Remember back when we used to read the morning paper over breakfast? Well, that practice is quickly dying out, as print publications are replaced with app subscriptions. Mobile reading apps can adjust on the fly to breaking news developments, giving users a constant stream of up-to-date information. While we want to get the latest scoop on world news, national events, and industry developments, it’s also easy for us to suffer from information overload. So mobile users have a need for apps that can filter the useful data from the rest of the noise. Take a look at these four reading apps that fit the bill for news addicts.
Feedly
This is the ultimate news feed app – not only can you customize the content, but you can customize how it looks on all of your devices. Feedly is a free service that connects directly to your Google account. Once you’ve downloaded the app and signed up, you can enter your favorite news sources, or browse the latest publications based on genre. You can sort your news list into different categories, such as “Tech,” “Entertainment,” and “Business.” This allows you to zero in on updates within a particular industry.
Once you’ve designed the content of your custom newspaper, you can start tweaking its appearance. Some people love magazine layout apps, such as Flipboard, which predominately feature article graphics within the main navigation. The visually inclined can make this their default view. However, others prefer a no-frills, text-based experience. That’s not a problem! Just jump into the settings and choose the “List” option. This will arrange all of your unread articles by title only. And just how accessible is your new Feedly newspaper? Well, you can check it out on Android and iOS devices, and open it from most computer browsers.
When it comes to information overload, it can be easy to miss important articles just because you don’t have time to look over them immediately. This is when Pocket comes in. This handy app syncs with dozen of popular news apps, allowing you to save interesting articles for later reading. These articles sync across your accounts, so that you can have access to your future reading list from any mobile device and from your computer’s browser. You might already be familiar with Pocket – this app used to be called Read It Later before it was rebranded.
The New York Times
This internationally renowned publication translates well in the mobile world. Articles, videos, and photos have been engineered to look their best on a number of mobile platforms, including iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, and Kindle. Just like the website, readers can view up to 10 articles a month for free. Once you hit this cap, then you are expected to pay for a subscription to the New York Times, however news addicts will probably find the monthly access fee to be well worth it.
One of the coolest features about the New York Times app is that readers can instantly save an article for offline viewing. This can prove to be very useful, especially if you get stuck in an area without cell reception or Wi-Fi. News stories are presented in a clear, easy to read format, with a minimalistic navigation view. The large headline links and swipe gestures make it easy for phone users to move between articles single-handedly.
AP Mobile
Many domestic newspapers get their stories from the newswire at the Associated Press, so why not go directly to the source with your mobile device? AP Mobile lets readers keep tabs on both global and domestic news topics, and the app will even flash notification banners across your screen (customizable within your mobile settings). AP Mobile is very user friendly, with a picture grid style navigation menu that separates news into categories like Top News, Sports, AP Radio, and Business. These categories are changeable within the settings, so that you can tailor the AP news to your individual needs.
The digital era brings a wealth of information to users fingertips. Whether you’re using news feeds for industry-specific blogs (for example, business coverage) or weather updates, these apps can help keep tabs on what’s both new and relevant. Make sure to download these popular news sources and try them out for yourself!
