Until recently, App was very good (5 stars). There is a mandatory update and app is not usable until you update. New version is awful. Using a iPad, entire site is in portrait mode only, very difficult to navigate or just find anything. Pages that were fast loading are slow and freeze. Change for clear improvement is good. In this case change seems to be for no other reason than to move things around. If it’s not broken, don’t try to “fix” something. One more thing; this is not just this app but most in general. Graphics folks need to be taught layout. Style and order have become a thing of the past. Fonts that are too small, images that don’t fill an area, grey text on grey or light white background needs to stop ASAP. Young folks generally have good eyesight but for majority of folks, vision is not what it usto be. Take this into consideration when creating

I enjoy SCMC’s coverage. However, at HK$83/month, I shouldn’t be forced to watch advertisement pop-ups with countdown clocks. These pop-up ads in the app really degrade the experience and cheapen the SCMP brand. Additionally, when clicking through to an SCMP article from another website like Facebook, there’s no “Open in App” button, so it’s difficult to get past the pay wall despite being a paid subscriber. Edit: another unavoidable pop-up today with no desirable option – either “add this section to the top menu” or “remind me next week”. I can’t just read the article without choosing one. Why???

Not a fan of the newly updated format. It looks nice but it’s hard to find & search for articles. I prefer the older (& what probably seems to most a more boring & outdated) version/format because it’s a lots easier to scroll through the content & find what articles I want to read. The older way of navigating through the “Tabs” is a lot easier also. Now, it seems like I would have to scroll all the way back up to the top of the page & go thru the Menu to get to the other sections. Please fix these issues in your next update.

I bought a subscription last month when they had a big sale. It did work shortly thereafter. I just went to read an article & it will not open. So I try ‘restore purchase’ & it says nothing found under my Apple ID. I did not think it was even done through the App Store but through a link on their page. So I went to look for the screenshot of my receipt. On inspection there is a long weird email shown which I did not put in. I did not notice it on the confirmation page. So now I do not have any access, & I am worried about where that payment went. I will have to follow up with my bank. Beware.

This app has been a real disappointment for me. Simply put, it does not work well. There are pop ups that one cannot escape from and poor linking that is slow or just doesn't work. At a time when other major newspapers have working apps, SCMP does not. I am invariably forced to go back to the website (which ironically keeps asking if I would not rather switch to this app). And there is not even an iPad optimized version. I like the newspaper and since I live in the USA reading online is my only option. The subscription is expensive and I expect better.

I abhor news sites that are complicated an complicated. SCMP's stands out for being easy to access and scan through for articles that I might be interested in. I don't know why the Straits Times has a paywall on their website when you land and face an advertisement right away - a case of because they can, being the only local English language newspaper?SCMP is also miles easier to navigate!