01 logo

Two alternatives for Apple's podcast app

If you are not satisfied with Apple's podcast app, you will find good alternatives in the App Store. We present two of them.

By Ghani MengalPublished 3 years ago 8 min read
Like
Two alternatives for Apple's podcast app
Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash

The podcast app supplied by Apple with iOS and iPadOS as well as macOS does not meet with approval from all users. A search in the App Store for alternatives quickly yields a number of hits. From the offer we have selected two apps that support both iOS and iPadOS and are also available for the Apple Watch: Overcast and Pocket Casts.

Both apps, which are only available in an English version, can be used free of charge with few restrictions. Overcast shows a not very conspicuous advertisement for podcasts, which is paid for by the respective provider of the show. A subscription for € 10 a year enables use without advertising. And with Pocket Casts you have to take out the Plus subscription for € 11 per year or € 1 per month to activate Pocket Casts on the Mac and to play the podcasts on the watch. You also get 10 GB of storage space in the cloud.

On the Mac, there is no separate program for both apps, but the podcasts are played in the browser. The operation of Overcast is quite rudimentary and also does not work very smoothly. That makes pocket casts a lot better. Both apps also support Car Play, which works perfectly in the test with an iPhone.

If you also use operating systems that do not come from Apple's workshop, you have to use Pocket Casts, the app also supports Android and Windows. Both apps synchronize the various devices (mobile phone, tablet, watch, and computer) if you have set up an account. Another plus is the data economy. According to the developer, only the username and password, as well as the information necessary for the synchronization, are saved. And according to the information in the App Store, the usage data is not linked to the identity of the user. While Overcast is a one-man operation, Pocket Casts has been owned by a consortium of several US public radio stations since 2018. The app was recently taken over by Automattic, the parent company of Wordpress.

Manage Podcasts

The programs to which you have subscribed are each listed in an overview. With Pocket Casts, you can choose between three different representations. If you have subscribed to many programs, you can search for a specific contribution using the search field.

Four control elements at the top (Overcast) or at the bottom of the screen (Pocket Casts) lead to further options. This includes the specifications for both apps, which then apply to all broadcasts. In Overcast, all you need to do is tap on the transmitter mast, in Pocket Casts you to tap on "Profile" and then on the gear symbol. In the settings, you can specify, among other things, whether programs should only be streamed or downloaded to the device.

Another element is the search for new podcasts. Pocket Casts has an advantage here, as the proposals, which are sorted by category, list predominantly German-language programs. Overcast, on the other hand, is limited to English-language titles in the categories. Only with the personal suggestions (Suggestions for you) are there suggestions for German-language podcasts at Overcast.

With both apps, you can also search for specific programs directly by typing in the appropriate search terms, and then subscribe to the podcasts. To see the available episodes of a program, tap a podcast in the program list. Pocket Casts lists all unplayed episodes, while Overcast allows you to specify how many unplayed episodes should be listed for each program. Alternatively, you have the option of displaying all episodes. With pocket casts, the episodes that have already been played can also be shown by tapping on “Show Archived”. In addition, under “Profile” there is a chronicle of the titles played, broken down by day and month.

Listen to podcasts

To overcast an episode on iPhone to listen, you tap them. Five control elements appear in a colored bar to play the episode, delete it, add it to the playlist (queue) or a playlist, rate it with a star or share the episode. With Pocket Casts, you tap on the play button to the right of the short description of the episode. To add the episode to the playlist, swipe to the right and choose between the beginning of the end of the list. If you swipe left, the episode can be archived. It will then no longer appear in the episode list by default. On the other hand, if you tap on the episode, a window opens with the description and buttons that can be used to load the episode onto the device, add it to the playlist, mark it as played, or archive it.

If you click the play button in Overcast to play an episode, the app switches to the player. To go directly to the player when you tap an episode to play, activate “One-Tap Play” under “Nitpicky Details” in the preferences. The progress is shown in the player, you can jump back and forth and show the information about the episode. In addition, the sleep timer can be switched on here to determine when playback should end. There are also options to bypass silent sections in the podcast and to increase the volume so that all episodes can be heard at the same volume (Voice Boost). The player can be hidden.

If you start playback in Pocket Casts, a bar with the start and stop button and the elements for jumping back and forth, the icon of the program and the symbol for the playlist appear at the bottom of the window. A tap on the icon opens the player. If the player is to be opened immediately when you play an episode, you have to activate "Open Player Automatically" in the settings. As with Overcast, the player has a sleep timer and options to skip silence and increase the volume.

The star for the rating can also be found in the player and the description of the episode can be displayed. Both apps also have a very useful function: If you interrupt playback and start it again later, a short part of the episode already played is repeated. The option “Smart Resume” (Overcast) or “Intelligent Playback Resumption” (Pocket Casts) must be activated in the settings.

On an iPad, Overcast uses a split window. The list with the programs or episodes is arranged on the left, the player on the right. Pocket Cast, on the other hand, looks largely the same on the iPad as it does on the iPhone.

Playlist and filters

Both apps offer a playlist (queue) to which individual episodes can be added and then played back one after the other. With Overcast, "Continuous Play" must be activated in the defaults so that the list is processed automatically, Pocket Casts does this automatically. Pocket Casts can also automatically add shows to the playlist, with a limit on the number of episodes.

The order of the episodes can be changed later in both apps. Overcast also offers playlists. These serve, among other things, to assign episodes to a specific topic and to play them back. There are also intelligent playlists to automatically add programs to a playlist, whereby you can specify that certain programs should be preferred. Both the playlist and the playlists are displayed in the main window of the app above the programs.

Pocket Cast works with filters. Here, programs can be automatically compiled into a playlist according to their topicality, duration, or rating, among other things. You can then either play individual episodes or activate playback of all episodes via the “More” menu. For the filters there is an icon at the bottom of the main window, the playlists can be found as an icon in the player or in the bar with the start and stop button.

A number indicates the number of sequences in the queue. Automatically compile duration or rating into a playlist. You can then either play individual episodes or activate playback of all episodes via the “More” menu. For the filters there is an icon at the bottom of the main window, the playlists can be found as an icon in the player or in the bar with the start and stop button. A number indicates the number of sequences in the queue.

Automatically compile duration or rating into a playlist. You can then either play individual episodes or activate playback of all episodes via the “More” menu. For the filters there is an icon at the bottom of the main window, the playlists can be found as an icon in the player or in the bar with the start and stop button. A number indicates the number of sequences in the queue.

Conclusion

Both apps cut a good figure on the iPhone, although there are a few minor differences in operation that are not really decisive. Pocket Casts is a bit more elegant and also lists German-language podcasts when searching for new programs, which is an advantage if you don't already know which programs you want to subscribe to.

We like Overcast better on the iPad, as the developer has adapted the controls to the larger screen, while Pocket Casts largely uses the same layout as on the iPhone. If you want to listen to podcasts on the Mac, Pocket Casts, on the other hand, is much better off.

apps
Like

About the Creator

Ghani Mengal

Start writing...Member of Freelancers Union, USA, Writer, Author, and blogger sharing his perspective to the world. Twitter, LinkedIn,

www.ghanimengal.com

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments

There are no comments for this story

Be the first to respond and start the conversation.

Sign in to comment

    Find us on social media

    Miscellaneous links

    • Explore
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Support

    © 2024 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.