Apple Podcasts got the full Apple Music treatment with its own web app today. The UI is essentially the same as Apple’s native app but with the added flexibility of working on non-Apple devices. Apple says Podcasts works on all major browsers, including Safari, Chrome, Edge, and Firefox, and can be accessed in more than 170 countries and regions in their local language. If you’re an Apple Podcasts user, your progress will be synced from the web to your Apple devices, too.
Apple Podcasts’ web app is nearly identical to the native version.
The web app strikes me as a win for both listeners and podcasters. Podcast fans now have more ways to enjoy their favorite shows, discover new ones, and share episodes with others. Suddenly, Apple Podcasts is cross-platform, which is still relatively rare among the most popular podcast apps, except for Pocket Casts.
Your entire library of shows is available on the web and syncs across all versions of the app.
Links opened on Apple devices will open in the native Podcasts app and in the browser on other devices, although on the Mac, it is possible to play episodes in a browser if you prefer. Here’s Comfort Zone playing on everyone’s current obsession, the Boox Palma:
The latest episode of NPC running on my Boox Palma.
It sounds great, too.
The web app also means podcasters can now reach a bigger audience. Not only are free RSS-based shows available on the web, but listeners can also subscribe and listen to paid shows.
I’ve only played around with the web version of Apple Podcasts a little, but it works well on every device I’ve tried with it so far, including the Palma, a Boox Android tablet, and a Windows gaming handheld using Chrome and Edge. In every case, the Podcasts web app worked just as well as listening in the native app.
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