Get Your Podcasts In PocketCasts
For smartphone users, subscribing to podcasts via PocketCasts is one of the simplest ways to find great shows! It also removes the need to sync the phone regularly.
In a prior post, I introduced you to Podcasts and explained why this is one of my favorite new medias.
Simply stated, podcasts are the equivalent of radio shows, produced in serial fashion, and available for listening through a “feed” that can be subscribed to using software.
The two most common ways to subscribe are via iTunes (which will sync to other Apple mobile devices) and via the PocketCast application for both iphone & android.
Subscribe to a PodCast via PocketCasts
1. First, you need to install PocketCasts on your android/iphone.
Installing the app is simple and you can find it in either phone types market or by visiting http://pocketcasts.com/ and clicking on the appropriate tab.
It sounds like a version for Win7 mobile phones may be in the works but is not available yet.
2. Add a PodCast to PocketCasts!
Once PocketCasts is installed, open the app and go to the “search” icon in the bottom navigation bar. This looks like a small magnifying glass.
Here you can either search for podcasts based on words or click the “import podcasts” link to either upload an OPML file or subscribe to a podcast by URL.
If you’ve already subscribed to a bunch of podcasts in iTunes, exporting that list as an OPML and and emailing the file to yourself so that you can open it on your mobile phone with pocketcasts is probably the fastest way to clone your subscriptions.
Usually though, you will find yourself either searching in the library (which searches the iTunes podcast library) for new shows or typing in the feed URL of a show you want to subscribe to on your phone.
Some feed URLs look like http://feeds.feedburner.com/SimpleTechTipsforMarketing and others look like http://examle.com/podcast.xml The trick here is that they must already be a specially configured RSS feed URL and not a blogs regular feed though they look similar.
Summary
PocketCasts is a quick and easy way to subscribe, listen and enjoy podcasts on your mobile smartphone. It’s ease of use makes it desirable even for those with iPhones/iTunes syncing.
If you are on a limited data package, you will want to go into Settings (the gear icon) and click on “When New Episode”. Here you can tell the phone what action to take and the “download only on wifi” or “download only on wifi and power” are your best picks. I actually use “do nothing” here as I prefer to pick when it gets files.
If you find that you can listen faster than the speaker talks, adding on the supplemental Presto Player (a free download) can allow you to listen to Podcasts at 0.6x (slower), all the way up to 2x faster than usual. I listen to most podcasts at 1.2x and there are a few I listen to at 1.5x.
Be sure to subscribe to my new podcast Simple Tech Tips for Marketing!
Are you listening to podcasts? What is your favorite way to subscribe to them? What device do you prefer listening to them on? (desktop, laptop, mobile, etc). Have you checked out PocketCasts? Share your thoughts below!