TweetMag Review

TweetMag is a Twitter-dedicated application built to offer a magazine-style view of what articles and links people are tweeting about both in your own stream and in the outer world. "It’s like making a personal editorial team out of the people, lists and tags you follow" reads the official blurb. So how well does it work? Let's find out.

After TweetMag authenticates with Twitter through the input of your login credentials, the application does all the work - from scanning for links and finding articles to placing them on a personal, uniquely-created homepage. This homepage is very cleanly designed, with an effective balance between text and images (at least for my feed). Each article is clearly defined and readable with a single tap. The homepage also includes any videos people from your feed have tweeted. Everything can be enjoyed in-app, including YouTube videos.

Although you can't see who tweeted what from your personal home screen, tapping on an article will reveal who the tweeter was, along with any other tweets containing that link. All of this information is kept to a sidebar, with TweetMag offering preference to the article rather than the tweeter: exactly the way it should be. Options to tweet an article, save it, e-mail the link or open in Safari also exist, as well as the ability to @reply to the person who tweeted the link in the first place.

I noted earlier that the application can operate beyond the borders of your own twitter stream. A 'Top Stories' tab provides a self-explanatory list of the most popular articles and links, all laid out in the same way as your personal home screen. If you're looking to tailor your tastes towards specific categories, TweetMag has you covered. And if you're looking to refine your results even further, whether it be to a person, tag or keyword, TweetMag has it all in-house, available with a few taps.

It's an interesting take on a device that prides itself on innovation. TweetMag is a great idea, ensuring that you're kept up-to-date and in-the-loop about the happenings of your stream. However, the major issue in this version reviewed is stability: the application crashed multiple times during my testing, which dampens my overall positive outlook. Nonetheless, if you're curious enough to view a fresh perspective of your steam, TweetMag's for you. There's no single person tweets to be found, this application is all about the articles and links behind the tweets. And in 140 characters, you can only say so much.

However, perhaps the biggest problem to TweetMag is a rival application: Flipboard. This free alternative does what TweetMag does to an extent, albeit with a little less flare, but with a whole lot more social networking, from Facebook to Flickr. And with a $4.99 price tag, TweetMag is the more expensive of the two. It's up to you and how much you value your stream's content.

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