Microsoft is always testing new apps and features internally and on occasion, a few of them slip out from inside the walls of Redmond like OneClip or Office Now. Not wanting to be left out, Bing is also testing out a new app called NewsCast that is designed to give you "more productive commute".
The app, which can only be downloaded from the link below (iOS only) as it is not in the App Store, is currently being tested internally, according to the site. NewsCast allows you to listen to the news you want while you are driving, each article is 30 seconds in length, and you will be able to customize the feed to achieve the right balance of local and global news.
I played around with the app a bit and what it does is read aloud the news stories using a text to voice service from Microsoft"s speech team. There are two voices that alternate when reading each story and you can save articles for review later as well.
Right now, the app is a bit bare-bones as you cannot change the source lists or customize the feed in any way. The voices, while not quite natural, are not too robotic but there is definitely room for improvement when compared to Cortana.
Seeing as the website says this app is for internal testing, it"s clear that this was not supposed to have a public-facing domain, so if you want to try out the app, make sure to grab it quickly.
Download: Microsoft Newscast