ReadMe! (BeeLine & Focus‪)‬ 4+

Nice tech, mediocre app

Needs some serious usability work.
- spritz login should be an SFAuthenticationSession, rather than the custom Safari window that won't let me copy in my long password
- no need for library to fade in - just show me my books right away
- you want my to burn 🔥 my books? Really? The bookshelf is a bit much, but the match is going overboard
- if I tap on a book, I want to read it immediately, not see the option to rename it. Put the in the edit mode with deletion, following iOS conventions.
- lacks continuous scroll mode. I'm using the app for Spritz, which makes more sense in a continuous context anyway, but previously I stopped using Kindle because it didn't support continuous scroll.
- on the Spritz selecter, two magnifying glasses icon is confusing - the part you move should be a handle, and it can still have the move icon.
- far as I can tell, no way to zoom images. Many books have maps with small details you need to zoom in to see.
- I like that you don't add copywrite info when I copy text from a book.
- not updated frequently enough - no iPhone X support over a month after release.
- the loading screen "applying Beeline reader" when flipping to the next page is disruptive. Maybe preprocess the next page, since that's at least predictable - you don't need to do the whole book.
- bug: Spritz advances faster than the pages turn to keep up.

Developer Response ,

Thanks a bunch for the in-depth review! We love feedback like this! If you have any more, please let us know at support@readmei.com <3

I find that ReadMe! Works great!

I have read with surprise the negative reviews of the ReadMe! app since I have used it for several years without having any of the problems others are reporting. When i follow the instructions, I have no trouble getting new books into the library provided they are in the correct format. If you are having trouble losing a book, it is probably because the publisher has protected it from being put into a format, that is compatible with the app to stop you from reading the book anywhere except on their site. You really shouldn't complain just because ReadMe will not help you violate the rules established by the entity you bought the book from.

Both Spiritz and BeeLine Reader work well at all times. I had no qualms about becoming a premium member, especially since it permits me to increase the reading speed. The reviews that criticize the app because the developer charges something for it are, I believe, unreasonable. In our capitalist society, we should expect people to be paid when they develop and provide something we want.

I think the app is great and so almost all my reading on it.

In serious need of an overhaul

I’ve had ReadMe! for years - since before you had to pay for it. It’s still just a basic reading app. I got it because I wanted to try Spritz - which itself has issues. Even after years of availability, the library STILL cannot be sorted. If you are an avid reader as I am, you have thousands of books. Imagine trying to find a particular book. Now imagine remembering the book but not remembering the author’s name or the book title. You have to sort through thousands of titles until you maybe see something that reminds which book you’re thinking of.

The developer should have provided us with sorting capability YEARS ago - sort by title, sort by author, sort by category.... and that’s another issue. There is no way to categorize your books. The bookshelf should have been able to have categories assigned - fiction, non-fiction, young adult fiction, children’s fiction (where the books I write listed), science fiction, non-fiction biographies, non-fiction autobiographies, history - you get the picture.

This is still just a basic app with limited capability. At least Apple’s iBooks gives you the ability to create categories to put your books under. Perhaps the developers should look at iBooks and Marvin for examples of what a reader should be able to do....