CBS Joins the iPad Revolution: Releases New App

A few months after the arrival of the ABC News app, CBS News has finally released its own app for the iPad. The app includes many of the features you'd expect from a news organization, but it is definitely a work in progress. The CBS News app includes stories, images, videos, and some CBS News Twitter feeds. For example, if you want to see CBS correspondent Mark Knoller's latest feed, it is readily available. The app also includes a Gallery section, which tells current stories using images. One such feature is called "Celebrity Circuit," which offers 29 pictures of famous people and some text on what's going on in their lives. If that sort of thing interests you. I found the app easy to use, and it covers the latest news happenings. Yet, the articles are short and the list of videos currently available is pretty small. Still, the videos are very clear and can be viewed using a Wi-Fi or 3G connection. In addition, articles can be saved for offline viewing, which is very nice. One major annoyance is a pop-up box that appears each time you enter the app. It asks you if it can find your current location. From what I can gather, its only purpose (at least right now) is to give local weather conditions. Don't expect local news, because it simply isn't there. Another annoyance is its reliance on a single advertiser. In this case, ads for Amazon's Kindle are shown on each page. Seeing Kindle ads on an iPad is pretty funny, but it gets old after awhile. Since the app is free, CBS needs to make money like everyone else. Still, it's nice to see CBS News join the ever-growing list of news related apps on the iPad. It's worth a look and is available in the App Store.

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