LA Times – Review
App Type: Uncategorized
Our rating: 
By: Tribune Interactive
Version #: 1.0.1
Date Released: 2010-06-22
Developer:
Price: 0.00
User Rating:
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To be quite honest, I am a die hard fan of the RSS feed. I utilize this XML gem on a daily, sometimes hourly, basis to keep up to date with everything from the latest news, to my favorite comic, and even the status of my web server. My newsreader aggregates all my feeds into an organized collection to browse and read. I frankly couldn’t imagine getting my news any other way. I do understand that those of us that use RSS feeds in this manner are in the minority, and most people either view sites directly, or in the case of the iPhone, through a site specific app. So while I personally would have little use for the new Los Angeles Times app, I can certainly see where many people would benefit from having an app specifically designed to give an electronic version of this popular national paper.
The mainstay of any news app is the headlines, and with the LA Times app this is now exception. The headlines are given top billing by showing up immediately as you open the app. A swipe to the right takes you to the various sections of the newspaper like Local, National, Sports, and Entertainment. The text is clear and crisp, even on an older iPhone, and the font size can be changed to accommodate folks that have trouble reading small print. When you see an article you want to read, touching the headline takes you to the article. While reading, you can move to the next or previous articles, add to your favorites, or even share the article with Facebook, Twitter, and email. Articles with pictures have the images inline just like they are on a real newspaper. Tapping on an image shows you a larger version, and the images themselves can be saved to your favorites.
From the starting location, you can swipe to the left to reveal a selection of buttons for various places within the app. You can search articles, read the L.A. Now blog, keep up with the L.A. Times twitter accounts, browse your favorites, and change settings in the app.
By far the coolest features is the images button. The Los Angeles Times site has numerous photo galleries and this section lets you browse and view them in a powerful way. Each image can be saved to favorites or shared just like articles. The only bad thing I could say about the photo section is that longer captions do get cut off, and there does not appear to be any way to read the entire caption.
Each section of the Los Angeles TImes app is tailor made for the information you are viewing. The entire app’s look and feel is just what you would expect from a digital newspaper. Many newspapers are struggling with lower readership, and the shift from physical to digital news. It is good to see the Los Angeles Times giving a forward look to how news can be delivered to people through their mobile devices.
The app itself is free, and the ads within the app are relegated to a single banner at the bottom (mostly advertising a subscription to the L.A. TImes). If you are the type of person that wants to keep up with local and national news, but you are not a fan of RSS readers, then the LA Times iPhone app will give you one of the best digital newspaper experiences you could ask for.
Quick Take
Value:High
Would I Buy Again:Yes
Learning Curve:Easy
Who Is It For:Those who want to read news, but don't use RSS
What I Like:Great layout, unobstrusive ads
What I Don't Like:Minor interface bugs like captions that get cut off.
Final Statement:LA Times gives you a powerful news app to read and share all of latimes.com content.
See what you want, when you want
When you open up the Los Angeles Times for iPhone app, content is made available to you by section. But what if you're not interested in Sports or World News? What if you want Business News shown first? Simply go into the Settings screen and choose ‘Reorder sections.’ Here you can reorder and turn off sections as you wish while always having the option to change them again later.
Keep your favorites, forever
Find a great story that you want to come back to later? See an amazing photo that you want to view again? With the Los Angeles Times for iPhone app, keeping your favorite content easily accessible is a click away. Once your content is saved, it's on your app until you take it off.
Share with your friends and family
The Los Angeles Times for iPhone app has built-in sharing with today’s most popular social media platforms (Facebook and Twitter) and also allows you to access your address book and share content via e-mail.
Take us wherever you go, no connection required
Many apps fail when a network isn’t available. The Los Angeles Times for iPhone app was designed for people who sometimes go where the signal can’t. While you won’t get the latest news when a connection isn’t available, you will have the most recently downloaded information in the app and all your saved items right there with you.
Great photography ahead
One of the greatest things about the Los Angeles Times is our award-winning photojournalism. This app highlights that work in our custom-built Galleries area. You’ll be able to browse photos by section and peek into dozens of collections before launching a slideshow.
Screenshots
Article By Nathan Kline
Nathan has been an avid Apple user and advocate since the days of the Apple ][. He has always sought to find new ways to make use of technology to assist his daily life. As a paramedic in southern California Nathan brings his familiarity with technology to the field, and at whatsoniphone.com he brings his critical thinking to he analysis of apps and news. You has also written app reviews for the mobile app site Smokinapps.com.
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