Most popular podcasts of 2014

December 28, 2014

I produced a lot of podcasts last year. Probably over 200 shows spanning 300 or more hours. We don't post all of them here at iMore anymore, but for much of the year they did, and they all embody the spirit we try to bring to iMore — that all this technology is by and for people, and it's the people that really matter. Out of all of those shows, I could never pick any favorites. Every time I'd try, I'd be reminded of another, and another, and find myself in an endless loop. So, I figured I'd see which ones appealed to you, our listeners, the most. According to the download numbers, and recognizing that's just one metric, here are our most popular podcasts of 2014.

5. Vector 59: Dave and the Canadians

Midway through the year we changed the format of our technology interview show, Vector. We needed a panel format that was less dependent on finding guests, and we wanted to focus more on the human side of the story. So, we enlisted a designer, a developer, and a therapist, and the rest is history... in the making. With over 40K downloads, the one with the title that sounds like a Barenaked Ladies cover band seems to have resonated the most.

We talk about how we chose our new iPhones — except for Guy who just downloaded iOS 8 — and what we think of them, iPhone scalpers and questions of racism, U2's supposed plans to bring back albums and fight piracy, Apple's new security and privacy policies and possible government backlash, and which of us secretly wants a gold Retina MacBook Air...

Vector 59: Dave and the Canadians

4. Iterate 74: Designing for iPhone 6 and Apple Watch, with Kawano, Sinclair, and Wiskus

Following up Apple's hottest event of the year made for the hottest Iterate of the year. At 60k downloads it showed that designing for displays and experiences both smaller and larger were suddenly on everyone's mind.

Apple has announced the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, Apple Pay, and the Apple Watch. What does it all mean for designers? Former Apple UI Evangelist and Storehouse designer Mark Kawano, Jared Sinclair, and Vesper's Dave Wiskus talk it out with Marc, Seth, and Rene.

Iterate 74: Designing for iPhone 6 and Apple Watch, with Kawano, Sinclair, and Wiskus

3. Review 13: The Terminator

One of the greatest cult classics of the 1980s made for our most popular episode of Review this year — The Terminator. 75K of you enjoyed reliving it with us, which means it will most definately be back.

Don, Matt, Guy, and Rene talk The Terminator. It's a post-apocalyptic trip through the original and T2, with a dash of T3, T4, and Sarah Connor Chronicles thrown in for good measure. So how does James Cameron's genre-defining 80s flick hold up today? We absolutely, positively will not stop until we've talked it to death!

Review 13: The Terminator

2. iMore show 396: The WWDC 2014 lottery

Maybe it was pent-up demand for new Apple products, or maybe there was some whacky glitch in the matrix, but with over 100k downloads, our most popular iMore show of the year was the episode on Apple's WWDC 2014 announcement.

Rene and Peter speculate about the just-announced WWDC 2014 — iOS 8, OS X 10.10, potential new MacBook Airs and Mac minis, Apple TVs and a Game Store, iWatch, and more!

iMore show 396: The WWDC 2014 lottery!

1. Debug 47: Melton & Ganatra episode I: Demoing software to Steve Jobs

A love letter from former directors of internet technologies and iOS apps, sensationalist media tried to twist it into an anti-Apple story and failed. With over 105K downloads, our most popular Debug — and podcast — of 2014 showed that hard work really does matter. (All told, 5 episodes of Debug hovered around the 100K mark this year, including the Nitin Ganatra trilogy and Swift round table.)

Don Melton, former Director of Internet Technologies at Apple, and Nitin Ganatra, former Director of iOS Apps at Apple, talk about presenting to Steve Jobs, web vs. native, implementing gestures, the importance of affordances, and more.