Leaked Flipboard app updated, addresses major issues
About a week ago, Flipboard’s Android app made its way to XDA-Developers well ahead of its intended launch as a Galaxy S III exclusive. Unfortunately, the app was in pretty dire state. If you moved down a feed, den moved back up, there would be a major issue with the “flipping” which caused the incorrect article’s details to be shown. Additionally, the widget we had seen on the Galaxy S III’s screen wasn’t available.
Despite it’s visual appeal, I found the app pretty unusable. Until today, when as I just decided to open it up on my Galaxy Tab, I got a message saying an update is available. And it’s no minor update, either. The version of the app leaked on XDA was 0.7.17. The update took me to version 1.8.4.
Most importantly, at this point the app seems ready for public consumption. At no point did I face any glitch, and my only complaint is that the widget (there are two of them, of 4X1 and 4X2 grid sizes) can’t be scrolled through, making it pretty pointless to me.
Another aspect I wish they would work on is the use of low-quality icons here and there. I understand the app is meant for phones only at this point, but the beauty of Android is that it works perfectly on my tab, too. Sure, it doesn’t have the horizontal scroll that the iPad app has, but I actually prefer this look, where more often than not focus is on one article alone.
If you notice in the screenshot below, the star isn’t scaled right, and a custom circular progress dialog they use is horribly pixelated. Other than that, you can’t really say this app isn’t meant for a tablet.
On the whole, I’m now in love with Flipboard. I love the immersive experience, and though Pulse has nothing to be threatened by, since I prefer it’s style to go through the feed of my regular blogs, I am certain that I’ll be spending a significant amount of time on it daily.