iPhone Streaming Podcasts Keep Freezing

When you access Apple’s iTunes Store with your iPhone to play a podcast, you could have a problem with the podcasts freezing while they stream to your device. The iPhone accesses the Internet via Wi-Fi as well as cellular data networks, enabling you to stream audio podcasts and video podcasts. Streaming podcasts could freeze on your iPhone because of a problem with Wi-Fi or the data network.

Wi-Fi

The iPhone has built-in Wi-Fi capability, enabling you to connect to the Internet whenever you are in range of a Wi-Fi hotspot. If you begin streaming a podcast to your iPhone and then it freezes, it could be that you moved out of range of the Wi-Fi network. The Wi-Fi hotspot may have a problem as well, such as too many people connecting to it simultaneously, reducing the amount of available bandwidth. The Internet connection to the Wi-Fi hotspot itself may have a problem, interrupting the flow of data. Try connecting to another Wi-Fi hotspot, or switch to using a cellular data network.

Cellular Data Network

If the iPhone experiences a problem with streaming podcasts freezing while you are connected to the Internet via Wi-Fi and you cannot access another viable Wi-Fi hotspot, try accessing the Internet via a cellular data connection. Press the “Home” button on the iPhone, then tap the “Settings” icon on the home screen. Tap the “Wi-Fi” option to “Off.” Tap “General,” then tap “Network,” and then tap the Cellular Data option to “On.” Likewise, if you initially are having trouble streaming a podcast using a cellular data network, try switching to Wi-Fi.

Audio Podcasts

Apple’s iTunes Store offers a variety of audio podcasts, all of which are free for you to listen to. Podcast subjects range from news and sports to humor and education. Browse or search for a podcast, and then tap its name to see a list of episodes. Tap the name of a podcast episode to start streaming it. When you have problems streaming an audio podcast via Wi-Fi and cellular data networks, you can tap the word “Free” next to the name of an episode to download it directly to your iPhone.

Video Podcasts

The iTunes Store carries video podcasts, which like audio podcasts are available for you to watch for free. Video podcasts cover a wide variety of subjects, with interviews, commentaries, educational lectures and how-to lessons. Video podcasts are identified with a small icon of a TV next to their name. They require more data than audio podcasts, so if you are having a problem streaming a video podcast via Wi-Fi or a cellular data network, tap the word “Free” next to the episode’s name to download it to your iPhone. You’ll be able to watch it even when you can’t connect to the Internet.