NM Bluebird vs CT Insider
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
NM Bluebird
Enhance your reading experience on iOS devices with this app. Navigate publications using intuitive gestures, zoom into pages, or switch to article mode for adjustable text. Access the latest and past editions for online or offline reading.
- iOS multi-gestures navigation
- Swipe to browse pages/sections
- Tap to zoom page image
- Article mode with adjustable font size
- Full text search
- Online and offline reading
- Access to back issues
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This app is part of the new Responsive Design interface of Tecnavia's Bluebird interface. This app improves the reading experience on any iOS device. It is more enhanced than viewing with the Safari Browser. Readers can quickly navigate the entire publication using iOS multi-gestures. Swipe to browse pages or sections or tap a live headline or page number to reach your favorite article. A thumbnail view lets you scan all the pages at once. To read a story, just tap to zoom the page image, or tap to article mode and read the whole story, including jumps, in the text window at the font size you prefer. The e-Edition will also let you easily find topics using the section and story index, or find any ad or story via a full text search of words contained in the copy. Just open the app to get the latest edition for on-line or off-line reading. You can also access back issues that you might have missed.To use, just download the app and select your publication.
CT Insider
Access statewide Connecticut news, from local communities to statewide sports. Receive customized alerts, read the e-Edition, and enjoy text-to-audio storytelling. Offers puzzles and local guides.
- Connecticut news alerts
- Customizable homepage
- Sports coverage
- e-Edition replica
- Text-to-audio stories
- Local guides and commentary
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Know more about Bridgeport, Stamford, New Haven, Hartford and communities across Connecticut with the CT Insider app. Stay informed with trusted journalism wherever you are. - Get Connecticut news alerts and notifications, customized by preferred topics - Customize your homepage with local news from your community - Catch statewide high school, UConn and pro sports coverage, plus tune in to the GametimeCT high school sports podcast - Page through the e-Edition, a digital replica of the newspaper - Stay sharp with Puzzmo’s reimagined favorites and new puzzles - Listen to CT Insider stories with Everlit, a text-to-audio tool - Check out local guides and compelling columns and commentary SUBSCRIPTION DETAILS: Subscribe for unlimited digital access to the app, CTInsider.com and newsletters. Get 1 month free, then $14.99 per month. Cancel anytime. Current digital and print subscribers have unlimited access to the app. - Digital subscribers: Sign in to the app to access your benefit. - Print subscribers: If you haven’t activated your digital access yet, look for “Activate Access” at the bottom of the app welcome screen. PAYMENT: Payment will be charged to your iTunes account with the confirmation of your purchase and will automatically renew each month unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of your monthly period. Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable. PRIVACY POLICY: https://www.ctinsider.com/privacy/ TERMS OF SERVICE: https://www.ctinsider.com/tos/ FEEDBACK: We want to hear from you! Let us know if you have questions or suggestions: appsupport@hearstmediact.com.
Screenshots
Verdict
NM Bluebird and CT Insider both sit at 4.5 stars, but that hides the real split: 88% of NM Bluebird's written reviews are positive against 37% of CT Insider's. NM Bluebird also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2). CT Insider's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 6 months) and ratings volume (4.7K vs 234). On price, rating, ads and device support 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. CT Insider sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per month. NM Bluebird asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for NM Bluebird against 4.6 for CT Insider. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: CT Insider has 4.7K ratings behind it against 234, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 88% of NM Bluebird's written reviews are positive against 37% of CT Insider's.
NM Bluebird ships an update every 6 months, CT Insider every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | NM Bluebird | CT Insider |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (234 ratings) | 4.6 (4.7K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 88.2% of reviews — better | 36.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 234 | 4.7K — better |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Ad-supported — better | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | — | #73 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 42 MB | 106 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Tecnavia | Hearst Newspapers |
Customer experience
NM Bluebird
CT Insider
User reviews
NM Bluebird
From 234 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 📰 Authentic newspaper reading experience with page-turning interface
- 👍 Intuitive and easy-to-navigate design
- 🔍 Flexible zoom and text sizing options
- 📥 Ability to download editions for offline reading
- ⚡ Quick access to recent editions
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent technical issues and crashes
- 🐛 Page-turning swipe sensitivity too high
- 🐛 Random logout and session interruptions
- 🐛 Occasional blank pages and content rendering failures
- 🐛 Download failures and incomplete loading
CT Insider
From 4.7K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy to read news
- 👍 Clean interface
- 👍 Brings together local CT news
Room to improve
- 🐛 App not working/freezing
- 🐛 Unable to log in/stay logged in
- 🐛 Outdated/missing local news
- 🔍 Poor search/sorting options
- 💰 Expensive subscription
Bugs and requests
NM Bluebird
Reported bugs
10 issues- App crashes after recent iOS updates
- Page turning swipe too sensitive causing accidental navigation
- Random logout and authentication failures
- Blank pages and content rendering issues
- Download hangs at 75% completion
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Article expansion doesn't work consistently
- App goes to current issue when interrupted
- Article forwarding links show insecure source errors
- Reading pane scrolling issues on iPhone SE
- Screen goes blank when tapping in reading pane
Requested features
9 requests- Add New York Times to app
- Add Financial Times to app
- Add Barron's to app
- Add more newspaper publications
- Full-screen text reading mode
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- Ability to access earlier/archived editions by date selection
- Improved article forwarding security
- Voice reading speed adjustment controls
- Updated and modernized user interface
CT Insider
Reported bugs
3 issues- Notifications don't open articles
- Subscription issues/double billing
- Compatibility problems on Android
Requested features
4 requests- Add search by keyword
- Allow saving favorite articles
- Enable article commenting
- Improve integration with email/website
In-app purchases
NM Bluebird
No in-app purchases
CT Insider
- CT Insider Monthly1 Month trial$14.991 Month
- CT Insider Monthly2 Months trial$14.991 Month
Questions
Is NM Bluebird free?
Is CT Insider free?
Which has better reviews, NM Bluebird or CT Insider?
Do NM Bluebird or CT Insider have ads?
Which is updated more often, NM Bluebird or CT Insider?
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