Flipboard updated with Google Reader and Flickr integration

Flipboard, the RSS and social aggregator that recently won Apple's US iTunes iPad app of the year, has gotten a pretty solid update today featuring even more sources for quality content. First up is a pretty big one -- Flipboard now integrates with Google Reader, arguably the most popular way of organizing RSS feeds. Now you can sign in with your Google account, pull in and sync up all your feeds and reads in one smooth motion. Sharing and starring are also integrated, plus you can comment on stories like you would on the desktop, just with all your feeds presented with the Flipboard webazine style instead of the traditional inbox approach. The only thing you might miss that's currently absent is the ability to manage your feeds directly within Flipboard, so you'll have to resort to the Reader Web app for feed maintenance.

Flipboard has also scored an excellent visual addition in the shape of Flickr integration. Now you can "browse all that Flickr has to offer," including favorites, your photostream, groups and contacts' photos, plus 'interesting photos of the day.' Considering how visually exciting Flipboard can be, adding your Flickr streams into the mix makes perfect sense.

Live previews have made an appearance with the 1.1 update, with a nice, pop-under style presentation. The original site loads underneath the magazine-style layout and is brought front-and-center with a quick flick of the finger. This kind of approach eliminates the 'scraping' accusation leveled at some of the other novel RSS readers for the iPad, while still presenting you with the full content. Flipboard has also seen a speed improvement thanks to performance tweaks and faster navigation within the app. The 'instant section selector' allows you to flip between sections, feeds and generally navigate the content mash-up faster than before, which is a nice addition for people who found the Flipboard experience a little sluggish.

Flipboard 1.1 is a worthy upgrade to an undoubtedly interesting content experience, and if you happen to have tried and rejected Flipboard in the past, it might be worth giving it another shot. It's free, so all it'll cost you is 3MB of space on your iPad, and while it may not be the most efficient way of perusing your flood of RSS feeds, you might find it a good alternative to the likes of Reeder.

Flipboard [iTunes] - Free

Tags: apps, Flickr, Flipboard, Google Reader, GoogleReader, iOS, iPad, productivity