How to: Assemble podcasts directly on Windows Telephone

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1 of the presumed-known facts about Windows Telephone is that to proceed up to appointment with podcasts, you lot had to rely on Zune Desktop to practise all the heavy lifting, i.e. the downloading all happened on a Windows PC and then you had to claw up and sync to get at your new podcasts. Nonetheless, that's non entirely true, at to the lowest degree since the Mango update. With a caveat or two, you lot tin can now download all your podcasts directly on the phone - if yous know how!

You may well enquire why you'd want to download podcasts on the telephone rather than on the faster and mains-powered PC? For some people that may indeed be crazy - if you lot're plugging into Zune Desktop several times a 24-hour interval then it makes absolute sense to allow Windows and Zune handle all the downloading for y'all, new podcasts will simply appear on the phone nether 'podcasts' in the 'music+videos' hub.

But if you're a bit of a route warrior, with your phone seeing more of the mains charger than the USB atomic number 82 to your PC. If you're away from domicile for more than a mean solar day. If yous'd simply rather be up to date and contained of Zune Desktop. And if you've come up from another platform similar Android or Symbian, on which downloading podcasts on the phone is the norm. Heck, fifty-fifty the iPhone lets you download podcasts on the phone these days!

The functionality to cheque podcast RSS feeds for updates on the telephone and then download anything new hasn't always been in Windows Phone - in fact, it arrived with the Mango update. And, still, the functionality isn't at all obvious - I go the impression that Microsoft would much rather anybody used the Zune Desktop all the time.

Which is where this little All About Windows Telephone 'how to' characteristic comes in. There are some caveats, currently, restrictions placed past Microsoft, both intentionally and unintentionally:

  • You tin can't subscribe to a new podcast on the phone - the typing in (or pasting in) of a podcast'southward feed RSS address has to exist done in Zune Desktop. Once synced to the telephone, Windows Phone can check for further updates if yous know how. This two stage procedure is, I think, somewhat unintentional and a by-product of the telephone functionality all the same not being complete - I suspect we'll take to wait for the Tango update before this is all rounded out.
  • Checking for podcast feed updates is only done when you plug the phone into a power source. This is patently to ensure that downloading the large (typically 50MB or so) MP3 files doesn't drain your battery unduly (and peradventure to likewise ensure you lot're likely to be inside range of Wi-fi), though arranging a charger'southward presence every time y'all want to check your podcast feeds might exist inconvenient for some. Still, intentional from Microsoft and not a bad idea.

OK, so that's the background and caveats out of the way, Here's how to get started 'podcatching' (i.eastward. checking feeds and grabbing new episodes of your favourites) in Windows Phone Mango.

1. In Zune Desktop, go to your 'Collections', and then 'Podcasts'. Click on 'Add a podcast'. Don't be intimidated by the long URL needed, you tin get a podcast's feed URL by going to its domicile page on the web and correct clicking the petty orange RSS icon - cull 'Copy link' and then yous're all set to 'Paste' the address into the Subscribe dialog, shown here:

Screenshot

2. Wait a few minutes while Zune Desktop checks the feed, registers the new podcast in its organisation and (usually) downloads a couple of the latest episodes. Information technology's a good idea to let these finish downloading, then that there are media files to 'seed' the podcast system on your phone later:

Screenshot

3. Next, for your new podcast, y'all have to tell Zune Desktop that y'all also want this on your phone. With your Windows Telephone connected, drag and drop the podcast's thumbnail onto the image of your phone, bottom-left:

Screenshot

4. Yous'll see a picayune per centum indicator ramp up equally the media files and the all important podcast subscription information is transferred. When it's washed (100%) you can disconnect your phone and clear the lock screen as usual.

5. On the phone, find your 'music+videos' hub and tap on it. Then tap on 'podcasts':

ScreenshotScreenshot

half-dozen. Y'all'll run into a list of podcasts in this case, nether 'sound', I'm using our own All About Windows Phone podcast (plus the Phones Evidence Conversation) as examples here. Tap on the NAME of the podcast, NOT the thumbnail. This bit's of import, since it brings upwardly the list of episodes and options, as shown below, right:

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seven. Detect the 'Subscribe' push, bottom left. At present hold on, aren't you already subscribed to this podcast in Zune Desktop? Yes, only 'Subscribe' here is also needed for standalone podcatching. Yeah, information technology is confusing, isn't it? (Blame Microsoft!)

Tap 'Subscribe' and you'll see the settings screen below, left. Tap on 'Confirm' and y'all're washed. When conditions are correct, your phone volition now go online via Wi-fi, cheque feeds and catch new episodes:

ScreenshotScreenshot

8. You lot tin check it's all set correct by plugging in your phone'south mains charger while on this screen. As if by magic, the feed will be updated and whatsoever new (or requested) episodes will kickoff downloading.

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Of special notation is that, unlike some of the third political party podcast clients, this podcatching ability is all part of Windows Phone itself and thus it is fully authorised to run in the groundwork. And so you tin can happily set podcasts downloading and switch away using the Start central, to use other applications - the 'podcasts' awarding volition happily carry on its piece of work in the background and so that when you adjacent await, all the episodes will be grabbed and ready for listening.

Yep, it's a footling peverse having to:

  • subscribe to a podcast by inserting a raw RSS feed URL rather than picking it from a patently English language directory
  • 'subscribe' again on the phone to something you've already signed up for on Zune Desktop
  • crave a charger insertion before 'podcasts' will check for feeds updates

However, at to the lowest degree standalone use is now possible - let'due south hope things go more streamlined for Windows Phone Tango.