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ThaRadiofonik1

Q: Why isn't there an option to simply play all unplayed episodes from oldest to newest without manually adding them to a list or station?

I lis to around 10 podcasts a week. Sometimes I find it hard to keep up so I get quite the backlog. With new episodes every couple days I just want them all to fall into the "unplayed" category and an option to play all unplayed from oldest to newest. The older versions of the app did that. Is there a way with the newer version? Without the stations or adding them manually to the "up next" list. I can never remember what I have or haven't added to "up next" and there's no way to see the list that I can find. Any help would be appreciated.

iPhone 6, iOS 9.3.1

Posted on May 21, 2016 12:49 AM

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Q: Why isn't there an option to simply play all unplayed episodes from oldest to newest without manually adding them to a list or sta ... more

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  • by Rysz,

    Rysz Rysz May 21, 2016 10:49 AM in response to ThaRadiofonik1
    Level 7 (20,274 points)
    iTunes
    May 21, 2016 10:49 AM in response to ThaRadiofonik1

    If you sync your episodes from iTunes on your computer, you can create there a SMART playlist of all unplayed podcast episodes and sort them by release date.

  • by ThaRadiofonik1,

    ThaRadiofonik1 ThaRadiofonik1 May 21, 2016 11:14 AM in response to Rysz
    Level 1 (4 points)
    iOS Apps
    May 21, 2016 11:14 AM in response to Rysz

    That seems more complicated than adding them to up next as they come in, considering it requires a separate device. But it's an idea. Thank you.

  • by Rysz,

    Rysz Rysz May 21, 2016 11:21 AM in response to ThaRadiofonik1
    Level 7 (20,274 points)
    iTunes
    May 21, 2016 11:21 AM in response to ThaRadiofonik1

    Many people use iTunes to download, then just sync podcasts to their device. The beauty of a smart playlist is that you don't have to add or delete anything manually, it's all automatic.

     

    I agree that Podcasts on iOS should have more sorting options for the Unplayed episodes list. You can request features, point out bugs, etc, at Apple Feedback pages.

    http://www.apple.com/feedback/

     

    BTW, if you're not using iTunes, I hope you sync your data and import your photos manually...

  • by Lost in Asia,Solvedanswer

    Lost in Asia Lost in Asia May 22, 2016 4:24 PM in response to Rysz
    Level 3 (607 points)
    Apple Music
    May 22, 2016 4:24 PM in response to Rysz
    Many people use iTunes to download, then just sync podcasts to their device. The beauty of a smart playlist is that you don't have to add or delete anything manually, it's all automatic.

    That still works with podcasts?! I thought smart playlists on the computer didn't sync over to the Podcasts app on an iOS device anymore. I used to do this all the time when podcasts were still folded into the Music app, but I didn't realize it was still an option. Where do they appear in the Podcasts app? Under Stations?

     

    ThaRadiofonik1, I think you're just going to have to set up a station for what you want. Once I figured out how to work with stations, it wasn't that hard, although now since I've moved to Overcast I no longer remember how to do it. You're basically asking "How can I create a playlist without creating a playlist?", and that's not going to work.

     

    Here are the steps I wrote here a while ago for setting up a station - I hope they still work. After you've done this, you just have to go to the "My Podcasts" tab and choose the station:

     

    1. Go to the "My Podcasts" tab.
    2. Press "+" in the upper left corner, and create a new station.
    3. Name your station.
    4. Include all podcasts (or whichever ones you want).
    5. Select Station Settings (top of screen).
    6. Set Play (which means "play order", and is terribly titled) to "Oldest to Newest".
    7. Turn "Group by Podcast" off.
    8. Probably you'll want to select Episodes / All Episodes, and Unplayed only.

    You'll have a station with all of your unplayed podcast episodes, sorted from oldest to newest.

  • by ThaRadiofonik1,

    ThaRadiofonik1 ThaRadiofonik1 May 22, 2016 4:25 PM in response to Lost in Asia
    Level 1 (4 points)
    iOS Apps
    May 22, 2016 4:25 PM in response to Lost in Asia

    Thank you! For some reason I thought choosing all episodes meant the whole feed even if I chose unplayed only. That worked like a charm!