Remember when Spotify finally landed in Australia and it was, like, the best thing ever? Well that was more than two years ago now and, since then, the music streaming world has changed. A lot.
For one thing, some artists (Taylor Swift, Thom Yorke, David Byrne, we’re looking at you) have pulled their music in a defiant fist-in-the-air against the model which doesn’t really properly compensate all the people who create the music we stream for a minimal fee (or for free if we’re willing to put up with ads).
And for another, the market has expanded with streaming services like Jay Z’s Tidal, Pandora, and Rdio capturing a portion of Spotify’s consumer and, now, there’s yet another contender in the race for our ears and it’s inarguably the biggest one. Apple Music, after months of anticipation, has final arrived and, just days after landing, it’s received overwhelmingly positive reviews.
Apple Music is offering new subscribers a three-month trial, so there’s no need to make a hard-and-fast decision about your streaming services just yet. But, come October, you’re going to start getting charged $11.99 a month for single service, or $17.99 for the family, so it is worthwhile to start thinking about where you make your playlists now. Here are a few things to consider:
- Apple Music has Taylor Swift
Still not over that ex and need to ‘shake it off’ because ‘we are never ever getting back together’? Send your money Apple’s way for access to Taylor Swift’s entire back catalogue — a privilege never awarded to Spotify users.
- Spotify has shared playlists
Once of the best things about Spotify is having the ability to collaborate on playlists. It’s so much fun and really a useful tool for music nerds. Apple Music do not offer this (yet) so if you’re a fan, stick where you are.
- Apple Music does discovery really, really well
Apple Music has literally hundreds of human editors making playlists for you to discover in the ‘For You’ section and, by all accounts, they are good. Very good. Spotify does have some human playlist curators as well as algorithms, but the results aren’t as good.
- Spotify is better on Desktop
Partly because it runs through iTunes, the Desktop user experience on Apple Music isn’t as good as that of Spotify so those playing at work may find themselves sticking to what they know.
- You can sync Apple Music with your alarm clock
Apple Music syncs with the clock app on your iPhone so you can wake up to any tune you like. Wake me up before you go, go.
- Spotify has a free offering
If you can stand the occasional ad, Spotify comes completely free. Apple Music doesn’t offer any free plans at all — not ideal for those who only log in to listen to the odd music craving.
- Beats 1 actually works
Beats 1 is Apple Music’s 24/7 radio station with a real live DJ team behind it. On the first day, service went down which really did bode well with their ‘Always On’ tagline, but since then users have reported it’s good listening and, possibly Apple’s main draw card.
- Spotify is established
In addition to Beats 1, there have been several bugs reported with Apple Music, as there is with any new tech service. Spotify has been around for years now and its 60 million users have helped to identify and iron out bugs so it’s pretty seamless streaming.
All in all, you won’t really lose out no matter what you decide (unless you’re a Taylor Swift fanatic). The services are very similar and the subtle differences will come down to personal preference and device. The race is on…
