If you’re an avid internet reader and you follow several websites daily, then you probably know what RSS feeds are and how to subscribe to them. The closing of Google Reader last year may have seemed like the end of RSS to some, but any serious news junkie would tell you that there’s no better alternative to easily consume the sites that you love. And what better way to read RSS than on the one screen that is always with you, through home, work, and your commute? That’s why I’m listing today 5 great RSS reading apps for Android.
Press
Press is by far the most beautiful and easy to use RSS reader on Android. By supporting 4 different RSS services (Feedly, Feedbin, Feed Wrangler, and Fever), it encompasses most of the news reading market. Press’ interface is elegant and minimalist, with both a light and a dark theme, easy interactions to mark articles as read or starred, swiping and gestures to move between articles and perform specific actions, and more.
The one killer feature of Press is its Readability integration upon double-tapping a post. Since many sites opt for a truncated RSS feed, opening the Readability view of a post should give you all its content without the ads. It’s uncanny how fast you can switch between the RSS mode and the Readability mode, and that’s why Press is at the top of my RSS app recommendation list.
Download: Press (RSS Reader)
News+
When it comes to options and raw power, there’s no contest between News+ and other apps — it obliterates them. News+ stemmed from the venerable gReader, but offers plugins for many services including Feedly, Feedbin, NewsBlur, Inoreader, and more. By using the plugin system, News+ ensures that you get a consistent and updated interface, with very little bulk.
News+ tends to be clunky and crowded at times, with more options than you can ever use or need (it even has a search button, to quickly find that article you need!) but that is its strength. News+ is powerful, and you can opt for a grid layout or a list, manage the fonts and sizes of all elements, remove certain unneeded additions, and choose every aspect of the synchronization process.
Download: News+ | Google News RSS Reader
Amber
Amber sits somewhere in the middle between News+ and Press. It is elegant and minimalistic like Press, but it also packs a lot of options and features like News+. There are themes, accent colors, offline caching, widgets, display options, and, most importantly, it supports several RSS services like Feedly, Feedbin, and Inoreader.
Download: Amber RSS Reader
SilverReader
If you’re looking for simplicity and ease of use, then you can’t go wrong with SilverReader. With reduced downloads for offline caching, as minimalist a UI as can be, and few options and settings, SilverReader offers an RSS experience that provides the basics and doesn’t feel overwhelming. It’s the perfect RSS app if you are not a power user and you only follow a limited number of sites.
Download: SilverReader (RSS Reader)
Feedly
After Google Reader’s demise, Feedly quickly rose to pick up the most users and become the de-facto replacement for the service. The official Feedly app aims for style more than substance, with animations and gestures to keep you riveted. Feedly doesn’t offer a lot of options and doesn’t cache articles for offline reading, but it’s still an excellent RSS app. You’ll just have to remember to use it when you are connected to the internet.
Download: Feedly: Blogs, RSS News Reader
What is your favorite RSS reader on Android? Do you use one of the apps mentioned above, or do you have some other solution that you can recommend?