The Vidette vs Argus Observer
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
The Vidette
Access late-breaking campus news, sports, weather, and entertainment from the student newspaper. Submit your own news, calendar items, and classified ads. Receive timely push notifications for breaking ISU-related updates.
- Campus news updates
- Local sports coverage
- Weather forecasts
- Student-submitted content
- Push notifications
- Merchant promotions
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The Vidette is the official app for the student newspaper of Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. It is a location-based mobile app platform that delivers late-breaking campus news, sports, weather, features, photos, videos, fun entertainment and valuable promotions from merchants in Normal and Bloomington, Illinois, area. The app features quick access to the local content of interest to the ISU community. Users can submit news, calendar items and classified ads directly to us. Stay connected with breaking ISU-related news, sports and weather by using timely push notifications. The app is free and requires no registration to use.
Argus Observer
Stay informed about your local community with award-winning journalism. Discover news about neighbors, local government, school sports, and issues impacting your home.
- Local government news
- High school sports coverage
- Community events and issues
- Retailer promotions
- Award-winning journalism
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Join our community! Stay informed with the Argus Observer’s award-winning journalism. Learn about your neighbors, what’s going on with local governments, high school athletes, local, regional and national retailer promotions and issues affecting the place we call home.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: The Vidette at 5.0 against Argus Observer's 4.5. The Vidette also leads on ratings volume (8 vs 2) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 13.0). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
The Vidette holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8 and 2 respectively.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 7, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | The Vidette | Argus Observer |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (8 ratings) — better | 4.5 (2 ratings) |
| Number of ratings | 8 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 months |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Ad-supported | Ad-supported |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 31 MB | 99 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Illinois State University | Wick News Corporation |
Customer experience
The Vidette
Argus Observer
In-app purchases
The Vidette
No in-app purchases
Argus Observer
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is The Vidette free?
Is Argus Observer free?
Which has better reviews, The Vidette or Argus Observer?
Do The Vidette or Argus Observer have ads?
Which is updated more often, The Vidette or Argus Observer?
Other comparisons
