News-focused iOS app Flipboard today announced an update that introduces a new UI which creates custom, curated magazines based on various user "passions." The Version 4.0 update is said to be a direct response to the overabundance of news sources -- from magazines to online outlets and social media -- and serve as a way to "effortlessly get you to the things you love."

4
The heart of the new update is a featured called "Smart Magazine." Here users can search and specify specific passions and topics they care about (photography, movies, etc.), and Smart Magazine will create a digital collection of up-to-date stories and news on each topic, and continuously update the section as new stories break. The new tool is said to be curated "by experts and enthusiasts."

Flipboard 4.0 is a response to our ever-growing ecosystem of publishers, Flipboard Magazines, topics and more. With over 30 million magazines created, thousands of publishers on our platform, and tens of thousands of topics—plus input from social networks like Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn—we re-imagined Flipboard to more effortlessly get you to the things you love.

Long-time readers who follow lots of content should find a more streamlined experience, while new users will be able to dive right into their passions with minimal setup.

Users will be able to pick from a collection of sub-categories once they search for a Smart Magazine passion to follow, and a learning algorithm will improve Flipboard's news aggregation features over time. On the Home carosuel users can have up to nine Smart Magazines.


Flipboard originally launched on iPad in 2010, and then on iPhone in 2011, accompanied by a Tweet from Phil Schiller who remarked that the app was "very nice." Since then, Flipboard has gained a bevy of competitors in the online news aggregation space, including Apple News. In 2015 one competitor, Zite, bowed out of the race and encouraged fans to migrate to Flipboard in its stead.

At the time of writing, the update hasn't hit the App Store yet, but it should appear later in the day. Flipboard is available on the iOS App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Tag: Flipboard

Top Rated Comments

wolfpackfan Avatar
wolfpackfan
97 months ago
Disappointed the iPad version doesn't have all the features that the iPhone version has.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FlipboardJack Avatar
FlipboardJack
97 months ago
It's an OK update on the iDevices side, but not on the web. When I go to flipboard.com and click MacRumors (which I'm following), it just shows a blank page with the text "MacRumors hasn’t created any magazines yet." Also The Verge and Engadget are not working in the browser anymore. They all show updated thumbnails, but there is nothing there when you click it. So I'm not that happy with this update at this moment no.
Hello - my name is Jack, and I work on product at Flipboard. Very sorry you ran into this bug in the new version of our Web app this morning. We have now fixed this issue. Hoping you'll give it another try!
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rhett7660 Avatar
rhett7660
97 months ago
Honestly, so have I. I'm trying to find sources that honestly try to verify if what someone says is true or not, and if their proposals are solutions or merely playing to an audience. Philosophical differences, intelligently delineated is what I'd like to find.
Some how I have a feeling you won't find this type of app, given most of these harvest your likes and then goes out and looks for similar items. You could always try RSS feeds, but then again you might find you are getting feeds from known places etc. That is the million dollar question! "verify if what someone says is true or not."

I have to wonder if what we have been feed this entire time has been nothing but a big lie! Sorry, I will remove the aluminium foil hat now. :eek::D
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
EdT Avatar
EdT
97 months ago
Oh great, another site/app that will feed us what we want to hear and shield us from what we don't.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rhett7660 Avatar
rhett7660
97 months ago
Because you can never know where you will find something interesting or enlightening that you are unaware of. Especially if you never even look. We've created echo chambers that bombard us with points of view we already believe verified by sources we always accept.
Honestly I hear what you are saying. I really do. But when it comes to what I want to read I am usually selective on where or what I read, but then again I do have a wide variety of topics and sources. But on the political front, over the past few months I have been steering way clear! :eek:
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
imronburgundy Avatar
imronburgundy
97 months ago
Oh great, another site/app that will feed us what we want to hear and shield us from what we don't.
Where's the downvote button when we need one?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
Read Full Article • 136 comments
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
Read Full Article • 129 comments
bsod

Crowdstrike Says Global IT Outage Impacting Windows PCs, But Mac and Linux Hosts Not Affected

Friday July 19, 2024 3:12 am PDT by
A widespread system failure is currently affecting numerous Windows devices globally, causing critical boot failures across various industries, including banks, rail networks, airlines, retailers, broadcasters, healthcare, and many more sectors. The issue, manifesting as a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), is preventing computers from starting up properly and forcing them into continuous recovery...
Read Full Article • 493 comments
iphone 14 lineup

Cellebrite Unable to Unlock iPhones on iOS 17.4 or Later, Leak Reveals

Thursday July 18, 2024 4:18 am PDT by
Israel-based mobile forensics company Cellebrite is unable to unlock iPhones running iOS 17.4 or later, according to leaked documents verified by 404 Media. The documents provide a rare glimpse into the capabilities of the company's mobile forensics tools and highlight the ongoing security improvements in Apple's latest devices. The leaked "Cellebrite iOS Support Matrix" obtained by 404 Media...
Read Full Article • 66 comments
Apple Watch Series 9

2024 Apple Watch Lineup: Key Changes We're Expecting

Tuesday July 16, 2024 7:59 am PDT by
Apple is seemingly planning a rework of the Apple Watch lineup for 2024, according to a range of reports from over the past year. Here's everything we know so far. Apple is expected to continue to offer three different Apple Watch models in five casing sizes, but the various display sizes will allegedly grow by up to 12% and the casings will get taller. Based on all of the latest rumors,...
Read Full Article • 38 comments
tinypod apple watch

TinyPod Turns Your Apple Watch Into an iPod

Wednesday July 17, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
If you have an old Apple Watch and you're not sure what to do with it, a new product called TinyPod might be the answer. Priced at $79, the TinyPod is a silicone case with a built-in scroll wheel that houses the Apple Watch chassis. When an Apple Watch is placed inside the TinyPod, the click wheel on the case is able to be used to scroll through the Apple Watch interface. The feature works...
Read Full Article • 133 comments