Consumer Reports Digital Edition: Not Recommended
February 28, 2011
Consumer Reports magazine, the venerable publication trusted by millions for its product reviews and recommendations, is now available as an iPad app. Regrettably, it is a disappointment.
The Consumer Reports Digital Edition was recently released to the App Store and includes a free preview issue. It will also let users download monthly issues as in-app purchases, presumably beginning with the publication’s April 2011 issue.
Featured in this free preview issue:
Unfortunately, there is not much to love about the Consumer Reports Digital Edition. For one, if the “preview” edition is any indication, future digital issues will be reruns of the print issue, with some videos. This is in poor form, especially compared to digital magazines such as Project and WIRED, which are filled with features exclusively for the iPad. Second, current Consumer Reports magazine subscribers will not get the digital version for free, which is very disappointing. Finally, the app is huge. The current version is 126 MB. With a few changes, the app would be significantly better. However, in its current form it does not come recommended. The free Consumer Reports Digital Edition is available in the App Store.
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