# 南方周末 vs ZAKER

The clearest difference is rating: ZAKER at 4.4 against 南方周末's 2.5. ZAKER also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 10) and ratings volume (392 vs 32). 南方周末's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. 南方周末 sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. ZAKER asks for nothing beyond the download.

ZAKER holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 2.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ZAKER has 392 ratings behind it against 32, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of 南方周末's written reviews are positive against 86% of ZAKER's.

南方周末 ships an update every 3 weeks, ZAKER monthly. Both last shipped on November 6, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | 南方周末 | ZAKER |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [2.5 (32 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/id333953812/reviews) | **[4.4 (392 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zaker/id462149227/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 32 | **392** |
| Positive reviews | 74.4% of reviews | **85.7% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 weeks** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Subscription | **Ad-supported** |
| Size | 263 MB | 125 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | **13.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 9+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Guangdong Southern Weekly New Media Co., Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/333953815) | [Guangzhou Jianhe Network Technology Co.,Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1470340897) |

## What reviewers say

### 南方周末

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/id333953812)

Access in-depth news, opinion pieces, and cultural content from a trusted Chinese media outlet. Enjoy enhanced reading and listening experiences with original reporting, historical archives, and curated humanistic courses.

**Highlights:** In-depth news reporting, Original articles and opinion pieces, Audio playback of content, Humanistic courses and lectures, Historical newspaper and magazine archives, Interactive voting and discussion features

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 南方周末会员月订阅 | $3.99 | per month |
| 南方周末会员季订阅 | $10.99 | per 3 months |
| 南方周末会员年订阅 | $25.99 | per year |
| 打赏文章6元 | $0.99 | one-time |
| 充值南周币8元 | $0.99 | one-time |
| 充值南周币28元 | $3.99 | one-time |
| 充值南周币78元 | $9.99 | one-time |
| 充值南周币68元 | $9.99 | one-time |
| 充值南周币128元 | $19.99 | one-time |
| 充值南周币188元 | $29.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 📰 High-quality, in-depth journalism content
- 🎨 Clean, elegant, and well-designed interface
- 📱 Smooth and fluid user experience (in earlier versions)
- 🔄 Responsive customer support and quick updates
- 📖 Magazine-style layout and presentation

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and instability
- ⏳ Severe lag and stuttering performance
- 🌐 Network connectivity issues and error messages
- 📺 No landscape/horizontal screen support
- 💰 Excessive ads despite paid membership

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on startup (especially on older devices like iPhone 3G, iPad 4)
- Content fails to load or gets stuck in loading state
- Network error messages despite normal connectivity
- Image view mode has no exit button, requires app restart
- Swipe gesture for navigation fails frequently

**Requested features**

- Landscape/horizontal screen orientation support for iPad
- Improved article navigation and back button functionality
- Better optimization for iPhone XR, XS Max, and newer devices
- Content update indicators and new content highlighting
- Article collection/bookmark feature


### ZAKER

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zaker/id462149227)

Access breaking news, local updates, and engage in discussions. Enjoy a magazine-style reading experience with over 4000 information sources. This app offers a personalized approach to news consumption.

**Highlights:** Personalized news aggregation, Local information updates, Topic discussions, Live streaming and video, Magazine-style layout, Extensive information sources

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Elegant and intuitive UI
- 🚀 Fast and responsive app
- 📰 Wide range of news sources
- 🔍 Customizable news categories
- 💡 Useful offline reading mode

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔍 Overwhelming number of ads
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs
- 🔌 High battery consumption
- 📱 Poor iPad optimization
- 🔒 Privacy concerns with data collection

**Reported bugs**

- Inability to load images in articles
- Inconsistent behavior when navigating back
- Frequent app crashes on iOS 17.1
- Delayed or failed article refreshes
- Blank pages showing up unexpectedly

**Requested features**

- Implement a night/dark mode
- Improve article sorting and filtering options
- Add support for RSS feed subscriptions
- Provide more granular control over news sources
- Enhance the commenting and community features


## Frequently asked questions

### Is 南方周末 free?

南方周末 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is ZAKER free?

ZAKER is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, 南方周末 or ZAKER?

ZAKER is rated higher. 南方周末 averages 2.5 out of 5 from 32 ratings, while ZAKER averages 4.4 from 392 ratings.

### Do 南方周末 or ZAKER have ads?

ZAKER shows ads; 南方周末 does not.

### Which is updated more often, 南方周末 or ZAKER?

南方周末 ships an update every 3 weeks, and ZAKER monthly. Most recently, 南方周末 was updated on November 6, 2026 and ZAKER on November 6, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*