WordPress for iOS 5.3 is available on iTunes and has a few new features. Post listings display more content making them easier to browse. A search feature has been added to the post listing screen that displays results as you type.
I tested the search feature on two different sites. The first site is on WordPress.com and doesn’t use featured images. Search results displayed quickly with little lag.
The second is a self hosted WordPress site that uses featured images. I noticed lag as the app tried to display real-time results as I typed which also lagged the app. I couldn’t do anything else within the app until the search query finished.
I don’t use the search feature often and this experience has me concerned. Instead of being fast and fluid, it’s chunky and slow. I also don’t see the need to display featured images in search results. I think this would make the search query and the app faster.
WordPress.com and self hosted WordPress sites are now combined under My Sites. Instead of seeing a spinning circle when checking stats, there’s a progress bar at the top. This gives the appearance that the stats page loads faster. The stats page also has a subtle color scheme change that makes things more pronounced.
Last but not least, 5.3 includes several bug fixes. Overall, 5.3 is a decent update. Remember to use caution when searching a site with a lot of posts that use featured images. WordPress for iOS 5.3 is available for free on iTunes. If you encounter any issues in 5.3, please report them in the support forum.
The reason why I stopped using it in the past is because images would display upside down. I’ll probably give this a whirl.