Apple has just unveiled a new app for the Apple TV called iBooks Storytime. It brings a modest selection of kid books to your television and each one has Read-Aloud functionality. There is an option to turn the narration off, so parents can read the book aloud to their child.
The app, which comes with a free Dora the Explorer book, is designed for young children. Additional books can be purchased from the Featured Books section of the app. There is a nice mix of classic children’s books and familiar modern characters.
When you are reading a book with the narration feature turned on, the words are highlighted. This will hopefully teach children word correlation. In read-aloud mode the pages are turned automatically. Pages can also be turned by swiping on the Siri Remote when the read-aloud feature is turned off.
Apple was initially granted a trademark for iBooks StoryTime back in September. Many digital publishing websites were buzzing about what this new initiative would entail, and we finally got the answer.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
