I tried out Podcasts.app again recently just to see if the fixes that have been released make the app easier to use. While it does smooth over some of the rough edges, there are still a few things I would like to see change before I move away from Instacast.
- Podcast.app for the OS X. You can still sync through iTunes (there would be some hook through there like iPhoto), but a dedicated app would decouple one thing from iTunes and bring a little more sanity between iOS and OS X.
- Better iCloud syncing. Just make it so that you don’t have to hook it up to iTunes for playlists and the like to transfer over … let iCloud handle that. Subscriptions, current location within podcast, settings, etc. could all be sent between your iOS devices, your Mac, and even the Apple TV. THAT would be cool.
- Allow subscriptions without taking you out of the podcast directory. This is annoying because you can’t subscribe to multiple podcasts as easily as it would be if the app would just sit still for one minutes.
- Better library management of played podcast episodes. Right now I just cannot seem to get the settings correct to allow me to subscribe to a podcast, remove those that I have already listened to, and then still get new episodes. Always have issues with that.
The idea of a Podcasts.app that bridges between the iOS and OS X worlds is cool, but it is not there yet.