iTunes 7.0.2 Special Report: Slow podcast, media downloads

Users have reported slow downloading of podcasts, non-specific to iTunes 7.0.2. It appears that most of the bottleneck occurs when Apple mirrors podcasts on its own servers.

Note that in many cases, the problems (when restricted to specific podcasts) are a result of bandwidth limitations on the server (outside Apple) delivering the audio file.

MacFixIt reader Eric Bendick writes:

"I'm the producer of the TERRA podcast which is available through the iTunes store. Downloading through the store is crawling at miserably slow speeds! Close to 3HRs for our 30MB episodes.  Meanwhile, we are able to download directly off our website in minutes! This proves it is not our servers but the software that is creating the bottleneck."

One reader writes:

"Jim Cramer's radio show is brutally slow.  However, it's been slow for a long time (month). I think it is related to where they store their podcasts and not having the proper bandwidth on the server."

Johnny Ring writes:

"Sometimes I can't download podcast at all. The download will often start but after a few seconds it stops and I get an exclamation mark to the left of the podcast. This happens with all the current podcast I subscribe to (dl.tv, MacBreak, Photoshop TV, GeekBrief.TV, Photoshop Killer Tips and TWIT)."

Index:

• Album by artist and year do work with iPod
• Audio distortion
• Crashes/quits while library is updating -- fixes
• Installation problems -- fix
• Language/country erroneously switched
• Long playlists, problems
• Playback problems (songs, videos will not play)
• Permissions changes in this release: Explanation
• Re-launches (uncontrollable)
• Podcasts stored on iPods not displayed properly in iTunes
• Release notes
• Reverting (downgrading) to iTunes 6.0.5
• Screen re-draw problems
• Slow podcast, media downloads
• Video stuttering: pauses, skips, etc.
• Volume Logic still incompatible

Resources