Smartphone/Tablet/Other Device Comic Reader Apps

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

As all modern publishers produce with the intent to digitally distribute and Marvel and DC work to get their entire archival back-catalogs digitally encoded for comic reader software ... how many of you have downloaded/experienced/regularly use any commercial comic reader apps?

From computers to iOS devices to Android to even devices like PSP, the digital comic format seems to be out there in full force.

I have the ComicsX reader for iOS and I think it's pretty fantastic on both iPad and iPhone4 ... especially considering how much material they make available for free (mostly issue 0s or issue 1s).

I think that the iPad makes for a fantastic physical comic substitute, and things like the ability to pan/zoom or auto progress from a panel to panel view along with features like bookmarking, etc. add something really special to the experience.

Like most will note, it's no substitute for holding a printed periodical in your hands ... but as most legacy comic collectors know, there comes a point where physical storage space for a collection becomes a dire issue ... and I'm personally at a point in my life where I'm not interested in having a massive physical collection. Digital collection for the purpose of reading/enjoying is good enough for me, and with the independent publications I know that my money is in most cases going directly to the creators.

[maxlords]

I run ACG on my Android smartphone. I have to zoom in to read the text, but it's free and I can run my DLed comics on it. It's not bad. I'm waiting for a dual screen hi-def tablet for comics reading....

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

I run ACG on my Android smartphone. I have to zoom in to read the text, but it's free and I can run my DLed comics on it. It's not bad. I'm waiting for a dual screen hi-def tablet for comics reading....

Yeah ... J. Allard and his Microsoft Courier would've fit that bill if they didn't cancel it.

[Melf]

Comixology rocks my Android phone, but of course Marvel's stuff only works with the Marvel app. I downloaded two issues of Secret Wars before I realized they didn't work with the general comixology app. If you're going to use Comixology, stay away from the Marvel app and use the general one! It lets you read books from all publishers.

[Pantechnicon]

I use PViewer on my Android tablet for cbr's in addition to the universal Comixology app.

For my iPad I use an app called Cloudreaders for cbr's as well as pdf's. The display works great but the categorization leaves something to be desired.

[Aussie2B]

It's not even a matter of just saving space anymore, since, like games, the comic industry is moving in a direction where a lot of content is digital-ONLY. If readers don't want to get left behind, they're going to have to accept buying their comics in an electronic format. For example, Shonen Jump just released their last print edition of the magazine, just as Yen Plus did awhile back. It's not just the magazines either, tons of books have no print edition. Readers don't have to buy portable devices, though, because there are online options too.

The e-readers really need to improve, since a lot of them aren't really designed for visually intensive content in mind. The books are too compressed sometimes too. But I hear a lot of reader apps for iPads and the like are really good.

[Lady Jaye]

I own an old CD-ROM collection of Marvel comics that I bought several years ago, and the content is in CBR format. Is there a way to read those files on the PSP 3000 without hacking the console? Someone suggested to convert the CBR files into JPG, but I'd rather have just one file for a given book, not individual pages. It's really too bad that Sony's Digital Comics app isn't compatible with CBR, as it would have been a great use for this abandoned app.