Zinio App Review
Platform: Android

RATING:
5 out of 5

PRICE:
FREE (Beta)

TASTY:
Delivers your favorite print magazine titles to your computer or mobile device, automatically reformatting graphics and text to be easily read on any size screen, and adding fresh video and animations to bring magazines into the 21st century.

BUMMER:
Android version currently in beta, no ship date announced as of early September 2010.

COOL:
Skim printed pages, then click the “read” buttons to view articles in plain text. Easy on the eyes!

REVIEW:
Although not available for download via the Android Marketplace as of this writing, the numerous showcase videos and articles I’ve read all point to the same conclusion: the Android version of the Zinio software will bring a powerful, easy-to-use electronic magazine reader to your DROID in the near future, rivaling the iDevice and PC editions in terms of functionality and ease of use.

Earlier this year, Jeanniey Mullen, Chief Marketing Officer at Zinio, demoed the DROID app for CTIA attendees in Las Vegas. Subscribers to the Zinio service will be able to access their digital subscriptions, browse thumbnail covers of the latest editions, then click through to view each issue in a double-page graphical page view.

Clicking on a specific page brings it into view. If an article appears on the page, a large “read” button appears at the bottom. Clicking it reveals cleaned up plain text, which is easily read by scrolling. No pinch and zoom reading here (iPad developers, I’m looking at you), and the app also did a standup job of remembering which page she was on when she changed to another title.

Landscape and portrait mode is available, and all major publishers are working with Zinio to use their apps across all mobile platforms to deliver content to customers.