First of all, I am a long time user of Instacast (since 1.3) and Instacast HD (since 1.0). When Instacast 2.0 came out, I purchased Pro in-app purchase to support the developer. I use Instacast almost daily, so I purchased 3.0 without hesitation. So that is total of $14 ($1.99 + $4.99 + $1.99 + $4.99).
While I have some hope that developer will iron out some of the issues, 3.0 is the worst release yet. At best, the app is beta 1 quality. It freezes constantly, very laggy with only about a dozen podcasts, and filled with many usability issues. The playback screen is a wasted effort and it is very difficult to get to show notes.
While sync finally works well, the app freezes so frequently to the point of being unusable (I have tried delete and re-install twice).
Topping it off is the storage management. Instacast always had funky storage management. I think it's reasonable to assume that majority wants episode to be cleared from storage few days after it is played or marked as played (and is not marked as favorite). Instead, the app relies on offline storage limit setting (selectable 512 MB, 1 GB, 2 GB, 5 GB, and no limit). I don't know about you, but I don't want Instacast to occupy storage space for episode I would never listen to again. You can delete the episode manually on the iPad (although UI is quite horrid), but not on iPhone.
All in all, I am very disappointed with the release and frankly, I want my money back. I used "report a problem" in attempt to get a refund from Apple, but it told me to talk to the developer instead. In last 2 years since corresponding, the developer has never replied to my email (not even yes or no to very simple questions).
While I have some hope that developer will iron out some of the issues, 3.0 is the worst release yet. At best, the app is beta 1 quality. It freezes constantly, very laggy with only about a dozen podcasts, and filled with many usability issues. The playback screen is a wasted effort and it is very difficult to get to show notes.
While sync finally works well, the app freezes so frequently to the point of being unusable (I have tried delete and re-install twice).
Topping it off is the storage management. Instacast always had funky storage management. I think it's reasonable to assume that majority wants episode to be cleared from storage few days after it is played or marked as played (and is not marked as favorite). Instead, the app relies on offline storage limit setting (selectable 512 MB, 1 GB, 2 GB, 5 GB, and no limit). I don't know about you, but I don't want Instacast to occupy storage space for episode I would never listen to again. You can delete the episode manually on the iPad (although UI is quite horrid), but not on iPhone.
All in all, I am very disappointed with the release and frankly, I want my money back. I used "report a problem" in attempt to get a refund from Apple, but it told me to talk to the developer instead. In last 2 years since corresponding, the developer has never replied to my email (not even yes or no to very simple questions).
