Impression of the app "Podcasts"

Podcasting is my history 80-ies of the last century. However, the present development began in the middle of zero. Podcasters saw major US media. But Apple, which had already been actively selling iPod, saw in the "new radio" an additional opportunity to promote your portable music player.

Apple has done a lot to ensure that podcasting has become massive. The company has provided its support to the player iTunes, create a podcast directory in iTunes Music Store, has added a number of instruments in GarageBand. In 2006, Steve Jobs personally demonstrated how simple it is - to write and install a podcast if you use Mac.

This Apple pressure led to the fact that many of podcasting has become firmly associated with the iPod. Independent podcast terminals are unable to compete with iTunes. Odeo, one of the most important of these projects changed the profile of activity, and then completely closed.

Alas, in recent years, Apple has ceased to pay attention to podcasting. In iOS 6, even disappeared the appropriate section. Pessimists have decided that Apple finally lost interest, but optimists were hoping for a way out of a separate application. What, in fact, it happened yesterday.

The program was very controversial. On the one hand - a number of interesting solutions in the interface, on the other - slow work, a large number of bugs, lack of "evidence" (often the user does not immediately understand what he needs to do).

When you run the "Podcasts" get in their "library". It has only two sections - "Podcasts" (a show on which you have already subscribed ") and" Top stations ".

Top stations - this is one way to find new podcast for themselves (the other - the good old "Catalog"). At the top of the screen you select what type of searching podcast - audio or video. Below is a radio range. Scrolling through it, you'll like "tune" the new wave. Only instead of radio frequencies, so you choose a particular topic - news and politics, religion, sports, technology, science and medicine, etc.

Choose the partition, you will see the cover of the podcast. Clicking on it, you can start the "radio broadcast". To subscribe to the show will have to tap on the «i» icon - "information".

"Podcasting" is shown on the screen iPhone cover only one (the most popular?) Podcast. But in each category may be a few shows. How then can it be? It turns out that in the application of a vertical CoverFlow. Those. list you need to turn upside-down.

When you start to listen to the podcast, the screen will display its cover, and playback controls. One detail the developers is "hidden": making a gesture on the cover of "bottom up", you will be able to rewind the podcast forward or backward, as well as speed up playback. Visually it looks great. All these reels-spools that rotate, rewinding tapes, unlikely to leave indifferent user.

I did not like how the program changes the playback speed. The choice given only two options - either very slowly or too quickly. Most can not set speed.

Not obvious to make the procedure unsubscribe from a podcast. Button "Edit» (Edit) in the interface no. Usually it is used to delete an object in iOS. The next thought was: if you hold the tap on the cover of the podcast in the list, you will see a cross, clicking which you can unsubscribe from the show. So implemented, for example, the removal of books in iBooks and apps on the desktop. Alas, it did not work either. As it turned out, it is necessary to pull down a list of podcasts. Then there will be a search form and the ability to unsubscribe. I wonder how many more of these "chips" hidden? To hunt them, tapaya and scroll in all directions - not the most pleasant.

It is interesting that Apple does not make an exception to the rule, even for their own applications. "Podcasts" on 3G can download file size of no more than 50 MB. You have to look for WiFi to download, for example, Radio-T.

Disappointed that while you can not subscribe to a podcast, just clicking on the link on the website of the author. If the link is to the RSS-feed, iOS it will simply ignore. If a podcast has been submitted to the iTunes Store, then tapnuv link, you run the "Podcasts". The program will ask permission to subscribe and get it... not be able to complete the procedure.

Quickie: first dialogue in Russian, then - in English

Almost every Apple app allows you to share content with my friends from social networks. There Sharing and "podcasts". You modet send a link to the show by e-mail or on Twitter.

Now you can use the "Podcasts" as a sleep timer. You start listening and specify when the iPhone should turn off - after a certain time or at the end of the release.

"Podcasts" have not been announced at WWDC. And now the big question - whether the program will be delivered complete with iOS? Or the user will need to download the app from the App Store? Clarity on this matter yet.

Download the app "Podcasts" can be in the App Store (is free)