John Chidgey is an intelligent and qualified guy, regardless of whether he finds all of the details he discusses; which he may, I am not saying that he doesn’t. That last sentence was more applicable to my other favorite Podcast, which he also does. It is called Causality. If you have not, check it out. It has very in depth discussion of the engineering behind tragedies of things like train wrecks or buildings collapsing. I am about to graduate with mechanical engineering degree, and I’ve learned a fair amount of stuff from his podcasts. He helps with a lot of abstract theories and seeing things you would not often notice. Anyways, I just started listening to this one, and it seems good, although there isn’t as much detail from what I can tell; with that said, they have entirely different purposes so that should be of no surprise.

Nothing is as simple as it seems and John explores these beautifully. A great show exploring the practical applications of our technologies. Ps. John is my co-host on Bubblesort Show and Bubblesort TV @CWDaly Podcaster at Cybrcast, Bubblesort Show, Bubblesort TV, and Through My Lens with Clay Daly

John certainly adds his particular and passionate style to disseminate knowledge on a broad base of topics in a thorough way while being well supported by Ben. I recently heard this podcast show mentioned on another podcast and started at the beginning and have enjoyed each episode so far. I look forward to catching up to the rest of the audience. Thanks John & Ben for the episodes.

One of my favorite podcasts to listen to each week. The obviously well researched and knowledgeable host does a great job of making even complex topics fun to listen to and engaging. Highly recommended.

I’m really happy to have discovered this podcast. The topics offer a wide range of discussion on technology, and development concerns but thankfully begin with a review of where the ideas originated instead of covering just where we are today and manage to make sometimes pretty dry material quite engaging. The last episode (47) covering barcode and nfc/rfid tech provides a terrific summary of some of the technologies I deal with every day at work that I hadn’t taken the time to discover myself. I look forward to each episode now and highly recommend you give it a listen.

Absolutely love this podcast. The way John and his guests break down topics is fascinating, and I find I am always learning something new and interesting. I highly recommend this podcast for anyone who is curious not only about technology, but also the history and evolution of it. Even if you only listen to shows covering topics in your wheelhouse, it will be worth your while.

This is a podcast I look forward to every week. John is at his best when he deep dives into the history of a normally mundane technology (like his latest episode on barcodes). Love the show, absolutely worth listening to. I do find that the dynamics of rotating hosts, as opposed to traditionally rotating guests, can be a bit awkward, however it is a minor quibble in an otherwise great show. Keep up the great work, John!

John does an impressive job of being as accurate as possible, diving into subjects with a great deal of thought and research. I’ve learned a lot about things that I might not have been otherwise exposed to. John sounds great, speaks well, thinks carefully, and is unapologetically precise. He reminds me somewhat of Steve Gibson with an Australian accent in the care he puts into the show. I’d recommend this to anyone interested in learning something new. John relentlessly breaks down the discussion to basic principles and builds your understanding up to the point that you can grasp (if fleetingly) a new appreciation for the subject matter. I listen to 3 podcasts regularly: ATP (Accidental Tech Podcast) Back to Work Pragmatic Favorite personalities: John Siracusa Marco Arment Casey Liss John Chidgey Merlin Mann Dan Benjamin Steve Gibson

When I was young, my grandfather told me I should read a different magazine every month. When I got older, I realized the wisdom of his advice. By reading different trade or popular magazines, I got a broad base of knowledge on how different people see different things. You learn a lot as a ten year old reading an archeology magazine one month, and a car magazine the next month. Pragmatic is like listening to a different magazine every week. John Chidgey does a remarkable job of researching complex topics, giving you a lot of information and then drawing conclusions from that research. His recent episode on smart watches and power sources is a great example of this. John goes over the power generated by solar panels on watches, and thoroughly demonstrates why the Apple Watch could not be practically powered by such a panel. He takes a Pragmatic view of the world, and then helps you understand why things are the way they are. His new regular co-host, Vic Hudson, is a fantastic addition as a regular, understanding the flow and structure of the show, and asking smart questions at the right time. The bottom line is this: if you want to learn something new about how the world works every week, listen to Pragmatic. I even enjoyed listening to an hour and a half on whiteboards and markers!

This is just an awesome podcast! As an ME student it has really helped me broden my knowlage base. Even when they talk about some programing or more EE topics it is still easy to follow and learn on the way. Thanks!!!

Wonderful show having a broad range of topics and very informative.

Pragmatic brings its listeners a wide range of technological topics. It does a good job sticking to the theme of practicality. The hosts are all well-informed, and the information about researched topics in each episode is delivered effectively.

Really interesting and completely engaging, this podcast is like a high-end explainer for everything tech-related.

I really like the variety of topics and the non-trivial depth that subjects are delved into. I think some of the things can be tightened up a bit, but it’s not really a problem overall.

I first heard about you guys from CGP Grey! My only observation is the conversations are very much one sided. Other than that interesting topics.

If you are looking for a podcast that is technical and entertaining, this is the one. The host, John Chidgey, dives into technical topics discussing trade-offs and challenges. Although each episode covers a very different topic, John knows what he’s talking about every time.

For someone who thoroughly enjoyed the sheer density of information of Hypercritical (with John Siracusa and Dan Benjamin), Pragmatic is very entertaining. Topics are clearly well-researched, both hosts are good at explaining otherwise complicated concepts, and the show clearly respects listener feedback.

I subscribed with episode 3 and listened every week for a while but have ‘downgraded’ the show to a ‘sometimes’ listen. I don’t listen to the entire episode if I listen at all. The shows are too long for the amount of information in them, and Ben can be called a co-host in the way that the crust is an essential part of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. If it wasn’t there, you’d never know.

I love the amount of background and detail that John goes through. He really goes into great depth to make sure that the topic is well understood. I really appreciate the broad range of topics discussed. I also appreciate that John often tries to explain why tech decisions were made not just the results.

Pragmatic is an extremely insightful podcast with very intelligent hosts. I've listened to every episode, and each of them have provided me with at least a dozen new/practical pieces of information. Anyone who wants a brief overview of a wide range of tech topics should really give this podcast a listen.

If you liked John Siracusa’s incredibly in-depth approach to topics on Hypercritical, you will love Pragmatic: John Chidgey and Ben Alexander take topics from the iPhone to energy consumption and pick them apart in more detail than I would have ever thought possible. I’ve learned more from this show in the last two and a half months than from two semesters in college; I can’t recommend it strongly enough.

I have learned something on every episode I have listened to; which includes all of them so far. The podcast is entertaining and provocative. The pros and cons of the subject are always discussed. I would recommend this podcast to anyone interested in technology.

As an engineer myself, I really appreciate listening to this podcast and learning more about technologies I have not read up on. The show talks about the trade offs of design which is the essence of engineering.

Really enjoying this podcast so far. The topics are wide ranging, not just practical gadgets, but practical tech. Covering renewable, power grids, gadgets, home automation. Very well informed hosts are a huge plus.