As a huge Instapaper fan, I was quite happy to see the latest Instapaper Pro update (version 2.2.3 if you keep track of that sort of thing.) While most of the actual updates lie in the iPad version, the big deal for me was iPhone OS 3.0 compatibility. See, as a jailbreak fan, I’m still on 3.1.2 . The previous version of Instapaper Pro only worked on 3.1.3 and above. So, in short, I can finally enjoy Instapaper on my iPhone again. That makes for one very happy llama.
What is Instapaper?
If you don’t already use Instapaper, then you probably have no idea what I’m talking about so far. That’s ok, and it’s easily fixable. Instapaper takes a web page and strips out all images and formatting, leaving beautiful, easy to read, clear text. This is useful in a number of situations.
Let’s say you’re bouncing around through a few Twitter links, and find a fantastic article that you would love to read, but just don’t have the time. Click on the Instapaper bookmarklet, and it’s saved for you. Now, whenever you have time, go to the Instapaper site and read your article. All of the funky formatting, ads, and pictures are gone – all that’s left is the text that you wanted to read in the first place.
The iPhone is where this app really shines
Instapaper Pro for iPhone is drastically more useful. I mainly use it in conjunction with Tweetie, my Twitter app of choice. Even though the AT&T 3G network is pretty solid and quick where I live, many web pages just take a long time to load. So when I’m flicking through my tweets for links, I save the interesting ones to Instapaper. That way, I don’t have to wait forever for tons of images and ads to load.
When I want to read a couple articles, I fire up the Instapaper app, and I’m greeted with all the articles I saved. Nothing but crystal clear, easy to read text. In other words – exactly what I’m looking for, and nothing that I don’t want. If I make it halfway through an article, it even saves my place when I come back.
I consider Instapaper Pro ($5 in the app store) one of my “must have” iPhone apps. If I still had an iPad, I would consider it a must-have there, too. It makes reading an absolute joy, and it’s such a brilliant add-on for Twitter. Any other Instapaper fans out there?