Apple Podcasts Is Regressing at the Worst Time
THE EXTENSION
Exploring topics beyond our day-to-day coverage.
Apple Podcasts Is Regressing at the Worst Time
I’m not normally one to write columns like this, featuring headlines like this. Generally I’m a pretty optimistic, positive person and that translates into my coverage of Apple. I aim to be realistic and not ignore issues I experience with Apple’s products, apps, or third-party apps, while also recognizing that issues can easily be overblown if they’re isolated from what’s good. But for today at least, I need to write a different kind of column, one that doesn’t have much of an upside to it, because I think Apple is making a big misstep with its redesign of Apple Podcasts in this fall’s OS updates.
Against the trend of many techies I know, I think Apple Podcasts until now has been a pretty good app that works well for most people. No it doesn’t have advanced features like Overcast’s Smart Speed or Voice Boost, or a great queuing system like Castro, but it’s relatively simple and straightforward, and all of the “non-techies” in my life who use it don’t seem to have any problem with it. In fact, I’ve used it myself for the majority of the last few years and have been happy with it.