com/us/

Comments

[Noach Magedman]

Deprecated. The SO answer klotz links to has been amended. Starting with iOS 5 you use the web url itunes.apple.com/app/id1234567 (the App Store ID) and it intelligently deeplinks directly to the App Store app, rather than bouncing through Safari/iTunes.