Don’t you love it when you pay extra money each month for ad-free listening, only to get ads on top of the ads that are already placed in a podcast? It’s a great feeling, isn’t it? If you can’t tell, I’m being incredibly sarcastic — I’m fine if podcasters throw their own ads in, but when Spotify started putting additional ads on top of it? It was time to make a change to something different.
That’s when I discovered AntennaPod, an open-source podcasting app that features no on-screen ads, is incredibly simple to navigate, and offers all the same features that Spotify has without the extra garbage. Plus, I don’t have to pay for a premium to get an “ad-free” experience, so everybody wins.
Anybody can contribute to AntennaPod
They’ve been refining this app since 2011
Rather than being run by a massive company that shares your data and your information, AntennaPod is a collaborative effort that is powered by the community to be something better. The team behind the app is always looking for volunteer help to make the application better, and anyone can help. Even if you don’t know how to code.
Translation help, support help, beta testing, and nearly everything in between help bring this app to life, making it better with every update. I’ve learned over the years that open-source apps are the way to go when they’re available, and I’m hoping that I can begin contributing in some way this year, as well. They’ve provided me with countless hours of entertainment, so I may as well try to contribute, too.
- OS
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Android
- Price model
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Free
- Platform
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Google Play / F-Droid
No additional ads in the software
It’s a passion project, not a profit project
Dynamic ads are one of the most obnoxious parts of the Spotify experience, even if you’re using Premium. Sure, your music won’t have any additional ads, which is great. But Premium seemingly doesn’t apply to podcasts. Regardless of what you’re listening to, there’s a chance that you’re going to have some placed ads from the publisher themselves. That’s fine, but when Spotify started throwing additional ads on top of that, that was the final straw for me.
If a publisher includes ads in a podcast, all the revenue goes directly to the hosts if you’re listening to something like AntennaPod. There are no in-app ads, no dynamic ads, just the podcast in its purest form. I’ve been slowly converting as many apps as possible to open-source replacements, primarily for reasons like those listed above. Rather than focusing on the profits, they focus on the passion, and I just love that.
5 Reasons I Use Amazon Music Instead of Spotify
Amazon Music is well worth your time, especially if you already subscribe to Amazon Prime.
Download or stream — the choice is yours
Spotty signal won’t ruin your drive again
Yes, I know that this is a feature on just about every single podcasting app out there, but this is confirmation for those who were worried they may not be able to do something like this on an open-source application. AntennaPod allows users to download or stream their podcasts, organize them into subscriptions, and review their playback history. It’s very feature-rich, and just continues to grow.
The AntennaPod app itself is rather small, only coming in at roughly 32MB. I initially migrated after Google Podcasts bit the dust, and I’ve grown my collection of podcasts considerably since then, mainly because the app is small, simple to use, and continuously updated.
iOS, Windows, and Linux are out of luck
But there are other options available in this regard
One of the main gripes that I have with AntennaPod is that there is no proper Windows support, nor is there support for iOS, macOS, or Linux. It’s always going to stay as an Android-exclusive app, and I feel for those who aren’t on this particular OS. AntennaPod is great, but the app’s development team understands the frustrations as well.
That’s why they’ve included a fantastic list of other open-source applications that work on these other operating systems. Or, if you want to save some additional space, you could always download podcasts the old-fashioned way and play them on a dedicated music device. My modified iPod Classic is perfect for storing a ton of podcasts, and it helps me save some battery when I want to plug in and listen to some folks ramble on about their passions.
AntennaPod is one of my most-used apps
I can’t wait to see what other features they add in the future
No matter if I’m at home or on the road, you’ll typically find me listening to something. For longer trips, I tend to gravitate toward podcasts, and AntennaPod has been one of the best apps I’ve installed in a long time. Simple to use and serving its purpose fully, I can’t see myself migrating to a different app any time soon.
After seeing my coworkers talking about different open-source music apps and the like has piqued my curiosity big time, and I’m hoping that I get the chance to start replacing more bloat with these programs. It’s time to make a change in my mobile usage, and I’m excited that this is the first step on that journey.
