Overcast gets its first update and NPR One was just released in the AppStore

Jul 28, 2014 22:43 GMT  ·  By
The powerful podcast player by Marco Arment got its first update in just a week after release. There's also a new kid in town. NPR One doesn't let you choose what to listen to, but rather curates the best radio news and stories for you.
 
Since its release, Overcast has been on the front page of iTunes. Its media personality developer and podcaster extraordinaire Marco Arment has been all over the Internet talking about his choices and design decisions about Overcast.
 
The fact that you can actually get it for free and test most of the Premium features before buying it via in-app Purchase made a big difference for the users. Marco Arment actually reinvented the try-before-you-buy feature with 5-minute Voice Boost or Smart Speed. Overcast is free, but you can "Unlock everything" for $4.99 (€3.71).
 
Thew new 1.0.1 version fixes some of the bugs that came with the original app, including the annoying "Don't download over Cellular Data" one. You can now tap any "waiting" download to start it immediately. The developer has worked on improving importing of large OPML files and the app has an increased font size. 
 
Another great addition to the Podcast players is NPR One. But this one is not a podcast player per se, but more of an audio player for curated content from NPR (US National Public Radio). The same developer already has a few apps in the AppStore: NPR News, NPR Music, or Planet Money.
 
The interface for NPR One is as simple as it gets. You have three big buttons at the bottom of the screen for Play, Next, and 15 seconds rewind and the rest of the screen shows a big slide with the title of the audio recording and little to no other information. 
 
Its developers talk about a "handcrafted experience," because NPR One starts with the latest headlines and then moves to other stories to increase your understanding. It is just like you are listening to the radio, but unlike the classic experience, you get to pause, skip, or rewind a story that you enjoyed. 
 
The app will show you the news of the day, but then you can listen just to the ones you want to. If you live in the United States, there's another feature that may interest you. The user can choose to listen to local news, besides the national and international stories. 
 
Check them out for free on your iPhone and pick your favorite.