We all know how the rejection of Podcaster (an application enabling direct download of podcasts onto the iPhone) by Apple created outrage in blogging circles. Apple justified the move by telling “Since Podcaster assists in the distribution of podcasts, it duplicates the functionality of the Podcast section of iTunes.” The excuse was rather lame given that there are loads of applications which easily fall under the “duplicate” category and yet have been approved by Apple. Developers were rather flustered about the weird Apple policies which saw their hard work go down the dumps for no valid reason.
Now to add insult to injury to the Podcaster developers, Apple is coming up with its very own Podcaster like feature in the upcoming iPhone 2.2 firmware. Take a look at this screenshot of iPhone 2.2 firmware (BETA version) from Schimanke.com.
Once you click on the App Store button on your iPhone. You will be taken to a screen which will have the “podcast” option at the bottom apart from other typical options. You can click on the podcasts button to search for your favorite podcasts and download them right onto your iPhone. One can use either WIFI or their cellular data connection (3G, Edge). A provision for Video Podcast Downloads has also been made. However, the user will require WIFI connection as the 10 MB download limit per file applies even on the new firmware.
All in all, even if it stings the Podcaster developer, one has to agree that a good functionality has been included by Apple. So thanks to Apple’s very own Podcaster, we have one more reason to wait for the new 2.2 firmware.