MobiLit is the newest entry into a crowded trial presentation field that is dominated by TrialPad and Exhibit A. What makes it different? It is designed to wirelessly project its presentation to other iPads. Additionally, it can send images to a projector or even a TV with an Apple TV or direct wired connection. While this may be convenient, it is unclear why it is necessary. Other than possible use in mediation, I haven’t come across a situation where this is going to be useful. And as a trial presentation app, it falls flat. The bottom line is, it doesn’t seem to bring anything significant to the game and doesn’t appear to match up to the standards set by TrialPad for trial presentation.
MobiLit ($9.99) is, at its most basic, simply a .pdf presentation app. That’s it. It doesn’t do video, it doesn’t do depositions in other formats, it doesn’t do other document formats such as .jpg or .tif. It is, to put it simply, a one trick pony. And, according to the limited documentation (provided only under the “Help” tab under “Settings”) it doesn’t do higher definition .pdfs well. MobiLit indicates that it may bog down on 600×600 dpi .pdfs–which is unfortunate since many attorneys will obtain trial graphics in this higher definition setting, which is preferable for projecting large images in trial.
MobiLit includes basic markup tools (line, highlight, pen, erase) but no advanced presentation functions. It claims to do call outs, but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out how to access this feature. Even the video tutorials on the MobiLit website didn’t address any of the markup functions, so how (or whether) it works is a mystery to me. That’s it–no arrows, no circles, no boxes, nothing else–just highlighter, line, pen and erase. In today’s trial presentation app market that is simply nothing to get excited about.
There are other quirks. The interface isn’t particularly intuitive as to how to get documents into what MobiLit calls “projects.” At this point in app development this basic function should be obvious and intuitive. Its not in MobiLit. I actually had to find seek out the “help” section in order to figure it out. Here is a tip for MobiLit: “import” is much more accurate and intuitive than “edit” when you are importing documents or folders.
On the plus side, MobiLit does have Drobbox integration. It can also import files from email and iTunes. And the price is a plus. As opposed to other, more expensive options, MobiLit is only $9.99. But this doesn’t make up for its lack of features. To me it simply is a bare bones app. I don’t want bare bones when it comes to my trial presentations–I want the bells and whistles.
The bottom line is I simply don’t very many situations where I would be able to control having everyone involved in a case with an iPad. Even if they did, I would have to ask them to install the free MobiLit Viewer. Add the need to have everyone on the same WiFi network and it really creates logistical problems. Its a neat idea, but I simply don’t see a practical application for it. If I had an unlimited budget, I guess I could have 5 or 6 iPads available to hand out to the judge, witnesses and opposing counsel and have the a projector involved, but that simply doesn’t seem realistic.
Score
MobiLit
Reviewed by Todd Hendrickson on .
Summary: MobiLit allows wireless presentation to other iPads, but isn’t an effective trial presentation tool
Overall score: 3 (out of 5)
MobiLit iPad Trial Presentation App, Review is a post from Lawyerist.com. The original content in this feed is © 2013 Lawyerist Media, LLC. This feed is provided for private use only and may not be re-published.