Has anyone else noticed changed sync behavior on Overcast? I’ve been using the app for years on my iPhone and iPad. Earlier, whenever I downloaded a new episode on either device, it would get downloaded on the other device too. Now, the episode does get synced (in that it will show up in my unplayed episodes) but it won’t actually download in the second device unless I manually do so.
Though I have a Premium subscription I’ve never had any luck with Overcast support over the years and so thought I’d ask if anyone else has noticed this issue here.
There is no support - if you listen to the “under the radar”-podcast with the developer - you will hear several times in the past that emails just get ignored…
But to your topic: podcast got synced here too, but only start downloading when i open the app.
There were some issues with earlier versions of iOS 13 causing downloads to stall, but touch wood, that has been fixed. I’ve only tried the synch between devices once, when I was away on holiday with just my phone, but it seemed to work ok then.
I switched to Castro after a Carplay bug that wasn’t getting fixed. Castro developers actually do reply to email and the app works great especially on Carplay where I use it the most.
I’ve not had this issue but have had multiple times the app will just stop playing a podcast for no reason. Anyone else dealing with this? I can’t figure it out. I really like Overcast but I’m really close to moving on.
I’m seeing the same issue. And I’m looking at alternatives as well. The one feature I’d really miss though is voice boost. Without that, podcasts like Science Friday that appear to be uploaded with little or no compression, are almost unlistenable. I wonder if there’s any hope that Apple’s app will someday support that?
Out of interest what is the bug? I use overcast on CarPlay all the time and hadn’t noticed anything - but I’m naturally very adaptable and often work around bugs or “features” without really noticing after a day or two.
Hi @Hoppel. Thanks for the suggestion to check on that. Background refresh is enabled on the iPhone as well as on the iPad. The thing is that the downloads don’t start even when I open the app, which used to happen earlier.
On Monday I switched back to Apple Podcasts. It took me 60+ minutes to listen to 2 15-20 min podcasts on Overcast b/c it kept crashing/stopping for no apparent reason. It took me less time to switch all my subscriptions back to Podcasts than fight with another start/stop podcast w/Overcast. With no apparent support options from the developer I wasn’t sure what else to do.
FWIW, emails aren’t ignored as a matter of policy - I’ve had multiple replies from Marco via email. But for a single dev it’s hard to answer anything even close to every email that comes in, so a reply to any given email is something that Marco indicates shouldn’t be expected.
Sync seems to have magically started working again as expected!
@webwalrus I get it that Overcast is run singlehandedly by Marco and that it is not possible to respond to every email and tweet but to almost never reply, even to those who have paid for the Premium tier doesn’t quite sit well with me. I can think of other apps that are run by single developers (SuperDuper and Hazel come to mind) who are very accessible, prompt in responding to issues and offer excellent support. Support for Overcast Premium subscribers really ought to exist.
