Tweetbot for iPad Review: The Best Twitter App For iPad

App Name:	Tweetbot for iPad
Platforms:	iPad
Publisher(s):	Tapbots
Version Reviewed:	1.0.1
Genre(s):	Social networking
Release Date:	February 15, 2012
Price:	$2.99
Download

I have been using Tweetbot as my Twitter client of choice for iPhone and iPod Touch since I first gave it a 5-star review last year. And since then, I have been pining away for an iPad-optimized version of Tweetbot. Finally, I have gotten my wish. Tweetbot for iPad is here, and it’s exactly as good as I expected it to be.

It’s not that I don’t like the official Twitter app. In fact, if you don’t feel like spending any money on a Twitter app for your iPad, then the official Twitter app is is probably your best option. But if you’re willing to drop a few dollars, you’ll find so much more satisfaction in Tweetbot.

For those not familiar with Tweetbot, take a look at my review for Tweetbot for iPhone. Everything I said about that app can pretty much be applied here.

To further the point, though, let’s look at why I think Tweetbot is better than the official Twitter app. For one thing, it’s designed to make better use of the available space; the Twitter app’s cramped tweet thread always annoyed me a bit, especially in landscape mode, but Tweetbot fills more of the screen while still remaining clean and clear.

Second, there’s Tweetbot’s great swipable thread access. Want to see replies to a tweet? Swipe the tweet to the left. Want to see the conversation that a tweet is part of? Sweep to the right. One of the things that’s always annoyed me about Twitter is the difficulty sometimes in following threads of conversation. Tweetbot offers the best implementation of conversation-threading I’ve experienced in an iPad app.

Third, the app is just generally well done all over. From the visuals to the interfaces to the incidental sound effects, the whole experience of using Tweetbot for iPad is just as good as using Tweetbot’s iPhone counterpart. All the things iPhone users will expect, like easy multi-account management, the user-defined triple-tap option, and user muting are all here.

There are a few things that I like about the official Twitter app, like the card-stacking format with which the official app displays in-tweet picks and link content. But those are minor issues.  My only real complaint with Tweetbot for iPad is that it’s just that — for iPad. I’m not clear exactly what about the Tweetbot experience could not have been rolled into a Universal app, but that’s the route they chose to take. I won’t begrudge them, though, because the experience is that good.

So, yes, Tweetbot for iPad is worth purchasing over the free-to-download official Twitter app. It’s got a slick design and great interface that is currently second to none in the world of iOS Twitter apps. I’m so glad to see an iPad implementation, and I’ve already deleted the official Twitter app from my device. It’s simply been outclassed.

Our score: 5 out of 5

About the Author

Writer@Large Brian P. Hudson is an educator and freelance writer currently living in Dearborn, MI.

 

Best Free Apps of the Day!