I’ve switched to Lemmy for about 4 days now. Here’s my opinion on the platform:

Is it good?

Yes. I found many common communities I follow, such as Degoogling, open source, Linux, self-hosting, history, maps, space, Minecraft, etc etc. Many of the more obscure communities are a bit off-limits, tho, like Polandball or alternate history. I was able to find more underrated Degoogling things on this platform more than on Reddit, which is a huge plus

What caveats do I have on this platform?

Again, obscure communities are a bit off-limits, and while I was able to find SOME, most were non-existant. Other than that, I haven’t encountered any other issues other than not being able to create a community

How’s the universal community?

They are really helpful. At times even moreso then on Reddit. Again, I found more obscure and underrated things on this platform than I do on Reddit

Is this viable for casual people and would I reccomend it?

If they don’t care about the specifics, then sure, this is a viable option. But if they follow obscure communities and care about the specifics, they would have to push through. I so far did, and it’s a great experience so far. Would I RECCOMEND it, tho? Yes, I would. Again, tho, it depends on wether you care about obscure communities or the specifics

Conclusion

Lemmy is, so far, great for my experience. The communities are good, the platform is good, and overall it feels fresh that I don’t have to be tracked by a centralized platform at all times to fuel their greed. I love the idea of it. I just don’t think I’m gonna ever switch fully to it, however decentralized Reddit frontends like Redlib help with me viewing the obscue communities I follow without having to use ths proprietary platform directly