PressReader: News & Magazines Reviews

by Gh46893

PressReader is way too buggy. It keeps accusing me of making screenshots when I haven’t done so and when I try to share, comment or bookmark it a login screen comes up even though I’m already logged in thru my library and then it disappears and I still cannot do the functions. Magazine articles get cut off in the middle in the text mode possibly because the layout that mixes graphics and text throws PressReader off. The graphics prts gets disabled after a while due to me allegedly taking screenshots when I haven’t done so. At least my subscription thru the library is free but I wouldn’t recommend paying for any content on PressReader.

My subscription to one newspaper was cut off due to allegedly taking screenshots when I have not done so at all. Now another newspaper is accusing me of taking screenshots too even though I haven’t done anything at all. Customer service has done a terrible job at helping me with this and I DO NOT recommend PressReader at all. I just downgraded my rating to one star from two.

by Jobo2@

As the owner of an iPad Air and an iPad Mini 4 I can swear to the fact that literally hundreds of APPs are the same for both devices. Not this app. It does not allow expansion by pressing the screen out. Enlarging the print on the pages of The NY Times Replica works fine on the iPad Air. But the this app on the iPad Mini does not enlarge. Particularly enraging as the mini is smaller and really NEEDS the enlarging ability. Have sent repeated complaints...always handled by a different person. Sent screen shots to show the problem and someone had the Gaul to ask me to make a movie but their APP blocks movie making of the screen. Totally irritating help/really no help.

by David K. Miller

I have used PressReader ever since it was first made available. I quit my newspaper subscriptions and paid them for this once wonderful app.

The developers have made changes that are not consumer friendly. The changes I’m discussing are the ability to take a screen shot. I u defat and they are trying to combat people that are stealing and posting entire issues somewhere.

I’m not doing that. But inagine you read an interesting article. In the old days I’d cut it out of the magazine and save it. Or an interesting recipe. Those are the things I screen shot. Clippings I’d like to save to reread or access later.

I have paid them $30 a month for almost a decade. Well more than my USA Today subscription that I canceled for these folks.

The developers took away the ability to save an article here or there.

They are also stingy with downloads. Occasionally when traveling I will prepare for my flight or car ride by downloading a few dozen papers to access without using data. When you do this it will stop your favorite publications from downloading. And it will give you a warning that you are downloading a lot and you should buy their corporate plan.

Tale my advice subscribe to Apple News Plus learn how to download the magazines there.

These developers are not listening to their consumers and their price is not fair considering what you get elsewhere.

by Ggmpd

My library system has a subscription to Press Reader. To sign in with your library card the Press Reader video says all you need is the library system name, your card number and your PIN. This is supposedly how the web version works but the iPad app wants you to also create an account. You can’t bypass this. However sometimes PressReader seems to think you’re on a library hotspot (I’m not) and lets you get on anyway. The next day it forgets and wants to charge you through iTunes. But, if you wait a couple of hours it thinks you’re on a library hotspot again.

I don’t know who designs and writes this software but they sure don’t test it.

by Brian Doyle

I read the N.Y. Times almost daily as I travel a lot. I actually like reading on this app better than the actual paper. The photos are better, and you can jump to continuation pages easily, and back, sometimes. Unfortunately with the Times at least, links are missing at times. That might be NYT’s fault?

Navigating with the gizmo on the bottom of the screen is tedious. A drop down list would be better.

Also missing is a “back” button. I wish I could just go back to the previous page I was on like in every other reading app I have used.

Finally, it seems that if an update comes down to an issue or supplement while you are reading it, PressReader pops up an annoying sidebar and sometime takes you back to the top of the page or the first page...very annoying. They should just put up an icon to notify you.

But overall I like it. I use a different one for the Vail Daily and I like this one better.

by Sabor Místico

I am not impressed with PressReader at all. It just makes things that should be straightforward and easy unnecessarily difficult. I do a search on a new device for a periodical I have been receiving for years on an older one, and the search turns up nothing. I wish to de-authorize one device so that I can authorize another and I can’t do that without getting tech support from my organization (the website won’t let me sign in on my computer so I can do so myself. Instead it tells me that my email and/or password are “incorrect” - which they are not). Just a bunch of unnecessarily complicated nonsense!

Also, PressReader has an icon badge which is not self-explanatory. I wish I knew what it signified. Is it the number of periodicals I am supposed to receive (because that does not seem accurate)? The number of issues available for download? (because that doesn’t seem accurate either). What?! I tried opening all my periodicals to see if that would get the icon to it would go away or change, but it didn't. So an explanation of its significance would be nice.

With many publications piling up I would appreciate a feature that could instantly put them in chronological order, for finding issues more easily, but there doesn’t seem to be such a feature.

Honestly, if I did not need to use PressReader out of necessity, I would have deleted it long ago.

by Jíbaro De Yauco

PressReader has much that I like: I can read nice renditions of newspapers and magazines complete with their color illustrations; zooming in for easier reading or to examine illustrations more closely is easy and intuitive; there are a large number of publications at my fingertips, including many in foreign languages, though not necessarily all the ones I would like.

The latest update, however, is a step backwards. My biggest complaint is that pages no longer render reliably, often showing a skeleton without text that finishes rendering only if I swipe to another page and back. Often the slide up index appears for no apparent reason and will not disappear until I have paged back and forth several times. In contrast, the previous version reliably showed and dismissed the index when I tapped on the content and never exhibited difficulty rendering pages.

(I also don’t like the change to the black background, but that’s just a personal preference.)

At this point I just hope that the authors address these issues and distribute fixes soon.

by RCart96

this app is a great app that I frequently forget about and then promptly return to, but also one that I really wish I could work into my daily and nightly routines. One major thing that keeps me from doing so is the lack of a dark mode. I’d like to take an hour to get away from the bright, loud, chaotic world and relax with my favourite magazine, ‘Deutsch perfekt’, before bedtime; however, there’s entirely nothing relaxing about having to read dark text on the glaringly white screen of my iPad. If the this app team could figure out how to invert text whilst keeping the design and images of the magazine or newspaper largely intact, that would be greatly appreciated!

by Luv Me Hate Meee

It’s a great app and very convenient to use. The only thing I need to identify is the auto download function does not properly work on iPad on few of the newspapers and magazines. I have experienced that the auto download reset itself when it’s time for next issue arrives and as such fail to work. The problem I experienced is with Washington post and Newsweek international.

It works fine with other newspapers and magazines that I regularly download using the auto download function. Good luck

by Mlaurence

I love reading newspapers in their original format on this app. I have a subscription to one paper and access to hundreds of papers through my local library, and both log-ins work seamlessly together. this app has improved to near-perfect status over the years but one flaw remains: despite my efforts to clear out old editions, the size of my data files grows until it chokes my iPad. Recently I had to once again delete and reinstall PressReader after it reached over 7GB of content. I don’t know what is causing this as I don’t see any stash of available newspapers in any archive. Otherwise, I’m very happy as a long-time user.

by A Herrmann

I have to revise my previous review because the latest version is not stable. The blue hyperlink to enlarge an article only works on select articles and crashes the program on others. Repeated requests to customer service have not solved the total problem. They now seem to have fixed the front page of the NY Times but not inner pages like the Opinion page. PLEASE FIX!

Finally fixed! Now works well on my iPad Pro 10.5 inch screen.

I would like to add my frustration to the other NY Times reader reviews. The Press Reader column on the left cuts off NY Times columns and requires ridiculous slide and hold maneuvers to read the paper. I don't understand why the reading experience got worse with this update. Please fix.

Press Reader has a problem with the new iPad Pro 10.5 inch screen. It provides partial columns which require sliding and holding to read some columns. This was reported weeks ago and still not fixed.

by Beechnut400

I have a premium subscription that is complimentary through my work. I use PressReader for The Denver Post. The paper is uploaded 2 to 3 times a week, so I’m missing the paper most days of the week. I would love to use and PAY several hundred dollars a year for PressReader if the paper would consistently load. As it is now I can see it would only be a frustration and a waste of money as it s now.

by TRSpafford

Big problems with this update! I love PressReader and have used it for years, but now (1) the drop-down menu that shows table of contents completely blacks out and freezes the screen! (2) From the main screen, the little “More” menu is blank (“...” at lower right corner of screen)! (3) From the page preview display, the little vertical ellipsis at the bottom of the screen also brings up a completely blank menu! Please help!

by AnnandaleMort

There is something that I really like about the layout of an actual newspaper. Using this app to download the print edition of the New York Times is the closest thing I found to actually reading the newspaper. The best thing is that I don’t have to go to the newsstand or open my front door to get the paper delivered; I can find it in PressReader first thing in the morning.

by News Suz

This is the greatest app! I get to see my NY Newspaper while I live in Florida. I can see any paper from all over the world! It’s ready by 5:30am and I don’t have to go outside to my driveway to get the paper... wet or dry! I don’t have to deal with the newspaper print that I’m allergic to. And I don’t have to throw the paper away at the end of the day! Also, I can save papers on my iPad or iPhone and see my favorite stories or articles whenever I want. It’s just FABULOUS! And the price cannot be beat!!! Get this Press Reader app ASAP!!!

by Pixelwalker

My access to all possible world press became instant, my opinions became influential, my channel is growing and developing super fast. Three great features I’ve never seen before but always dreamed of: real time Translation (you don’t need 3rd party anymore) - very convenient - just imagine you can read any language! (Italian Vogue is not longer Italian)
Then you don’t even have to read, Voice Reader can do it aloud.
And finally the Boomarks! (I still have those thousands of heavy folders I used put teared magazine pages in from my student years). PressReader delivers the fresh issues of all I read right to my account. I’m shocked! I’m in future!

by Rvhank

I have been a loyal NY Times reader for 4 decades. Living remotely, I am only able to get a subscription via this app. Sorry, but I feel that the system works better for this app Incorporated than for its subscribers.
I have recently spent a full half day renewing my subscription as my credit card on file had expired. this app deleted my account at the stroke of midnight when my yearly subscription expired and I was online and on the phone for 5 hours to become recognized as a subscriber and become reinstated with my updated payment information.
Was there an email updating me of the impending end of my subscription? Nope.
Wake up this app you are a service industry and we are your clients!
I have already noted my renewal date in 364 days in my 2020 calendar.

by Dr Howard Smith

Today is Saturday April 18th. The new update downloaded last night. It opens to old, already deleted versions of the New York Times. The browse catalog wont load completely. It is impossible to load the New York Times digital edition. There is no way to contact the company through PressReader . Why in the world would you post a new version on a weekend, when you are in the worst position to fix bugs.

this app, as a product, is solid when it works. Unfortunately, too often, bugs pop up, and there is no way to remedy the situation. I wish that the major publications would field their own replica apps or force better quality control over this app.

Very sloppy and disappointing.

by TxTimeFan

The latest changes are abysmal. You can’t go back to main screen and browse or scroll through publications, anymore. You must select your publications when you reload the apps. As premium customer who considers this apps inconsequential but very useful you’ve messed up the platform. Developers should be fired after the latest November 2020 update! I’ve ended my subscription! Update: Worked with Developer to solve issue. Developer gave a version # indicating apps was supposedly fixed. Version update only works when the apps has been closed and phone is rebooted. This isn’t a fix it’s a work around. Perhaps company should invest in better Developers.

Nice, you finally fixed the Apps, I am happy again!!!!

by ARSunhappy

PressReader no longer works smoothly and i hate the black background with no way to find how to v
Change it. Scrolling through the thumbnails and tapping on the page you want to read doesn’t work. The only way to get to that page if you scroll to the next page and then scroll back. Why did you change a good thing? Also the setting for automatic download doesn’t automatically stay on.
What the heck? Having little control to customize PressReader is very frustrating. I used to love PressReader.

by NuYawkah

Daily NY Times used to download automatically each morning when it became available from publisher. All of a sudden, it stopped downloading. Now, to get each day’s issue, I have to go to “Publications”, wade through all of the newspaper choices, find today’s Times, and tap on it. This is worse than inconvenient. Sometimes you list something for download that isn’t even available yet, like The NY Times Sunday Book Review. Tapping it just produces a “Not Available yet” notice. What’s the point of listing something that can’t be downloaded? When will you restore automatic downloads for subscribers?

by Jjokoc

Generally it’s a good app. My only problem is that there is the option to save pages to your collections, yet there is absolutely no way to actually access them?? I’m guessing this is a glitch or something. Would definitely be 5 stars if this was fixed.

For anyone else that needs this feature, the workaround that I’ve been doing is taking screenshots then cropping out the top and bottom so it shows just that page.

by Ajwagner86

The interface and image quality are great, as is the selection of different publications from around the world. However, I have noticed that sometimes issues just get “skipped”. For example, with my New York Times Home Delivery subscription, and also The Week magazine is another example where I have noticed this.

by Luv2sing21

I love having the paper at my fingertips when I wake up. But sometimes the downloads are late, as is the delivery of my paper copy, and then I have NO paper at all. Otherwise, I think this app is great.
September 13, 2017 Got my NY Times on my iPhone today but it will not download on my iPad.
February 25, 2018 Still getting downloads late. Also, not able to access any saved articles.
March 20, Still not seeing saved articles in My Collections.

by Mroto

Everything about this program is great except for two things.

1) If you switch phones or tablet, you lose all your publications. This ignores a large portion of the users who intend to study and reference the material over time.

2) It does not allow the ability to highlight the material or take notes in those sections. The only notes section is for public commentary, which is a different purpose.

If we pay for the publication, we should be able to keep it forever and highlight it and do what we need to do with it. Being in the digital world is nice because you can search many publications for keywords, but without the ability to archive what is the point?

by YtrewqFdsa

Press Reader is an excellent substitute for the printed paper. I love that it is identical to the print edition. Because of that I KNOW that I’m not missing anything. It is as easy to navigate as the printed paper and maybe better because one can enlarge the print.

I wish one could email an article from it but you can’t. If one could it would be perfect.

Louise Orkin

by Paddling Bear

At the risk of jinxing PressReader, this app seems to have hit a nice plateau...works well on current and not so current hardware running up to date iOS.

I personally have no complaints and wonder which iPad and what iOS the folks are running who are upset. Backwards compatibility is hard to guarantee in a rapidly changing competitive electronics era.