For some time now, I have been hunting for a Windows Mobile RSS feed reader which would sync with my online account with Google Reader.  My big frustration with reading my RSS feeds while mobile is that the lack of such a sync feature means I end up viewing all of the same feeds again when I log into Google Reader.  That just does not end well for me.  So, I typically end up pretty much ignoring RSS feeds on my mobile device, and just waiting until I can get to a computer to log into Google Reader.  So, I was pretty excited when I found Speed Reader the other day.  This is an RSS feed reader which does nothing but sync with Google Reader…and, it’s free.

After using Speed Reader for a short time, my experience started making me feel a but like the story of the monkey’s paw.  It granted three wishes…literally, and often tragically, interpreted exactly as requested.  Similarly, Speed Reader gave me exactly and literally what I requested, a way to sync Google Reader with my Windows Mobile device.  Nothing more and nothing less.

Still, what it does, Speed Reader does quite well.  Just enter your Google Reader account information, and you will soon be viewing all of your feeds.  right on your Windows Mobile device.

On of the things  I really liked about this program was the tags tab, which allows you to view any specific RSS feed.  The main screen on the tags tab will show your Google Reader categories.  Select any category to reveal the feeds assigned to that category.

While the functionality of syncing with Google Reader was exceptional, there were several key features missing, such as:

• there was no way to mark favorites, or view your starred favorites from your mobile device
• there was no way to share feeds with others, either online in Google Reader, or via email.
• there was no way to filter for only unread posts
• there was no way to view categories of feeds which you might setup in Google Reader.

Not only that, but I was disappointed to find that there was no way to add a feed other than going through Google Reader.  It would be nice to be able to add feeds on your mobile device, and connect them to Google Reader later.

In the end, I found this one gave me exactly what I asked for: the ability to sync and read my Google Reader feeds from my mobile device.  So, from that end, it did offer a nice function which many RSS readers ignore.  It would have been a significantly improved program, however,  had the developers incorporated more of Google Reader’s advanced functionality, which is really what makes it one of the best solutions for reading RSS feeds from your computer..  Next time I will wish, I had been a little more clear about my wishes.

Speed Reader is technically still a Beta, so hopefully we will see some additional functionality in future releases.  In the meantime, you can check out Speed Reader at emunee.wordpress.com/eeenno.

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