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Apple Books alternatives
iOS reading app + book store: Both a way to read books and a way to buy them, iBooks transforms the simple act of reading into something simply delightful. The iBookstore features the best of what’s new right at the top of the page. Flick from page to page. Change text size. Select a different font. Adjust the brightness. The best Apple Books alternatives are: Kindle, Audible, Google Books, Amazon Books
Here are the latest news about Apple Books:
2023. Apple Books is bringing back page turn animation on iOS
In a move that could only be described as a small but oddly triumphant return to the past, Apple has reintroduced the delightfully tactile page turn animation to its Books app in the latest iOS 16.4 beta for iPhone and iPad. When this update arrives, users will once again be able to experience the time-honored CURL animation—a feature that, with a swipe, lets you either peek at the forbidden knowledge lurking on the next page or just flip pages in a way that feels almost convincingly bookish. Until now, Apple Books has been saddled with the regrettably utilitarian swipe animation, a page turn so abrupt it feels like flicking through PowerPoint slides at an unenthusiastic corporate meeting. Though this swipey affair remains the default, the update will allow readers to manually indulge their preferences, choosing between Curl, Side, Infinite Scrolling, and even the existential void of None. Many a loyal user fled the app when iOS 15 callously banished these animations, defecting to Kindle and other alternatives that never abandoned such frivolous joys. But now, it seems, the curl is back to save us all from the soulless swipe.
2023. Apple Books launches catalog of AI-narrated audiobooks
In the vast, curious universe of digital storytelling, Apple Books has cheerily decided that the age of human narrators may well be overrated, inaugurating a suite of books narrated by what one might describe as a "digital voice inspired by an actual human"—though admittedly, that human may have been somewhat digitized in the process. This bold, if mildly unsettling, experiment is aimed at the highly lucrative, rapidly ballooning audiobook cosmos, which is otherwise populated by human narrators who possess, one assumes, unique vocal timbres and opinions on the matter. Naturally, some fear this could spell the end for those charmingly flawed carbon-based narrators and has all the trappings of an Apple-sized anti-competition scandal. Within Apple’s sleek and button-free Books app, a simple search for "AI narration" now unveils a cavalcade of these digitally intoned works. And while professional narrators may prepare their pitchforks, it turns out that many authors are already being nudged to narrate their own books, lured by the siren call of upfront payouts and the chance to reach more ears in less time.
2022. Apple Books is getting a bunch of new features in iOS 16
In iOS 16, which will be released this Fall, the reading app Apple Books will introduce new features that let you tailor the reading experience to your preferences. You'll have the option to select reading themes for various settings and moods, or modify the font, spacing, text size and other preferences. The audiobook player will be revamped with updated controls and a mini player that allows you to continue listening while browsing the store. You can also purchase books directly from the player while previewing them. The updated Apple Books experience will be available for both iPad and iPhone. In iOS 15, a toolbar at the top of the app offered access to the chapter index, font settings, search tools and bookmarks, but in iOS 16, these features have been relocated to the bottom of the app.
2020. Apple Books giving away hundreds of free books
Apple Books has announced that several hundred audiobooks and ebooks are now available for free. Open the Apple Books app and scroll through the featured section to find one labeled ‘Free Books.’ This offer is available exclusively to US customers. You can explore free books, read-alongs for children, cozy mysteries and audiobooks for the entire family. Apple is also highlighting that users can choose a free novel from the company’s “First in a Series, Free” section. The app features a broad selection of titles for both adults and children, ranging from Sesame Street to HG Wells and includes well-known works like *Pride and Prejudice* in audiobook format. Depending on your location, the app also offers classic titles from authors such as Shakespeare.
2019. Apple Books adds Reading Goals
In the great, swirling cosmos of Cupertino’s collective imagination, Apple has decided to sprinkle yet another bit of sparkle onto our digital lives: Reading Goals in Apple Books. This ingenious feature, slated to beam down alongside iOS 13 later this year, boldly invites you to spend five minutes reading a book—or letting one chat pleasantly in your ear via audiobook—while waiting for coffee, navigating the mysteries of public transport, or attempting to wind down after yet another day of existence. Apple’s grand proclamation suggests you can accrue streaks like a collector of cosmic dust, showcasing your literary triumphs in the rather smugly titled Books Read this Year collection. It’ll work across all iOS 13-compatible devices—the iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, and even the venerable Mac—though whether this involves shiny badges, achievements, or just a quiet sense of satisfaction remains a mystery shrouded in Apple’s typically cryptic silence. Expect further enlightenment when the public beta peeks its head around the corner next month.
2018. iBooks rebrands as Apple Books
Apple iBooks will be rebranded as Apple Books with the release of iOS 12 later this year. It will also undergo a major redesign. A new "Reading Now" feature will display the audiobook and eBook you are currently reading and provide an indication of your progress in each title. This will be shown as an open book with the book title beneath it. The current iBooks app has sections for My Books, Featured, Top Charts, Search and Purchased at the bottom. This will be updated to Reading Now, Library, Bookstore, Audiobooks and Search. This change will make it easier to access the audiobook section, which currently requires you to open the bookstore and then click on the audiobooks tab.
2016. Apple iBooks adds iCloud support for PDF files and audiobooks
Apple has just introduced a brand new update for iOS. In addition to the new nighttime reading mode (which reduces the amount of blue light emitted from the screen), iBooks has quietly received several significant enhancements. One major issue with iBooks was the lack of iCloud support for EPUB/PDF files and audiobooks. This is crucial for users who have a large e-book collection on their computers and want to read on their iPhone while on the go and on their iPad at home. You only need to upload your content to a single Apple device and iCloud will notify you on your secondary device if you want to access the content. This applies to both sideloaded content and items purchased directly from iBooks.
2016. New iOS 9.3 feature will make reading at night easier on your eyes
Apple is planning to simplify the use of your devices at night. The upcoming iOS 9.3 update will introduce a new feature called "Night Shift" that will adjust the colors of the light emitted by your iPhone or iPad's screen, depending on the time of day. The feature utilizes your current location and the clock on your device to determine the time of sunset and will automatically "shift the colors on your display to the warmer end of the spectrum," according to Apple. This concept is quite similar to f.lux, a well-known Mac and Windows app that modifies your display’s lighting according to the time of day. As it gets darker outside, the app gradually warms up the colors to reduce eye strain.
2015. Apple iBooks improves listening audiobooks
In a move that would no doubt have caused much eyebrow-raising among intergalactic literary circles, Apple has unleashed iOS 9.2, featuring a freshly updated iBooks app. This splendidly clever contraption now boasts the ability to indulge in 3D Touch wizardry, allowing bookish wanderers to sneakily peek and pop their way into pages from the table of contents, notes, bookmarks, or search results with the sort of force-press panache that might make even a Vogon weep. As if that weren’t enough to flabbergast, iBooks now lets you multitask like a hyper-efficient Babel fish, enjoying an audiobook serenade while perusing your library, skimming other books, or gallivanting through the digital corridors of the iBooks Store.
2014. Apple acquired book discovery site BookLamp
In a move that one might describe as the intergalactic hitchhiking of the literary world, Apple has cheerfully hoisted aboard BookLamp, the so-called Pandora of books. This curious bit of wizardry employs its "Book Genome" technology to dissect novels into a mind-boggling array of data points—thousands, in fact—that essentially whisper to you what the book’s really on about and whether it might tickle your metaphorical fancy. Naturally, Apple seems poised to sprinkle this analytical pixie dust over its own sprawling bibliophilic domain, iBooks, where more than 2 million tomes (some free, others decidedly not) await eager eyeballs. Meanwhile, BookLamp.org itself has gone as quiet as a Vogon poetry recital, but here’s what we know about its delightful, albeit short-lived, exploits.
2014. Apple iBooks Textbooks Now Available in 51 Countries
Imagine, if you will, a peculiar little corner of the universe called Pubslush, a place where books hatch into being not through arcane publishing rituals but via the delightfully improbable mechanism of crowdfunding. This wholly bookish platform, launched way back in the ancient mists of August 2012 (roughly a year and a half ago, for those keeping galactic time), invites aspiring authors to woo readers into financially backing their most harebrained literary dreams. Not content with merely funding, it also lets publishers strut about with branded crowdfunding pages, where they can build a community, charm readers, and puff up their company image—all while possibly revolutionizing how stories see the light of day. Authors, meanwhile, can dabble in a mere thirty days of crowdfunding and then opt to self-publish, or perhaps flaunt their glittering numbers to snag a traditional publisher. But here’s the kicker: Pubslush, like Indiegogo and Kickstarter, isn’t just a cash-raising contraption—it’s a cosmic validation tool, proof positive that your idea doesn’t just have legs; it’s already dancing across the universe.
2013. iBooks lost its bookshelf
Apple has finally refreshed its e-reader app iBooks (for iPad and iPhone) with a design inspired by iOS 7. The iBooks interface has been stripped of its physical-world metaphors like wooden textures and bookshelves. The new design is sleek, featuring minimalism without the colorful sections and adding significant depth through the use of shadows. The iBooks app allows users to download and read books. It includes the iBooks Store, where you can access the latest bestsellers or your favorite classics—anytime. Browse your collection on an elegant virtual shelf, tap a book to open it, flip through pages with a swipe or a tap and bookmark or add notes to your favorite sections.
2013. Apple iBooks app is now available on OS X Desktop
Apple has adapted its ebook purchasing and reading app iBooks to the latest version of OS X, Mavericks. iBooks has traditionally been the “third” ebook store following Amazon’s Kindle store and Barnes & Noble’s Nook. This update enhances the app’s visibility on the desktop and enables users to buy books on one platform and read them on mobile devices. The desktop application allows users to organize books into collections, swipe between pages and switch to “night mode” to minimize eye strain in low-light conditions. Additionally, the app supports interactive features of iBooks titles.
2012. Flipboard adds book discovery via Apple iBooks
Flipboard is the social magazine app that links to your social networks and incorporates your favorite sources to create a personalized magazine, featuring news, articles, audio and video content. And now—books. Flipboard began as an iPad app and seems to still have a closer relationship with Apple than with Google, Kindle, or Nook. The new books section functions solely as a gateway to Apple’s iBooks store, which offers 1.5 million titles. Each book in Flipboard provides a summary and a link to iBooks, allowing readers to easily purchase a must-have addition to their iBooks library. The new section was introduced with custom bookshelves for the United States, Canada, the U.K., Brazil, Australia, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy and Spain. Naturally, it seems Android Flipboard users will not have access to this new section.
2012. Apple iBooks 3.0: vertical scrolling, book updates, social reading
Today, Apple has introduced the latest version of its book reading app iBooks 3.0. It’s set to revolutionize the e-reading experience and challenge Kindle with its continuous vertical scrolling feature. At least, that’s the claim from Apple enthusiasts. Fortunately, the traditional page-turning method is still available. Other new features are considerably more practical. Firstly, it now supports receiving free updates to existing books (such as chapter additions, corrections and more). This transforms books into living documents, allowing users to keep content up-to-date. Naturally, this is mainly targeted at educational books. Additionally, iBooks users can now share their favorite excerpts and passages to their Twitter and Facebook accounts.
2023. Apple Books is bringing back page turn animation on iOS
In a move that could only be described as a small but oddly triumphant return to the past, Apple has reintroduced the delightfully tactile page turn animation to its Books app in the latest iOS 16.4 beta for iPhone and iPad. When this update arrives, users will once again be able to experience the time-honored CURL animation—a feature that, with a swipe, lets you either peek at the forbidden knowledge lurking on the next page or just flip pages in a way that feels almost convincingly bookish. Until now, Apple Books has been saddled with the regrettably utilitarian swipe animation, a page turn so abrupt it feels like flicking through PowerPoint slides at an unenthusiastic corporate meeting. Though this swipey affair remains the default, the update will allow readers to manually indulge their preferences, choosing between Curl, Side, Infinite Scrolling, and even the existential void of None. Many a loyal user fled the app when iOS 15 callously banished these animations, defecting to Kindle and other alternatives that never abandoned such frivolous joys. But now, it seems, the curl is back to save us all from the soulless swipe.
2023. Apple Books launches catalog of AI-narrated audiobooks
In the vast, curious universe of digital storytelling, Apple Books has cheerily decided that the age of human narrators may well be overrated, inaugurating a suite of books narrated by what one might describe as a "digital voice inspired by an actual human"—though admittedly, that human may have been somewhat digitized in the process. This bold, if mildly unsettling, experiment is aimed at the highly lucrative, rapidly ballooning audiobook cosmos, which is otherwise populated by human narrators who possess, one assumes, unique vocal timbres and opinions on the matter. Naturally, some fear this could spell the end for those charmingly flawed carbon-based narrators and has all the trappings of an Apple-sized anti-competition scandal. Within Apple’s sleek and button-free Books app, a simple search for "AI narration" now unveils a cavalcade of these digitally intoned works. And while professional narrators may prepare their pitchforks, it turns out that many authors are already being nudged to narrate their own books, lured by the siren call of upfront payouts and the chance to reach more ears in less time.
2022. Apple Books is getting a bunch of new features in iOS 16
In iOS 16, which will be released this Fall, the reading app Apple Books will introduce new features that let you tailor the reading experience to your preferences. You'll have the option to select reading themes for various settings and moods, or modify the font, spacing, text size and other preferences. The audiobook player will be revamped with updated controls and a mini player that allows you to continue listening while browsing the store. You can also purchase books directly from the player while previewing them. The updated Apple Books experience will be available for both iPad and iPhone. In iOS 15, a toolbar at the top of the app offered access to the chapter index, font settings, search tools and bookmarks, but in iOS 16, these features have been relocated to the bottom of the app.
2020. Apple Books giving away hundreds of free books
Apple Books has announced that several hundred audiobooks and ebooks are now available for free. Open the Apple Books app and scroll through the featured section to find one labeled ‘Free Books.’ This offer is available exclusively to US customers. You can explore free books, read-alongs for children, cozy mysteries and audiobooks for the entire family. Apple is also highlighting that users can choose a free novel from the company’s “First in a Series, Free” section. The app features a broad selection of titles for both adults and children, ranging from Sesame Street to HG Wells and includes well-known works like *Pride and Prejudice* in audiobook format. Depending on your location, the app also offers classic titles from authors such as Shakespeare.
2019. Apple Books adds Reading Goals
In the great, swirling cosmos of Cupertino’s collective imagination, Apple has decided to sprinkle yet another bit of sparkle onto our digital lives: Reading Goals in Apple Books. This ingenious feature, slated to beam down alongside iOS 13 later this year, boldly invites you to spend five minutes reading a book—or letting one chat pleasantly in your ear via audiobook—while waiting for coffee, navigating the mysteries of public transport, or attempting to wind down after yet another day of existence. Apple’s grand proclamation suggests you can accrue streaks like a collector of cosmic dust, showcasing your literary triumphs in the rather smugly titled Books Read this Year collection. It’ll work across all iOS 13-compatible devices—the iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, and even the venerable Mac—though whether this involves shiny badges, achievements, or just a quiet sense of satisfaction remains a mystery shrouded in Apple’s typically cryptic silence. Expect further enlightenment when the public beta peeks its head around the corner next month.
2018. iBooks rebrands as Apple Books
Apple iBooks will be rebranded as Apple Books with the release of iOS 12 later this year. It will also undergo a major redesign. A new "Reading Now" feature will display the audiobook and eBook you are currently reading and provide an indication of your progress in each title. This will be shown as an open book with the book title beneath it. The current iBooks app has sections for My Books, Featured, Top Charts, Search and Purchased at the bottom. This will be updated to Reading Now, Library, Bookstore, Audiobooks and Search. This change will make it easier to access the audiobook section, which currently requires you to open the bookstore and then click on the audiobooks tab.
2016. Apple iBooks adds iCloud support for PDF files and audiobooks
Apple has just introduced a brand new update for iOS. In addition to the new nighttime reading mode (which reduces the amount of blue light emitted from the screen), iBooks has quietly received several significant enhancements. One major issue with iBooks was the lack of iCloud support for EPUB/PDF files and audiobooks. This is crucial for users who have a large e-book collection on their computers and want to read on their iPhone while on the go and on their iPad at home. You only need to upload your content to a single Apple device and iCloud will notify you on your secondary device if you want to access the content. This applies to both sideloaded content and items purchased directly from iBooks.
2016. New iOS 9.3 feature will make reading at night easier on your eyes
Apple is planning to simplify the use of your devices at night. The upcoming iOS 9.3 update will introduce a new feature called "Night Shift" that will adjust the colors of the light emitted by your iPhone or iPad's screen, depending on the time of day. The feature utilizes your current location and the clock on your device to determine the time of sunset and will automatically "shift the colors on your display to the warmer end of the spectrum," according to Apple. This concept is quite similar to f.lux, a well-known Mac and Windows app that modifies your display’s lighting according to the time of day. As it gets darker outside, the app gradually warms up the colors to reduce eye strain.
2015. Apple iBooks improves listening audiobooks
In a move that would no doubt have caused much eyebrow-raising among intergalactic literary circles, Apple has unleashed iOS 9.2, featuring a freshly updated iBooks app. This splendidly clever contraption now boasts the ability to indulge in 3D Touch wizardry, allowing bookish wanderers to sneakily peek and pop their way into pages from the table of contents, notes, bookmarks, or search results with the sort of force-press panache that might make even a Vogon weep. As if that weren’t enough to flabbergast, iBooks now lets you multitask like a hyper-efficient Babel fish, enjoying an audiobook serenade while perusing your library, skimming other books, or gallivanting through the digital corridors of the iBooks Store.
2014. Apple acquired book discovery site BookLamp
In a move that one might describe as the intergalactic hitchhiking of the literary world, Apple has cheerfully hoisted aboard BookLamp, the so-called Pandora of books. This curious bit of wizardry employs its "Book Genome" technology to dissect novels into a mind-boggling array of data points—thousands, in fact—that essentially whisper to you what the book’s really on about and whether it might tickle your metaphorical fancy. Naturally, Apple seems poised to sprinkle this analytical pixie dust over its own sprawling bibliophilic domain, iBooks, where more than 2 million tomes (some free, others decidedly not) await eager eyeballs. Meanwhile, BookLamp.org itself has gone as quiet as a Vogon poetry recital, but here’s what we know about its delightful, albeit short-lived, exploits.
2014. Apple iBooks Textbooks Now Available in 51 Countries
Imagine, if you will, a peculiar little corner of the universe called Pubslush, a place where books hatch into being not through arcane publishing rituals but via the delightfully improbable mechanism of crowdfunding. This wholly bookish platform, launched way back in the ancient mists of August 2012 (roughly a year and a half ago, for those keeping galactic time), invites aspiring authors to woo readers into financially backing their most harebrained literary dreams. Not content with merely funding, it also lets publishers strut about with branded crowdfunding pages, where they can build a community, charm readers, and puff up their company image—all while possibly revolutionizing how stories see the light of day. Authors, meanwhile, can dabble in a mere thirty days of crowdfunding and then opt to self-publish, or perhaps flaunt their glittering numbers to snag a traditional publisher. But here’s the kicker: Pubslush, like Indiegogo and Kickstarter, isn’t just a cash-raising contraption—it’s a cosmic validation tool, proof positive that your idea doesn’t just have legs; it’s already dancing across the universe.
2013. iBooks lost its bookshelf
Apple has finally refreshed its e-reader app iBooks (for iPad and iPhone) with a design inspired by iOS 7. The iBooks interface has been stripped of its physical-world metaphors like wooden textures and bookshelves. The new design is sleek, featuring minimalism without the colorful sections and adding significant depth through the use of shadows. The iBooks app allows users to download and read books. It includes the iBooks Store, where you can access the latest bestsellers or your favorite classics—anytime. Browse your collection on an elegant virtual shelf, tap a book to open it, flip through pages with a swipe or a tap and bookmark or add notes to your favorite sections.
2013. Apple iBooks app is now available on OS X Desktop
Apple has adapted its ebook purchasing and reading app iBooks to the latest version of OS X, Mavericks. iBooks has traditionally been the “third” ebook store following Amazon’s Kindle store and Barnes & Noble’s Nook. This update enhances the app’s visibility on the desktop and enables users to buy books on one platform and read them on mobile devices. The desktop application allows users to organize books into collections, swipe between pages and switch to “night mode” to minimize eye strain in low-light conditions. Additionally, the app supports interactive features of iBooks titles.
2012. Flipboard adds book discovery via Apple iBooks
Flipboard is the social magazine app that links to your social networks and incorporates your favorite sources to create a personalized magazine, featuring news, articles, audio and video content. And now—books. Flipboard began as an iPad app and seems to still have a closer relationship with Apple than with Google, Kindle, or Nook. The new books section functions solely as a gateway to Apple’s iBooks store, which offers 1.5 million titles. Each book in Flipboard provides a summary and a link to iBooks, allowing readers to easily purchase a must-have addition to their iBooks library. The new section was introduced with custom bookshelves for the United States, Canada, the U.K., Brazil, Australia, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy and Spain. Naturally, it seems Android Flipboard users will not have access to this new section.
2012. Apple iBooks 3.0: vertical scrolling, book updates, social reading
Today, Apple has introduced the latest version of its book reading app iBooks 3.0. It’s set to revolutionize the e-reading experience and challenge Kindle with its continuous vertical scrolling feature. At least, that’s the claim from Apple enthusiasts. Fortunately, the traditional page-turning method is still available. Other new features are considerably more practical. Firstly, it now supports receiving free updates to existing books (such as chapter additions, corrections and more). This transforms books into living documents, allowing users to keep content up-to-date. Naturally, this is mainly targeted at educational books. Additionally, iBooks users can now share their favorite excerpts and passages to their Twitter and Facebook accounts.
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