When I first heard Google Reader was going, I was really upset. It wasn't so much about reader itself, but about the possibility of losing the services that depend on it, like my Google Reader interface of choice – Feedly.
As it turned out, there was no need to worry, because thanks to some behind the scenes tech wizardry involving cloning APIs, Feedly will still be around and working long after Google Reader is gone. I've been using Feedly for around five years and at this stage I can't even remember how I found it – what I do know is that I love it.
I've already written a comprehensive review of Feedly on this blog, (and here's my original review if you're into history), so this time around I'm going to focus on some of the improvements made since then (plus a couple of things I didn't talk about at the time because they weren't relevant to me then).
Feedly for Android
One of those things is the Feedly smartphone app, which means that in addition to being available for Chrome, Safari and Firefox, you can use Feedly on Android and iOS – can anyone say cross-platform compatibility?
I am very happy with how Feedly works in Chrome, Firefox and Android and the seamless syncing of read and saved articles across all platforms. The Android app has big, colorful bars for your main categories (grayed out if you have read them all) and the ability to see snippets of five posts at a time. And swiping your way through the articles is easy. Plus, since it's on Android, it's easy for me to share articles to other platforms.
iPhone users can download the Feedly app and enjoy these same benefits as well.
Other Feedly Additions
Here are some of the other updates to Feedly since my last review:
When you preview a source in Feedly, it suggests other feeds similar in content via a sidebar module called ‘you might also like'.
There are sidebar modules to show you links shared by Twitter and Facebook friends. I found this a bit noisy and turned off Facebook integration, but I can see where it could be useful. There's also a small ad in the sidebar, which must be how the developers make money. I believe they deserve any income they get as Feedly is awesome!
In addition to sharing articles directly from Feedly via Twitter, Facebook and others, you can now also +1 them.
One of the features I most wanted in my last review was Buffer integration – Feedly now has it.
There have been major improvements to layout, including a cards view. You can customize the Highlights page to show the most important information first.
You no longer have to move between pages of feeds – the web application features infinite scrolling.
Adding feeds remains easy, either from within the web app or using the Feedly Mini toolbar that pops up on any web page, and now when you add feeds you can also tag them.
There's fine customization – you can choose among any of the available layouts for each source feed or change them all at once via the preferences panel.
More Goodies
If you're already using Feedly, you don't need to do a thing, but if you're a new user check out these great tips for migrating from Reader.
Bonus Video: HOW TO KEEP GOOGLE READER FOREVER WITH FEEDLY READER
Feedly Reader is an extension that make Feedly look just like Google Reader!
Feedly made an immediate commitment to keep the service going and to keep developing and improving it – my experience suggests they can deliver on that promise. Changes usually appear on Chrome first before filtering through to other platforms, but it's worth worth subscribing to the blog (via Feedly, of course) to keep up with developments.
Do you use Feedly, or have you switched? What do you think of it?