Feedspot is one more good Google Reader alternative
Google has been in the news a lot recently, and much of it has been for all of the wrong reasons. The vast majority of that news has swirled around the decision the company made to kill its Reader program. Ghacks has discussed this in detail, providing a list of alternative apps and commentary on the backlash the Google decision has caused.
In my quest to find a replacement before the Google clock clicks down to zero I have tried both Feedly and The Old Reader. Both had their  upsides and downsides. My latest attempt involves a service called Feedspot.
Unlike some of the ones out there, Feedspot is free. It is web-based and it can also import your Google Reader OPML file. To get started, you just need to sign up for an account., using your email address. The service prompts you to follow at least one of the feeds listed, which I suppose are partners and the revenue source for this model. These are not junk feeds though, so there is no need to panic on this. For instance, I chose to add National Geographic to my science section. I suppose you can unfollow later, but I will not because I actually like my choice.
After this, click the down arrow to the right of your name at the top of the screen and select "Import" to grab that XML file you took from Google Takeout. The import is almost instantaneous and you will be up and running in no time. However, it does not sync with Reader as services like Feedly do, so you will be face potentially thousands of "unread" stories.
There is an "Edit" button that allows you to arrange your feeds into categories, as I like to do. You can also follow people to see what they are sharing. There is a "Friend Activity" button at the top of the page -- it all looks very Facebok-like.
Conclusion
As far as the interface goes, Feedspot is by far my favorite service so far. It looks nice, works quickly and just appears slick overall. However, updates of new stories seem a bit slow. Overall, it is still the front runner to be my landing spot come July 1 when Google says goodbye to Reader.
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Its indeed good, at least the screenshot shows the similarity.
My only question is, does it offer syncing ability across multiple devices?
Hi Noel. Yes, Android and iOS app is in the works.
+1 on the sync question
link?
http://feedspot.com/fs/spotlight/sites
Added, sorry for the oversight.
Feedspot is pretty good! It has to be for me to like it! :)
Very easy to set up, import all contacts and feeds from across various e-mail accounts and Readers, so yea, this one’s a keeper!
Which company is behind this application ? The website does not give much information, a missed chance. What about inquiries or support for this ?
According to the company, there are mobile apps in the works. They will sync across devices, but they are not available quite yet.
Thanks Alan.
Rats, this doesn’t support Media RSS feeds with multiple file enclosures either.
Thanks Alan.
Very good and easy service!
Does Feedspot have an “about” page, privacy policy, or development/news blog that anyone can point me toward? I’d like to read more about it before signing up.
Matt, Feedspot blog is over here feedspot.tumblr.com
Thanks, Anuj!
I just tried it and so far like what I see – quite intuitive and easy to set up – thanks Alan
Thanks for this awesome find. It’s the most resemblance to greader yet.
You know, a lot of sites are getting in the habit of offering nothing when you hit their landing page and feedspot.com is one of them.
There’s no About, FAQ, terms, privacy policy, what the hell the service does, is, etc, and they use images for text, a huge deal breaker with me and the worst way to write a page.
I’m expected to blindly provide my email address and create an account.
This isn’t a dig against your choice, it obviously works well for you and you like it, but I’m passing.
i have switch to http://www.privateoss.com which is an alternative to google reader since last year.
I use web-based Flowreader from http://www.flowreader.com – gives me both web news feed and my social accounts feed. I can sort the info the way I like it to look, and share and post in my Twitter and Google+.