best podcast player?
April 26, 2018 11:53 AM   Subscribe

I'm looking for a new podcast player (iPhone) - currently using downcast, but it isn't doing what I want it to do. Suggestions?

I currently use Downcast.

When I go out of the app and then back in (without closing it), it leaves the podcast that I have paused, causing me to have to scroll back through the list of podcasts, click on the name, then scroll through the episodes of that podcast and then click on it to start playing again. This is not necessarily the best idea while driving!

I would like an app that when I go back into it, it still has the paused podcast sitting there, rather than defaulting to the podcast list. (This is happening if I pause the podcast, hit the home button, make a phone call, then go back into the app - the app isn't ever completely closed out.)

If I get a phone call during the podcast, it simply pauses it, and then when I hang up, it restarts it - that isn't my problem. But if I decide I need to make a phone call in the middle, or something else, I have this issue.
posted by needlegrrl to Technology (15 answers total) 5 users marked this as a favorite
 
You want Overcast.
posted by Draccy at 11:57 AM on April 26, 2018 [11 favorites]


What Draccy said. Overcast does exactly this thing, and is really good in general.
posted by Tomorrowful at 12:00 PM on April 26, 2018


I assume you're not using the standard Apple Podcasts app for another reason (it is bad, after all), but just jumping in to note that it does this.
posted by General Malaise at 12:07 PM on April 26, 2018


I've been using Pocket Casts for years (both on Android and iOS), love it, and it behaves in the manner you're looking for.
posted by noneuclidean at 12:17 PM on April 26, 2018 [4 favorites]


Another Overcast convert here. Overcast actually keeps the current podcast (whether it's playing or paused) at the bottom of the screen even when you're navigating through other parts of the app. It also adds controls to the lock screen, just like the native Podcast app (though this functionality is a little less reliable, I've had it get stuck and require a reboot of the OS to clear a couple of times).
posted by firechicago at 12:30 PM on April 26, 2018


Overcast is life. (I may or may not have a podcast problem)
posted by cgg at 12:31 PM on April 26, 2018 [1 favorite]


Former Downcast user here, chiming in to the chorus endorsing Overcast. I really liked Downcast's configurable swipe to skip ahead/back feature, and it has lots of other options and settings, as fiddly as you might want. But Overcast is easier to use, for me. Not only does Overcast remember which podcast I'm listening to, it adds Smart Resume, explained in this review:
With the new feature [Smart Resume] enabled, podcast playback jumps back a few seconds after the podcast has been paused, to help remind the listener where they left off in the conversation.
posted by conscious matter at 1:04 PM on April 26, 2018


Response by poster: Thanks, everyone - sounds like overcast is what I need. I will try it!
posted by needlegrrl at 1:23 PM on April 26, 2018


In Downcast go to the main Settings -> startup view and make sure the Podcast View is enabled.

I've tried to love overcast but I keep coming back to Downcast.
posted by backwards guitar at 1:39 PM on April 26, 2018 [3 favorites]


If Overcast doesn't work for you (and I've heard it's good), here's a second for Pocket Casts.
posted by Preserver at 2:34 PM on April 26, 2018 [1 favorite]


Late to the party, but thirding Pocket Casts. I like Overcast but I love Pocket Casts.

No, you have a podcast problem, lalalalala *runs away covering ears*
posted by fjom at 4:24 PM on April 26, 2018


I use Downcast. Did you know that when you pause in the middle of a Podcast that the next time you go into the app, in the top right hand corner of the screen there is the word PLAYER in red font. If you tap that it takes you directly to the in progress podcast. It isn’t super obvious and it took me a while to figure it out.
posted by dismitree at 6:32 PM on April 26, 2018 [1 favorite]


I am a Downcast -> Overcast convert, and I can't imagine going back due to Overcast's "smart speed" feature, removing silences from poorly edited podcasts. Overcast is not perfect, but I definitely prefer it.
posted by crazy with stars at 10:57 PM on April 26, 2018


Overcast is quite good.
posted by OmieWise at 7:22 AM on April 27, 2018


Have you considered Overcast?
posted by The corpse in the library at 8:16 AM on April 27, 2018


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