USED magazine launches iPad app 

 

At a time when up to the minute cultural information is widely available on the internet, USED, a London based bi-annual publication focussing on the interaction between Fashion and Art, aims to create a magazine that serves as a point of visual inspiration for the fashion and creative industries.

Following the recent launch of their 4th issue, USED is now launching their iPad app. By utilising hi-definition imagery, video and interactivity, the USED iPad app showcases the contents of issue 4 in an unrestricted, non-linear format that removes the boundaries of a printed publication. Keeping in line with the hi-end aesthetic of the USED print magazine, the app aims to become a desirable object in its own right which can be saved and returned to time again.

 

More than often, conversions of printed media to digital platforms produce bland, uninspiring results; reading more like a PDF/ Image Viewer rather than an interactive magazine. With USED issue 4, the app has been built from the ground up using the printed magazine as inspiration and reference, rather than a direct replication. Each feature is presented as an individual entity, with specific points of interest relevant to the content throughout.

 

Interactive designer Simon French at London based creative agency Useful explains; "One of the most important elements of the app, from the initial stages of design to the final processes of development, was to make sure that the app held a distinctive character that encompasses the core spirit of the USED brand and its printed publication, whilst showcasing an individual object in its own right. Each feature was re-thought, re-designed, re-purposed for the iPad, rather than directly shoehorned onto a screen. Using the current platforms of digital publishing development, such as the Adobe DPS and HTML5, we have been able to create an app that looks as great as it is to use."

 

Users of the app are able to navigate content by swiping from one story to another, or alternatively by zooming out and viewing a full overview of story features at once. Content is enriched through animation and interactivity, all of which is designed with the iPad in mind. Fashion stories are brought to life through live motion, produced by leading industry creatives such as Elliot Dear, Adam Goodison and the Wandering Bears collective.

 

The USED Digital issue also features exclusive content commissioned and designed specifically for iPad, offering a brand new way to read and explore the magazine.

 

The app is available now on the iTunes App store for only £2.99.