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5 Essential Technology Podcasts That Geeks Should Listen To

James Bruce 29-04-2012

technology podcastIf you’re reading this, I’m betting there’s a good chance you quite like computers, the Internet, or technology in general. A few weeks ago, Dave showed you 10 websites that all geeks should bookmark 10 Websites Geeks of All Stripes Should Bookmark We geeks know what we are and revel in our existence as our place in society grows ever stronger. We are geeks, we are proud, and we're not going anywhere. As the Internet becomes a... Read More . This week, I’d like to introduce you to 5 technology podcasts you should all add to iTunes. Some are new, some are old favorites – all are awesome.

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This Week in Tech (Audio & Video)

Of all the podcasts that come and go, TWiT has remained steadfast at the top of my favourites. Hosted weekly by Leo Laporte and guests, This Week in Tech is strictly all about the tech news that changes the industry. With endearing regulars like Brain Brushwood, John C. Dvorak and Patrick Norton, This Week in Tech began in April 2005 as a response to the cancelled G4 technology TV show The Screensavers, but TWiT has had its share of drama of its own.

Other ex-Screensavers members Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht went on to create the hugely successful Diggnation, in which Alex and Kevin presented the top Digg stories in their trademark “two guys on the sofa getting wasted” style. Diggnation has since finished, but Kevin makes occassional appearances on TWiT, and Leo Laporte has gone to create an entire network of This Week In shows, paving the way for podcasts and the slow death of traditional TV.

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Tekzilla (Video)

A bi-weekly video 30 minute podcast hosted by Patrick Norton, Robert Heron (also both ex-Screensavers cast) and the lovely Veronica Belmont. The Tekzilla show is a mixed bag of how-to’s, tech news, reviews and app round-ups. In fact, it’s a lot like what MakeUseOf would be in video form, so the chances are you will love it.

A variety of video quality feeds are offered, as well as one without the daily 2 minute tip sections if you prefer the long-form only.

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Tekzilla is a part of the Revision3 network, which also produces this next pick of mine…

Hak5 (Video)

Definately one for geeks only, Hak5 focuses on open-source hardware and software, network security and the homebrew scene. It’s hit and miss for me as I’m not a fan of the presenters, and I certainly don’t watch religiously, but it’s still a great way to discover obscure things to do with old hardware and has certainly inspired a few articles of mine.

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NPR: Technology (Audio)

5 Essential Technology Podcasts That Geeks Should Listen To npr technologyHailing from the UK, I don’t have much experience of NPR – I guess the BBC is our closest analogy. Regardless, I chose this weekly 30-45 minute audio collection of NPR stories related to technology as I’m a fan of another NPR sponsored podcast called Freakonomics (which isn’t technology related).

It’s not geeky as such, but certainly easy to understand and cerebral listening. As a collection of extracts from various NPR shows, there is no specific host or format.

Geekbeat.TV (Video)

Geekbeat is a daily short-form video usually no more than 5 minutes, each episode consisting of about 3 items of news, reviews, and tips; though some episodes will focus on a single theme like “how to avoid getting hacked on Twitter” or “Kickstarter projects to make your iPhone do more”.

Hosted by Cali Lewis, Geekbeat’s short form will appeal to some, but others find the outtakes and plugs to be distracting and unnecessary. Worthy of your consideration though.

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Upcoming: Technophilia (Audio)

A shameless self-promotional plug perhaps, but a firm favourite of mine none the less. Hosted by myself, Justin Pot and Dave LeClair, Technophilia is our weekly and opinionated take on tech news, as well as app, website or game picks for the week. We do use adult language though, so if a few f***s are not to your taste, please skip this one!

We’re new to this podcasting game, but if you’d like to hear some of your favourite MakeUseOf authors speak their minds about tech, and want to be there before we become world famous, then now is your chance! If you’ve got a specific topic you’d like us to tackle, we’d love to hear from you.

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If you’d rather not subscribe to these podcasts in iTunes, Stitcher Radio is a free website and mobile app that lets you stream 5,000+ audio podcasts and stations on demand.

Do you want even more podcasts? Fair enough:

Do you agree with my top 5? Do you think Technophilia should have been number 1? Did I miss one of your favourites? Let us know in the comments!

Affiliate Disclosure: By buying the products we recommend, you help keep the site alive. Read more.

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  1. majid hussain
    April 21, 2015 at 9:55 am

    or you could do the folowing in itunes, go to the podcast in question after you have subscribed, write click and copy podcast url it is an option! :)

  2. CraigC
    August 24, 2012 at 6:12 pm

    I have to give a big shout out to The Mike Tech Show. He covers a WIDE range of topics and is awesome to listen too... I learned of this when he was a finalist for a Podcast award a few years ago.

    He also does the Tech-Vets podcast. I can't stand to listen to this podcast because of Carey Holtzman. The first 15 episodes or so were really good small business tech, then it became the "Carey complain and rant show". Episode 19 (or so) was all about his crappy GMC Jimmy breaking down on the way to a clients home. They went off the air for a while, and I listened to the first episode back, but it was the same Carey ranting about how he was "let go" from the Computer America show...

    • stomp
      September 13, 2012 at 3:18 am

      pcradioshow.org; awesome show by a bunch of, ahem, veterans (can you say Assembler, DB2 and MVS? - they can...) who spend half the show talking about the latest news, mainly reviewing viruses and major consumer hw/sw releases. The other half of the show is call ins from people who have 'microsoft'; Then they start yapping about portable apps and DSL (both types) and you realize they know more that you will think you know. Whats refreshing is hearing hardcore computer experts talk like and to normal people. It has an NYC base so you get to hear people make fun of Queens - added bonus.

  3. Bryan of Pampanga
    June 10, 2012 at 10:42 am

    i really love listening to Technophilia... it's more open... topics like torrents and vpn... more power to your podcast Bruce, Justin... and Dave...

    • muotechguy
      June 11, 2012 at 8:20 am

      Thanks Bryan, we certainly don't censor anything ;)

  4. BongoFury
    May 4, 2012 at 11:51 pm

    I miss the geezers on Cranky Geeks! That was a real geek show since women only appeared every fifth or more episode. Just about everyone listed above except Ms. Lewis was a guest at some point. Where is MAKE in the above list?

    • muotechguy
      June 11, 2012 at 8:21 am

      My problem with the MAKE podcast is that episodes are terribly short and quite hit and miss. It seems like some more effort should go into make an actual show, rather than just a collection of youtube clips, you know?

      Absolutely miss cranky geeks. May have to start something myself!

  5. Brad Pitcher
    May 4, 2012 at 3:42 pm

    No iTunes in Linux, shouldn't Geeks be using Linux?

    • muotechguy
      May 4, 2012 at 3:44 pm

      Uhhh, no.

      • Brad Pitcher
        May 4, 2012 at 3:47 pm

        Well it makes me feel alienated. Just sayin.

        • muotechguy
          May 4, 2012 at 3:49 pm

          Geeks can use whatever OS they want ;)

        • Brad Pitcher
          May 4, 2012 at 4:00 pm

          Heh, of course. It just frustrates me when people offer solutions for one very specific piece of software. They could have provided simple RSS feeds that work with many music players on many platforms, but instead they excluded anyone who can't or chooses not to use iTunes.

        • Ivan Baptista Consulting
          May 4, 2012 at 4:28 pm

          Geeks should be using various OS simultaneously - such as your dual boot up Linux/Windows, and your preferred mobile/tablet OS

    • samanthaedwards
      May 4, 2012 at 4:26 pm

      dunno about linux, but no geek uses iTunes anyway. author is completely out of touch.

      • Brad Pitcher
        May 4, 2012 at 4:27 pm

        Exactly!

        • muotechguy
          May 4, 2012 at 4:33 pm

          Author is me. I use iTunes, and I am 150% certified geek. What's with this elitist attitude?

        • Brad Pitcher
          May 4, 2012 at 4:39 pm

          Oh that was just playing ;) I just find it frustrating when articles cater to one particular piece of software. It would have been much more diplomatic to provide RSS feeds which work on many music players and platforms including iTunes.

        • samanthaedwards
          May 5, 2012 at 7:14 pm

          geeks don't make ridiculous and impossible assertions like something being more than 100% (i.e. entirely and completely) anything.

          sorry, I can say I'm an astronaut, I can even claim to be certified as more of an astronaut than any astronaut can be.

          Regardless, I'm not an astronaut, and your writing proves that you are not a geek or even remotely aware of what being a geek is about.

          How about you quit trying to tell people what a geek should listen to and put 110% effort into learning what real geeks actually listen to. There are some good clues right here in these comments.

    • Adam
      May 4, 2012 at 7:29 pm

      Linux geeks F A in the A with Feed Flipper. It converts the iTunes podcasts into standard RSS feeds

      • Brad Pitcher
        May 4, 2012 at 8:03 pm

        Thanks Adam, a very useful comment. Please take notes, James!

      • muotechguy
        June 11, 2012 at 8:22 am

        for the record, technophiliapodcast.com provides both itunes and RSS mp3 feeds! ;)

  6. Tamaratamara
    May 4, 2012 at 2:36 pm

    World wide,

  7. Aidan
    May 3, 2012 at 9:53 pm

    No 5by5 podcasts? That's fishy

    • muotechguy
      May 4, 2012 at 9:21 am

      Hmm, I think I tried some of those once. Didn't really click for me.

  8. Gideon Waxfarb
    May 1, 2012 at 12:54 am

    I haven't listened to any of these except for TWiT, and TWiT is absolutely dreadful. Last time I tuned in, it took them 12 and a half minutes to get to anything even remotely tech related. Who wants to listen to Leo LaPorte sit around and shoot the sh*t with a revolving door of journalists and other tech tards? I'm amazed that anybody takes this guy seriously.

    On the other hand, Tech News Today is at least halfway decent. The TNT crew spend way too much time trying to analyze patent disputes and other things that they have absolutely no expertise in, but unlike TWiT, the fluff is kept to a minimum.

    • muotechguy
      May 1, 2012 at 9:36 am

      Meh, fair enough. I can't stand the presenters for TNT, so lifeless. I like my "tech tards" to have character behind them, not just mindlessly read the news that I get in my RSS reader. I guess I like the fluff!

      Still, it's testament to the network Leo founded that they have a broad range of shows to cater for all our needs!

      • Gideon Waxfarb
        May 1, 2012 at 10:20 pm

        You know, I listen to NPR's 'Morning Edition' every day, as do a lot of people, and I've never heard any complaints about it being too dry, and the same holds true for other mainstream news sources. I've never heard anybody say, 'You know... those broadcasters on CNN just don't have any character ...'

        Yet when it comes to tech, people seem to insist on having a dog & pony show to go along with the news, for whatever reason. Sure, I guess TWiT is a nice supplement for RSS feeds, but if we actually had a DECENT tech podcast, we wouldn't NEED the RSS feeds. TNT is sort of that, only if they would just present the news, and not spend an inordinate amount of time with BS like, 'Gee... Google just bought Motorola. What does this mean? Here is the revolving tech tard journalist of the day to give us their uninformed opinion about this acquisition ...'

  9. keith
    April 30, 2012 at 2:51 pm

    I am "Definately" not a fan of the author's attention to proofreading.

    • James Bruce
      May 1, 2012 at 9:39 am

      Wow. So soz. Me edita musta missed dat to.

      • Dave LeClair
        May 1, 2012 at 8:05 pm

        I lol'd

  10. votre
    April 30, 2012 at 11:59 am

    I'd include Jupiter Broadcasting's TechSnap and Linux Action Show. TechSnap in particular if you're an ubergeek responsible for maintaining business and enterprise class networks.

    • James Bruce
      May 1, 2012 at 9:39 am

      thanks for the input, votre!

  11. Terry
    April 30, 2012 at 12:49 am

    Another great resource that I use and enjoy is jupiterbroadcasting with Tech Snap and The Linux Action Show. Those two are my favourite technology shows.

    • James Bruce
      May 1, 2012 at 9:39 am

      Unless you;re the same person posting again, these shows must be good!
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