iPad Apps Buzz

Instapaper for iPad: How it will change how you read blogs

Posted by James Eunson | May 4, 2010

UPDATE: More pictures, more links, oh my!

So the iPad application Instapaper has been getting a lot of coverage on Twitter and around the design blogs for being possibly the first iPad killer application. But if you’re like me, the phrase “killer application” is so overdone it rings the cynic bells almost straight away. So is the hype justified?

For the uninitiated, the idea behind Instapaper is to provide a really simple system for taking webpages you want to read and archiving them on the Instapaper website for reading later.

You sign up for an account and click the provided bookmark in your browser, saving pages to the cloud for reading later.

Then, on your mobile device you open the Instapaper app and the articles you previously saved are now visible in a list. Simple idea, but you may be asking (and rightly), is this actually useful?

Well actually…
Yes it is! Having articles in a clean, unencumbered format with you available at any time is quite valuable.

The process of saving a page to your Instapaper cloud account is one of the highlights of the system – click the bookmarklet, a quick animation plays in your browser and it’s saved to your account, ready for reading. Note: Here’s the graphic for sending to Instapaper from Twitterrific.

One of the central useful features that Instapaper provides is stripping away all the formatting of the original webpage, to leave only the content and article images. The ultimate effect is similar to reading one of the professionally laid-out and typeset books from Kindle or the Apple iBooks store.

The visual noise and distraction is completely removed, leaving nothing but the actual content.

Instapaper also has a perhaps unintended mindtrick on its users that makes the experience better than reading it on the original blog. The clean presentation seems to invite you, the reader, to pore over an article from start to finish instead of just dipping in, as we may do ordinarily with blogs.

If you find yourself not finishing blog articles (and wanting to) or flitting off to another tab, Instapaper is the cure.

Call me a simpleton but another feature that really makes the app is that all saved articles are available, without a connection to the net. If you’re one to use your iPad on the go and 3G/WiFi coverage is spotty, this is a real lifesaver.

If Less is More…
The actual application is pleasingly simple but with features to spare, should you seek them out. The new iPad exclusive (’til OS4.0) modal dropdown controls are used for the Settings menu and includes options for Tumblr and Twitter integration (for the social media afficionado) as well as a bevy of other settings to satisfy any seasoned configuration-freak.

The reading interface is very understated and uses the same or very similar controls as Apple’s own iBooks application – a very good thing considering the quality of iBooks. Users can select one of 6 fonts, 4 serif and 2 sans-serif as well as the ability to modify the text size, line spacing, horizontal margins and background/foreground colours.

It’s definitely true: the best designs are either those that completely eschew Apple human interface guidelines and design convention or those stick closely to it. Instapaper falls into the latter category.

It could almost be mistaken for a homegrown Apple application – kudos goes to the author for attention to detail.

Ok, Now Give Us The Dirt…
Well, sorry to disappoint but Instapaper basically does what it says on the tin. Solving such a simple but ubiquitous problem has resulted in a polished experience both on the web app side and the iPad application side.

It’s a (welcome) variation on the familiar tune of eBook reading; the author definitely didn’t need to reinvent the wheel to assemble it.

My main complaint would be that the app cost is a little steep and there are competing services that cost somewhat less. None of the competing services are nearly as nice to use though. Of course, if you can find a comparable service that provides the same user experience, don’t think twice.

Another potential problem down the line is that it doesn’t appear possible to backup your online Instapaper account – a problem inherent in most cloud applications.

If you place any value in your list of saved articles, you might want to back it up in some way just in case the site goes the way of the dodo.

At this stage I’m honestly nitpicking. The author Marco Arment appears very switched on. Just read his most recent post on the Instapaper blog and you’ll see the depths of consideration he applies to each minor change to the app.

So the outlook is mostly positive and John Rust agrees in his infinitely readable article “Welcome to the Future” about living solely off an iPad for a month:

By far, the best reading experience on the iPad has been Instapaper. Having already loved the iPhone app – it greatly increased the amount of online material I read daily – the iPad app seemed to take everything to a whole new level. Reading articles from The Economist, the New Yorker, and The Atlantic in a beautiful, easy-to-read format is nothing short of incredible, and I’ve actively sought more online content to read just so that I can use the application more.

So for all your goldfish-concentration-span blog-hopping ills, Instapaper may help you out.

What are your thoughts on Instapaper? Is it the killer app it seems to be or does it fall in a heap for you? Post a comment sharing your thoughts!

Bonus for reading to the end: This article on Instapaper on iPad!

Instapaper can be purchased on the iTunes App Store for $4.99 http://itunes.apple.com/app/instapaper-pro/id288545208?mt=8