Hey, Inside BlackBerry readers – welcome back guest blogger Sonia, who’s got an update on the BlackBerry® Podcast app for you! Take a look at what she has to say about version 1.5′s new features – Ed.

For those of you who enjoyed the first release of the BlackBerry Podcast app, we’ve got great news for you – version 1.5 is here! With this updated version of the popular app, we’ve made it easier to find the content you want to play right away – with the addition of a preview or play option while the podcast is downloading. New features also include web podcast searching and improved content presentation within categories.

Let’s go through each of them in the post below:

Web podcast search

Looking for that elusive feed? No problem – we’ve integrated Google® search. Now you can quickly search the web for podcasts and RSS feeds to supplement the built-in BlackBerry Podcast catalog. You just select “Add Podcast Channel” within the menu, then type in the feed (or keyword) you are looking for and you will invoke an RSS Google Search from within the app. Another great option is to simply cut and paste the podcast URL, if you already know it, and away you go!

Improved Content Presentation within Categories

We currently have over 3,000 feeds and growing – with many categories having over 100 feeds each! When presenting content within categories, the first 40 listings in each category will be “featured content” – a combination of the most popular feeds and RIM-programmed feeds. This helps you find the most compelling content first! However, if you prefer to go through all in alphabetical order, you can select “All Channels” to see all content within the category. It’s now easier than ever to find the podcast you’re looking for with v1.5 of the BlackBerry Podcast app!

Preview or Play while downloading

You don’t have to wait for the entire podcast to download before you can hit play to enjoy the latest feed. You can now preview or play at the same time that you are downloading, just to make sure that you’re downloading exactly what you want to hear.

Starting on April 25th, v1.5 of the BlackBerry Podcast app will be available in North America on the BlackBerry App World™ storefront. (Please note: The app will become available to download within the next 24 hours. If you don’t see it, keep checking back!) For more information, visit the BlackBerry Podcast app site.

[ YouTube link for mobile viewing ]

Previously on the Inside BlackBerry blog, we talked quite a bit about the performance of the BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet and what that means for consumers (see our BlackBerry PlayBook vs iPad comparison and BlackBerry PlayBook web fidelity videos, which demonstrate the web experience on the tablet). As we move closer to launch of the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet, I’m excited to share more information on the content that BlackBerry PlayBook users will have access to from day one.

In the above video, BlackBerry PlayBook Product Manager Ryan Bidan walks through two specific media discovery applications that will come with the BlackBerry PlayBook: 7digital Music Store and BlackBerry® Podcasts. In addition to the demo, Ryan also provided me with some key information about each application.

7digital Music Store:

• 7digital Music Store offers over 13 million songs, and tracks are available at prices starting as low as $0.79 with bitrates up to 320 kbps (DRM free).
• As Ryan mentioned, 7digital Music Store content is stored in the cloud via a digital music locker for easy portability across devices and to help against accidental loss.
• 7digital Music Store includes a recommendation engine that features content based upon recent browsing and purchase activity.

BlackBerry Podcasts:

• The BlackBerry Podcasts app for the BlackBerry PlayBook includes 19 content categories, ranging from sports to entertainment to business, including popular content such as the New Yorker and Ask A Ninja podcasts (two of my personal favorites!).
• BlackBerry Podcasts allow users to preview an episode before downloading or subscribing to it, and it automatically downloads new podcasts for subscribed channels.

In the above video, Ryan also discusses how to easily load media content you already own onto the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet using BlackBerry® Desktop Software. Stay tuned for more information on this and more in-depth previews of both apps in future blog posts!

Post a comment and let us know what you think of 7digital Music Store and BlackBerry Podcasts for the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet!

Like many people, I really enjoy listening to podcasts during my downtime, and I’ve often used my BlackBerry® smartphone to listen or view them. So I’m pleased to be able to tell everyone that BlackBerry® Podcasts is now available!

BlackBerry Podcasts gives users access to video and audio content, plus it makes the downloading process incredibly simple. One of my favorite things about this app is that it is completely mobile. I can search the catalog and grab the podcasts I want with just one click – no PC required.

Access a growing catalog of free audio and video feeds

The catalog has some great feeds and is growing every day. Get podcast favorites like The Onion or feeds from your favorite networks and shows.

It’s easy to find what you’re looking for

Go to ‘Explore Podcasts’ and scroll through the feature carousel to view top downloads, search via categories like news, arts, business, TV & film and more. You can even conduct a key word search if there’s something specific you want to find. What’s great about this feature is that as you browse the BlackBerry Podcasts catalog, your device will highlight which ones you already subscribe to. Once subscribed, podcasts are delivered automatically along with a notification to your BlackBerry smartphone so you can access them effortlessly.

Other reasons to love this new app

Apart from access to entertainment and the mobilized experience that allows me to enjoy nearly “anywhere, anytime” access (like the time I was stuck waiting over an hour and a half for an oil change – thank you, podcasts, for keeping me entertained!), there are a lot of reasons to love this service:

• Download episodes to be enjoyed offline or during downtime: Your favorite episodes are downloaded to your media card, you do not need to be within coverage to view your feeds
• Leverages push technology: You can benefit from push notification, and of course, it’s more battery-friendly
• Access BlackBerry “how to” videos: You can learn how to use your device directly from your device, covering a variety of common questions like how to use BlackBerry® Media Sync, how to manage Bluetooth® or how to mobile browse
• Opt to get the BlackBerry Connection®newsletter as a video podcast: Catch up on what’s new and popular with BlackBerry smartphones!

Control your download preferences

BlackBerry Podcasts was conceived with users in mind. In designing this service, it was important to consider that not all users have unlimited data packages and that the size of media cards vary. Therefore, the following download preferences are included in the ‘Options’ pull down menu:

• Choose delivery over WiFi or OTA or both – Manage your data charges by selecting download preference. Opt to download via WiFi only (the default), or WiFi and mobile network.
• Choose the number of episodes to retain – Manage your storage by choosing whether you only want to keep non-played episodes, the last 1-5 or 10 episodes, or choose to keep them all.
• Choose what and when to download – Choose to download either the most recent or all available episodes, or choose only to download episodes when you are charging your device.

BlackBerry Podcasts is available in US and Canada on BlackBerry App World™ and comes preloaded on all devices running BlackBerry 6. It is supported on the BlackBerry® Bold™ and BlackBerry® Storm™ series of smartphone devices; a microSD card is required for use with the BlackBerry® Pearl™, BlackBerry® Curve™ and BlackBerry® Tour™ series of smartphone devices. There’s more information available at www.blackberry.com/podcasts.

Give it a try and let us know what your favorite podcasts are!