There are many reasons now to feel a tad fed up with Google, especially with Google’s new privacy policy. Still, if you’ve been a Googleaholic for long, using only Google products for your docs, calendar, email, location-based services, pictures, news and so on, it’s time to think of de-Googleaholic options. Look up alternatives for Google products.
Search Engine Alternatives
- Microsoft Bing: Definitely more cluttered and more colorful than Google, but a good alternative.
- Yahoo: Yahoo has expanded its services to offer you a more thorough search, news and product experience.
- Kartoo: A meta-search engine that allows switching from row-wise results display to columnar view.
- DuckDuckGo: Integrates with Wolfram Alpha for quick answers and provides keyboard shortcuts to navigate results.
- Others: Wolfram Alpha, Collecta and Mahalo.
Gmail Alternatives
- Zoho Mail: Great storage for emails, both POP and IMAP access, allows folder labeling, allows email threading, and has offline access.
- Yahoo Mail: Still free, with unlimited storage, POP access, free SMS in some countries and much more. Good stuff.
- Hotmail: It has a great spam filter, allows conversation view, and has one-click filters and many other cool features.
Calendar Alternatives
- Yahoo Calendar: You can certainly consider this option, though it’s not as good as Google Calendar.
- Windows Live Calendar: Create a Live ID to get a Live Calendar account. Plus, you get to access a number of Windows Live products including email.
- Mixin: You can post your calendar events through SMS, email, IM or any calendar application and be reminded later.
- Hotmail Calendar: Great Hotmail integration but no search feature
- AOL Calendar: Good interface and great features such as 1 Calendar that allows sharing, upcoming mobile app and Facebook integration.
Picture Alternatives
- Flickr: Yes, storage is limited and there’s an upload cap monthly but it’s still a fabulous tool.
- Photobucket: 1 GB storage, allows archiving and sharing. It’s a gallery-type service for those looking for easy sharing.
- Shutterfly: Google’s Picasa storage is not free but Shutterfly offers unlimited free storage.
- Facebook: You can upload and tag unlimited pictures on Facebook.
- SmugMug: Great customizable interface for photo viewing but low on community services
- Dropbox: Great way to get pics in the cloud and a simple album feature.
Google Docs Alternatives
- ZoHo Docs: ZoHo docs offers collaborative, offline deep document editing for text, presentations docs and spreadsheets. Users enjoy superior doc compatibility, doc formatting and editing options, as compared to Google Docs.
- EyeOS Public Server: Great docs and spreadsheet alternative, with an entire browser-based OS.
- Microsoft’s Office Web Apps: Edit different kinds of docs; enjoy built-in Microsoft SkyDrive support plus collaborative features.
VOIP Alternatives
- Ooma: You can explore three way calling, use a second line, and opt for call forward and other enhanced voicemail features.
- Skype: Skype is still a byword when it comes to VOIP. Many individuals and businesses use Skype for their conferencing needs.
- Phonebooth: You get free local phone number, free call forwarding, phonemail transcription and so on. 200 minutes on inbound calling free every month.
Web Video Alternative
- Vimeo: None of YouTube’s crappy videos or comments here. Vimeo is technologically just as superior; it’s fully embeddable HTML5 player works great on most handhelds.
Phone Alternatives
- Windows Phone: Brand new updated OS that promises platform-independent services.
- iPhone: Recent versions of IOS are much better, with updated features such as the new Siri and other features.
Google Reader Alternatives
- Netvibes Wasabi: Will link you to the Twitter accounts of the websites you add to the reader.
- BlogBridge: Free, cross platform client that supports OPML import/export, needs JRE to run, allows users to tag and pin items.
- NewsBlur: Good desktop client-like interface
Location Hunting Service Alternatives
- Map24: This service by Navteq allows you to add or remove your points of interests from your maps. Downside is that the app is more UK detail oriented.
- Bing Maps: Smooth and clean interface, better street view than Google.
- Mapquest: Works only in the US but a great one to find what you need in specific areas
- OpenStreetMap: Great community-driven utility; provides plugins for 3D views, directions and so on.
Google Image Search Alternative
- PicFindr: Not a very sleek interface but allows you to query up to ten websites for free stock images.
Google Translate Alternative
- Free-Translator: Does a good job of translating text and websites into standard languages.
Google Notebook Alternative
- Justpaste: Paste your info and obtain an URL through which to share your notes with the world.
Wow huge list.Thanks invesp for sharing. 🙂
Yep, I agree with you completely, Google sucks, and they have begun to identify us too much of everything, in order to be able to make money on us.
Wow! That’s quite thorough post. Looks like you’re all ready to pack up and leave. 🙂 I do like Hotmail better than Gmail and Dropbox and Office web apps over Google docs, but can’t do without Google search. Alas!
Thanks again, I plan on wrapping my head around all of this since google update their
policy. great post!
This is a blogging related blog. It would have been great if you provided alternatives to tools bloggers use. (Adsense, Analytics etc.)
Hi Akhilesh ,
For Blog monetization there are lot of networks to select from like – Adbrite, BuysellAds , Infolinks, Kontera etc
For Analytics – Try AWstats provide good information
Thanks for this information on alternatives to Google services. I am very troubled about Google’s sponsorship of CPAC 2012, which featured white nationalist, racist, anti-Semitic, “birther”, and anti-gay activists.
The post is nice but I think google is better because you get every thing in one site and its like a cloud <3 Google
Exactly my point of view. It is possible to become Google free, but it’s so much easier for people to use a single product that encapsulates a bunch of other stuff. Honestly, Google are doing a pretty good job with providing apps and stuff you need into a single package.
I just can’t see the point of not using google as a search engine and using a different one instead. I understand that sometimes people get annoyed with a company, but it’s just too useful to do that.
Many people say that Bing is indeed a very nice alternative for Google. I just don’t have any idea yet, but I must try it. 🙂
Thanks for you post!It’s great!
People get stuck to one softwareapplication and it’s hard for them to imagine that any other solution (sometimes even with advanced functionality) could exist.
Awesome list. All this information is alternative for Google services I like ZoHo mail and ZoHo Docs more. Thanks for sharing.
We must be careful not to throw the baby out with the bathwater here! Better keep what’s really good in the Google set-up (Search, Calendar, gmail) and experiment with the alternatives in other fields. Not so sure about how wonderful Hotmail is, however: if any of my ‘clients’ to my Real estate business are using a hotmail address you can be 100% sure they are spammers!