Audio books
Three apps for fans of rousing stories
Three apps for fans of audio books and radio plays.
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Many people love audio books and radio plays. With these apps you always have funny or exciting stories with you.
Whether on the car trip, on the train or for a cozy evening on the couch: With the appropriate smartphone apps, you can always have interesting stories in the form of audio books or radio plays with you wherever you go. Here are three apps for fans of all genres that are available for both iOS and Android.
The top dog
The best known provider for Audiobooks in digital form is probably Audible. According to its own information, the Amazon subsidiary has around 200,000 titles in its range. This includes originals and exclusive stories that can only be heard here. The provider relies on a subscription model, which, in contrast to individual purchases in retail, is often significantly cheaper. After a free trial month, users receive credit for just under ten euros per month. With this you can usually download a title of your choice – or two titles that are currently on offer. Even after canceling the subscription, users retain access to their previously purchased content. Additional titles can be purchased for a maximum of around ten euros each.
The flat rates
The app Audiobooks by Deezer takes a different approach, which can be particularly worthwhile for fans who want to hear a lot of stories. From around ten euros per month, consumers get access to a separate audio book app from the music streaming service after a free three-month trial subscription in the premium package (other packages are also available). The selection of titles is less extensive than with Audible, but users can listen to as many audio books and games as they want, as with a flat rate, without having to pay a surcharge. Here, too, the tracks can be downloaded and listened to offline in order to save data volume on the go. There is also the new “BookCatcher” feature for Android. Users can photograph the cover of a book and the app will automatically search for the right audio book. The function is still in development for iOS.
BookBeat also relies on a flat rate model. The service, which started around five years ago in Finland and Sweden, now has more than 100,000 paying users in Germany as well. The first two weeks are free, but depending on the subscription you choose, there are sometimes significant restrictions. With the premium subscription for just under 20 euros per month, the listening time is unlimited, but the two cheaper versions only offer a limited listening time of 25 hours (around ten euros) and 100 hours (around 15 euros) over any number of titles. Consumers are offered more than 100,000 audio books that they can stream or download and listen to offline.