![]() Bad: No Desktop Downloadsīecause the desktop version of basically every Google app is just the browser version, you’re limited to using Google Podcasts on the web when you’re on a laptop or desktop. I haven’t been able to test out the Android tablet interface (the app isn’t available on Chrome OS devices, where Google wants you to use the web version). iOS gets access to the same app, sadly lacking proper iPad interface support. Other highlights of the mobile app include options for auto-downloads and automatic storage management, support for dark mode, and even a sleep timer. (That’s something you should expect from a first-party app, but Google has a history of selectively updating a lot of stuff.) It’s also properly integrated into the top section of the notification tray on Android 11. Seriously, that notification is great, featuring a full scrobble bar and the 10/30 second skip options. In addition to the interface features I previously mentioned, it supports more or less unlimited audio downloads, quickly casting to different speakers, and swapping between the phone speakers and various Bluetooth connections. The Android app for Google Podcasts is surprisingly great. As it is, manually casting the audio to the speaker is the best (and far from optimal) option. Ideally, I should be able to say “keep playing my podcasts,” and have it pick up wherever I left off on my phone or desktop. You can bring up a Google Podcasts card on the Nest Home, but it only has a random selection of episodes connected to your account. Even when you’ve loaded up a podcast, you don’t get those 10 and 30 second buttons, so actually controlling it is a headache. For example, “Listen to This Week in Google” got me the latest episode, but “Listen to Not Another D and D Podcast” and “Listen to NADPod” got me a non-result and a random YouTube video. Voice commands are extremely limited: Yyou can only bring up the latest episode of a series, and only if Google can parse the title. This playback interface couldn’t be more basic. You’d think Google, which has been firing on all cylinders for its Assistant smarthome tech for years, would pay more attention to the way users interact with gadgets like the Nest Home. Bad: Awful Smart Screen ExperienceĪs nice as the experience for Google Podcasts is on mobile or desktop, it’s very strange that it’s so spare on smart screens. On top of that, you get the handy option to go forward 30 seconds, go back ten10, and/or adjust the playback speed in different increments. Again, this is excellent for parsing through a long list. The “play” button also shows at a glance how much is left in the episode, both in absolute minutes and in a radial quarter view. This is great if you’re beginning through a long series and aren’t quite clear where you are-it saves you a long scroll in the primary episode interface.Īcross both the desktop and the mobile apps, the system has a great way of showing which episodes you’ve already played. You get a queue of shows if you’ve manually selected them, a downloads tab to show which audio files are saved, and a “History” tab to show you which episodes you’ve listened to. There are still a couple of small things missing, like Overcast's awesome ability to download a single episode without subscribing to an entire show, but Pocket Casts has just about everything you could want.The “Activity” page is where the real meat of the mobile experience is. For everyone else, it's just a super-simple grid of show icons. It has all the fiddly bits podcastheads will love, like chapter markers, show notes, a running queue for uninterrupted listening, and support for 3D Touch. Version 6.0 borrows a few great features from other podcast apps, like automatic silence-trimming and voice-boosting. Pocket Casts keeps lists of episodes you've already started, ones you've downloaded but not listened to (which is handy for clearing space on your phone), and more. It's now really easy to find new podcasts to listen to, sort through the ones you already have, and more. The new version for iOS, Pocket Casts 6.0, brings the app-which was great for a long time, and has kind of languished the last couple of years-into full-fledged modernity. But a brand-new update to Pocket Casts makes it hands-down the best iPhone podcasts app, not to mention the best overall service for people who want to podcast from all manner of different devices. There are lots of better somethings, no matter what platform you use. If you're exploring the weird, wide, wonderful world of Internet audio, you need something better. Yeah, it's nice that it comes pre-loaded on your iPhone-but so does Apple Maps, and if you use that you'll probably end up driving into a river. It's time to stop using Apple's Podcasts app.
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