Completely out of nowhere, Google has launched Google Reader, a web-based news aggregator. As one would expect, Reader is full of AJAX goodness and is more than a little bit reminiscent Gmail. Right at the top of the screen is a box where you can search for new feeds, which I presume is powered by the same data that drives Google Blog Search, and you can tag your feeds (though, like in Gmail, Google calls them "Labels") and star individual posts a la Gmail. A web-based RSS reader is an obvious move for Google, given the integrated RSS reader in Google Personalized Home and Gmail's Web Clips, but I would have expected Google to integrate Google Reader directly into Gmail.

Update: Head over to to the Unofficial Google Weblog to read Brad Hill's excellent, in-depth review of Google Reader.

Via Waxy.org.