# Earmark

> Earmark is a podcast player for iPhone, Mac and CarPlay built around playlists that follow shows and update themselves by rules. Optional voice memos after each episode. Subscriptions, playlists, favorites, progress and memos sync through the listener's own iCloud account. No account, no analytics, no tracking.

- Site: https://earmark.mingjerlee.com/
- Privacy policy: https://earmark.mingjerlee.com/privacy
- FAQ: https://earmark.mingjerlee.com/faq
- Support: info@mingjerlee.com
- Developer: Ming-Jer Lee (https://www.mingjerlee.com/)
- Platforms: iOS 26 or later, macOS 26 or later, CarPlay
- Price and App Store link: not yet published (coming to the App Store)

## What it does

A playlist follows the shows you choose and applies your rules: a time window (past N days, between two dates, or since the list was created), newest or oldest first, which show wins when two publish the same day, and keywords to keep or skip. Played episodes drop out. Episodes pinned by hand sit at the top and play first. When a followed show publishes, the list updates on its own and new episodes carry a New badge until the list is opened.

## Features

- Rule-driven playlists with a pinned head and New badges.
- Voice memos: an optional per-playlist prompt when an episode ends, plus a Record button on every episode page. Memos export as .m4a.
- Find shows by name (Apple's podcast directory via the iTunes Search API), by RSS feed URL, by OPML import, or on the Mac by importing the shows followed in Apple Podcasts (read-only).
- Sync through iCloud: subscriptions, playlists, favorites, played state, playback position, settings and memos. No Earmark account exists.
- CarPlay: Playlists, Shows and Favorites tabs; speed control on Now Playing; memo prompts are deferred while driving.
- Playback speed presets 0.75x, 1x, 1.25x, 1.5x, 2x, shared across shows and synced.
- Mark as played or unplayed; favorites; lock screen and Control Center controls.
- Feed Info page showing each show's RSS metadata and refresh diagnostics.
- Episode retention: each show keeps its last 90 days by default; per-show override; "Everything" keeps the full catalog. Played, favorited, in-progress, pinned and memo'd episodes are never pruned.

## Requirements

- iPhone with iOS 26 or later, or Mac with macOS 26 or later.
- Internet connection. Episodes stream; there are no offline downloads.
- iCloud signed in on each device for sync. Works on one device without it.
- Free, public podcast feeds. Feeds that need a login are not supported.

## Privacy summary

No account, no servers operated by the developer, no analytics, no ads, no third-party SDKs. Network connections go only to podcast hosts (feeds, audio, artwork), to Apple's iTunes Search API (search), and to the user's own iCloud private database (sync). The microphone is used only when the user taps Record. App Store privacy label: Data Not Collected. Full policy: https://earmark.mingjerlee.com/privacy

## Support

Email info@mingjerlee.com with the device model, OS version, and the feed URL if a specific show is involved.