It’s hard to say which music streaming service is the best for everyone. Most of the popular choices available today have what you need: a huge library of music that you can pick and choose from, organized into playlists, download to listen to later, and play on multiple devices.
Most of them are also about the same price. Still, there are small but important differences in their features and philosophies that can help you decide which one will work best for you. To help people who are thinking about trying a new music app, we’ve spent the last few months using the most popular music streaming services at the same time, checking their limits and seeing how they respond to our input.
No music streaming service is perfect, but for many, Apple Music should come the closest to covering everything. It has more than 100 million songs in its library, all of which can be streamed for free in lossless, CD-or-better quality. Its user interface doesn’t make it too hard to get to your music library, and it strikes a good mix between useful algorithmic choices and smartly curated content from real people. It’s one of the few streaming music services that let you add your own music files, and it works well with Apple devices.
ALAC files from Apple Music have a minimum resolution of 16-bit/44.1kHz, which is the same as a CD. Up to 24-bit/192kHz, you can stream a smaller but still large number of files with higher resolutions. There are also a lot of records with Dolby Atmos surround sound mixes, also called “spatial audio.”
For most casual fans, lossless audio isn’t a big deal. To get the most out of it, you need a good set of wired headphones and an external DAC (or a good sound system), and the improvement isn’t so big that non-enthusiasts will notice. Still, a lossless file sounds better than a compressed one, even if the difference is small. This is especially true for how it brings out higher-frequency sounds from drums, strings, and other instruments.
Spatial audio, on the other hand, is more of a fun trick. It is amazing in terms of technology and can be really immersive at times, but it can also make a record sound less natural.
Compared to other music streaming services, Apple Music’s user interface works just fine. Overall, it puts more weight on human selection than competitors like Spotify or YouTube Music. It’s not as important as it used to be, and the “Listen Now” tab on the home page can give you a mix of hits and misses based on what you’ve been listening to recently.
Still, the service is full of smart playlists put together by editors. The default search page has tabs for different genres, and each tab has related playlists, music videos, and a list of “essential albums” that is usually right on the money. Artist pages usually feature a group’s most important works along with playlists of “deep cuts,” artists who likely inspired them, artists who were affected by them, and so on.
Streaming radio stations are one of the things that make Apple Music stand out. There is a regular rotation of shows that have conversations with artists and feel like they were made before the internet. On the main tabs, there is usually room to show off new releases that are getting a lot of attention, and you can find top charts for different countries and places.
All of this gives Apple Music a sense of style, making it something that can help you find music but gives more importance to a personal touch. Audio, on the other hand, is more of a fun trick. It is amazing in terms of technology and can be really immersive at times, but it is just as likely to make a record sound less natural.
Compared to other music streaming services, Apple Music’s user interface works just fine. Overall, it puts more weight on human selection than competitors like Spotify or YouTube Music. It’s not as important as it used to be, and the “Listen Now” tab on the home page can give you a mix of hits and misses based on what you’ve been listening to recently.
Still, the service is full of smart playlists put together by editors. The default search page has tabs for different genres, and each tab has related playlists, music videos, and a list of “essential albums” that is usually right on the money. Artist pages usually feature a group’s most important works along with playlists of “deep cuts,” artists who likely inspired them, artists who were affected by them, and so on.
Streaming radio stations are one of the things that make Apple Music stand out. There is a regular rotation of shows that have conversations with artists and feel like they were made before the internet. On the main tabs, there is usually room to show off new releases that are getting a lot of attention, and you can find top charts for different countries and places. All of this gives Apple Music a sense of style, making it something that can help you find music but gives more importance to a personal touch.
Read More:Â How to Watch the 2023 Super Bowl Online?
Aside from that, it’s easy to see your favorite artists, albums, songs, and playlists. You can look for songs by lyrics, and the lyrics view is great for impromptu karaoke sessions. It’s easy to make playlists and download albums to listen to when you’re not connected to the internet. You can also start a radio show with any song. Even though your imported music won’t be of lossless quality, being able to share music at all is a great thing for people with big iTunes libraries. Just remember that you can only add up to 100,000 songs that aren’t already in the app.
If you like classical music, Apple just released an app for it called Apple Music Classical. This app is included with most Apple Music plans. But booting these works into a different app is a bit of a pain.
Still, there are some problems. Apple Music has apps for Android, Windows, and web computers, but as of this writing, the Windows app is only available as a buggy “preview” and there is no lossless streaming in a browser. It works best with Apple products. Inexplicably, there’s no way to see a list of songs you’ve “loved” on the mobile app. There is also no free plan or annual family plan, and the price of the solo plan is $1 more a month than some competitors.