The RSS protocol enables users to track updates from favorite websites in chronological order, allowing them to read or skip articles effortlessly. Originally designed for web feeds and still powering podcast directories, RSS offers a clean alternative to social media or newsletters for organized reading.
Introducing Current RSS Reader
Current delivers a fresh take on RSS reading across iPhone, iPad, and Mac devices. Its core philosophy—engage with interesting content and let the rest flow by—creates a fluid, river-like experience that prevents overwhelming backlogs. Available for a one-time $9.99 fee, it provides full access across Apple platforms without a free trial.
Getting Started with Current
After downloading from the App Store, users skip traditional unread counts. Instead, auto-expiry rules manage content: news vanishes in hours, essays linger for days. The ‘waterline’ marks new items published since the last session, while the main ‘river’ displays the feed.
Add feeds via recommendations, manual RSS URLs, OPML imports, or feed services. Paste a homepage URL if needed—Current handles detection. Assign ‘velocity’ settings to each source: Breaking (3 hours), News, Articles, Essay, or Evergreen (7 days). Sources then join the river.
The interface stays minimal: tap articles for previews or full text, with Safari fallback for others. Quick actions save or release items. On macOS, shortcuts like R (release) and S (save) speed navigation, plus a two-pane ‘sift’ mode for river and reader side-by-side.
Customizing Your River
Despite its simplicity, Current supports deep tweaks. Create multiple rivers—one for tech, another for sports—via the + icon, selecting sources and naming them. Switch rivers from the main menu.
In settings (Current > Settings on macOS; cog icon on iOS), adjust refresh frequency, default views, and feed order. The Sources tab manages additions. Appearance options include nine reader themes, font sizing, content width, and thumbnail display for visual appeal.
Advanced features reload released articles or reset data entirely. These tools ensure a tailored, distraction-free flow for staying current online.
