The NPR News app [iTunes link] is quickly becoming a jack of all trades for news junkies and those wanting a quick fix of their favorite NPR program.

The latest version, 1.1, adds sharing of stories via Facebook, Twitter and e-mail. You can now pause radio programs, as well as fast forward and rewind them.

Finding local stations is easy by using the iPhone's location services, or you can choose to listen to just about every NPR station in the country.

The news part of the app works pretty quickly on a 3G network, but I find the pop-up ads at the bottom irritating. I don't think there are enough news stories on screen at once, an issue it shares with the AP News app. The NPR app has been popular since the moment it was released, and the developers have continued to be responsive and add features on a regular basis.

Getting access to NPR programs like Car Talk and All Things Considered is very nice, plus you can listen to any individual news story on demand.

There is no search function, which would be most welcome, but overall the app is really useful and continues to improve.

If you don't have it, grab it for free. If you already have it and use it, be sure to update to this latest version.

There are few public radio apps out there, but the official NPR News app [iTunes link] takes some of the best features of these offerings and goes one step beyond.

NPR News app was developed by Bottle Rocket Apps, the same folks who brought us Gas Buddy and a number of other well-executed iPhone apps. And, NPR News does not disappoint.

When you open the app, you're presented with a layout similar to other news apps. You have top stories, more offerings beyond that, and then a newscast where you can listen to a brief update of the top news of the hour. Along the bottom is a toolbar toggling among news, NPR's programs, a comprehensive listing of NPR stations nationwide with the ability to listen to your station of choice. For that, I tried out WUAL -- broadcast from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama -- my alma mater. The stream loaded quickly and I was listening to WUAL from my iPhone at a Barnes & Noble in Phoenix, Arizona. Pretty sweet. It's one of the things that I loved from Public Radio Player, and I'm glad to see this feature on the official app as well.

Under the Programs heading, you can add stories to a playlist or be taken to its podcast listing in the iTunes Music Store except for programs where you can select individual stories rather than the overall broadcast. If a program is currently airing in your local area while you're perusing the offerings, tap on the "Select Station" icon to pick a station to listen live. While in both program or station mode, the menu expands to expose a volume control if you tap on the arrow right above the time indicator.

Other than the lack of some programs, the only other big drawback to NPR News is the inability to scrub back and forth in a program. It's especially hindering if you have to stop the program for any reason because you'll have to go all the way back to the beginning.

NPR News is a free download and definitely worth checking out.

Edit (7:55 AM PDT): Some programs such as "Marketplace" aren't available because they are not produced by National Public Radio, according to Andy Carvin with NPR in our comments. These programs are available when you tune into a station live, but are not listed under the NPR programs section. He also added that scrubbing and sharing features will come in the 1.1 edition of the app. Thanks for the clarification, Andy!

Whenever I'm not listening to my iPod in the car, I'm usually have my radio tuned to National Public Radio, where I get my fix of classical and jazz music. American Public Media has created an iPhone app that caters to those of us who want to listen to a particular NPR station, but don't happen to be near a computer.

Public Radio Tuner (click opens iTunes) is a free application that compiles the Internet streams from more than 150 public radio stations into a single list. You scroll through the list to your preferred station, then there is a screen with a play button and volume control. Over Wi-Fi, the station I picked came in clear with no interruptions. I can turn off the iPhone's screen and it'll keep playing. However, when I tried to launch Public Radio Tuner using a fairly strong EDGE connection, the application insisted that it wasn't connected to the Internet. I had to utilize another program that activated an Internet connection, then relaunch Public Radio Tuner, before it would work over EDGE. After that, it works as advertised, though American Public Media warns that some stations require a 3G or Wi-Fi connection to work properly.

It's a simple application, and does what it does well. It still needs some improvement. I would love to see a search tool implemented so you can bypass scrolling through the long list of radio stations; search by station name or by location would be great. The ability to bookmark your favorite stations would be an additional bonus, as well as tweaking the application to recognize a connection over EDGE without having to launch another application.