Most of us get more of our news and current event updates than we’d like to admit from Facebook. So it’s no surprise that the hottest new app out there integrates our beloved Facebook with various news sources, making for a seamless browsing experience.
Paper (free, iOS only right now) has a Flipboard-style layout, with news stories, photos and status updates presented as tiles. You can swipe through selected categories for stories on different subjects. The home screen starts with updates from your own Facebook timeline, including any notifications or messages you may have. Then, you can swipe right through your hand-picked sections, with options like ‘Headlines,’ ‘Tech,’ ‘Well-Lived,’ ‘Cute’.
The advantages to Paper (over the Facebook app) include the visually-pleasing layout and ability to easily continue reading other interesting items without launching a new app. It’s dual function; you can check up on your network and the wider world simultaneously. It addresses that (minor, but familiar) dilemma that occurs when there is nothing interesting on Facebook but you’re not quite done with aimless wandering online. Another neat feature is the ability to read a story on another platform, and then swipe down to return to your place in the app.
Flipping up to read the full text of the story
All the various shortcuts (swipe up to read, down to return, etc.) are a little tricky to get the hang of but when you install the app, a tutorial automatically guides you and teaches you how to navigate between stories and sections. I do wish that there was an option to choose which external sites fed into the app– while it seems like a good mix of sites like WSJ.com, CNN, The Verge, Daily Beast, BuzzFeed, it would be nice to add in my own favorite, smaller blogs.
Paper nicely integrates stories from friends with stories from other sites, and makes it much easier to seamlessly browse stories. I can see myself using Paper most often as a time-waster in waiting rooms or at the airport, as opposed to a new way to get check my Facebook notifications. The format appeals to me as a way to consolidate apps and sites to check– and makes me look forward to the day when all my social media and news will be integrated. I would love to be able to catch up with all my platforms with the click of a button.
Have you used Paper? What do you think?
Posted on 2/5/2014
Written by Liz Wassmann
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