Google Will Finally Release Its Own Podcasts App

Google Will Finally Release Its Own Podcasts App

A Google-centric blog has discovered evidence that the search giant will finally release its own podcasts app for Android.

As you may know, Google currently offers podcast access via its Google Play Music app. I use, recommend, and really like Google Play Music. But it’s not the right place for podcasts, and not just because of the name. Podcasts are different from songs—or from audiobooks, for that matter—and it’s always been an uneasy fit.

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So after evaluating the podcast support in Google Play Music a while back, I gave up. And went back to using the right tool for the job: Pocket Casts for podcasts, Audible for audiobooks, and Google Play Music for music. The motto here is the same as always: The right tool for the job.

But Google needs to have a presence in podcasts, just as Apple and other platform makers do. So it’s been extending the back-end podcast support it created for Google Play Music to include Google Home and Google Assistant, for voice commands. And now we know they are creating a standalone Google Podcasts app as well. This makes tons of sense.

“We’re seeing hints of Google preparing to debut its own standalone podcast application,” 9to5Google reports. “A snippet of code we spotted in version 8.7 of the Google app reveals an inactive prompt which asks users to ‘Get the Google Podcasts app’.”

The site even has a Google Play Store link to the Google Podcasts app, though it is not live yet. And a logo:

So that’s good stuff. And I’ll be sure to evaluate this app’s functionality against my current podcast app, Pocket Casts, whenever it does ship.

 

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Conversation 13 comments

  • JeffFerguson

    09 June, 2018 - 11:32 am

    <p>I, too, use Pocket Casts, both on my Galaxy Note 8 as well as on Windows 10 through their desktop app. The multi-device syncing is transparent and flawless. Unless Google Podcasts can offer the same, I'll most likely stick with Pocket Casts.</p>

  • MikeCerm

    09 June, 2018 - 11:39 am

    <p>I listen to a ton of podcasts, but it's going to take a lot for Google to get me interested in even trying a standalone podcast app. Other than Gmail, Podcast Addict is virtually perfect for a podcast addict like me, and there's Pocket Casts for more casual listeners. A podcast app is exactly the kind of thing that Google will half-ass release, never update, and then discontinue. They discontinued Reader, and they'll discontinue this just as fast as you can say "Allo".</p><p><br></p>

    • Mike Brady

      14 June, 2018 - 9:17 am

      <blockquote><a href="#282768"><em>In reply to MikeCerm:</em></a></blockquote><p>I use both Pocket Casts and Podcast Addict. My impression is the opposite of yours. What do you find makes PA more powerful? In my case, the ability of Pocket Casts to sync between my phone and my PC is great.</p>

      • MikeCerm

        15 June, 2018 - 12:05 am

        <blockquote><a href="#284073"><em>In reply to Mike_Brady:</em></a></blockquote><p>Podcast Addict has more options and is far more tweakable than Pocket Casts, which has a bit more of a one-size-fits-all approach. Pocket Casts works just fine for most people use it, I'm sure. But Podcast Addict has way more features, should you choose to use them. While Pocket Casts has the ability to sync between devices, it doesn't sync any of the settings, just playback progress. With Podcast Addict, you can do a full and complete backup/restore, so if you've taken time to customize each feed and exactly how many episodes to keep, which order to sort them in, Etc., you can carry that over to the new device. Pocket Casts requires a lot more work to get a new device working like your old device, which is a lot of hassle if you switch devices regularly.</p>

  • Harrymyhre

    Premium Member
    09 June, 2018 - 12:01 pm

    <p>as Long as pocketcasts exists I will use it. </p>

  • innitrichie

    09 June, 2018 - 12:08 pm

    <p>Apparently it's just going to be a shortcut to the podcast integration now included in the Google app on Android. Which, after my testing of this already, means all your podcast downloads get mixed in with your Google Play Music library. So for example, in the artists view in Google Play Music, I see "TWiT", "First Ring Daily", etc. and I hate it. So I went back to Pocket Casts.</p>

  • dcdevito

    09 June, 2018 - 1:08 pm

    <p>Android had a built in podcast player years ago, "Google Listen", but no one apparently used it. But I see the value of having one built in, especially for interfacing with Google Assistant.</p>

  • Daekar

    09 June, 2018 - 2:04 pm

    <p>I hope this one is better. The old one was pretty bad, and a few of my podcasts were never available on it. </p>

  • JacobTheDev

    Premium Member
    09 June, 2018 - 2:37 pm

    <p>I just want Assistant to enable support for third-party podcast apps. I love Pocket Casts and fully intend to continue using it after this is released (unless it's somehow vastly superior)</p>

  • Roncerr

    09 June, 2018 - 4:12 pm

    <p>BeyondPod. Been using the free version for years. </p>

  • Bats

    09 June, 2018 - 6:09 pm

    <p>Pocket Casts is okay, as I would give it 4 out of 5 stars. The reason, why only 4, is because the app does not give the user an easy was to access secured podcasts that require a username and password. Rather, they use a "trick."</p><p>I hope the Google Podcast App can support secured podcasts. If so, hasta la vista Pocket Casts. BTW, I am not so crazy over the fact that it was bought out by NPR. I don't trust NPR. </p><p>Of course, a podcast app makes all the sense in the world for Google. </p><p><br></p><p class="ql-indent-1">Me: <em>"Hey Google, play the latest episode of Windows Weekly"</em></p><p class="ql-indent-1">The Assistant: <em>"Playing the latest episode of Windows Weekly on Google Play Podcasts now"</em></p><p><br></p><p>Google should utilize Youtube with these audible podcasts. Rather than download or stream video into an App like Pocket Casts, it will just have the Youtube version accessible right there in the podcast app. </p><p>Also, I thought Paul Thurrott was a Spotify guy and not a Google Play Music Guy.</p><p>Also, I thought Audible only plays it's own audio books? Audible is a tool? If I were to buy and audio book from Google Play, I can listen to it using audible?</p><p><em><span class="ql-cursor"></span></em></p>

  • Harrymyhre

    Premium Member
    10 June, 2018 - 12:54 am

    <p>Good that it will be standard on all new Android phones.</p>

  • wocowboy

    Premium Member
    11 June, 2018 - 5:23 am

    <p>Pocketcasts is just the gold standard for a podcast app. I use it on my iPhone X. No monthly fees, full audio and video podcast support, never fails to update when one is available, what more could one ask for? </p>

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