Tapbots, the makers behind one of the most popular Twitter apps for iOS to date, Tweetbot, is out with a new robot. Netbot is an iPhone and iPod touch App.net client.
Netbot looks profoundly similar to Tweetbot, but that’s in part due to the fact that the App.net social network is pretty similar to Twitter. It has that same famous UI with the clicky robotic sounds when you tap different buttons. Tapping a post brings up options to reply, repost, star, share, or take a different action just like with Tweetbot. The tab bar at the bottom is customizable here too according to what features you access most often.
Netbot even integrates with Twitter as well. Anything you post on Netbot you can optionally choose to send to Twitter, though doing so will add a link in the tweet to the full App.net post. Plus, under the search tab you can find people you follow on Twitter and see if they’re on App.net.
If you’re unfamiliar with App.net, it’s a new service that aims to be a better Twitter. It works quite similarly, but rather than throwing advertisements or sponsored posts in your face all the time to pay for the bills, App.net charges you either $5 per month or $36 per year to use the service. There’s been mixed criticism so far about this pricing strategy, but the service has at least garnered enough attention get third-party apps on board already.
You can find Netbot in the iOS App Store for $4.99.