Marvin 2.0 lands in iTunes App Store, now also for iPhone and iPod touch

[Alexander Turcic]

We were just wondering how long it would take before Apple determined the fate of the latest version of Marvin for iOS, and we've got some great news -- it's been approved! Congrats to MobileReader kguil, and thank you for making this fantastic reading app possible.

So what's new in Marvin 2.0? Plenty, plenty, plenty. Among the most prominent changes and new features are: location sync, support for the Marvin XD calibre driver (more about it in a moment), compatibility improvements, a refreshed UI, edge-to-edge screen scrolling, faster page rendering, an improved battery life, and various bug fixes. You can find more details on the Marvin blog.

The Marvin XD calibre driver is something special, and I am sure you will love it. Developed by MobileReader GRiker, the driver provides native access to your Marvin library from within calibre. Things you can do with it include the syncing of metadata between Marvin and calibre, adding books from Marvin to calibre, deleting books from Marvin, managing your collections, viewing annotations, vocabulary words, and much more. You can find the latest version of the driver and more details in this thread.

Excited? Join our Marvin forum and find out more about this reading app.

App Store links:

• Marvin for iPad
• Marvin for iPhone and iPod touch

[ilovejedd]

Been waiting for this for a long time. I can finally retire Stanza.

[banjomike]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

Been waiting for this for a long time. I can finally retire Stanza.

Blasphemer! Stanza will sit on my iPod in memory of what it was like before it was murdered. Especially now it has vanished from iTunes.

I'll certainly give Marvin a go.

[sehlat]

Don't be in too much of a hurry. Marvin's startup time from tap to fully-displayed page where I left it is about four seconds. Stanza on the same phone (same book) is less than a quarter of a second. If you hop in and out of books because your reading time arrives in bursts, four seconds can seem an eternity.

[banjomike]

Is there a free version to try or do we have to pay up front?

[artbatista]

Originally Posted by banjomike

Is there a free version to try or do we have to pay up front?

Sadly no. The iPad version is free, but the iPhone version is $4.99

At least it's very much worth it. I have purchased a half dozen reader apps in my search for a Stanza replacement, and Marvin is the only one I have been glad to purchase.

For those still hanging on to Stanza, backup your install file in iTunes. Stanza has been retired from the App Store by our friends at Amazon.

Art

[jeankap]

$5 to play for an EPUB 2 app that doesn't support DRM? That's not insignificant for someone who only wants to test the app and see if it's even something they would use on a regular basis enough to make it worth the $5.

Not everyone is interested in spending the time and effort to break DRM or play with Calibre.

I know Marvin's developer needs to make a living, but $5 seems a bit much considering that most of the other reading system developers are implementing some level of EPUB 3 these days (with the exception of the usual characters who don't EPUB at all).

Just my observations.

[Jessica Lares]

Originally Posted by jeankap

$5 to play for an EPUB 2 app that doesn't support DRM? That's not insignificant for someone who only wants to test the app and see if it's even something they would use on a regular basis enough to make it worth the $5.

Not everyone is interested in spending the time and effort to break DRM or play with Calibre.

I know Marvin's developer needs to make a living, but $5 seems a bit much considering that most of the other reading system developers are implementing some level of EPUB 3 these days (with the exception of the usual characters who don't EPUB at all).

Just my observations.

Have you seen the website? Just read through it if you haven't. It might help if you need more convincing.

[doctorow]

Originally Posted by jeankap

Just my observations.

Perfectly valid. I am sure there is a market for both... for those who only purchase eBooks with DRM and don't care about stripping it, and for those who like to have more control over how and with what they read their content. Marvin is a marvelous reader, and yes, it would probably be even better if it supported ePub with Adobe's DRM protection.

[John F]

Originally Posted by Jessica Lares

Have you seen the website? Just read through it if you haven't. It might help if you need more convincing.

Could you point me to where on the website what formatting options are available.

A trial app would be nice. I'm using another app now, so I don't see the need to pay for another app, although I may be convinced if there was something free to try.

[Barty]

Originally Posted by sehlat

Don't be in too much of a hurry. Marvin's startup time from tap to fully-displayed page where I left it is about four seconds. Stanza on the same phone (same book) is less than a quarter of a second. If you hop in and out of books because your reading time arrives in bursts, four seconds can seem an eternity.

On my iPad, Marvin is faster. It opens books almost immediately. Stanza takes a visible amount of time, like two seconds. In either case, speed isn't the issue.

(the first time you open a book it will be slower because it needs to unzip it, I think)

If you include app startup time, too, then Marvin is maybe a second slower, but I think mainly because it displays the library before opening the last read book.

Anyway, Marvin is very nice. Attractive, modern UI. All the formatting options you want. Slide up down for brightness adjustment (a great feature copied from Stanza). Pages left in chapter. Customizable gestures. It of course also has the advantage of not being dead.

[jeankap]

Originally Posted by Jessica Lares

Have you seen the website? Just read through it if you haven't. It might help if you need more convincing.

I don't need convincing at all. I don't read enough on my iphone to justify the cost.

BTW - for those of you wondering, the website is http://marvinapp.com/

Don't get me wrong. Marvin is very, very nice for people who want to play with their ebook collection, and play with ebook reader settings and features.

It's just overkill for my personal needs. I have Marvin on my iPad. I don't ever use it.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by jeankap

I don't need convincing at all. I don't read enough on my iphone to justify the cost.

Don't get me wrong. Marvin is very, very nice for people who want to play with their ebook collection, and play with ebook reader settings and features.

It's just overkill for my personal needs. I have Marvin on my iPad. I don't ever use it.

I don't really "play" with my ebook collection nor do I "play" with ebook reader settings and features. However, I do customize settings so Marvin works and looks how I want it to after which I never bother changing the settings again (except font size and margins depending on default publisher formatting).

I realize where you're coming from but the price point is actually one that's been discussed in the Marvin Reader thread and was considered fair by a number of users. Unfortunately, it's hard to strike a balance between price and revenue and I'm sure that it's been a difficult decision for the app developer. Marvin is a pretty niche software and by its nature, one where ads would probably not be tolerated.

I reckon those not needing Marvin's advanced features would probably be quite content with iBooks or something. Marvin for iPad is free so if someone has an iPad, they can use that to gauge whether the features on Marvin for iPhone would be worth paying $5 for. Alas, I know that doesn't really help users who don't have an iPad on which to try Marvin.

[sehlat]

There's mention elsewhere that the "slow startup" issue has been addressed and sent to Apple for approval. In the meantime, shuBook and shuBook SE are doing yeoman service on my pad and phone. I can use one for technical matters, such as "Learning Java", and the other version has "Monster Hunter International". BTW, Stanza still works in iOS7, although the search function seems a tad wonky, but I'm using it for a thrid book. If the "slow startup" issue is fixed, I'll use Marvin for a fourth book, so I can switch around.