With the news that Google Reader is on the outs, I (along with everyone else in the blogosphere) began looking into alternatives. I’m going to give Bloglovin’ a try, especially after I learned that you can comment directly from the interface, AND they grant pageview stats to my fellow bloggers when I read their posts. Score!
I created an account today and imported my Google Reader list in under a minute. Easy peasy. And now, I’m going to make this blog available through there as well.
UPDATE:
It was my good luck that during Bloggiesta this weekend, The Picky Girl ran a mini-challenge around picking a new feed reader. Since originally posting this announcement, I have had the pleasure of using both Feedly and Bloglovin’ and so far I think Bloglovin’ is winning.
The first big drawback to Feedly is that I have to install it on each computer I use, which annoys me. Right now, for instance, I’m housesitting and don’t want to clutter my friend’s computer with my junk. The second drawback is the interface it uses. No matter how I play with the settings, I can’t get Feedly to display in a way that I find aesthetically pleasing or useful.
Bloglovin’s layout is much more similar to Google Reader’s, and that makes it more intuitive for me to use. Yes, it’s slightly annoying that you can only see a sentence or two of the previews, but once you click to read a post, the navigation bar that stays up top makes it simple to browse through the rest of my subscriptions, with the added benefit of seeing the posts on their actual sites. It not only grants a pageview, but it lets me see the post the way it was meant to be seen. We don’t spend all of that time formatting our posts for nothing, amirite?
Both sites have iPhone apps, and I have downloaded both. They work much the same, but I find Bloglovin’s app to have a smoother feel. The Feedly app doesn’t scroll so much as it jumps around and it is taking me some time to get used to it.
I haven’t totally given up on Feedly, and I’ll still play around with both for at least a few more weeks. I have a feeling this dilemma will sort itself out in time and I’ll find myself gravitating to one over the other, at which point I’ll delete the other app and go on about my business.
For those of you who do use Bloglovin’ please click below (or in my sidebar) to follow me!
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A lover of words and sparkly things.
Sounds like a great alternative. Thanks for letting us know. I’ll look into it.
Midnyte Reader recently posted..Neil Gaiman and Adam Rex – Chu’s Day signing!
Seems pretty cool so far! I’ll let you know how it goes.
I was leaning toward feedly or The Old Reader, but I want to check this one out now.
I set up feedly as well. I plan to play around with both, but I like that Bloglovin provides an easy backup/substitute for Feedburner too. It has a follower counter and gives some basic stats. I keep thinking Feedburner is on the outs.
following you now Logan.
Blogluvin is confusing the heck out of me.
Is it the layout? That’s what is taking me some time to get used to. I like the app though.
You’re so awesome! Thank you!
I’m so confused. What I need is a new reader, right? This won’t affect my feed? People who follow my blog just need to transfer their feeds to a new service–I don’t have to do anything to my feed?
Right. This is only for how you want to read other people’s feeds. You can follow any blog on Bloglovin, but if you “claim” it, then you can see your follower stats and some basic view stats, so that’s what you’re seeing pop up everywhere as people claim their blogs. You don’t have to do anything with your feed…for now. I wouldn’t bank on Feedburner sticking around forever, if that’s what you use for email subscriptions and to manage your feed.
I’ve been procrastinating on getting a new reader since I heard… I think I’m just a creature of habit and resist change. And I always have Google Reader open at all times on my laptop.
Still, the sooner I make the change, the sooner I’ll get used to it. I guess from what you’ve said here, I’ll probably end up with Bloglovin’. I didn’t know that it actually counts as a pageview directly from the reader! That’s pretty brilliant; I wish Google Reader had thought of that. Thanks for sharing, Logan!!
I am also a resister of change. When I first started browsing alternatives it got a bit overwhelming. Can’t someone just invent a new Reader that looks and acts exactly like Google’s? Sheesh.
I do love Bloglovin for the reasons you mentioned. And I know I’ve said it a couple hundred times this weekend, but it’s just so pretty.
Like you, I don’t like having to download anything for Feedly, but I’ve heard if you add it as a plugin on Chrome, you can use it on any computer with Chrome, as long as you sign in. (If that makes a difference to you.)
I’m also going to check out Taptu and Spundge – both are options people mentioned during Bloggiesta.
I’ll have to check those out too. It’ll be interesting to see what developers come up with by July 1. My guess is we’ll have a slew of new options as they have more time to work on alternatives.