On a laptop the site works well. If you’re a paid subscriber and access it via the email links you still have to login, hence a 3 rating as it works but not great. Clearly the RTD organization is attempting to embrace the digital age, but have not learned to listen to and make digital functional improvements. It will be interesting to see if they can do it in time to survive.
The app is pretty much a porting of the RTD website to a local app. The layout is very poor and, like the website, finding the articles between the advertisements is sometimes a challenge. Overall, I’m not impressed and would rather view the RTD web over the app. The only saving grace is that you can get notifications of breaking stories. But you can get the same by setting up RSS on the RTD website. A few things that would greatly improve the app... 1) add the ability to link subscription to the app which reduces the number of distracting advertisements. (This would also be needed for #3.) 2) review the design of the GUI on smaller screens, it seems the development team either doesn’t understand the iOS system or didn’t bother to test on different sized screens. 3) add e-edition viewer directly to the app instead of porting the web version and along with this, allow automatic downloading of the e-edition to the device.
There is seriously no explanation on their website on how to cancel your subscription and after calling customer service, that’s the only way to do it. In my mind that’s making it PURPOSEFULLY difficult. And all the ads on the app. I get newspapers need money but don’t be car salesmen about it, especially when I’m a paying customer Update: they called me several times after cancelling. I blocked their number and they called from a different phone number. Do NOT sign a subscription with this company. It’s not worth it
Long time subscriber both traditional paper and on line app. Just clicked on the app first time in a while looking for restaurant reviews and discovered the new format. I absolutely hate it. I couldn’t find Restaurant news nor reviews. Had to go back and Google to logon that way. I hope they listen and change this thing. In attempting to write this review I accidentally clicked on three stars and wished I could take it back. Too many ads, too hard to navigate, An absolute eye chart... good grief
In the past the clunky software required constant logins making it a pain to use but you could open the e-edition and use the blue corner mark to read a story. The latest update took this away. You can see a picture of the page and enlarge only - just pathetic. They didn’t bother updating the guide video. Help is disabled. My NYT sub and app works great. My WaPo app also works well. Richmond is just working to drive readers away.
I am constantly having to delete and reinstall app because it doesn't recognize my login. Or it limits the amount of pages I can read while I'm logged in. Or page says please login, and when I click on my profile page, it clearly shows am logged in but will not allow me to log out. So glitchy. Not so WP or WSJ apps. I would give it half star if ratings went that low. Please fix this app.
I appreciate the landscape view in the update. I don’t enjoy being taken to another page if my finger brushes the text of the story I’m reading. Sometimes this happens when I’m simply trying to scroll through the story. Makes the experience very nearly not worth it.
I am a full-time subscriber of RTD and signed up for the E-edition. It's frustrating to try to watch your breaking news blurbs and you tell me I have read my complimentary 10 and then I have to log in to see more. Is there any way that you can automatically recognize your patrons of 52 years? We love reading RTD when away.
Cannot access the articles at all after updating to iOS 14. I’m a subscriber. When I click on a headline, I’m taken to a screen of ads that will not scroll away. I cannot access the login setting. When I click on that I’m taken to an entirely blank screen. All I have access to is the Home Screen with headlines and ads. No response from customer support after leaving several feedback messages.
I use the RTD app as a way to read the articles that I choose to follow from the alerts I get. It is convenient for that use. As for reading the latest news that would have been in the newspaper it is not the experience I am looking for. I will not use this app as a regular way to get news.
This amateurish app on the iPad is laughable in this day and age. Every single morning it takes a minimum of 3-5 tries before it stays open and doesn’t bomb out immediately. Difficult to be supportive of a local newspaper when you can’t even get to the articles due to sudden shutdowns and constant ads. I would happily pay more to get rid of the ads!
Not as cranky but ads re overbearing. I get it but, really? Content access should be more dynamic just too many layers to go through and drill down. I live here and want to like this but I've had to go back to physical paper just to get info. We can do better.
This is the worst app on my phone. There is a reason the RTD will be dead soon. This app will speed the path to the scrapyard of local newspapers. This app locks, bait and switches, spoofs, and spams all while one is browsing the content for which one pays dearly. So annoying when it opens an advertisement or unwanted content with embedded hyperlinks. Most annoying is when it starts a video and won’t shut down. I really must hate myself to keep this awful app to read the RTD. I’m getting to the point of giving up and just going with free news media because this is so terrible. Wish I could give it 0 stars.
As a paid subscriber, using the app is frustrating. The full page ad with sound blaring means I need to avoid this app, particularly when in a meeting. What is the point of a paid subscription if I’m forced to view an ad before getting to the news?
I subscribe to three newspapers. RTD is the only one where it’s almost impossible to read the e-diction of the paper. I have tried over both slow and fast internet connections and both are terrible. Why does RTD also subject subscribers to ads on the app? Garnett and USA Today owned papers do not do this?
I'm not a fan of the format. I live in Richmond and when I'm on the go I like to use the mobile app. The obituary section is not user friendly and there are wayyy too many ads considering times dispatch forces you to have a subscription.
This app is sometimes close to unusable due to the excessive ads and the frequent crashes. You sometimes have to open the app 3-4 times in order to get it to stay up long enough to read a news story.
It freezes up so often on my iPad that I stopped reading it. Fezzes when zooming, when trying to go to next page, etc, etc. Only slightly better on phone and I hate reading on there since screen is so small. Needs a whole new redesign.
After you decide to pay for a subscription to the e-edition of the paper, you are still consistently and constantly bombarded with full page advertisements. Insulting, dumb, cheap and boring. It’s 2022. Time for you people to catch up to the rest of civilization
I read these since I no longer live in Virginia. I dislike the fact that not all of the obituaries are available to be seen. On Father's Day the only thing I was able to see were the memorials.
I wish I could post photos so you could see a screenshot of the DISGUSTING earwax removal ad that appears MULTIPLE TIMES ON THE SCREEN while I try to read articles for which I am PAYING A SUBSCRIPTION. It’s horrible, just horrible. Also, the format of the app itself is pretty trash. What moron designed this user interface? Don’t get this app. Blech.
The full screen ads with sounds are just offensive
I mean I’m a paying subscriber and want to read an article and have to wait ten seconds as a full sceeen ad for some idiot bear in a puzzle game plays and a minuscule x appears in the corner. It’s not a professional app at all and is embarrassing for Richmond.
This app is completely non functional. Each time I open it, it says No Content. Everything is updated, I have reached out multiple times, canceling subscriptions is nearly impossible, save yourself time and money and don’t download this.
I too am having continual lock ups that prevent me from being able to read content of any articles. Having paid for all access makes no difference. Closing app does not reset it. Very frustrated and disappointed.
Why can’t this app remember me after I’ve logged in several times? It’s really a nuisance to have to sign in every time I use it or even when it crashes, which it does too often.
As a paid subscriber, I should not be forced to watch a 30 second ad every time I open the app. I should be able to go straight to the newspaper without this dreadful experience.
I believe in and am all for supporting local journalism, full stop. As a paid subscriber, I shouldn’t have to bypass an entry ad every time I launch the app. By now, RTD should have a native iOS app that works consistently. Please.
The newly updated “picture tile” app is horrible. I find it difficult to navigate, no search function, and full of ads. It should be noted that paying digital subscribers also deal with the annoying ads on the app.
I find articles on social media and get stuck in the paywall. I have a RTD paid account. The links on social media should prompt you to open the app and go straight to the article. Alternatively, the app should allow a user to search for the article with a search bar. For example, right now i know i want to read the article: Federal court picks redrawn Va. House map that boosts Democrats' chances of taking control Unfortunately it is impossible for me to find it in the app.
Every article comment generates emails with each reply, but no way to turn it off. Blocking emails from this address seems to be the only way to restore privacy.
When opening this app it will only open in portrait and cannot get it to go in landscape. The slide switch has no effect. This only applies to the I-Pad Air. This app works on all my other devices in landscape. This comment also applies to the Roanoke Ties app
Really, really, offensive. I’m a paid subscriber because I like to support local journalism, but ugh, it’s unpleasant and reporting to google is useless. I understand the need for ads, but can’t it be local businesses?
One of the recent updates has added these annoying and distracting pink triangles to each article and picture on e-edition. Is there anyway to make this less distracting?
Your story lives in Richmond. From reporting on all of your favorite teams to the news that matters most in your community, we cover it all. Get in-depth stories from the Richmond area and beyond – including news, sports, opinion, obituaries, entertainment, and politics. Easily access the very latest news in an app built for you. Read, see, and hear exclusive commentary, stunning photography, video updates, and binge-worthy podcasts. Our app features: * Your Stories – personalize your experience by selecting the local news topics that matter most to you * Get notified – stay in the loop by selecting alerts for news, sports, weather, and more * Easy navigation – see all the latest local stories by simply swiping up/down, and left/right * Read stories your way – either in the News Feed or via the E-edition * Breaking news updates – top banners let you know what’s happening right now * Continue watching – pause a video and pick up where you left off across devices * Bookmark for later – save stories to enjoy at your leisure * Listen to articles – press the play button to listen instead * Customize your text size – make the content bigger or smaller in your profile settings * Weather where you are – hourly, 10-day forecasts, and frequent video updates Free to download. Subscribers enjoy unlimited access. https://richmond.com/terms
