World Cup Vuvuzela apps are hits in Android, iPhone marketplaces

Vuvuzelas, those cheap plastic horns that are blared at soccer games as a South African tradition, have been saved by FIFA. They will not ban them during the World Cup. That said, if you don't have a vuvuzela yourself, and want to see how horrific they are, you can install an Android or iPhone app to get the South African flavor.

Both the App Store and the Android Market are overflowing with vuvuzela apps. One of them, Vuvuzela 2010, has been downloaded more than 750,000 times. It is currently the most popular free app in the Entertainment category. Another, Virtual Vuvuzela, is the seventh most popular free sports app. However, they're not all that highly rated, 2.5 stars for the former and 1.5 stars for the latter.

Part of the problem might be that it's hard to get enough "oomph" from the speaker on an iPhone or Android device. A comment on one Android app, World Cup Virtual Vuvuzela, gave it 4 stars, but said, "Wish it could be louder and more annoying."

That's the problem, according to many fans from outside South Africa. The sound of a vuvuzela is really annoying, and has been compared to a hornet's nest. However, it is a tradition in South Africa, and Sepp Blatter, president of FIFA, said in a Twitter post: "I have always said that Africa has a different rhythm, a different sound. Would you want to see a ban on the fan traditions in your country?"

Not sure what a vuvuzela sounds like? Listen below.