SwipeRadio: Accessing Your Favorite Radio Stations With Just A Swipe

Despite being threatened by music streaming service providers like Spotify and Beats Music, terrestrial radio still remains a popular means for listening music on your mobile devices. Indeed, terrestrial radio apps like TuneIn Radio and iHeartRadio continue to top app charts today.

Now, a newcomer joins the game and it is called (quite aptly) SwipeRadio. Basically, this app (available as a free download on iTunes) lets users access their favorite radio stations by using swipe gestures. 

When users first open the SwipeRadio app, it asks for your permission to know your location in order to show you popular radio stations within the vicinity. To start listening, you just need to tap on any of the displayed stations, and if you find a station you like, add it to your favorites. From there, you simple have to tap your mobile device's screen to start (or stop) the radio station's live music stream. 

If you want to surf stations, you can just swipe to the right or to the left on your phone's screen. If you want to navigate back to the list of stations or search for more stations, you just need to swipe down. 

Aside from its primary easy-swipe navigation capabilities, the SwipeRadio app also supports AirPlay, the ability to withhold radio station announcements, and the ability to tweet at the radio station's Twitter account.

If you want additional features, prepare to shell out some cash. With $2.99, you can get rid of unwanted ads, and have access to more colors so that you can customize the backgrounds of your favorite radio station choices. You can color-code them according to genre or mood. Please note that the free version of the app already comes with half a dozen color choices. 

Because of SwipeRadio's minimalist take on terrestrial radio, the app may be too simple feature-wise. Other radio apps may offer news about artists and tour information, station recommendations, and more elaborate ways of categorizing or organizing station lists. But not SwipeRadio -- and those who have already used the app may get the feeling that the creators want it that way, instead just focusing on let users listen to music. Need further proof? The app does not even require users to set up a user account and password.

Also, because no user account and password is needed, users do not need to provide any social media login information in order to start using the app. Sure, it is kinda odd when you consider that we are well into the social media age. But for some users, it is actually cool. Just like old school radio.