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Add to SafariWhen comparing The Old Reader vs Twitter (Official), the Slant community recommends The Old Reader for most people. In the question“What are the best news readers?” The Old Reader is ranked 6th while Twitter (Official) is ranked 40th. The most important reason people chose The Old Reader is:
People from Facebook or Google can be found on The Old Reader so posts can be shared and discussed.
Specs
Question Ranking
Pros
Pro Social
People from Facebook or Google can be found on The Old Reader so posts can be shared and discussed.
Pro Very similar to the dismissed Google Reader
Ever since Google Reader has ceased to be an option, The Old Reader has grown in popularity.
Pro Great UI
A clean, easy to use interface.
Pro Easy to use
Intuitive, easy to overview service.
Pro OPML import
Allows for easy migration from any service that supports OPML.
Pro Freemium
Free version has a limit of 100 sites, upgrade to unlimited sites costs $25/year. Being freemium is a nice option for those that would like to try the app out without putting down any money first.
Pro Gets the latest API updates
Twitter is slightly infamous for making changes to the API. At least with the official client, you stay ahead of this.
Pro Clean & Functional UI design
Pro Officially sponsored
So you know it will always be supported and won't be randomly shut down.
Pro App experience similar to web experience
If you're switching from using the web client, this app will be quickly understandable to you.
Pro Inline photos
Pro Multiple account support
Allows easy switching of accounts withing the app.
Pro Supports login verification
The official Twitter app is perhaps the only app to support two factor authentication or login verification, thus providing a necessary additional layer of security to your Twitter accounts
Pro Photo editing tools
The app has filters, automatic level balancing and ability to crop built in the app.
Cons
Con Not free/libre
This application is proprietary, and thus cannot be modified, freely distributed, or trusted to be secure. Also, if the developer abandons it again, there will be no way for others to continue to update it.
Con No mobile app
Lacks an official native mobile app, but the mobile version of the site is quite usable and there are apps which support syncing with The Old Reader.
However, users have created many apps for a variety of platforms using The Old Reader API. You can check them out here.
Con Not very customizable
While the sources can be added or removed, the feed cannot be filtered in any other way. Display options are limited as well, leaving the user with the standard view.
Con Forced inside Twitter's annoying ecosystem
Con "In case you missed" feature, showing tweets other users liked in your timeline
Features (can't be turned off) that disrupt chronological timeline and/or show sames tweets repeatedly.
Con Promoted tweets
AKA ads.
Con Too many permissions
Asking a lot more permissions than most third party apps.
Con No widget
Recently took away the widget for whatever reason and that's not cool.
Con Pretty heavy
If you're on a "available-space" budget, the official twitter app is pretty bulky and you'll be better-off with a more lightweight alternative.
Con Lack of ability to view tweets in a proper timeline
Con Terrible cellular data management
If you have a limited data plan for your phone, don't be surprised if you find a whopping 800 MB consumption at the end of the month. The app really, really wants to download absolutely everything, even if you don't want to see or play anything.
