RedReader for Android: Open Source Reddit application
There is certainly no shortage in regards to apps for Reddit on Google Play. In fact, if you search for Reddit apps in the store you end up with more than 1000 results. While not all have been designed for Reddit exclusively, it is fair to say that you'd spend days going through all of them even if you'd limit the apps to those with a rating at least four stars.
RedReader is a new Reddit app for Android devices that is currently tagged as beta by its author. What makes this app stand out from many others that you find in store is its ease of use and incredible functionality. The first thing you need to do after you start the app for the first time is to decide whether you want to use Reddit anonymously or sign in to your Reddit account instead.
The app displays a selection of options on its frontpage afterwards. From here, you can load the front page of Reddit to see what is new, open subreddits instead or, if you are logged in, access account related features such as your inbox, saved posts or the user profile.
The app lists the posts in a clear and ordered fashion. Each post is listed with its title, points, time it has been posted, user who posted it and comments, and if available, with a thumbnail image as well. A tap on the post title opens it in the app, while a tap on the comments opens the comments on Reddit instead.
You can vote for posts by swiping to the left or right. A swipe to the left votes it up, a swipe on the right down. You can also tap on the post to display an action menu that you can use for various options including sharing the post, opening the page in an external browser or sharing comments.
The application uses several techniques to speed up the browsing. It is using a streaming mode that displays posts and comments while data is still being downloaded, and an advanced cache management system that stores posts and comments on the local system to speed up the loading next time they are opened. The image precaching feature is another customizable feature. It can be displayed, used at all times, or only if the Android device is connected to a wireless network. Compression is used to speed things up further. You can also turn off thumbnails completely to speed things up further.
The app features its own image viewer that you can make use of, several themes including a night theme for users who prefer dark backgrounds, and a two-column mode for tablet devices.
Verdict
RedReader is a handy reader app for Reddit. It is fast, highly customizable and supports anonymous browsing and accounts on the site. If you are currently looking for a new reader app, I suggest you give it a try.
