| Cult of Mac

In search of the perfect podcast? Now it’s easier to find.

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Nine new subcategories of Podcasts with their own popularity charts help you narrow down the search.
Nine new subcategories of Podcasts with their own popularity charts help you narrow down the search.
Photo: Apple

If you feel lost in a sea of podcasts without a paddle, Apple offered some new rowing implements Tuesday. After all, navigating podcasts can feel as hopeless as floundering among streaming TV shows and movies.

The company said Apple Podcasts will elevate nine “new and noteworthy” subcategories for browsing, plus related popularity charts and the new Podcasts by Language browsing tool.

Here’s what we know about iOS 17 so far … [The CultCast]

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A new feature coming soon to iOS 17 sounds like it would be even better on an iPad.
A new feature coming soon to iOS 17 sounds like it would be even better on an iPad.
Image: Cult of Mac

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: iOS 17 might turn your iPhone into a dashboard for your smart home. Plus, Apple’s new journaling app seems like it will arrive soon as well. With WWDC23 just weeks away, we don’t have long to wait.

Also on The CultCast:

  • Three Apple TV+ hits conquer the streaming charts.
  • Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie is a moving and surprisingly inspirational documentary about the actor’s life (and his heroic battle with Parkinson’s disease).
  • MoviePass is back from the dead — and one option actually sounds enticing!

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.

Insiders are buzzing about Apple’s upcoming headset [The CultCast]

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CultCast 595: AI-generated image of Apple CEO Tim Cook wearing an AR/VR headset, along with the CultCast logo.
No, Apple's headset likely won't look like this AI-generated image.
Image: Cult of Mac

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Well-placed sources say Apple’s AR/VR headset blew them away. Even the guy who dreamed up the Oculus Rift says it’s great.

The more we hear about the device nobody seems to need, the more intrigued we become. And with WWDC23 just weeks away, we don’t have long to wait for answers to our questions. In the meantime, we can imagine the possibilities …

Also on The CultCast:

  • How Apple’s M3 chip will stack up against its predecessors.
  • Five hidden features in iMessage that you should try ASAP.
  • Erfon finally gives us an update on his beloved, but beleaguered, original HomePod.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.

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New iPhone 15 leaks sound encouraging! [The CultCast]

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An image of iPhone 14, adorned with the phrases
The iPhone of the future is coming into focus ...
Photo: Apple/Modified by Cult of Mac

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: The latest iPhone 15 rumors provide a fuller picture of what to expect this year. Sounds like big changes are coming in iOS 17. But a last-minute reversal means a hardware feature we were counting on probably won’t happen.

Also on The CultCast:

  • Whatever you do, don’t get “juice jacked” this summer. We offer easy ways to avoid this menace.
  • How much would it take to get you to give up your iPhone forever?
  • The morons running General Motors ditched CarPlay. Get ready for sales to crash!
  • A new edition of What We’re Into dishes up pasta, podcasts and a sci-fi show.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.

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Apple names top podcasts of 2022

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Find out what everybody's listening to.
Find out what everybody's listening to.
Photo: Apple Podcasts

If you’re looking for a new podcast to addict yourself to, you’re in luck. Apple Podcasts unveiled the podcasts, episodes and channels its listeners paid the most attention to in 2022 (and in the case of subscriber shows and channels, paid the most money to, apparently).

Check out how Apple Podcasts sliced and diced its most popular content in the lists below. You might find a great new way to spend off-time during the holidays.

Joe Rogan interviews Steve Jobs in eerie, AI-generated podcast

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Joe Rogan interviews Steve Jobs in eerie AI-generated podcast
Steve Jobs (1955 – 2011) did not do a new interview with Joe Rogan. You can listen to it anyway.
Image: Hotpot

Apple co-founder Steve Jobs passed away more than 11 years ago, but that didn’t prevent him from giving a new interview with superstar podcaster Joe Rogan. In it, the co-creator of the Mac talks about the importance of Eastern mysticism, his thoughts on LSD, Google, innovation and more.

There’s just one tiny wrinkle: The entire podcast is generated by artificial intelligence. That includes Jobs’ and Rogan’s voices and their responses.

Apple Podcasts app gets new filtering options in iOS 15.4

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Apple Podcasts filtering in iOS 15.4
It's not easier to navigate long-running shows.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Apple is making a number of nice design improvements to its Podcasts app in iOS 15.4. The biggest is the ability to filter podcast episodes by season.

That particular change undoubtedly will prove handy as users navigate their way through long-running shows. But it’s not the only new option for podcast filtering in Apple’s latest beta.

Apple celebrates the best and most popular podcasts of 2021

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Apple's best podcasts of 2021
A Slight Change of Plans is Apple's Best Show of the Year
Photo: Apple

Apple on Tuesday published its showcase of this year’s best and most popular podcasts in the United States. It also called 2021 a year for “shows that moved us in ways unlike ever before.”

A Slight Change of Plans with Maya Shankar has been named the Best Show of the Year, while Anything for Selena with Maria Garcia is Apple’s Newcomer of the Year.

Spotify could take on Apple’s premium podcast service … with a twist

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Spotify is adding 2x as many monthly subscribers as Apple Music
Spotify reportedly won't take a cut of creators' subscription revenue.
Photo: Spotify

Earlier this week, Apple opened up its Podcasts service to subscriptions, calling it a “global marketplace for listeners to discover premium subscriptions offered by their favorite creators.” Now, The Wall Street Journal reports that Spotify is set to jump in with a rival premium podcast feature.

However, unlike Apple, Spotify supposedly won’t take a cut of podcasters’ subscription revenues.