5 Alternatives to Google Reader

I’m sad to say, but Google Reader is gone as of today, July 1st.

This means that the technology you may have been using to read blogs — including MintLife — is no longer available.

Fortunately, there are excellent alternatives to replace Google Reader.

Here’s a quick roundup:

Feedly

Feedly is pretty up front about the fact that it would like to be the preferred replacement for Google Reader.

The Feedly ingerface is slick and modern – especially when compared to some of the other bare bones readers.

What’s more, you can directly import your favorite blogs from other readers right into Feedly (if Google Reader fans haven’t done this yet, it might be too late!).

It’s also got a particular knack for finding stories you might be interested in and suggesting them to you.

NewsBlur

This is a nice little app because of the high degree of customization.

You have the option to read your favorite blogs as they show up on the original site, as the RSS feed displays them, or with all the images stripped out for a more minimal appearance.

You can also choose to read stories later or share them with your friends on social media.

One limitation NewsBlur has is its users can only follow up to 64 blogs and can only have 10 stories at a time unless you sign up for the $24 a year premium service.

Also? Unless you already have a NewsBlur account, you can’t get anything but premium.

The Old Reader

Do you resist change?

If so, The Old Reader is for you! It’s basically just Google Reader without the name – the layout is almost identical.

You can’t use it on a mobile device just yet, nor can you share through any social media platform other than Facebook.

This is a great product for people who just don’t want to use anything other than Google Reader.

However, there’s also a social component to The Old Reader that’s rare; You and your friends can follow each other and share stories within the platform, rather than having to go to social media.

Pulse

On the other hand, if you only used Google Reader because it’s what you’ve used since time immemorial and you’ve always wanted something flashier, Pulse is just what you’ve been waiting for.

This is a very slick reader that’s more visual than text-based and looks stunning whether you’re looking at it on your laptop or your tablet.

If you’re a person who is much more visually-oriented, Pulse is the perfect solution for you.

Zite

Zite doesn’t boast anything special in the way of features, but it does have a very cool layout.

For the man who misses the days of print newspapers, Zite’s display will bring you back to the good old days.

In fact, it doesn’t even describe itself as an RSS reader: Zite prefers the term “free personal magazine.”

If you’ve always got your RSS feeds running in a tab on your browser, Zite is right up your alley.

The app is optimized for a phone, not a tablet, so that’s something to keep in mind.

Bonus: Suggestions for Reading Later

Maybe you like an app, but don’t like that it doesn’t give you the option to read something later.

The solution? Pocket (formerly Read It Later).

A lot of these platforms have integration with Pocket, which keeps all the things that you want to read later in one place.

Best of all, you can tag and archive them, allowing you to easily find that article you read six months ago and want to share with one of your friends today.

“5 Alternatives to Google Reader” was written by Nicholas Pell.