If you can stand one more Google Reader migration post, here’s mine on why I went with Feedly.
In a nutshell, Feedly was the easiest. The Feedly folks worked overtime to fix bugs, integrate with awesome apps that we use every day like Buffer, Evernote, Instapaper, Pocket, and the cadre of social channels, upgrade their mobile apps, develop a web client and make the transition seamless.
My primary goal was simple: get the feeds out of Google Reader without any fuss, get familiar with the new interface, and if down the road, the relationship doesn’t work out, check out other options like AOL Reader, Digg Reader or Newsblur.
I had a few secondary requirements as well:
Mimic the Google Reader Titles only interface – I don’t like the Card view of many RSS readers and news aggregators – it slows me down when skimming hundreds of headlines daily. Feedly provides five viewing options, from Titles view to Cards and Magazine style views. Stay away from the Full Articles view if you have more than a handful of feed subscriptions.
Browser based – Like Google Reader, any reader alternative had to be cloud based and available via a browser. Feedly Cloud rolled out last week, effectively transitioning from a product to a platform. I’m on my MacBook Pro all day and Feedly’s old browser-extension only option was a potential deal breaker. But the new Feedly Cloud makes it super easy to migrate your Google Reader feeds. Simply login using your Google credentials, restart Feedly, and you’re set. Doesn’t get any easier than that.
Mobile App – Mobile apps and browser extensions are long time Feedly strengths. Like the web version, you can read full text of blog posts and send directly to social channels, or Buffer it without leaving Feedly. Add the browser extension for quick access to your Feedly feeds.
Subscribing to blogs – For blogs using Google’s Feedburner RSS subscription application (which may also be on the chopping block), I don’t see a Feedly subscription option. Instead, to add a new feed, click on Add Content in the Feedly interface and enter the site’s URL. To make it easy for others to subscribe to your blog, add a Feedly button.
Unique login – The only way to use Feedly Cloud is via Google authentication. This allows for an easy sync with Google Reader, but what happens after July 1st? Feedly plans on adding support for Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and LinkedIn. I’d like an option to create a unique Feedly username and password. To be safe, export Google Reader subscriptions to your hard drive. In Google Reader, go to Settings > Import/Export > Download Your Data Through Takeout, and download.
Google Reader veterans will find Feedly a breeze to use and may even prefer it. Newcomers looking for help can check out Feedly’s blog or head over to their Customer Feedback & Knowledge Base. I didn’t find an option to share my feed subscriptions with others. That would be helpful.
The new relationship is working out just fine so far, and there’s much more to play with like exploring the many cool third-party integrations and adjusting preferences for custom navigation, look and feel. If you’ve made the switch and have addtional tips or insights on using Feedly, please share in the comments below.
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