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Version History

The Verge
Apple
The Verge
Hoverboards
Streaming Services
Iphone 4
Television
Zune
Instant Messaging
File Sharing
AOL Instant Messenger
AOL
Power Glove
Flappy Bird
Antenna Gate
Music Industry
Google Glass
Copyright Law
Facetime
The Wizard
Video Games

Version History is a show about the best gadgets ever. And the worst ones. And the ones that might have changed the world, if they ever actually shipped. Every week, your favorite people from The Verge and beyond hang out to tell and debate the story of a gadget, app, website, or any other tech product, and try to determine the item’s true legacy. Because not every product is a hit, but every prod... more

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes27Foundeda year ago
Number of ListenersCategories
TechnologyHistory

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Latest Episodes

Clap on. Clap off. The Clapper may not have been a very good product, but it came with one of the all-time great marketing campaigns. And it might have even been a great, ahead of its time idea. The Verge's David Pierce and Victoria Song are joined b... more

The humble light bulb might be the ultimate success story in the smart home. Our connected, adaptable homes are supposed to be customizable, connected to everything, and incredibly easy to use, and nothing has made that work quite like Philips Hue li... more

The Keurig is a simple idea – what if it was really easy to make pretty good coffee, one cup at a time? — with a wildly complicated history. David Pierce is joined by Eater editor Melissa McCart and champion barista and author Morgan Eckroth to discu... more

Thermostats were ugly. Best case scenario, you never had to think about it. Then a couple of Apple legends decided they could make something better, and set out to turn changing the temperature into a high-tech experience. On this episode, David Pier... more

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Recent Guests

Allison Marsh
Historian of technology and past forward columnist
IEEE Spectrum
Episode: The Clapper: Light work
Richard Gunther
Editor at the Digital Media Zone
Digital Media Zone
Episode: Philips Hue: The smart home’s light bulb moment
Melissa McCart
Northeast editor at Eater
Eater
Episode: Keurig: The K-Cup invasion
Morgan Eckroth
US Barista Champion, creator and barista
Episode: Keurig: The K-Cup invasion
Colin Angle
CEO and co-founder of Familiar Machines and Magic, and co-founder of iRobot
iRobot/Familiar Machines and Magic
Episode: Roomba: Rise of the robovac
Matt Rogers
CEO of Mill, co-founder of Nest, invited guest on Harmony remotes episode
Mill; Nest
Episode: Harmony remote: Control freak
Tim Wu
Author and Columbia Professor, The Master Switch and The Age of Extraction
Columbia University
Episode: Western Electric 500: Monopoly phone
Hayden Field
The Verge reporter on tech and AI
The Verge
Episode: Amazon Echo: Always listening
John Gruber
Daring Fireball founder
Independent
Episode: Macintosh: All in one

Hosts

David Pierce
Host focused on tech history and design storytelling; frequent collaborator across episodes.
Nilay Patel
Co-host with deep industry knowledge and policy-informed perspectives.

Reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars from 192 ratings
  • Hit and Miss

    The quality and value of the episodes are highly dependent upon which guests David Pierce includes on his “panel” in each episode. Mostly the episodes with experienced, knowledgeable, and charismatic folks (e.g. Nilay Patel) are awesome, for example the Nest Thermostat episode, and it holds your attention and is very entertaining. Just as often, though, unfortunately there are episodes with vapid and clearly low—intelligence folks that make the episode very boring and uninteresting (e.g. the Cl... more

    Apple Podcasts
    3
    Walleye Ch0p
    United States23 days ago
  • Video Show, Not a Podcast

    The content is really good, but quite often this isn’t a podcast. The hosts will do things like play a video, or talk about physical objects in a way that the audience is clearly expected to be able to see video. I listen to other shows where they do a good job of keeping the video additive, but this show doesn’t do a good job of that. The audio only audience is often left in the dark.

    Apple Podcasts
    2
    PNW_Matt
    United Statesa month ago
  • Very interesting

    I like the podcast a lot, but some of the gadgets featured are boring in my opinion. I personally would like an episode on Google Project Ara. Otherwise great show. Would recommend.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    JosiahDunn
    United States4 months ago
  • This isn’t Decoder quit with “the questions”

    Love the podcast, truly. It’s super fun to learn more about tech history and David is amazing. My only gripe is with “the version history questions” not that they’re not valid questions but the emphasis put on them. This isn’t decoder. Find your own bit.

    Apple Podcasts
    4
    theotherallen
    United States4 months ago
  • Version History

    Cool topics, interesting guests, sucky hosts and stupid giggling

    Apple Podcasts
    3
    apple_user_pro
    United States4 months ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Guests bring strong expertise, but some reviews call for more balanced pacing or fewer nostalgia-based tangents.
Audiences appreciate deep dives into hardware history and design nuance.
Shows are praised for thoughtful analysis and archival context.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#108
United States/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#177
United Kingdom/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#196
Canada/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#94
France/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#162
Germany/Technology
Apple Podcasts
#188
Australia/Technology

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

The Clapper: Light work
Q: Did the Clapper change history?
Its patent and influence sparked later developments and cited references (even influencing Siri), so it did alter the trajectory of how people think about automated home controls, though not in a straightforward functional way.
The Clapper: Light work
Q: Was this peak anything for advertising or popularity?
Yes, peak advertising era as seen-on-TV, with memorable jingles that embedded the product in popular culture even as it faded in functional usability.
The Clapper: Light work
Q: Where does this product fit on the time matrix?
It sits as the right idea at the right time initially, then drifts toward wrong time as technology evolves, ultimately becoming a lasting curiosity rather than a sustained success.
Keurig: The K-Cup invasion
Q: Did this product change history?
Yes, it reshaped consumer coffee culture in the United States and popularized pod-based brewing, making the Keurig brand almost synonymous with home pod coffee, while also triggering ongoing debates about sustainability.
Keurig: The K-Cup invasion
Q: Was the Keurig remarkably good or remarkably bad?
The consensus was that Keurig was not aiming to be exceptionally good coffee, but rather extremely convenient and consistently decent, with the environmental and business strategies shaping much of its reputation as either good-enough or problematic.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
Gender Skew
Location
Interests
Professions
Age Range
Household Income
Social Media Reach

Frequently Asked Questions About Version History

What is Version History about and what kind of topics does it cover?

Version History offers thoughtful, agenda-free explorations of gadget histories, design philosophies, and the moments when once-hot tech either became foundational or faded. Episodes mix rigorous technical context with cultural and policy angles, featuring engineers, journalists, and historians who illuminate how products shaped consumer behavior, competition, and industry thinking. Noteworthy is the show's ability to connect hardware anecdotes to broader tech ecosystems, policy decisions, and evolving user experiences, making it useful for listeners who love both deep-dive history and the implications for modern products.

Where can I find podcast stats for Version History?

Rephonic provides a wide range of podcast stats for Version History. We scanned the web and collated all of the information that we could find in our comprehensive podcast database. See how many people listen to Version History and access YouTube viewership numbers, download stats, audience demographics, chart rankings, ratings, reviews and more.

How many listeners does Version History get?

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What are the audience demographics for Version History?

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How many subscribers and views does Version History have?

To see how many followers or subscribers Version History has on Spotify and other platforms such as Castbox and Podcast Addict, simply upgrade your account. You'll also find viewership figures for their YouTube channel if they have one.

Which podcasts are similar to Version History?

These podcasts share a similar audience with Version History:

1. The Vergecast
2. Decoder with Nilay Patel
3. Waveform: The MKBHD Podcast
4. The Talk Show With John Gruber
5. Upgrade

How many episodes of Version History are there?

Version History launched a year ago and published 27 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact Version History?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for Version History?

Rephonic pulls ratings and reviews for Version History from multiple sources, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, and Podcast Addict.

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What guests have appeared on Version History?

Recent guests on Version History include:

1. Allison Marsh
2. Richard Gunther
3. Melissa McCart
4. Morgan Eckroth
5. Colin Angle
6. Matt Rogers
7. Tim Wu
8. Hayden Field

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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