Google Bids Goodbye to Google Reader

Last week, Google has made the official announcement on its blog that it would be shutting down Google Reader along with other services it has provided in the past years. Google Reader is set to retire on July 1, 2013.  According to Google, despite a solid following, the number of users has declined over time.  Another reason cited is that the move was essential so that it can focus on enhancing its primary products and services.

What is Google Reader?  

If this is the first time you've been hearing about Google Reader because of all the news of its imminent closing, you might be wondering what the fuss is about.  It is basically a feed subscription or an RSS (Rich Site Summary) reader.  Basically, it enables you to keep track of the latest content from your favorite websites and read them all from a single page.  

Many people has been utilizing this tool for years since it was introduced in 2005.  Obviously, not many are happy to hear about the news of its retirement.  If you have been using Google Reader, you can download an archive of your subscriptions through Google Takeout. 

Alternatives to Google Reader

Here are three alternative readers you can use for free :

Feedly  You can download Feedly on your desktop, mobile phone or tablet.  Use it to organize, read and share content from your favorite websites.  You can also migrate subscriptions from your existing Google Reader account to Feedly.

The Old Reader   It works pretty much like the Google Reader. As of this moment, it does not have a mobile app just yet so you can only view it from a desktop.  It's free for up to one hundred feeds and costs $3 per month for the Premium account. Can you directly import subscriptions from your Google Reader account?  Yes, you can.

Bloglovin  As the name suggests, if you love blogs, then you'd love Bloglovin too! It allows you  to find and follow blogs across the web all in one page- simple as that.   But wait, there's more!

You can organize your favorite blogs according to categories - an indispensable option if you'd ask me, especially if you're subscribed to a hundred blogs or more.  You can download it on your desktop, iPhone, iPad and Android. 

If you're a blogger, it's also the perfect place to gain more followers.  Finally, you can import blog subscriptions from your Google Reader account in one click of a button.