While I'm not happy about this, I never really thought that my "lifetime purchase" of the web app was actually for lifetime. They sent out an email today to all accounts who owned the web app; we...
While I'm not happy about this, I never really thought that my "lifetime purchase" of the web app was actually for lifetime. They sent out an email today to all accounts who owned the web app; we get 3 years of the subscription.
As for the actual subscription, it doesn't really do much to be honest. They locked themes behind a paywall, and the web/desktop apps obviously, but the only real new feature you get is 10GB of cloud storage to upload your own audio files to and listen on the go...? I don't know who came up with this, but it's not really a good feature from my point of view. You can check out their website for a total list of features yourselves, but it isn't really that much more. We'll see what they add over the next 3 years, but I think a cool move would've been to honour the purchases of those who supported Pocket Casts earlier and just give them lifetime subscriptions.
EDIT: As my comment is the top post, I'll add this update here, (thanks @Sheep): People who bought the lifetime web app now actually just get a subscription to Pocket Casts+ for life. Source: https://blog.pocketcasts.com/we-heard-you/
On hand, companies that grandfathers people with actual lifetime subscription are awesome (hi pinboard!), on the other hand, they are not a single people operation with a niche interest. At least,...
On hand, companies that grandfathers people with actual lifetime subscription are awesome (hi pinboard!), on the other hand, they are not a single people operation with a niche interest.
At least, we have no regression (arguably the UI redesign isn't that much of a regression) ...? It has been so I've paid for pocket cast I forgot what I've bought.
The problem is that Pocket Casts actively advertised the web app as being a single time purchase up until July 2019, in August they moved the price further down in the website and removed the...
The problem is that Pocket Casts actively advertised the web app as being a single time purchase up until July 2019, in August they moved the price further down in the website and removed the references to it being a single purchase, but they still said, and I quote:
Try it free for 14 days, when you're finished it's just US$9.00 to unlock the entire experience.
So they definitely were planning something in August but didn't think to warn anyone about what they were planning. I've seen people complain about buying the mobile app 3 days ago, and that's a very valid complaint, especially because mobile users didn't get anything unlike the people who bought the web app.
I understand why they did this, but they should've grandfathered people in or been better about the announcement, but hey, Pocket Casts has never been great at PR, we know that since the UI redesign fiasco.
I don't think PC should have to give away new features for free just because you paid in the past; it's adding something on top of what existed before. However, I think it would've made sense to...
I don't think PC should have to give away new features for free just because you paid in the past; it's adding something on top of what existed before. However, I think it would've made sense to give people who had purchased it one free year with the new service.
PC gave everyone who bought the web app 3 years of their subscription. The thing is, they didn't add a new feature. The only really new thing (barring two themes and a few icons) is the cloud...
PC gave everyone who bought the web app 3 years of their subscription.
The thing is, they didn't add a new feature. The only really new thing (barring two themes and a few icons) is the cloud storage with sync. You could previously add your own files to PC (without sync), a feature that was removed in the redesign I think. Now they've readded it for everyone, but people with the subscription have it synced between devices.
I think I'm in the minority here, but I don't mind apps/services that have a server side component being subscription based. For Pocketcasts, it's 99¢ per month or $9.99 per year. In this case,...
I think I'm in the minority here, but I don't mind apps/services that have a server side component being subscription based. For Pocketcasts, it's 99¢ per month or $9.99 per year. In this case, they sync your stats, subscriptions and listening position to all your devices.
The way I think of it is, "Do I get 99¢ worth of value from this app each month?" For me, the answer is an unequivocal yes. I use it for multiple hours per day and I easily get 99¢ worth of added value in my day because I'm using the app. I like the way it works, it's extremely reliable and the one time I had an issue, they responded quickly and fixed it in the next release.
I do understand that some people just want to pay for an app and have access to it without any additional cost and that's totally fine. But I'm willing to support the active development of an app/service that I like in an ongoing and sustainable way.
Those are my thoughts on the app becoming free and adding a subscription service.
As someone who paid for the web app a few years ago, I do think that if someone bought it as a lifetime purchase, that should be honored. If they switch to a subscription model moving forward, I have no issue with that. But people who purchased with the expectation of a lifetime of future access for one price should be grandfathered in and not have to pay again for something they already paid for.
One last thing...the /r/Android thread on this is so full of nasty, hateful comments about this change. It was the same way when they announced the major changes in version 7 of the app. I'm happy everyone here is being so civil. At the end of the day, it's just a podcast app. There's no reason to be so upset. At most you lost out on a few dollars.
Always try to remember that at the other end of the comments you're sending are people. Maybe the Pocketcasts developers made some choices you don't like, but they're still normal people and the amount of vitriol that gets spewed at them is astounding.
I don't think most people have an issue with it being subscription based when it's cheap like this and provides a good product. The backlash is "lifetime" purchases are no longer "lifetime" and...
I don't think most people have an issue with it being subscription based when it's cheap like this and provides a good product. The backlash is "lifetime" purchases are no longer "lifetime" and could have easily been grandfathered in as happens in just about everywhere imaginable.
I've noticed a lot more people on Twitter and Reddit being upset about the subscription than the web player (which I don't think very many people used).
I've noticed a lot more people on Twitter and Reddit being upset about the subscription than the web player (which I don't think very many people used).
I'm disappointed by this. Some people are way more outraged than me for sure, but I'm still upset. At this point I'm taking suggestions on new Podcast apps. Big things are Desktop/Mobile syncing...
I'm disappointed by this. Some people are way more outraged than me for sure, but I'm still upset. At this point I'm taking suggestions on new Podcast apps.
Big things are Desktop/Mobile syncing and RSS Feeds. I've got 3 years to find an option I suppose.
Update: they have now given lifetime access to plus to anyone who bought the web app instead of the previous 3 years. https://blog.pocketcasts.com/we-heard-you/
Update: they have now given lifetime access to plus to anyone who bought the web app instead of the previous 3 years.
It's nice to hear that they listened. I'm not pushing against the subscription, in fact I think it's good because they provide a constant service with the web player especially. I just was unhappy...
It's nice to hear that they listened. I'm not pushing against the subscription, in fact I think it's good because they provide a constant service with the web player especially. I just was unhappy that we were sold a lifetime license which was then turned into a subscription.
So what's everyone's thoughts on the best alternative to PocketCasts? My only requirements are that I can speed up (2.5x) playback, and that I can auto-skip silence.
So what's everyone's thoughts on the best alternative to PocketCasts? My only requirements are that I can speed up (2.5x) playback, and that I can auto-skip silence.
AntennaPod on Android is open-source and provides playback speed controls. It's generally good but I've found every time I try to switch there's one or two wrinkles that push me back towards...
AntennaPod on Android is open-source and provides playback speed controls. It's generally good but I've found every time I try to switch there's one or two wrinkles that push me back towards Pocket Casts.
I don't remember exactly what those wrinkles were, though I think they had to do with auto-downloading, queue management, filtering by newest release, etc.
Note I think it's more an issue of being used to a particular "workflow" and is just a matter of getting used to the minor differences in how both apps function, but I can never quite be bothered getting used to it.
I've used Podcast Addict for years and highly recommend it but I haven't used Podcast Republic so I can't offer you a comparison. However, I will say that the free version of Podcast Addict...
I've used Podcast Addict for years and highly recommend it but I haven't used Podcast Republic so I can't offer you a comparison. However, I will say that the free version of Podcast Addict doesn't hide any features behind a paywall it's just ad supported and it includes both that you mentioned. So you won't be missing out on anything by giving the free version of the app a test drive for a couple days to see if it's worth your time.
I've stopped using them since their version 7 update. I really tried liking the update but I just couldn't get over some of the missing features and bugs that I ended up downloading the old apk to...
I've stopped using them since their version 7 update. I really tried liking the update but I just couldn't get over some of the missing features and bugs that I ended up downloading the old apk to use for a while until they ran some update on the server side after maintenence that caused it to stop working properly. Their response on reddit and twitter's criticism has also been very unprofessional.
While I'm not happy about this, I never really thought that my "lifetime purchase" of the web app was actually for lifetime. They sent out an email today to all accounts who owned the web app; we get 3 years of the subscription.
As for the actual subscription, it doesn't really do much to be honest. They locked themes behind a paywall, and the web/desktop apps obviously, but the only real new feature you get is 10GB of cloud storage to upload your own audio files to and listen on the go...? I don't know who came up with this, but it's not really a good feature from my point of view. You can check out their website for a total list of features yourselves, but it isn't really that much more. We'll see what they add over the next 3 years, but I think a cool move would've been to honour the purchases of those who supported Pocket Casts earlier and just give them lifetime subscriptions.
EDIT: As my comment is the top post, I'll add this update here, (thanks @Sheep): People who bought the lifetime web app now actually just get a subscription to Pocket Casts+ for life. Source: https://blog.pocketcasts.com/we-heard-you/
On hand, companies that grandfathers people with actual lifetime subscription are awesome (hi pinboard!), on the other hand, they are not a single people operation with a niche interest.
At least, we have no regression (arguably the UI redesign isn't that much of a regression) ...? It has been so I've paid for pocket cast I forgot what I've bought.
The problem is that Pocket Casts actively advertised the web app as being a single time purchase up until July 2019, in August they moved the price further down in the website and removed the references to it being a single purchase, but they still said, and I quote:
So they definitely were planning something in August but didn't think to warn anyone about what they were planning. I've seen people complain about buying the mobile app 3 days ago, and that's a very valid complaint, especially because mobile users didn't get anything unlike the people who bought the web app.
I understand why they did this, but they should've grandfathered people in or been better about the announcement, but hey, Pocket Casts has never been great at PR, we know that since the UI redesign fiasco.
I don't think PC should have to give away new features for free just because you paid in the past; it's adding something on top of what existed before. However, I think it would've made sense to give people who had purchased it one free year with the new service.
PC gave everyone who bought the web app 3 years of their subscription.
The thing is, they didn't add a new feature. The only really new thing (barring two themes and a few icons) is the cloud storage with sync. You could previously add your own files to PC (without sync), a feature that was removed in the redesign I think. Now they've readded it for everyone, but people with the subscription have it synced between devices.
I think I'm in the minority here, but I don't mind apps/services that have a server side component being subscription based. For Pocketcasts, it's 99¢ per month or $9.99 per year. In this case, they sync your stats, subscriptions and listening position to all your devices.
The way I think of it is, "Do I get 99¢ worth of value from this app each month?" For me, the answer is an unequivocal yes. I use it for multiple hours per day and I easily get 99¢ worth of added value in my day because I'm using the app. I like the way it works, it's extremely reliable and the one time I had an issue, they responded quickly and fixed it in the next release.
I do understand that some people just want to pay for an app and have access to it without any additional cost and that's totally fine. But I'm willing to support the active development of an app/service that I like in an ongoing and sustainable way.
Those are my thoughts on the app becoming free and adding a subscription service.
As someone who paid for the web app a few years ago, I do think that if someone bought it as a lifetime purchase, that should be honored. If they switch to a subscription model moving forward, I have no issue with that. But people who purchased with the expectation of a lifetime of future access for one price should be grandfathered in and not have to pay again for something they already paid for.
One last thing...the /r/Android thread on this is so full of nasty, hateful comments about this change. It was the same way when they announced the major changes in version 7 of the app. I'm happy everyone here is being so civil. At the end of the day, it's just a podcast app. There's no reason to be so upset. At most you lost out on a few dollars.
Always try to remember that at the other end of the comments you're sending are people. Maybe the Pocketcasts developers made some choices you don't like, but they're still normal people and the amount of vitriol that gets spewed at them is astounding.
I don't think most people have an issue with it being subscription based when it's cheap like this and provides a good product. The backlash is "lifetime" purchases are no longer "lifetime" and could have easily been grandfathered in as happens in just about everywhere imaginable.
I've noticed a lot more people on Twitter and Reddit being upset about the subscription than the web player (which I don't think very many people used).
I'm disappointed by this. Some people are way more outraged than me for sure, but I'm still upset. At this point I'm taking suggestions on new Podcast apps.
Big things are Desktop/Mobile syncing and RSS Feeds. I've got 3 years to find an option I suppose.
I don't know about desktop syncing, but I switched to Podcast Republic after the last scandal eliminating playlists and couldn't be happier
From comments on Reddit it sounds like they don't have syncing yet but are working on it, I wonder how far away they are.
Google Podcasts has a decent system if that's your speed.
Do you know if Google Podcasts allows things like Patron RSS feeds?
No custom rss feeds unfortunately.
Update: they have now given lifetime access to plus to anyone who bought the web app instead of the previous 3 years.
https://blog.pocketcasts.com/we-heard-you/
It's nice to hear that they listened. I'm not pushing against the subscription, in fact I think it's good because they provide a constant service with the web player especially. I just was unhappy that we were sold a lifetime license which was then turned into a subscription.
So what's everyone's thoughts on the best alternative to PocketCasts? My only requirements are that I can speed up (2.5x) playback, and that I can auto-skip silence.
AntennaPod on Android is open-source and provides playback speed controls. It's generally good but I've found every time I try to switch there's one or two wrinkles that push me back towards Pocket Casts.
I don't remember exactly what those wrinkles were, though I think they had to do with auto-downloading, queue management, filtering by newest release, etc.
Note I think it's more an issue of being used to a particular "workflow" and is just a matter of getting used to the minor differences in how both apps function, but I can never quite be bothered getting used to it.
Podcast Republic seems to be a decent replacement. It supports both your mentioned features (up to 3x playback speed and silence trimming).
I'll take a look at Podcast Republic. I've also heard good things about Podcast Addict. Anyone have experiences between the two?
I've used Podcast Addict for years and highly recommend it but I haven't used Podcast Republic so I can't offer you a comparison. However, I will say that the free version of Podcast Addict doesn't hide any features behind a paywall it's just ad supported and it includes both that you mentioned. So you won't be missing out on anything by giving the free version of the app a test drive for a couple days to see if it's worth your time.
I've stopped using them since their version 7 update. I really tried liking the update but I just couldn't get over some of the missing features and bugs that I ended up downloading the old apk to use for a while until they ran some update on the server side after maintenence that caused it to stop working properly. Their response on reddit and twitter's criticism has also been very unprofessional.
I've moved on to use podcast republic.
Weren't they just bought by NPR a year ago? This sounds like they're having serious issues
It wasn't just NPR. It was a collective of big podcast producers including NPR and This American Life.
On another website some people were saying AntennaPod was open source and similar to the old Pocket Cast UI and pretty good.