Atomix and Area5 have teamed up for an iPad magazine (monthly, a dollar an issue). Anyone try it? I bought it and skimmed it a bit. The Area5 videos are great but I think the actual articles need some work (the 3ds list thing seems counter to to the magazine’s mission). The app also seems a bit counter-intuitive. Still, it’s interesting.
I’m interested, but not likely to buy it since the app doesn’t come with a demo issue. Seems a little silly not to do that since few people would buy a mag at the newsstand without reviewing the content first.
Diego
Yeah, I thought that was really stupid as well.
It’s 99 cents. Less than 20% of what a magazine costs on the news stand. Are you really arguing for a trial on something that costs a buck?
Umm… Yes?
Nobody buys off newstand. And charging more than a dollar for the amount of content here (it’s certainly not as much content as a regular magazine) would’ve been crazy. So I do think having the first issue for free (the Daily has your first 14 for free) is reasonable.
As for magazine’s on the iPad doing it wrong, this magazine is certainly guilty of some of those faults. I think the Daily actually got a lot right, shame about the content.
I’m pretty sure all the newstands out there would disagree with you. I doubt they’re being run as a hobby.
I would wager that the newstand market is way smaller than the sub market and that the actual sell through at newstands is low.
Anyway, so the magazine has about 16 articles in it, which feels light but reasonable for the price. My main problem with the app is the navigation. The text and the graphics are on separate layersso scrolling down to read the article is seriously annoying. And if the simple act of reading is annoying, that is a serious problem. The reading experience needs to be flat. Also, the formatting and layout could use some work. Scrolling back to the beginning of an article to read through a column on the same page is really stupid. Fix that, ditch the preview and lists and then this could be real good.
I use zinio on my iPad and have around 12 mag subscriptions on it…awesome. As long as I can get a real version of a mag and not some video filled water down app version, I’m happy.
My main problem with the app is the navigation. The text and the graphics are on separate layersso scrolling down to read the article is seriously annoying. And if the simple act of reading is annoying, that is a serious problem. The reading experience needs to be flat. Also, the formatting and layout could use some work. Scrolling back to the beginning of an article to read through a column on the same page is really stupid. Fix that, ditch the preview and lists and then this could be real good.
Don’t know if this is the right place to ask this, but how’s e-book reading on the Ipad, guys? Is it tiresome after a while if you read a novel or something like that?
I’ve been thinking of one day getting an Ipad as an ebook reader, and as I need to read PDF on the go (and potentially magazines like these), it seems like the best option. Except it won’t be if reading a novel induces eye strain I wouldn’t get on something like a Kindle.
I read magazines and Instapaper articles on my iPad. Books are dramatically better on the Kindle.
Part of it is the Kindle’s e-paper being much easier on the eyes for long reading sessions. But also, the iPad is big and heavy for some situations, such as reading in bed.
If you search for “Kindle iPad” on this site you can find numerous discussions about this.
Nawid A and Carmicheal seem to have very similar opinions!
Also, the implementation of this magazine on the iPad sounds a bit clumsy, which is too bad, as magazines are something tablets should be able to do better than e-readers thanks to larger displays and color (excepting text-heavy magazines like Asimov’s or F&SF).
My standard answer to this is: If you just want a book reader, get a Kindle or a Nook or some other eInk device. If you want a tablet computer, get an iPad. If you want to read lots of books and to have a tablet computer, get both–if you can afford $500 for an iPad, you can afford an additional $140 for a Kindle or whatever. You can read books on an iPad (I’ve done it!), but if you’re planning on reading lots of ebooks, you may as well get something that’s excellent at it rather than something that’s merely good.
Ipad is arguably better at night. Kindle is many fold better outside and in daylight. Ipad is a far more compelling platform for customized zine-y content. All Kindle mags and papers use the same basic formatting.
Now that this is a free subscription, I wonder how they are going to pay for the content.
I do a lot of reading on my iPad, and I haven’t had any problems with it. I have my iBooks theme set to “Sepia” so the background is more soothing than the harsher white, and I’ve found it just fine. There’s also a “Night” theme which changes the text to grey on a black background, which I assume it meant to be used for reading in bed without disturbing your spouse or something. I dunno, I haven’t used that mode, so I don’t know how easy it is to read.
I haven’t spent any time reading on a Kindle though, so I can’t say how it compares. There is a Kindle app for the iPad though that I downloaded mainly in order to be able to read .mobi docs, and I find it to be pretty decent. I definitely do most of the reading with iBooks though.