Increasingly, in worship services, I notice folks reading their Bibles and looking up Scripture on their iPhones and iPads. Hey, I’m one of them. My favorite iOS Bible app has been the NIV [New International Version] 50th Edition. However, my NEW favorite is the $4.99 NeuBible, which is available at the Apple App Store.
It’s elegant and simple-yet-sophisticated. The creators of NeuBible — former Apple designer Kory Westerhold and Yahoo design director Aaron Martin say — their goal was to “get rid of everything between you and scripture.” They’ve definitely succeeded in their goal. Think of this as the iBible.
I’ve tried NeuBible on both an iPhone 6, an iPhone 6 Plus, an iPad Air 2, an iPhone 7 Plus, and a 12.9-inch iPad Pro. It’s great on the “smaller” Apple smartphone, but really shines on the bigger smartphones and tablets where everything is always within a thumb’s reach of where you need to be.
NeuBible’s interface lacks lots of bells and whistles, but has all the essential features in a Bible app. Plus, it looks gorgeous. It has fonts hand-picked and licensed from some of world’s best type foundries, like Hoefler & Co, LatinoType, Commercial Type and DSType, as well as hand-tuned margins, line spacing and font sizes.
The font choices are modern (my favorite is Breve), so there are no Italicized cursive to be seen. The left-side navigation vanishes from view when you’re reading. Apart from verse numbers and chapter headings, the content is unadorned (though you can select from “day view” and “night view”).
I also like NeuBible’s Quick Search feature. Double tap in the search field to launch a search. This helps you find a verse quickly (which comes in handy when the preacher or Bible class teacher asks you to read.)
NeuBible also offers a curated bookstore to make it easy to find your favorite translation. It comes with a few translations for free: the American Standard Version, King James Version, and the World English Bible. The New American Standard Version (NASB) is available via an US$1.99 in-app purchase. The English Standard Version (ESV), The Message (MSG), the New International Version (NIV), the New King James Version (NKJV), the New Living Translation (NLT), and more are promised soon.
I do wish NeuBible would “remember” my position when I quit the app, but it doesn’t. Bookmarks would be great. Hopefully, those features will be coming soon.
Still, NeuBible is a great app for your Bible reading pleasure.
Apple World Today Rating (out of 5 stars): ★★★★★
