If you're a podcast lover, you've probably been using Pocket Casts for quite a few years now. It's easily one of the best podcast apps available for Android, and now it's getting even better thanks to its big 7.0 update that's rolling out now. This is the first major update Pocket Casts has received since it was acquired by the NPR-lead radio group in May, and for users that feared the acquisition would stump the growth of Pocket Casts, that actual outcome is the exact opposite.
The biggest thing to take note of with Pocket Casts 7.0 is the new design. The side-mounted hamburger menu is gone and has been replaced by a much simpler bottom navigation bar that houses tabs for Podcasts, Filters, Discover and Profile. Although Pocket Casts was never an ugly app, it's now even cleaner and easier to navigate.
In regards to new features, there are quite a few of them. Here are the biggest highlights.
- You can now play episodes from podcasts you aren't subscribed to.
- Episode Search allows you to search for a specific episode of your favorite podcast.
- The Discovery page uses "human and algorithmic curation" to help you find even better recommendations.
- Your queue of upcoming podcasts in the Up Next list now syncs across all platforms.
Smaller goodies throughout Pocket Casts 7.0 include new archiving features, playback effects while streaming, a full listening history, improved syncing, and support for seasons and episodes of podcasts. For our Apple friends, Pocket Casts 7.0 also includes support for Siri Shortcuts and an even better Apple Watch app.
The update was first made available for Android as a beta back in November, but as of March 6, 2019, it's rolling out to the Google Play Store for everyone to experience.
