Let's face it: Dinosaurs are pretty universally fascinating, whether they're discovered via the likes of a history book or Jurassic Park. Considering the iPad's multimedia prowess, there's certainly an opportunity for a well-considered app to match the grandeur of the extinct beasts with an exciting and all-encompassing app, and Inside the World of Dinosaurs comes out swinging with a couple very notable features, such as full narration from actor Stephen Fry and 3D dinosaur models that roam and emit sound effects amidst pages of text.

Much as Inside the World of Dinosaurs excels in those aspects, it doesn't come together as a particularly cohesive or iPad-optimized experience. No doubt, the app offers quite a bit of information, with dozens of species profiled via basic facts and an animated representation, as well as overviews of the various eras, details on topics like fossilization and dinosaur eggs, and a light appraisal of the efforts made by both classic and modern fossil hunters.

But the presentation proves drab, and the subject matter a bit scattershot. Inside the World of Dinosaurs isn't nearly as comprehensive as a dedicated text, though a more guided approach might've made that a less pressing concern. Sure, the app can be set to automatically flip pages upon the conclusion of Fry's expert reading, but otherwise, Inside the World of Dinosaurs feels like a big info dump in need of some notable refinement.

Pages can't be flipped with a swipe of your fingers; you'll have to tap a little button on the navigation bar or dig through the menus to find what you want. And the text itself is poorly edited throughout, though it thankfully doesn't come through in the narration. Moreover, the grey text-on-black aesthetic lacks pop, and stands out only as bring startlingly sparse and limited compared to some of the other book-like educational apps we've seen on the App Store of late.

The bottom line. Good info and stellar narration only carry Inside the World of Dinosaurs so far; this premium-priced iPad app otherwise feels a bit half-baked.