Is Apple Music good for Android?
Apple Music is Apple’s music and video streaming service that debuted in June 2015. It allows users to stream over 90 million songs, listen to radio stations, watch music videos and more. Originally only available on Apple devices like the iPhone and iPad, Apple Music launched on Android in November 2015, expanding its availability to a much wider audience.
Apple Music on Android provides Android users access to Apple’s vast music catalog and many of the same features enjoyed by iOS users. But how does the Android experience compare to using Apple Music on iPhone or iPad? Let’s take a closer look at the pros and cons of Apple Music for Android.
Interface and Design
The Apple Music app for Android has a clean, minimalist design that looks and feels very similar to the iOS version. According to users on Reddit, the Android app’s interface is “gorgeous” and the design is “light years ahead” of competitors like Spotify in terms of aesthetics.
The app uses bold colors, ample whitespace, and intuitive navigation that closely mimics the experience on iPhones. Transition animations, icons, menus, and playback screens all mirror the iOS aesthetic. This creates a seamless cross-platform experience for users who access Apple Music across both Android and iOS devices.
Overall, the polished interface shows Apple’s attention to detail in designing an Android app that looks and feels like a native Apple product. Fans of Apple’s signature design language will find a lot to love in the Android app’s UI. It brings over the slick, minimalist Apple style to the Android ecosystem very successfully.
Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/AppleMusic/comments/jpou0i/why_i_love_apple_music_but_will_stay_on_spotify/
Library and Catalog
Apple Music boasts a library of over 75 million songs as of February 2021 (source). This is comparable to Spotify’s library of “over 80 million songs” (source). Both Apple Music and Spotify have massive catalogs that satisfy most mainstream music fans. However, Apple Music’s integration with iTunes does give it the edge for users who have large personal media libraries they want to integrate.
Apple Music’s catalog includes over 30,000 playlists and endless artist radio stations (source). Playlists and radio stations are curated by editors and algorithms to appeal to different genres, moods, activities, and interests. For niche genres like classical, jazz, or metal, Apple Music may not have as tailored of recommendations as specialty streaming services. But for most popular music, its human-curated editorial content shines.
Overall, Apple Music matches Spotify for breadth of catalog. And its tight integration with iTunes makes it a better choice for users with large personal media libraries. The curated playlists and radio stations also help Apple Music’s catalog feel more editorialized and relevant compared to Spotify.
Audio Quality
One of the biggest selling points of Apple Music is its support for lossless audio. Lossless audio provides CD-quality sound without any compression, allowing you to hear every detail in the original recording. With Apple Music on Android, you can stream lossless audio up to 24-bit/192kHz, which is even higher quality than CDs (which are 16-bit/44.1kHz).
To enable lossless streaming on Android, open the Apple Music app, tap the settings icon, and select “Audio Quality.” From there you can choose between High Efficiency (AAC 256kbps), High Quality (AAC), and Lossless modes up to 24-bit/192kHz. According to Apple’s support page, lossless streaming requires specific compatible devices and wired headphones or speakers (lossless audio will not work over Bluetooth).
Even if you don’t have headphones to take full advantage of lossless, Apple Music for Android offers High Quality 256kbps AAC streaming which is higher than competitors like Spotify (max 320kbps on Android). So Apple Music can provide an audio boost for many listeners using regular headphones or speakers. Just be aware of potential data usage since lossless files are much larger.
Overall, lossless support gives Apple Music a sound quality edge on Android. Audiophiles with high-end gear can take full advantage, while most users will still benefit from high bitrate AAC streaming.
Playlists and Radio
One of the best features of Apple Music is its curated playlists and radio stations (Apple, 2022). Apple employs expert music editors and algoirthms to create playlists tailored to your taste. The “For You” tab provides a personalized mix of new releases, favorites, and recommendations. There are also hundreds of playlists for every mood, activity, and genre, all handpicked by Apple’s editors. Playlists are frequently updated and even have complementary artwork. The radio feature similarly creates endless personalized stations based on your listening history, likes, and dislikes. You can also start radio stations based on a song, artist, album, or curated playlist. Overall, Apple Music’s human-curated approach combined with smart AI personalization makes discovering new music effortless.
Integration with iOS
One of the key features of Apple Music is the ability to sync playlists, libraries, and other content across iOS and Android devices. With Apple Music installed on both your iPhone and Android phone, you can easily keep your music collection in sync.
Apple Music’s Sync Library feature allows you to sync your Apple Music library, including playlists, across all your devices. Any playlists or albums you save on your iPhone will automatically appear in your library on your Android device as well. You can toggle Sync Library on in the Settings of the Apple Music app.
You can also use the Apple Music desktop app on Mac or PC to sync playlists between your iOS and Android devices. After connecting your Android phone, you can click the Sync button in the app to match the music library on your computer. This will transfer over playlists and queue up matching songs on your Android phone.
The Apple Music app even allows you to transfer your local music files from an Android device to an iPhone during setup. So migrating your offline music collection when switching between iOS and Android is smooth.
Overall, Apple Music makes it simple to keep your music collection consistent across Android and iOS devices with full playlist syncing and library management features.
Offline Playback
One of the key features of Apple Music is the ability to download songs, albums, and playlists for offline listening when you don’t have an internet connection. This is useful for situations like flights, subway commutes, or any time you’ll be away from Wi-Fi or cellular data.
To download music for offline listening on Android, open the Apple Music app and find the content you want to save offline. Tap the download icon next to any song, playlist, or album to download it. You’ll see a progress bar as the content downloads, and then you’ll be able to access it offline from the My Music section of the app [1]. Apple Music stores up to 100,000 songs for offline playback.
One tip for saving mobile data is to only download content over Wi-Fi and disable cellular downloads in the Apple Music settings. You can also select the Wi-Fi only option when downloading albums or playlists. This ensures you don’t use up your monthly data plan downloading large amounts of music [2].
Pricing
Apple Music offers several pricing options to fit different budgets and needs. The standard Individual plan costs $10.99 per month and gives one user unlimited streaming access to the Apple Music catalog. For students, Apple offers a discounted Student plan priced at $5.99 per month. Families can subscribe to the Family plan which allows streaming access for up to 6 users for $16.99 per month.
For those looking for the best value, Apple Music also offers annual plans that provide some savings compared to paying month-to-month. An Individual annual plan is $109 while the annual Family plan costs $169. There are occasionally other deals and bundles available as well, like free trials for new subscribers or bundled plans with Apple One.
Overall, Apple Music offers competitive pricing in line with major competitors like Spotify. The options for Individual, Student, and Family plans allow users to choose the best value for their listening needs. While not the cheapest service, Apple Music provides full access to its extensive library of over 100 million songs for under $11/month for individuals.
Ease of Use
With Apple’s reputation for user-friendly design, many Android users are pleasantly surprised by how easy it is to use Apple Music on Android devices. The Apple Music Android app interface has been designed specifically for Android and utilizes familiar navigation patterns and menus. Once downloaded, setting up Apple Music is straightforward with an Apple ID. The app layout provides quick access to key features like the library, search, radio stations, and playlists.
Compared to competitors like Spotify, Apple Music on Android offers a clean, intuitive interface that most users find easy to navigate. The app responsively syncs new music, playlists and preferences added on other devices. Search is powerful and Siri enables hands-free voice commands. Overall, Apple Music offers a seamless, user-friendly experience on Android that rivals its ease of use on iOS.
Conclusion
Overall, Apple Music is a strong music streaming option for Android users. While the app lacks some exclusive iOS features like handoff and Siri integration, it provides Android users with access to Apple’s large music catalog of over 90 million songs. The audio quality is excellent, playlists and radio stations are robust, and the $9.99 monthly individual plan is competitively priced. The app could be more Android-optimized but it’s a polished experience that makes Apple Music fully usable on Android. If you are an Android user who wants to subscribe to Apple Music to access its exclusive content like new releases and radio shows, the app is definitely recommendable despite some shortcomings compared to the iOS version. For Android users invested in Apple’s ecosystem, it’s a no-brainer.
