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Why the latest iOS app is somewhat useless

I’m a bit surprised that it’s hard to find an iOS dev considering how large the platform is. Given that there is no dedicated iOS developer it’s no wonder that the changes can’t be implement quickly. I’m on android and have to say that @Armel is doing an amazing job on the Android app. I have been helping test the new app from the beginning and whenever there is a bug or requested feature it’s usually implemented in the next update.

I’m sorry to hear that iOS users are having so much trouble through :frowning:

It’s actually @hunter_robbert that develops the Android app :slight_smile:

Ah, that’s right, my mistake. Thanks @GwilymJames for the correction, I got their names confused :frowning: But yes, @hunter_robbert has been doing a great job on the android app.

@Matt_T @GwilymJames

Thanks Matt!

App is USELESS.

AAARGHH

I have been using chinesepod on and off for years, this app is the worst so far. I just signed up for premium so I can do the vocab things on the app but it only works when connected to the Internet. I live in China so connecting to stable internet is a rare thing.

I tried downloading some of the lessons so I could listen to the lessons on the go but the button to then access downloaded lessons doesn’t work at all. Nor to any of the buttons on the menu screen. I have already done the re download the app to my phone, after deleting the two older versions I had from before.

why why why

Can the app god of Chinese pod please hear my prayers and make an app that allows me to listen to the lessons when I am not online?

I’m now back to what I was doing 4 or 5 years ago, downloading the audio to may laptop to then transfer to my iphone/ipod. Progress! Oh, I am paying more this time…

Chinesepod demigods I’m sure you are working on a new version of the app with developers. Can you give us a timeline on how long this will take???

Hi, Thanks for the tip. Does ICatcher work off line?

Just bought Icatcher from app store. I can only find newbie podcasts. How do I find the other podcasts?

Hi Misty104, you might find these support articles helpful. I recommend you check your RSS feed settings first.

http://support.chinesepod.com/hc/en-us/articles/204145624-All-About-the-Self-Study-Feed-Bookmarked-Studied-Subscribed-Lessons-

Hi Misty, If you want stable offline listening, I recommend using the RSS feed and using a podcast app like Icatcher (which I see you’ve downloaded) or Overcast: http://support.chinesepod.com/hc/en-us/articles/207657553-ChinesePod-s-Recommended-Podcast-Player-for-iOS. I apologise on behalf of ChinesePod for the state of the current iOS app.

Gwilym, could you please explain about the Course Feed. How is it different from the lesson feed and how do you use it?

I used to be a subscriber, a couple of years ago. At that time Chinesepod was, as the name implies, a podcast service, Along with visual lesson materials. You could download lessons and listen back to them whenever you had a minute. I thought that was central to the whole concept of ChinesePod. Study when you want, where you want. Travel, which so often has no wifi, is also the perfect kind of downtime to switch on a Chinesepod lesson.
I have an iPad with the latest CP app installed. You click the download lesson link. It downloads. But then, hey presto, when you want to listen to it, the lesson is unavailable. Great!
I am mystified by this. Am I missing something really obvious ( I realise I could be) or is Chinese Pod failing to deliver on its own main selling concept?

I don’t understand how this thread just continues on and on.

It’s already been said multiple times that the iOS app is not the best choice. Use any podcast player and insert your RSS feed. Simple as that, it’s been said multiple times if you read the thread. Does anybody actually read the thread before they post? It’s not that difficult to use the podcast player and functions better than the app itself.

Yes it’s unfortunate the app isn’t working as should be, but understand they obviously don’t have the resources to meet the demand. If you can code swift or objective c, there’s an opportunity here. If not lets just stop complaining how bad the app is, we already know!

Please people read the thread.

Yeah, point taken!
But it’s good to let off steam a bit and keep communicating the urgency to the Chinese Pod team. We pay our subscriptions based on reasonable expectations of being able to listen to lessons on the move, away from wifi. It shouldn’t be too hard to implement this within iOS (hardly a minority platform) with the budget. It’s not like this is a free service. I sent a support request to CP and it took 10 days to get an answer. It just feels like this side of the business is underfunded and neglected and letting down the amazing quality of the teaching materials.

I preface this with saying that i am a premium subscription holder and use the Android app. i am not experiencing the same issues since the android app works great buy wanted to share my thoughts as I work professionally in software support and client management.

Since the iOS app isn’t working as expected they shouldn’t even offer it as an option until it’s fixed. when ordering the premium subscription it should say android only. I understand that premium subscription offers other bonuses but it should be clarified that the app us android only. It’s causing so many problems to have iOS users try the app and pay more money for their subscription only to find that the app doesn’t work. It makes users feel cheated and really hurts the companies brand in my opinion. You hurt customers and it makes them possibly cancel heir subscription and possibly not come back because of the bad experience. It’s a simple fix and one that could save the companies reputation and save lots of time for the support staff who are probably dealing with calls about this constantly.

Here are two support articles that explain it better, but the course feed (playlists of curated lessons) and self-study are indeed different with separate RSS feeds.

Self-study is for any bookmarked or studied lessons as well as lessons that you have subscribed to. This means that if you are elementary, the Self-study feed will automatically add new lessons of that level as they come out. Change the settings here: https://chinesepod.com/dashboard/feedsettings/

For the course feed, you can save a course from this page and click the star (https://chinesepod.com/library/courses/), and grab the unique RSS feed for that course here: https://chinesepod.com/dashboard/course/course-list.

Using the RSS feed for your self study feed and any course that you want to study is the best way to listen to ChinesePod on the go (using iOS).

http://support.chinesepod.com/hc/en-us/articles/207995516-Subscribing-to-ChinesePod-Playlists-Courses

I am a premium subscriber for last 3 years and also for me the new application is horrible and lacks of many functionalities I used before. If I don’t see improvements I will not renew my subscription

Chinese pod is still a great service, well worth the price of the subscription and there are currently work arounds available for the iOS users that @GwilymJames has already mentioned . If you don’t have access to the features from the premium subscription just downgrade to the regular subscription and use the apps mentions already mentioned. Until the ChinesePod iOS is fixed.

From the earlier posts it seems that ChinesePod is having trouble finding a quality iOS developer and from talking to some friends who are also developers I’m not surprised. My friends say that many companies are having the same problem. Many companies are having to insource their iOS development but it’s hard to find good applicants.

The point is why we are going backward instead of improving. I mean, the old application was much better than the new one

Most of the lessons subscribed/bookmarked don’t appear in the icatcher

Hi, I was precisely reflecting on the fact this morning that I don’t use the app -at all !!- bc so bad. Even from my iPad I would go through the regular site…
Please give us back the old version or do sth to fix the bugs ( it keeps shutting down randomly, many lessons don’t have any thorough recording…). Better would be to rework on a new version, sorry I know that you just released this version but how unfriendly and poor app