Pros & Cons
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- Excellent array of features.
- Great customization options.
- Custom playlist-creation tools.
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- No ability to start episodes after a specified amount of time.
- Can't browse for new podcasts by network.
The Apple-made Podcast app, while free and now pre-bundled on iOS 8, will leave dedicated podcast fans frustrated beyond belief. Sure, you can put up with its quirks for a while, but you don't have to. The Downcast iPhone app ($2.99) shines with excellent features, smart downloading options, and a great interface. It's our Editors' Choice for podcast catchers on the iPhone for good reason.
The design is sleek and contemporary, and the app is jam-packed with features that are simple to find and use but don't clutter the screens. Apple's Podcasts app, by comparison, has very few features, more limited playlist creation tools, many fewer options in the global settings (only a handful of settings per show), and no import/export OMPL option.
There is one other app, however, that is equal to Downcast, but with different kinds of features: Pocket Casts ($3.99). The app, also known as Casts, is a stunning podcast catcher in its own right. They're both excellent apps, but Downcast is more suited for people who want a lot of control over their podcast listening experience, and it's that fine level of control that makes it our Editors' Choice.
Features Galore
The features and options in Downcast are simply excellent. As with any podcast app, downcast lets search and subscribe both audio and video podcasts. You can also, however, subscribe to podcasts manually—and easily—with the appropriate URL.Subscribing to a podcast automatically adds the latest episode to your list. Settings let you change that default action to do nothing, download all new episodes, download the most recent episodes, mark all new for streaming (rather than downloading to save space on your phone), or mark the most recent episodes for streaming.
Likewise, there are plenty of clean-up options. You can keep: all, all unplayed, most recent, most recent unplayed, last two, last two unplayed, and so forth with several more options topping out at 20.
There's one other kind of Downcast cleanup that I like: If you find a podcast you love but that has an exceptionally long and confusing title, you can rename it something much more comprehensible.
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Playlist creation tools are also handy, letting you craft a playlist for routine listening (a Daily Commute list, perhaps) or for special occasions, like before a long flight.
While an episode plays, you see buttons for quickly rewinding 15 and 30 seconds and for fast forwarding 30 seconds and 2 minutes, or change those time skips to be something different. Pocket Casts doesn't have these buttons at all, which is irksome. Podcasts does have them, and even puts a pair on the locked screen, but the amount of time isn't adjustable.
Downcast also offers a sleep timer, a speed control button, and, of course, share buttons.
One of my favorite Downcast settings is the ability to customize not only how often the podcast catcher checks for new episodes, but also where you are when it does. A geo-location option lets you set it to check for new episodes, when you arrive at home or work, for example.
One feature I wish were in Downcast but isn't is the ability to set episodes of a podcast to start after a fixed amount of time. Pocket Casts has this feature, and it's brilliant. If you hate listening to the standard 50-second introduction of the TED Radio Hour, or the four full minutes of blather and sponsorships at the beginning of Risk, this feature is indispensable. It's customizable for each podcast in your feed, too.
Downcast doesn't have search or browsing options by network name. Pocket Casts, however, does. For example, if you're really into Slate's The Gist, you can see what other content published by Slate. Apple's Podcast app lets you find content by searching, and browsing Featured shows and Top Charts, but not by network.
An Audio Winner
Downcast is PCMag's Editor's Choice for podcasting apps for the iPhone. Pocket Casts, which costs a dollar more, is also a very good option, with different features than Downcast's. They're both excellent: Which one you choose will depend on the exact features that matter to you.
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Final Thoughts
Downcast (for iPhone) Review
The Downcast podcast player app for iPhone shines with excellent features, smart downloading options, and a great interface. It doesn't have every feature under the sun, but it is our Editors' Choice for podcast catchers.