News readers on the go will now be able to catch up on the latest stories whatever their location may be through the new Quartz news app.
The app, which can now be downloaded from the App Store, is currently available exclusively for iPhone users.
"Quartz's new app puts the entire global economy in your pocket," reads the app's description. "It's an ongoing conversation about the news, sort of like texting. We'll send you messages, photos, GIFs and links, and you can decide when you're interested in reading more."
Quartz is a 4-year-old business news publication that started to conceptualize on an app version around a year ago. The company focused on the open Web for several years and had never thought about redesigning its site into an app format. After seeing some new opportunities in the growing mobile market, the company decided to explore how to bring the news much closer to users.
"Our intent is to take a similar approach to other platforms where this kind of media could live," says Quartz. "This is a big and broad endeavor for Quartz as we experiment with new formats."
Quartz has a team of editors handling the company's Daily Brief newsletter. The users receive the stories in a series of messages and get push notifications for stories that are deemed very important. Settings are designed at a minimal level. When there are no more stories being queued, the user will then receive a short news quiz.
The conversational aspect of the app refers to the fact that it looks and feels like a text message conversation, where you receive relevant information. Users get the news in an iMessage-like format and can reply to say what they think about it, to ask for more information on the topic, or to carry on with the next piece of news.
Other notable features of the app include the Today screen that displays the most interesting chart of the moment and a brief news reading session that lasts for only a few minutes. The news stories are written by real humans driven by the passion to keep their readers informed and entertained.
The app can also be accessed on the Apple Watch, which allows users to gauge the U.S. markets using a dedicated emoji on the watch face.
While the app is currently available only to iPhone users, it is expected to land on Android in the near future. The app requires iOS 9.0 or higher.
