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You are here: MacNN Forums > News > Mac News > Hands On: Downcast 2.8.28 (iOS)

Hands On: Downcast 2.8.28 (iOS)
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NewsPoster
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Mar 20, 2015, 10:44 AM
 
Devices come and go, generally every two years when your cellular plan comes up for renewal, but a good utility app transcends hardware. Downcast by Jamawkinaw Enterprises is one such app for this reviewer. We first downloaded it back when Apple spun Podcasts off into a separate app, which we didn't find very intuitive at the time. Downcast is very intuitive, and we've never looked back.

The list of podcasts one is subscribed to is split between those with episodes that are unplayed, and those with no new episodes currently. Each podcast "folder" shows name, cover art, the number of episodes in the folder, and when the most recent episode was downloaded. Sliding a folder to the left give an option to delete any local copies of episodes, and unsubscribe from the podcast in question. Adding new podcasts, either by manually entering the RSS feed or finding it with the built-in search feature, is also very easy.



Most of the user's time is spent in the playback screen, not that you're generally looking at the screen while listening to a podcast. When you do look at it, oh the control one can have over their podcast playback! At the top are buttons to jump forward and back in set chunks of time, particularly useful if you find you don't like whatever song Welcome to Nightvale is playing during the weather. The user can also adjust the playback speed from one-half normal speed to three times normal speed if they're really in a hurry, or just want to pretend they're listening to a podcast recorded by chipmunks.



There's also a feature on the playback screen to post what you're listening to on your linked social media accounts. While we really like the idea of being able to share a particular episode of a particular podcast with our friends and family, we have to admit there are times when the post isn't handled very elegantly. With some of the podcasts, the link posted through the app doesn't correctly lead back to the specific episode. We suspect this has something to do with the way episodes are posted by their podcast administrators (coughStuff You Missed In History Classcough), but we're not sure.

We particularly like how the app keeps it all organized. Settings let the user define things like how long episodes should be kept. We had a problem for a while with falling behind on episodes, which lead to a large backlog that actually clogged up the memory of the device. So now, not only will the app automatically delete an episode (only after it's been played all the way through), but the app will only have one episode of a podcast downloaded at a time. This has been very helpful in keeping everything tidy. If you miss an episode, it's very simple to look at past installments of any podcast, and either re-download or stream from the backlog.



We really like Downcast, and we've been using it for years. The developers still pay attention to it, with the most recent update posted on March 5. We've used on an iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, and now an iPad mini 2. We can't say we've never had a crash with this app, but we can say that it's been quite some time since we experienced one.

We haven't tried every possible alternative podcast client, and we've heard about some other good ones, but Downcast is widely well-regarded, and does a lot more than most others. Downcast is available for $3 from iTunes.

Downcast is good for:
People who listen to many podcasts and don't want to take the time to keep it all organized.

Downcast might not be for
People who get along fine with the Apple Podcast app.

-- Michelle Elbert (@mcelbert)
( Last edited by NewsPoster; Mar 20, 2015 at 01:53 PM. )
     
Scottcjordan
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Mar 20, 2015, 12:05 PM
 
If you have a paid subscription to a podcast, Apple's podcast app and even such premium podcast apps as Overcast won't help you. Downcast works well with them. Essential!
     
macdude22
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Mar 20, 2015, 01:41 PM
 
I've been using Downcast for a while. The iOS app is flawless, the Mac App crashes every so often but I have a LOT of podcasts added. The iCloud sync from Mac iOS is indispensable as I go from car to desk. The desktop-mobile integration is what really sets Downcast apart.
"Don't try to be a great man, just be a man."
     
Spudboy2004
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Mar 20, 2015, 02:09 PM
 
Outstanding Product!
     
Inkling
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Mar 20, 2015, 02:25 PM
 
I tried Downcast and even discussed needed features with its quite helpful developers. But I've opted for Overcast. It has fewer features, but has all I need and is less geeky. Most important of all, I'm absolutely delighted by its Smart Speed and Voice Boost. The first dynamically adjusts playback to get the speed just right (no huge jumps from 1.0 to 1.25 to 1.5 jumps). It also eliminates gaps and make listening smoother. The latter evens out sound levels between podcasts. All Overcast needs is to be the first podcast app that does a sleep timer right. Sleep timers shouldn't stop at the assigned time. They should pause and, if the listener is still awake, start up again when the headphone play button is clicked. Oh, and I like those Smart Speed features so much, it'd be great if Overcast could instal and play M4b audiobooks more easily, perhaps through a Dropbox sync. I have to come up with a kludge to install them.
Author of Untangling Tolkien and Chesterton on War and Peace
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Mar 20, 2015, 02:46 PM
 
Doesn't sound like Overcast has ALL you need then between the sleep timer and the M4b kludge.

I'll sic one of our reviewers on it.
     
coffeetime
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Mar 20, 2015, 03:11 PM
 
I had used this app for over a year now and love it. Apple's Podcast is a total disappointment due to glitches and the setting is useless because it doesn't work well. For Downcast, everything works. Also there's a trick that not many people know. If you are driving while listening, you will notice how annoying the tiny skip 15 seconds button is because it's too small to spot. The trick is just swipe the screen (around the middle) with one finger and it skip 15 seconds ahead. If you swipe to the left, it will go backward 15 seconds earlier.
     
Carrier Wave
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Mar 21, 2015, 05:52 PM
 
Downcast is my favorite podcast player. Unlike Overcast and some others it does video podcasts, and lets you easily create playlists as well as smart playlists (based on length, for instance). Also unlike Overcast it handles chapter markers, so it's easy to jump from section to section in a podcast that offers it.

One big ding against Overcast is that you cannot subscribe-but-not-download, which is ridiculous; in Downcast I'm subscribed to *dozens* of podcast feeds I don't regularly listen to, but when a new one arrives I look at the description to first decide whether I want to download. You just can't do that in Overcast.

The syncing with its Mac app is a bit more problematic for me, and I ended up deleting the Mac Downcast app and simply using it solely on my iPhone.

If I could add one thing it would be a Downcast server that handles subscription syncing (as Overcast and PocketCasts provide). Currently it can take a few minutes to ping each and every podcast feed I follow, but with PocketCasts (my #2 choice) or Overcast the app just pings the company server which keeps track of all updates, so syncing/downloading is much faster.

Still, Downcast's polish and more sophisticated operation carry the day for me.
     
Charles Martin
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Mar 21, 2015, 05:56 PM
 
I'd like to thank the commenters here for mentioning Overcast as well, as Mike said we'll have one of our reviewers take a look at it. This discussion about each program's strengths and weaknesses has really been enlightening, and I'm very pleased that Apple's Podcast app has more than met its match with these splendid alternatives.
Charles Martin
MacNN Editor
     
   
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