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Podcasts - What the..

JAy3001

JAy3001

Android Expert
Right, I have played loads of podcasts.. like erm 1 when iPods first came out and I was not impressed so never went back.

But right now, all I hear about are podcasts. So what am I missing, educate me! How do I play em? Best player on the store? (Paid, no ads or free to use). Do you subscribe to them, pay for them?? Download them for offline playback? I guess you can live stream too.. Do they now have music in them as I seem to remember back in the day that was not allowed.

Recommend your favourite podcasts..
 
there is podcast for all kinds of topics and themes. my favorite is kevin smith's podcasts. "fatman beyond" is where he talks about pop culture, comics, superheroes, films and such.

for me i use the play music app to find my podcasts. but just looking at the play store i found that google has its own podcast app:Google Podcast:discover free & trending podcasts

i also like "armchair expert" with dax shepard. i just find him funny. "turned out punk" is great if you like punk rock. i just watched "mindhunter" on netflix and so i'm kind of into true crime at the moment. i heard that "serial" is what started the true crime podcast genre.
 
Ah I know of Mr Smith, might check that out. Not a huge superhero fan tho.

Thanks, I guess you need a subscription to the google music app to find em! I do like the sound of true crime podcasts, I seem to remember a TV article about them some years ago.

Thanks @ocnbrze :cool:
 
For me I can't imagine my life anymore without podcasts. They're part of my daily routine.

In the morning when I wake, first thing I do is say "OK google, play the news". As soon as I say that, all my news podcasts which I curated play back to back.

It's free. Just open the Google app and:
Click More > Settings > Google Assistant > Services > News > Add news sources

When I need offline listening I use the google Podcasts app instead.

As for favs, too many to choose from, it depends what you're into. I have Business Insider, Wall Street Journal, NPR News, and BBC World News just to name a few. I have a mix of tech, business, world, politics, and finance news.

Another way I consume podcasts is with Spotify, but google is my go to.

edit:
I should mention that Google apps and services are not for those concerned about google having their data. I clearly don't mind.
 
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Podcast means a lot of different things these days: the original one or two people and a microphone, a traditional radio show just not actually broadcast, an old episode of a real radio show, original drama, serious investigative journalism,... Basically it's just a catch-all term for any downloadable audio series.

As for players, I've a number on trial, but too busy to use them enough to come to a conclusion. Though frankly I don't see a huge difference between a lot of them. The problem is too many apps doing the same job rather than too few options. I've no comment on the Google app as I've
never used it (why give Google extra data when there are a plethora of alternatives?).
 
JAy3001 said:
But right now, all I hear about are podcasts. So what am I missing, educate me!
Click to expand...
I feel the same way. I'm perplexed by the desire to sit and -listen- to people talk. I'd rather -watch- them, even though when I'm watching TV, I'm also using a screen (computer, tablet, phone), so I don't actually watch every second. But just listening to people talk sounds like what people did before TV came along, and the whole family would gather around their big radio.

Anyway, my only recent podcast experience involves having installed Castbox. Oh, I haven't used it yet. But I heard about a series of podcasts Dr Phil did regarding a missing child, Kyron Horman, whose case I followed closely at the time, and Dr Phil mentioned it being on Castbox. If I ever get around to actually using it, and like it, and assuming it has a paid version (no ads), I'll buy it.

But I still don't get the sudden podcast mania--why aren't these just video recorded and put on YouTube?! :thinking:
 
MoodyBlues said:
I feel the same way. I'm perplexed by the desire to sit and -listen- to people talk. I'd rather -watch- them, even though when I'm watching TV, I'm also using a screen (computer, tablet, phone), so I don't actually watch every second. But just listening to people talk sounds like what people did before TV came along, and the whole family would gather around their big radio.

Anyway, my only recent podcast experience involves having installed Castbox. Oh, I haven't used it yet. But I heard about a series of podcasts Dr Phil did regarding a missing child, Kyron Horman, whose case I followed closely at the time, and Dr Phil mentioned it being on Castbox. If I ever get around to actually using it, and like it, and assuming it has a paid version (no ads), I'll buy it.

But I still don't get the sudden podcast mania--why aren't these just video recorded and put on YouTube?! :thinking:
Click to expand...
Now on this I'm at the opposite end: why would I want visuals when they are just someone sitting and talking?

I leave a radio on when I'm at home, but usually tuned to a speech channel rather than a music one. So to me a podcast is no different, except that it's streamed or downloaded to my phone. I don't "sit down and listen to them", I generally do it while I'm travelling, e.g. on a train. I know a number of people who listen to them in the car (where, let's face it, you really don't want them watching videos!). Some play them in the kitchen while cooking. There may be people who sit down to listen, just as there are people who sit and listen to the radio, but most people I know listen while doing something, and for that video is at best irrelevant and generally unwanted.

And yeah, I think most people listen to them alone (though my wife and I have played some together - again, in a car rather than sitting down at home to listen).

Not having video also means that they use less storage, less bandwidth, are easier to produce. If it's an audio drama it cuts costs a lot (and usually results in better special effects ;)). For someone with a public profile (real, not "youtuber" or "influencer") it can be a more informal thing to join, to turn up and chat with no cameras. And YouTube is already there for those who want visuals.

Funny thing about TV though: I realised a few years back that the reason I like subtitled, foreign language TV shows is precisely because I will concentrate more on them.
 
Hadron said:
Now on this I'm at the opposite end: why would I want visuals when they are just someone sitting and talking?
Click to expand...
Because there are nuances in speech and body language that aren't picked up just by listening. A great example is the stepmother in the case I mentioned. I remember her from when the case first broke; her eyes, her expressions, her unconscious mannerisms belied the words coming out of her mouth. I'd much rather watch her than listen to her.

But I see the points you made, and they do make sense. To a degree. ;)
Funny thing about TV though: I realised a few years back that the reason I like subtitled, foreign language TV shows is precisely because I will concentrate more on them.
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I get it! I do the same, both with foreign language movies and, moreso, silent movies. You really MUST pay attention to silents, or you're going to miss much more than just their dialogue--it's all about facial expressions, lighting, mood, and stage directions.
 
MoodyBlues said:
I feel the same way. I'm perplexed by the desire to sit and -listen- to people talk. I'd rather -watch- them, even though when I'm watching TV, I'm also using a screen (computer, tablet, phone), so I don't actually watch every second. But just listening to people talk sounds like what people did before TV came along, and the whole family would gather around their big radio.
Click to expand...

My dad still does listen to the radio in preference to watching TV, usually BBC Radio 4(which is mainly talk) or
BBC local radio. And I did as well when I was in the UK. Fortunately in the UK there is BBC radio, and not just genericized commercial only stuff, like Clear Channel or whatever.


MoodyBlues said:
Anyway, my only recent podcast experience involves having installed Castbox. Oh, I haven't used it yet. But I heard about a series of podcasts Dr Phil did regarding a missing child, Kyron Horman, whose case I followed closely at the time, and Dr Phil mentioned it being on Castbox. If I ever get around to actually using it, and like it, and assuming it has a paid version (no ads), I'll buy it.

But I still don't get the sudden podcast mania--why aren't these just video recorded and put on YouTube?! :thinking:
Click to expand...

Problem with YouTube, they don't make it easy to listen and download in an audio only format. I turn the phone's screen off, YouTube stops playing. And from what I've seen of many so-called YouTubers, they're just sat there talking into a microphone, and are effectively doing talk radio shows.

I travel quite a lot on trains and planes, where video streaming isn't an option, and so I do sometimes listen BBC radio shows, that they make available for download as podcasts.
 
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for me podcast and audiobooks are my jam. i drive and sit a lot in LA traffic. so watching is not recommended while driving.....so i like to listen to stuff i'm interested in. podcast help a lot with that. i just started getting into audio books. i just signed up to audible. gonna explore it and see how i like it.

what's cool with fatman beyond is that it is set in a very cool bar in Hollywood called Scum and Villainy and is named and themed after the Star Wars cantina. Kevin Smith is such an entertaining individual. I have so much respect for this guy.
 
I have not listen to any podcasts at all, be brutally honest, there is far too many out there to even list.
Even by a certian ammount of gandera's going by such and such, honestly call me crazy but I rather just do not listen
to other people talk.
 
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