iOS 18.2 Enhances Apple’s Podcasts App, Yet My Main Grievance Remains Unaddressed

Apple’s Podcasts app has received noteworthy enhancements recently, including a standout transcripts feature—and there are more updates on the way with iOS 18.2. However, amidst these advancements, a fundamental issue within the app remains unresolved.

Two new features in iOS 18.2 enhance podcast discovery

Let’s begin with the positive aspects.

iOS 18.2 brings two significant upgrades to Apple Podcasts that enhance how users discover podcasts.

1. Users can now select their favorite podcast categories, which should lead to more tailored podcast suggestions within the app.
2. The Search feature has been personalized, showcasing categories and curated collections that align more closely with individual listening preferences.

Both updates are commendable additions to the app and work well in unison.

For instance, once you’ve chosen your preferred podcast categories, these selections will be featured more prominently in the Search section.

While I appreciate the enhancements to the Podcasts app, I still find that the essential experience feels incomplete.

I’m referring to the Up Next feature located in the home section.

Apple Podcasts’ essential feature seems inadequate

For those unfamiliar with Apple Podcasts, the Up Next section functions similarly to features found in other Apple media apps.

• In Music, it’s labeled as Top Picks for You.
• In TV, it’s known as Continue Watching, displaying shows and movies that you’ve been viewing or have saved for later.
• In Books, it’s called Continue, which includes all the books you’re currently reading.

In each of these apps, this feature is located at the top of the Home tab, making it the most prominent area of the default tab.

Apple Podcasts positions Up Next as the primary means for users to listen to podcasts from their subscribed shows.

Essentially, unless you’re frequently searching for and discovering new content, most of your experience within the app will revolve around Up Next.

This feature is intended to serve as a central hub for podcast playback.

However, since Apple introduced Up Next several years ago, it has exhibited numerous flaws that compromise its usability.

Five reasons Up Next requires improvement

Here’s a brief overview of five concerns that render Up Next ineffective for me:

• Information Density: You can view only one and a half podcasts at a time, making it challenging to grasp your listening options at a glance.
• Slow Swiping: Compounding this issue, you cannot swiftly swipe through Up Next—it enforces a staggered swipe that hampers your ability to browse podcasts quickly.
• Hidden Episodes: If multiple unplayed episodes exist for a show, Up Next won’t indicate this. It shows only the latest episode without any clue about how many others might be pending.
• Cluttered Feed: Most of my listening involves shows I follow. Nevertheless, when I check out a new show’s episode, it often gets added to my Up Next feed, cluttering it. Apple should recognize that if I wanted to continue with future episodes, I would have subscribed to that show.
• Adding to Up Next: Additionally, when I listen to a standalone episode (from a show I’m not subscribed to), it’s surprisingly difficult to add it to Up Next. While Podcasts offers options to play the episode next or save it, neither consistently adds it to Up Next, leading to a tendency to overlook the episode. I’ve noticed improvements lately when saving episodes, so hopefully, Apple has implemented a fix.

Conclusion

I’ve used Apple Podcasts for many years, so I’m aware of various ways to navigate around many of these issues. But that is beside the point.

Up Next is designed to be a central hub for users’ podcast experience, yet it is currently failing to fulfill that role effectively.

What are your thoughts on the changes introduced in iOS 18.2 for Podcasts? How do you feel about Up Next? Share your insights in the comments.

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