Product Review: Page (2) of 2 - 03/23/05

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Podcasting Comes of Age We evaluate three popular podcasting readers

iPodder v. 2 (http://ipodder.sourceforge.net/index.php) is a freeware reader (donations accepted) that is cross-platform, with OS X, Win 2K/XP and GNU / Linux versions available. This is the original podcasting reader, and the iPodder development team credits Adam Curry and Dave Winer with the concept.

iPodder subscriptions (click for larger view)

iPodder is not as slick-looking as iPodderX. But it offers a straightforward and well-organized toolset for managing podcast subscriptions. There are four tabs at the top left of the interface: Downloads, Subscriptions, Directory and Cleanup. When you switch tabs, small new buttons appear at the top for functions such as Adding/Removing feeds. There?s also a Scheduler that lets you set specific times or intervals for iPodder to check for programming updates.

iPodder includes a directory with a fair selection of available podcasts, although it?s not as extensive as the one in iPodderX. You can select a podcast from the directory or enter a URL for any other podcast you've found. After new files are downloaded, iPodder adds them to your library. The podcasts can be played directly from there or loaded to your iPod the next time it is synced. 

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Pod2Go v. 1.1.4 (www.kainjow.com/pod2go/download.html) is available for a 15-day trial, and a $12 purchase. This is the most ambitious of the three programs, with a series of subject buttons arrayed across the top, ranging from News, Weather, Stocks, Horoscopes, Lyrics, Text, Directions, Apps, Backup and, oh yes, Podcasts. I found the wide-ranging focus a little distracting, however. To begin with at least, I just want to manage podcasts.

Pod2Go podcast subscriptions. (click for larger view)

But others may find the Swiss Army knife approach appealing, since Pod2Go can turn your iPod into a quasi-PDA. It?s set up to sync address book contacts and mail messages. It can download stock prices, movie listings, MapQuest directions and so forth. Pod2Go?s interface is specifically set up to manage these functions, and that gives it a different focus than the other two programs. For instance, Pod2Go has a collection of more than 1,000 built-in News feeds, but no podcast listings. For those, it advises you to log on to the iPodder.org podcasts directory. Not that there?s anything wrong with that, but it indicates where Pod2Go?s priorities are.

Like the other programs, Pod2Go offers an easy way to paste in podcast URLs, add them to your directory and automatically download the podcasts to your iPod upon syncing with the computer.

For my purposes, I would choose iPodder, with iPodderX a close second. Both are tailored for dowloading and managing podcasts. iPodder seems more streamlined for this purpose, however. Pod2Go has a more general focus, with PDA-style functionality that I don't need. But depending on your preferences, any of these three programs will do the job of monitoring podcast subscriptions and transferring updates to a portable player.

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Related Sites: Corporate Media News ,   CEN - Consumer Electronics Net ,   CEN - Audio ,   CEN - Music ,   CEN - iPod
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