Introducing Sonarpad for iOS and Android: a light app to read documents, check news, subscribe to podcasts, listen to radio stations, and much more!

By Ambro, 9 June, 2026

Forum
iOS and iPadOS

Hello everyone, dear AppleVis community.

I would like to present my project Sonarpad, which is now also available on iOS and Android.

After creating Sonarpad for Windows and Mac, which you can find on the website https://sonarpad.com, I have finally brought my ideas to the mobile world too. These ideas have already had very good success.

At the moment, the iOS version is still in beta, but it has already been tested by many Italian testers. For this reason, I am happy to share it with you too.

Sonarpad is a light app, but it has many features. You can read documents and books, and also edit them. You can read news, subscribe to podcasts and listen to them, with an automatic bookmark that starts again from the point where you stopped.

You can also check movies that are now in cinemas or coming soon, and listen to the trailer. Sonarpad also has route search, weather, calendar, and a file converter, which can convert audio and video files into different formats.

By default, the app divides these icons into categories, so everything is more organized and easier to find.

You can also share any file, document or media file with Sonarpad and play it inside the app.

The Sonarpad player lets you go forward and backward during playback. You can also choose how much time to skip. By default, it skips one minute. For video files, you can also turn the video on or off.

I know that, at first, it may seem like many features for one app. But this was exactly the idea of Sonarpad: to bring many features together in an accessible and simple app.

Sonarpad for Windows and Mac has already been downloaded all over the world.

At the moment, Sonarpad Mobile is translated into Italian, English, French and Spanish. More languages will be added in the future, depending on users’ requests.

For example, Sonarpad for Windows has also been translated into Polish, Portuguese, Swedish, Czech, Chinese, Hindi, and other languages.

After this short presentation, here are the links to try the app.

iOS:
https://testflight.apple.com/join/DDcsg87N

Android:
https://sonarpad.com/Sonarpad-android-apk.zip

Best regards,
Ambro

Options

Comments

By Merlin on Saturday, June 20, 2026 - 14:50

Hello!
First of all, congratulations on the app, both in the iOS and Windows versions. I have tested it on both platforms and really liked it, especially the many features for the small size of the app.
However, I noticed that the Portuguese translation in the IOS version has some errors:
1. In the podcasts window, the categories and countries are in Italian;
2. In the documents window, the button to write a new document is in Spanish.
3. In the project Gutenberg window, when importing a book, the button to import is in Spanish.
4. Still in the same Gutenberg window, when clicking to import a book, it says "Importando..." Which is not wrong, but in European Portuguese we tend to use "A importar...".
Another error I noticed, or maybe it's not an error, is that when I import the OPML file into the podcasts, it doesn't let me select the file. That is, the window to choose it opens, and it appears, but I can't select it because the voice over says the file title and says it is disabled.
Now, a question. Do you have plans to add more voice engines in the future? If so, which ones?
Continue the excellent work.
Best regards.

By Ambro on Saturday, June 20, 2026 - 19:57

Hi Merlin,
thank you very much for your message and for your kind words.
I have checked the problems one by one and I have fixed them for the next version.
The Portuguese localization has been improved in the podcast window, in the documents window, and in the Project Gutenberg window. I also changed “Importando...” to “A importar...”, which is better for European Portuguese.
About OPML import in podcasts: the problem was probably caused by the iOS file picker filter. The app was asking iOS to show only OPML/XML files, but in some cases this could make the file appear as disabled and not selectable with VoiceOver.
From the next version, you will be able to select any file. Then Sonarpad will check the file internally. If it is not a valid OPML or XML file, Sonarpad will show a clear error message.
About voice engines: in the future I may consider adding more voice engines, but only if they are reliable, accessible, and do not create problems with privacy, app size, or performance.
Thanks again for your very useful feedback.
Best regards,
Ambrogio

By Merlin on Saturday, June 20, 2026 - 22:54

Hello.
Thank you very much for your quick response.
I just noticed two more small translation errors, this time in the settings:
1. Where it says "Velocidad de lectura," the correct term is "Velocidade."
2. “Tono” is in Spanish; the correct term is “Tom.”
And thank you again for the app—it’s been very useful, especially the text-to-speech and audiobook conversion features. I even considered subscribing to the Eleven Reader Ultra plan, but after seeing the negative user feedback and the issues with the app, I thought twice before going ahead with it.
As for voice systems, I have no doubt that sooner or later Google will release something like this for Chrome using Gemini technology and its wonderful voices, and we’ll be able to have voices just like the ones we have on Edge... Well, I might be talking nonsense, but dreaming is still free for now.

By Ambro on Sunday, June 21, 2026 - 05:57

Hi Merlin,
thank you again for your feedback.
I have fixed the terms you reported in the settings, including “Velocidade de leitura” and “Tom”.
I also checked the Portuguese translation more widely and corrected other Spanish-looking terms that were still present, such as “Suscríbete a podcasts”, “Mover hacia arriba”, “Mover hacia abajo”, and others.
These corrections will be included in the next version.
Thanks again for helping me improve the Portuguese translation.
Best regards,
Ambrogio

By Michal Suchy on Sunday, June 21, 2026 - 07:47

Hello. Can you add renaming podcasts? Thanks, Michal.

By Ambro on Sunday, June 21, 2026 - 13:24

Hi Michal,
thank you for the suggestion.
Yes, this is technically possible. I think the best way would be to add a custom local name for a podcast, without changing the real podcast title from the original feed.
At the moment, this is not a priority, because I am focusing on other improvements and fixes. However, I will keep this idea in mind for a future version.
Thanks again for your feedback.
Best regards,
Ambrogio

By Michal Suchy on Tuesday, June 23, 2026 - 22:04

hello. Can you make it so that when I find a podcast, I go down to subscribe podcast and confirm the subscription, so that it stays on that podcast when it announces that the podcast is subscribed? When I confirm a podcast, it opens up and I have to go back and I have to search for podcasts again and I can't subscribe to another podcast right away. Thanks, Michal.

By Michal Suchy on Tuesday, June 23, 2026 - 22:06

Hello. Can Sonarpad announce new episodes in subscribed podcasts and new articles in subscribed rss feeds? if not, can you add it? Thanks, Michal.

By Ambro on Tuesday, June 23, 2026 - 23:30

Hello Michal,

thank you for your message.

About podcasts: I understand what you mean. It is not really an error. At the moment, when you subscribe to a podcast, Sonarpad opens that podcast automatically.

But I understand that this can be uncomfortable, because if you want to subscribe to more podcasts, you have to go back and search again.

I will try to improve this. After subscribing, Sonarpad should stay in the podcast search list, so you can subscribe to other podcasts more easily.

About notifications: at the moment Sonarpad does not announce new podcast episodes or new RSS articles automatically. I will think about adding this feature in a future version.

Thank you for your suggestion.

Best regards,
Ambrogio

By Trenton Matthews on Wednesday, June 24, 2026 - 01:57

Considering that Google may take its suite time adding your app to the play store, have you considered adding it to either the Up to Down App Store or the Apptoide App Store?

At least, those are ones I can safely consider as Reputable alternatives these days.

PS. Not comparing app stores folks, just mentioning them for inclusion.

By Ambro on Wednesday, June 24, 2026 - 11:02

Hello,
thank you for your suggestion.
Yes, I think Uptodown could be a good alternative store while waiting for Google Play. I may also evaluate Aptoide later.
However, because Android will introduce new developer verification rules from September 2026, I think the main official source for Android should be Google Play, when Sonarpad is available there.
In the future, I would like to keep the download sources clear and safe: Google Play as the main source, and maybe Uptodown as an additional official mirror.
Thank you for the idea.
Best regards,
Ambrogio

By Trenton Matthews on Wednesday, June 24, 2026 - 23:22

No problem!

By kool_turk on Thursday, June 25, 2026 - 06:13

In the Windows version of Sonarpad, you can sort podcasts into alphabetical order. On the iOS version, not sure about Android, you have to choose exactly where you want the podcast to go.

That’s fine if you know where everything is, but I like being able to sort things alphabetically. If I want a custom order, that’s easy enough to do on Windows. I usually just move something to the very top or very bottom, depending on where it needs to go in the podcast list.

The same thing could apply to favourites as well. I’ve finally managed to get my radio favourites sorted into alphabetical order, although I had to do it manually. Lucky for me, I don’t have many radio favourites at the moment.

I’m also curious about one of the buttons in the Podcasts section. Basically, if you scroll all the way down to the bottom, past all the podcasts, you get import and export to OPML, and then there’s another button that says something along the lines of “import audio from iTunes / Apple devices.”

I know what that button is probably meant to do, but it is also showing up in the Podcasts section. So I’m guessing it imports podcasts from iTunes as well. It has been a while since I used iTunes for podcasts, so I could be wrong.

For anyone wondering, yes, iTunes is still a thing on Windows. Go figure. I used to use it for podcasts, but iTunes on Windows does not support podcast chapters, so I moved away from it. These days I’m using Sonarpad for podcasts, and some podcasts do have chapter support, which is great.

The iOS version of Sonarpad, however, does not seem to have chapter support, unless I’m missing something. So if there’s a section you want to hear, you have to remember the timestamp and use Siri to jump to it. Luckily, Siri does let you do that. Yes, even the dumb Siri can do that.

Speaking of scrolling, scrolling in Sonarpad on iOS is a pain. Just saying. A four-finger single tap near the bottom of the screen does not jump straight to the bottom. It feels like it only scrolls page by page.

Can you imagine trying to get to Turkey in a long list by doing a four-finger tap over and over until you finally reach the T section, and then slowly flicking right from there? Some of these controls are just weird. I don’t know if that is a Sonarpad issue or something else, but it definitely does not feel like normal iOS behaviour.

As far as I understand it, a four-finger single tap near the bottom of the screen should be the equivalent of Control End on Windows, and a four-finger tap near the top should be like Control Home. I think I’m getting that right. Someone can correct me if I’m wrong. Either way, the scrolling feels weird.

The Routes section is also useless for me at the moment because I’m in Australia, and Australia is not supported. Ideally, routes would pull from Google Maps or Apple Maps. I’d probably use Apple Maps because it is already there, but honestly, Apple Maps still feels a bit clunky to me. I haven’t used Google Maps in quite a while, but the last time I used it, it felt easier to use.

One other thing: I tried looking for Sonarpad in the App Store, but I couldn’t find it in Australia. Maybe that’s because I’m using the TestFlight version, but I don’t think that should matter. I was able to find Ramblio in the App Store even though I was also using the TestFlight version of Ramblio back when it was still in beta.

So I’m just curious whether Sonarpad is actually available in the Australian App Store or not.

Anyway, speaking of Ramblio, I think I’ve rambled on enough.

By Ambro on Saturday, June 27, 2026 - 22:45

Hi kool_turk, thank you very much for your detailed feedback.
I checked, and Sonarpad should also be available in the Australian App Store.
https://apps.apple.com/au/app/sonarpad/id6773411885
About your suggestions: in the next version, it will be possible to sort subscribed podcasts and radio favourites alphabetically. I have also added podcast chapters support, similar to the Windows version.
For long lists, I added faster navigation buttons, for example choosing a letter in country/category lists, and choosing a date in podcast episode lists.
Finally, Australia has been added to the Routes section, together with other useful countries such as the United States, Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom.
Best regards,
Ambrogio

By Maldalain on Sunday, June 28, 2026 - 04:12

Hoping for more features on the MacOS app. Also the Windows version has not been updated for a while.

By Ambro on Sunday, June 28, 2026 - 09:27

Hi Maldalain,
I already answered about this. In the last months I worked on the mobile version, because many blind people today do not have a computer.
The goal of Sonarpad is to help as many blind people as possible. So, after many intense months of work on Windows and Mac, I thought it was not bad to take a small break from them and work for blind people who find computers too difficult and only use a mobile device.
In any case, the Mac update is almost ready, and the Windows update is also planned. So the project continues.
Please remember that I am a single developer, not a team, so I have to manage the work step by step.
Best regards,
Ambrogio

By Maldalain on Sunday, June 28, 2026 - 11:47

Perfect work, much appreciated.

By Ambro on Sunday, June 28, 2026 - 15:03

Thank you, Maldalain, for your kind words.
If you have any comments about Sonarpad for iOS, Mac, or other versions of the app, please let me know.
Best wishes,
Ambrogio

By kool_turk on Friday, July 3, 2026 - 00:48

I think Sonarpad may have a cache problem, or at least some kind of storage issue.

I have always preferred backing up my phone using my computer instead of relying only on iCloud. I do use both, but the computer backup is the one I trust more. Since installing Sonarpad, though, my backups have gone from just under 2 GB to well over 5 GB. My current backup is around 13.5 GB.

Now, if it works anything like the Windows version, podcasts are not really being streamed in the usual sense. On Windows, Sonarpad downloads the podcast into a cache folder and then plays it from there. That is fine, but the problem is that there does not seem to be an easy way to clear that cache.

On Windows, you can manually go to `%appdata%\Sonarpad`, find the podcast cache folder, and delete it. That is relatively safe, but not every computer user is going to know how to do that, and some people will not feel comfortable poking around in AppData folders. It is not the same as editing the Windows registry, obviously, but it still feels like something the average user should not have to do manually.

There really needs to be an easier way to clear Sonarpad’s cache on Windows, iOS, and possibly Mac as well. For podcasts, there could simply be a “Clear podcast cache” button in the podcast section of settings. But it would need to actually clear the cache properly. I have seen plenty of software where a button claims to do something, but when you test it, nothing actually happens.

This matters because if Sonarpad stores a lot of cached data, it can make phone backups much larger than expected. For anyone using the free 5 GB iCloud plan, that becomes a problem very quickly. I am on the free iCloud plan myself, and that is how I noticed this issue in the first place.

At the moment, my iCloud backups do not include Sonarpad for this reason. Please consider adding a proper cache-clearing option, especially for podcasts.

By Ambro on Friday, July 3, 2026 - 06:48

Hi Kool_Turk, thank you for your report. I know that you listen to many podcasts, so I understand that this problem can be bigger for you. I will work on this issue right away, and it will be fixed in the next version, which will be released very soon.
Best regards,
Ambrogio

By kool_turk on Thursday, July 16, 2026 - 05:54

I don't remember whether I've posted this before, or whether it's simply been that long since I last mentioned it, but sorting your favourites doesn't stick.

I added a radio station, and it was placed right at the bottom of the list. I manually sorted the favourites into alphabetical order, but as soon as I backed out of the favourites screen, the station was back where it started at the bottom. So I'm not sure what's going on there.

I also noticed that the Windows version doesn't have the Internet Archive. Is that planned?

I'm assuming the two apps must use separate codebases or something, because otherwise I would have expected the Internet Archive to be included in the recently updated Windows version.

By Ambro on Friday, July 17, 2026 - 07:34

Hi kool_turk, thank you very much for your feedback, I will make sure to correct it for the next version of Sonarpad for Iphone. As for internet archive on the other hand, ok, I will integrate it on Windows. Each codebase is separate, and that's why every feature on Iphone, if I want to port it, say to Windows or Mac, it has to be rewritten for that platform.
Kind regards,
Ambrogio

By Ambro on Friday, July 17, 2026 - 07:37

Hello everyone, for those of you who use Sonarpad for Mac, I would like to inform you that I have just released a major update, which brings many features to this platform as well, as well as new translations of the program. I leave you with the changelog.
Version 0.3.1 - July 16, 2026

- Fixed an issue that prevented Sonarpad from starting when the Radio menu contained favorites, due to invalid wxWidgets menu identifiers.

- Sonarpad is now also available in French, Spanish, Portuguese, Czech and Polish, in addition to Italian and English.

- Added a separate News language setting. This setting is independent of the interface language and allows Sonarpad to use news sources and services tailored to the selected language.

- Added the Weather feature, which lets you search for a city and check current conditions, temperature, precipitation, wind and humidity, as well as forecasts for today, tomorrow or another day.

- Added the Movies in theaters section, with films currently showing, upcoming releases, plot summaries, release dates and, when available, links to trailers.

- Added an accessible calendar to the Tools menu. You can select any date, check holidays, the saint and quote of the day, create reminders and add appointments directly to macOS Calendar.

- Added the Route search feature, which can calculate walking, cycling, driving or wheelchair-accessible routes. You can choose the fastest or shortest route and view the distance, estimated duration and detailed directions.

- Added the Convert media feature, which supports converting audio and video files to several formats, including MP3, M4A, M4B, MP4, AVI, MOV, Opus, OGG, FLAC, WAV and AIFF. You can also create a video from an audio file and an image.

- Added the Speech dictionary. You can define words or expressions that the speech synthesizer should replace while reading, making it possible to correct pronunciations, abbreviations and particular names.

- Expanded the Articles section with Recent articles and Share commands, allowing you to quickly return to recently read content and share articles through the services available on macOS.

- Added Add a news source to the Sonarpad community and Sonarpad community news sources to the Articles menu. You can submit an RSS feed or news website and import sources shared by other users. Sources are added and displayed according to the selected News language.

- Improved news source management. Changing the News language now loads the appropriate default sources without removing sources added personally by the user.

- Expanded radio search with browsing by language, country and city, including complete and localized country names.

- Added the ability to submit a radio station to the Sonarpad community by specifying its name, stream address, language and genre.

- Added radio recording and scheduled radio recording. These actions are available both in search results and favorites, and recordings are saved directly as MP3 files. After opening a radio station, recording can also be started by pressing the letter R.

- Added a list of recently opened text documents to the File menu, making it easier to reopen them quickly.

- Added Read-only mode, which is useful for reading a document without accidentally modifying it.

- Added Book contents for EPUB files that include a table of contents. You can select a chapter and move directly to it.

- Added the option to choose between high-quality Microsoft voices and macOS system voices.

- Added an option to ignore pauses caused by empty lines while reading.

- Added a setting for choosing how many seconds to move forward or backward during media playback.

- Improved the accessibility of windows, menus and controls, with more consistent handling of focus, Enter, Escape and keyboard shortcuts.

- Improved the localization of messages, buttons and confirmation dialogs in all supported languages.

- Fixed an issue that prevented media files from being displayed in the player’s video window.

- Fixed numerous issues affecting stability, media playback, scheduled radio recordings, source management and compilation on macOS.

- Special thanks to Leonardo Graziano, Luca Maianti and the Italian Tecnologia Accessibile group for their continued support and ongoing beta testing.

By Maldalain on Friday, July 17, 2026 - 07:56

Huge thanks to the developer of SonarPad. It's amazing to see what one independent developer has managed to do for VoiceOver users—something Apple still hasn't fully delivered.
With the latest updates, SonarPad has become my go-to reading app on the Mac. The improvements are genuinely appreciated, and it's even more impressive knowing this is the work of a single developer with limited resources.

By Maldalain on Friday, July 17, 2026 - 08:10

I downloaded the Mac updated version and it works great. Still waiting for bookmarking and commenting features to be included. Many thanks again.

By Ambro on Friday, July 17, 2026 - 12:35

Hi, with the new Windows update you will find Internet archive, Librivox and Progect Gutenberg. It will also be ported to mac in an upcoming version.

By Ambro on Friday, July 17, 2026 - 12:38

Hi Maldalain, thanks for the compliments. Gradually all features will be ported to all supported operating systems. I am glad that Sonarpad is useful for you and that it fills a gap that Apple so far has not addressed. I would also add that Sonarpad does ocr of unreadable pdfs, and to do this it uses the Mac's Api, which however Apple does not allow voiceover users to use easily.