Reeder 2 Review – Is this the RSS reader you’ve been waiting for?

Our rating:

By: Silvio Rizzi

Version #: 2.0.1

Date Released: 2013-09-12

Developer: Silvio Rizzi

Price: $4.99

User Rating:

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With Google shutting down their Reader service in July, one of the best clients for iOS, Reeder became practically obsolete. Developer Silvio Rizzi withdrew the app but with a promise to bring it back with a bang. Couple of months down the road, here we have it, Reeder 2.

If you’ve used Reeder before, there isn’t anything exciting or mind blowing here, except few UI redesigns with new sync and share options. But if this is your first time with the app, you’re in for a treat.

What is Reeder?

There are dozens of popular RSS services both over the browser as well as in the form of apps, quarreling to take over the empty throne left by Google reader. In addition to these, we have ‘Read it later’ apps kindled by Instapaper, I guess. Each one has their own merits & demerits making it is quite likely that a power user has accounts over multiple servers and things are too messed up. This is where Reeder 2 comes in, bringing all your news under a single shade.

What’s inside Reeder 2?

Though the icon looks kind of dull, the interiors are beautifully crafted. iOS 7 themed interface is simple, translucent and devoid of all skeomorphic stitches, leather and paper. Tap the add button to link Readability, Feedbin, Feedly, Feed Wrangler and Fever accounts or just any naked url feeds. Give it a moment to sync and what you have is a spectacular list of all your favorite news, in a single screen!

Tap on the Headline to bring up the content or use swipe gestures to get it starred or mark it read. Change the font size, alignment or toggle gray-scale images. Keep them aside to read later with the sofa icon on top or use the share button to bring up a sea of options like open in Safari or Chrome, RiL with Instapaper, Pocket or Readability, link to Evernote, share on Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter, send via mail or message, copy link etc. Scroll down for jumping to next news or swipe back to return to parent menu (just like iOS 7).

In addition, you can make some teeny tiny customizations like the browser to be used, share options to be displayed, managing links, slide gestures etc. Overall, a straightforward and easy-to-use app.

The experience
In the end, it all comes to a point where how you feel matters the most. The popping animations, simple design and intuitive gesture controls are quick to make you smile. Support for major services is always a plus but there are some caveats too.

First of all, there is no search. Yeah, you heard it right! This one gives me headaches ‘coz after spending 4 bucks, I am not even entitled to search for some ‘iPhone 5s’ articles? This is a major deal breaker as far as I’m concerned, especially with others like Mr. Reader providing it at a lower tag. Forgiving that and moving on, we find that there is no way to rearrange or prioritize the stories based on our interests. Only alphabetical order, Sir! Also, I really miss the ‘white in black’ or the ‘night mode’ as in Feedler.

For previous users of Reeder on iPhone and iPad, it is shocking that they have to pay again for the revamped one. Though making Reeder 2 universal loosens the issue a bit, I wish they had done better.

Do I need such a powerful app?

This is a tricky question and the most important one in this review. My brother is a tech enthusiast and follows most major website feeds, but he doesn’t use any service or clients. He does all the news stuff on his iPad and uses Pulse Reader for it, saying, “it’s easy, beautiful and gets the thing done”. So if you’re a normal user, occasionally checking for new stuff and don’t RSS over multiple device, you can stop here. This one is not needed for you! On the other hand, if you’re a hard core news reader who like to keep updated always and are looking for better ways to do so, Reeder 2 has something to offer you.

The final word

Now if you’re certain that you need a ‘power tool for your power reading’, the next question is “Is Reeder 2 the right choice?” Another important question, which well.. I have to answer, this time.

Keeping aside the lack of search, Reeder 2 does provide a very impressive experience. But looking at Mr. Reader, providing everything above plus loads of other features, it is hard to keep eyes off it. You can go through its app description to find the endless list of features packed into it. It also comes with a lesser tag but unfortunately, is available only for iPads.

So this is the take away. If you’re an iPad only person, Mr. Reader would be my first suggestion for power users. Otherwise, if you have smaller screens to satisfy too, Reeder 2 being an universal app makes much more sense.
On a similar note, if you’re looking for a free alternative, Feedly, Newsify or Pulse Reader might be your thing.

Also, check out our list of Best Google Reader alternatives.