Crypto is a hot topic for now, and all kinds of related media projects continue emerging. Aggregator applications appeared as tools for helping people to deal with the massive flow of information. Today we’ll check out the most interesting of them in the field of crypto.
There are tons of publications about crypto in the web. Information flows non-stop, and crypto enthusiasts need to stay tuned to the pulse of the market. Any event can catalyze the changes, even if it is fake or unverified information, which is known as “FUD†— Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt. Thus, crypto enthusiasts have to remain vigilant on a daily basis. The majority of them are technocrats, people that are eager to “upgrade†their life with technological solutions. The increasing number of mass-media projects boosted the development of this ecosystem. The answer came as content aggregation services.
Following the market trends, aggregators go mobile — in the form of apps. The latest information is always near, in your own gadget. Just open an app, swipe through the feed and voila — you are ready to make some conclusions and understand the agenda just by looking through the headings of the articles. Lots of apps and mass-media of any level appeared at the cryptomarket. The idea is to analyze available aggregators for Android and iOs, and make a helpful overview for all crypto enthusiasts who would like to have all useful information at one place, without digging in different sources for hours.
Step 1. Searching through Google Play and App Store
In total, it appeared to be more than 50 applications close to crypto. Many of them were either abandoned or rarely updated. Further to this, there are several clones of functional applications which are not worth mentioning. Apps of the largest mass-media, such as CoinDesk and CoinTelegraph, were also put aside as they publish only their own content. They do not aggregate different data.
Step 2. Creating the final list of “candidatesâ€
The final list resulted in six apps, which turned out to be popular. Also, the users’ reviews in Google Play and App Store were taken into consideration. The main criteria were usability and quality of the news, the unique features of the apps demanded some closer look too.
The following apps formed the short list:
| iOS version |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
| Rating in App Store |
4.5 |
4.6 |
4.1 |
- |
- |
- |
| Android version |
- |
+ |
+ |
+ |
- |
+ |
| Rating in Google Play |
- |
4.5 |
4.2 |
- |
- |
5.0 |
| Number of reviews |
400+ |
170+ |
20+ |
0 |
0 |
1 |
Step 3. Choosing the criteria of analysis
The needs of the audience were in the spotlight: the motivation of readers to choose this or that service. Thus, the review was split into two parts:
- Usability and design of the app itself (convenience of use).
- Content, possibilities to customize it and special features.
Let’s look at the app’s User Interface — is it easy to use?
A user should be engaged from the first seconds: upon launching the service, he or she must instantly figure out what’s going on here. Besides that, any user should easily understand how to customize the feed according to his or her preferences. From the initial criteria list, a table with standard settings was created — these are considered a must for good user experience.
| "Lightform" articles |
+ |
- |
+ |
+ |
- |
+ |
| Source filter |
+ |
- |
- |
- |
+ |
- |
| Feedback form |
+ |
+ |
+ |
- |
- |
- |
| Categories |
- |
+ |
+ |
- |
- |
- |
| Tabs |
+ |
+ |
+ |
- |
- |
- |
| Share |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
- |
- |
| Search |
+ |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Of course, some criteria require clarification.
“Lightform articles†— a possibility to view content without leaving the app. If there is no such function, the app is, in fact, redirecting a user to the browser, where the original material is opened. And this is not convenient in most of the cases.
“Source filter†— possibility to choose websites, from which the information comes. This is an essential factor of materials customization for a particular user, who wants to read articles from the sources, which he or she trusts.
“Categories†— structuring the aggregated materials in sections.
Additionally, Crypto News app has an option to choose between two types of feed representation, in Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News and BTCnews one can change the font size. Besides, BTCnews has a night view mode.
All in all, examining the products from the point of usability, the more pluses the app has in the table above, the better it is optimized for a user. Thus, the first three apps in the list can be considered as good and even excellent from this point of view. Developers of the apps from the other part of the table better audit their product and think over the UI design.
Fourth step. Take a close look. What have you got for users?
Usability is important, but it is only a wrapper. What kind of “candy†is inside? It is rather hard to identify the criteria at this point, that’s why every app should be examined separately.
BTCNews (App Store)
The fullest aggregator from all, in our opinion. Numerous sources, different formats, including video, podcasts, Twitter and Reddit newsfeeds. But this is not the best feature of the app. One can easily get lost in this flow of information, that’s why filters in this aggregator are the real saver. There is a detailed currency rates data: aside from the average rates that come from Coinmarketcap, one can always get the information from a certain exchange. And a cherry on the top of this content cake — an Education Center for beginners. Anyway, everybody who comes to the world of crypto should check this app out. The only disadvantage is lots of ads. But this problem is easily solved — just pay $3.99.
Crypto News (Play Market, App Store)
This app impresses with its usability and laconic design. The number of publications is restricted, and the content is the author’s selection — there is no option to filter the sources. Though the developers claim that there are more than 200 of them. The most memorable advantage is that the news comes in 5 languages. And this is not only the language of settings, this is a full-scale compilation of original materials! English, Russian, Chinese, Portuguese, and German are available. We haven’t seen such number of languages anywhere else, and this is a huge plus for those who don’t get too well with foreign ones and would like to get the news in their native language. Currency rates come from Coinmarketcap; there is detailed info on changes during last hour, 24 hours and week. There’s an option to choose between Top News and All News. Each article has the popularity scale which represents how often user opens this or that news. Another advantage — there is little advertising and no annoying pop-up ads.
Bitcoin & Cryptocurrency News by News Fusion (Play Market, App Store)
This app has lots of special features — authors have segmented news by topics and let users evaluate it. Editors make lists on certain themes: one piece of news is followed with the links to the other sources related to it. This is rather helpful if you want to know more about the subject or take a look at it from the other stance. A feature with the topics is also very interesting: filters by favorite themes help organize the information flow. Besides that, the developers actively promote the “socializationâ€, an interesting feature. By the way, News Fusion developer offers similar apps on other topics. There are ads, removing them will cost you $2.99.
Bitcoin News. All In One place (App Store)
This is an RSS feed aggregator, and the app’s main feature is a possibility to add a feed customized for a certain user. The feed is made up in a very unusual way, there are news marks by feed, but these are all advantages this app has. Too many advertisements and this spoils the whole impression from using this aggregator.
Monetse – Cryptocurrency news (Play Market, App Store)
Rather memorable naming and logo, but these are not the only advantages of the app. Aside from standard news sets, Monetse helps to create a feed on news about coins and tokens that you own. Quite a thoughtful move — crypto investors tend to search news which is related to their portfolio. Thanks to developers, it can be composed in the app itself. Moreover, there is a section for ICO — you can get the information you need from there. It is a rather unusual application, that is worth your attention.
Coinstory – Crypto News (Play Market, App Store)
There is not only a feed in the app but also a kind of “stories†about popular coins. This is not the only feature: the news window includes both preview and extracts from the article. It is a good solution — you can get the main idea of the material without opening the whole article. And then decide is it worth your time or not. Coin rates are given from Coinwatch. Apart from English, the app can be viewed in Indonesian — apparently, the developers are from this Asian country.
As a conclusion
Six apps were analyzed and overviewed, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. The detailed examination of the functions, usability, and features helps the user to decide what is more important and convenient. Keep your finger on the cryptomarket pulse and read the useful content from trusted sources!
