Audible: Audio Entertainment

This is absolutely beautiful! Marvelous update and they have made this so much simplier to use. From my observation every area appears to be very accessible. For having an entire overhaul of the interface I am extremely impressed by the developers in making sure that it was redone in making sure it was fully accessible.

What's New in Version 2.0

We've optimized the Audible app for the iPad, and delivered a beautiful new design for the iPhone.

In addition to the new look and feel, this release improves your listening experience with:

• Improved Navigation: easier to user while on the go
• Simplified start up: sign-in with your Amazon account
• New Library filter: hide your finished titles from view
• Downloads on the go: download up to three hours of audio over 3G/4G
• Expanded compatibility: works with all iPad models

Update Requires: iOS v 5.0 or higher, iPhone 3GS or later, iPod Touch (3rd generation) or later.

Updated in this version:
- Chapter forward and chapter back buttons added: Tap on the play bar to activate buttons that will allow you to navigate to the next and previous chapters.
- News notifications: Our news section now alerts you when there are new items in your feed.
- BMW integration: Drivers of BMWs that support "BMW Apps" can access Audible directly from their vehicle (iPhone only).
- MINI integration: Drivers of MINIs that are "MINI Connected" can access Audible directly from their vehicle (iPhone only).

Minor Fixes
Updates to sleep timer, accessibility, iTunes audio playback, Whispersync, and audio content downloads.

I just updated to version 2.0.12 of Audible, and the app now crashes every time I try to open it. Anyone else have this problem? It's a shame because this version has some new features I would be very much interested in using, if I can ever get it to work.

I was able to get the new version to work by deleting and reinstalling it. I should have tried that before posting here. Must have been a bad download.

What's New in Version 2.0.13

• Long audiobooks are now downloaded as single-part files. However if you prefer the old multi-part way, you can change it back in “Settings.”
• The Lock Screen/Control Center controls can now skip 30 seconds forward/back instead of skipping full chapters. You can adjust this in “Settings.”
• When downloading parts in a multi-part book or a periodical/subscription, you can now see download progress in the main library.
• We added play/pause and 30 second back controls to “Add Note” feature within bookmarks. This is great if you want to transcribe audio in your note.
• The “iTunes” section, which is for audiobooks stored via the iTunes app, is now hidden if you don’t use this feature.

Audible was just updated to version 2.1 on my iPad. The Now Playing screen is arranged a little differently, but it remains fully accessible. If anything, the labels are clearer now.

The playback controls are a little different. You have three basic buttons, a pause button, a jump back button, and a jump forward button. By default, the back and forward buttons move a certain number of seconds, which is configured in the app settings. However, if you double-tap on the cover art image, the controls change to jump by chapter. You can double-tap the cover art again to go back to jumping by seconds.

Thanks to dvdmth for the heads up!

What's New in Version 2.1

• New App Design! App now has a brighter, more modern layout.
• The Player now features a 30-second forward button.
• Improved Search - Get more info on your next audiobook.
• Brand new Discover tab - Listen to audiobook samples and save titles for later.

I updated to version 2.2.1, which was released for iOS 8. I discovered that this version has a nasty VoiceOver bug which makes it difficult, but not impossible, to delete audiobooks from my iPad. The app had multiple updates recently, so it's possible the bug was introduced in a prior version, but I first noticed the bug in version 2.2.1. This is on an iPad, so the situation might be different on the iPhone and iPod Touch.

In the past, one can easily remove titles from the device by navigating to the title in question, swiping up to select Remove, then double-tapping. That method no longer works. To make things more confusing, there is now a Delete button announced by VoiceOver next to each title. Although visually to the right of each title on screen, VoiceOver announces the button before the book title when flicking through the list. Although seen by VoiceOver, the Delete buttons are not actually on screen, and double-tapping on simply causes the audiobook to start playing.

So, for a while, I though there wasn't a way to remove titles with VoiceOver. However, with some experimentation, I was able to figure out how to delete audiobooks successfully. I found two ways to do it, and I will list both. They mimic the procedure a sighted user would use, as I can confirm with my limited vision.

First method:
1. Navigate to the title you wish to delete. Ignore the Delete button seen by VoiceOver for the present.
2. While focused on the title, double-tap and hold.
3. When you hear the three rising tones, quickly swipe to the left. VoiceOver won't say anything, but this causes the Delete button to appear next to the audiobook.
4. Now flick left to the Delete button and double-tap it. You should now get the alert asking if you are sure you want to remove the item from your device.

Second method:
1. Near the top of the screen, directly above the list of audiobooks, there is a row of four buttons. The third button in this row is called Delete. Double-tap this button to enter a special edit mode.
2. Navigate to the title you wish to remove. You should find a button called Edit Mode between the title and author, although it appears visually to the left of the audiobook information on screen.
3. Double-tap the edit mode button. This causes the Delete button to appear. It also causes the VoiceOver focus to jump to a seemingly arbitrary spot on screen, at least on my iPad running iOS 8.
4. Navigate back to the title you're trying to remove, then flick left to the Delete button.
5. Double-tap to get the confirmation alert.
6. Optionally, go back to the Delete button at the top of the screen and double-tap it again. This will exit the edit mode and remove the extra buttons added by that mode. This Delete button is actually a mode toggle, though VoiceOver does not make it clear.

Obviously, the second method is more convoluted, but it can be done without the double-tap and hold gesture, making it possible to remove titles with a Bluetooth keyboard instead of the touch screen.

I will contact Audible about this issue. Hopefully they'll fix it in a later version so that titles can be deleted the normal way with VoiceOver.

What's New in Version 2.2.2

* Night Mode! Toggle between bright and night modes from the player menu.
* Bug fixes and app improvements.

Thanks so much for posting these two methods for deleting. I noticed this in a previous update and I've been struggling with it for weeks! I was just about to call Audible when I found your post.

I just updated to version 2.3 of this app on my iPad. The release notes mention improved accessibility, including deleting titles from the device.

Here is how a title is removed in the new version:

1. Press the Delete button near the top of the screen.
2. Navigate through the list of audiobooks until you find the item you want to remove.
3. Right after the book title, you will find a button labeled Remove. Double-tap this button.
4. You now get the familiar dialog asking if you are sure you want to remove the audiobook.
5. When finished, press the Delete button again at the top of the screen to finish deletion mode. The button is essentially a toggle switch which enters and exits deletion mode when tapped.

It would be nice if the app supported the more standard method of swiping up or down to select the delete command, like you used to be able to do in older versions of the app, but this method works well enough and is fairly straightforward. At least we no longer have a bunch of phantom Delete buttons throughout the list of audiobooks.

What's New in Version 2.3.1

• Fixed a crash loop in iOS6.
• From v2.3: Your “Me” section now syncs to the cloud! If you reinstall your app, you won’t lose your stats and badges; If you have multiple devices under
the same account, the stats and badges will combine.
• Improvements to Accessibility: Delete from library and switching to chapter forward/back.

A bug was introduced in version 2.5 and continues in the just released version 2.5.1. At least on my iPad Air, it is now impossible to delete audiobooks with VoiceOver enabled. I must turn VoiceOver off and perform the deletion the normal sighted way, which is a huge pain.

The delete button at the top of the screen still works, and activating it brings up the icons to the left of each audiobook in the list, but VoiceOver is unaware of these icons and will not announce or interact with them.

The process I must now do to delete audiobooks is as follows:

1. Have the triple-click shortcut set to VoiceOver, if it isn't already.
2. In Audible, activate the Delete button above the list of titles.
3. Find the audiobook I wish to delete in the list by touch, then move my finger directly to the left, all the way to the edge of the screen.
4. Triple-click the home button with my other hand, then tap the screen at the point where my finger is positioned, hoping to have the right spot.
5. Repeat the process, but this time do a tap at the far right of the screen. This is because tapping the delete button brings up a confirmation button at the opposite side of the screen, which must also be tapped.

I have partial sight and can figure this out with the Zoom function. I have no idea how I'd be able to manage this successfully if I couldn't see what the heck I was doing.

There is a forum thread on applevis regarding this. They are aware of the issue but have not fixed it yet. I'm surprised this is not a rank one high importance bug. It should be in my book.

What's New in Version 2.5.2

We’ve resolved issues experienced by a small portion of our customers who upgraded to version 2.5. These fixes include:
• App no longer crashes during book download and playback in the background.
• All bookmarks (even those missing after delete/reinstall) restored
• Voiceover bug: Ability to delete books from device restored
• Black screen upon app launch eliminated

...who's Audible app keeps refreshing with VO every 10 seconds. Whenever I try to navigate to a title I want to listen to, it takes me to somewhere in the middle of my library. Then, I essentially have to play beat the clock to find the book I want, and usually lose before it refreshes again, taking me right back to either the same mid-point, or the Cloud / Device tab. I saw that 2.5 was having issues, and thought upgrading to 2.5.2 would fix this, but it seems to have gotten worse.

Admittedly, I'm still on a 4s running 7. whatever, because I heard that IOS8's accessibility bugs make it not worth the software update if you still have a 4s. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, although I will probably grumble just a bit if my only solution is to get a new phone to work with 8.0 so that one of my apps will behave. lol

Thanks lots,
L

Hi, in an un-related thing somewhat, I have a 4s here and we upgraded it to iOS 8.3 and it seems to work fine in most cases. I haven't tried the audible app on it, but a whole lot of the bugs in earlier versions of iOS 8 have been squashed with the release of 8.3. so, if you feel like being a bit brave, try upgrading your iOS to 8.3 and see if you still have the same issues.

For you guys who are having the app refreshing constantly, are you using iOS 8.3? I'm using that and have never seen that behavior. Might be time to jump to iOS 8.3 if you aren't already.

Wow, this is awful. finally updated Audible on my iPhone 5S with 8.3 since I thought it was all fixed. Had to turn VO sounds off because it kept blipping while I was listening to a book. I definitely won't be updating on my iPad. It also seems super cluttered to me. I can delete books. Seems like all the bugs are not consistent. Crazy.

Hey all,

Thanks for the feedback.

As of now, my Audible app's been behaving weirdly all week. If it isn't refreshing constantly, it's going through periods of refusing to let me click on specific titles. It either does nothing, or bounces me back to some random mid-point in the library. And today, the app simply refuses to open. If I can't figure out a solution, I'll likely brave the update to 8.3 just to see what happens.

Does not work even with iOS 8.3. I still can not delete and refreshes. I can not delete a book that I finish reading and is taking space in my iPhone. Where do I go to let them have a peace of my little mind?

I guess I must be incredibly lucky, because I'm not experiencing any of these behaviors. I will say that it no longer confirms when you delete a book, it just does it. At first that confused me a bit but when I went back and looked at my library, I noticed the book was gone. I'venot noticed any focus issues with this version, although the last 2 updates were full of them. I sometimes had to close and re-open the app just so I could see the contents of my library. So...I'm not trying to say that you guys aren't having these issues, it's just that I'm not noticing them here. Have you guys thought about deleting, and re-installing the app? I'm sure some of you guys have, but maybe that might help? I know I did and I'm not experiencing any of this stuff.

Holger Fiallo.
I hope I can help. I've personally not experienced an inability to remove books, but what I can say is that the device will make the refreshing sound even after your book has been deleted. I've found that if you double tap the delete button after deleting the book, so hitting delete once to delete the book, and then again once the book has been removed, this refreshing sound will stop. I am presuming the delete button acts like a toggle, providing the ability to remove multiple books if the user wants to. Once the first delete button is activated and then deactivated this removes the appearance of the delete option underneath your titles. I hope this makes sense.

I'm getting so sick of this app. I'm too frustrated to go get the version number but I updated it this morning. The delete feature no longer seems to work. I reinstalled the app. That was one way to get rid of books. Downloaded a short book to test, cannot delete it. Thought I'd check with yawl since in the past, people have come up with crazy swiping tricks.

How can Audible disregard the freaking blind all the freaking time? I'm so frustrated.

In the latest Audible app, first tap the Delete button at the top of the screen, then look for delete buttons next to each audiobook. If you don't see any delete buttons, switch between the cloud and device tabs, then look again. You may have to do this a couple of times before they are there, but they should show up after a few tries.

I just did this in the latest version of Audible, which I downloaded yesterday. I agree that this needs to be fixed, but it's not as bad as it once was.

That's how it's been in the last several versions. But once I activate the delete buttons, they show up, but do nothing when double tapped. Maybe this is just another inconsistent breakage.

Here is their contact info.

http://www.audible.com/mt/contact-us

Although I have to warn you all, I contacted them about a similar issue last year re the iOs app and they never responded. I don't even think this issue was fixed, and it might have been this one. I would try again, then give up on audible. If they are unwilling and unable to fix the issue money talks, and they are not getting mine. Audio books, another wonderful and accessible app will get my money. Audible just lost a customer.