How are most people consuming music right now? They broadcast it. There are now 524 million people subscribed to one of the streaming services, according to a quick Google search. There are also plenty of options to choose from, from the old classic Spotify to offerings from Amazon and Apple.
Apple Music is my streaming app of choice. I love the hi-res lossless tracks on offer, and the way they blend in with the rest of my Apple kit is hugely helpful. That’s not to say there aren’t certain elements of the competition that I cast envious glances at. Every time someone posts their wrapped Spotify, I get a little twinge of “if only” with a little Apple logo stamped on it.
Although I love Apple Music, I think there are some features that Apple should really consider pulling out of the big green circle. Give them an Apple touch and you have, in my eyes, the best streaming service money can buy.
Features Apple Music needs to steal from Spotify
recaps
One of the biggest things I miss after switching to Apple Music from Spotify is the year-end recaps. This year, Apple dipped its toes into something similar, but it lacked the personality of Spotify Wrapped. Introduce something that tells me more than a few minutes, and let’s give an Apple touch to the formula that makes me want to share my Apple Music listening habits with my friends.
It also lends a certain personality to a streaming service. Spotify is user-friendly and non-judgmental. It’s like that friend you can talk to about any music. Apple Music, on the other hand, is more like a man in a suit handing you your music on a CD with a kind of sneer when he notices you’re listening to Britney Spears.
Make the service more social
On Spotify, I can connect with my friends and see what they’re listening to, and they can do the same with me. I can connect with them and we can listen to music together, even if we are in different places or even in different time zones. It makes music a real social experience, with shared playlists and party zones. On Apple Music, for example, I can send other people my playlists from my best iphone. There is no option for them to edit the playlist, add tracks. They can just see it and hear it. There’s no real music sharing in Apple Music, no social events or anything fun I can do with my friends.
Make it more social, Apple. Tell me what my friend is listening to right now, tell him what I’m listening to. It doesn’t matter if the tunes are embarrassing – that’s part of the fun.
Bring podcasts and audiobooks on board
Spotify is like a one-stop-shop for just about everything. All your favorite podcasts are here, with the library stretching further than most platforms. Then there’s the Audiobooks section, which, although not included in a Spotify Premium subscription, ties together all the different audio tracks and bobs very neatly. Apple Podcasts, on the other hand, is a separate app on Mac and iOS. It even looks different enough that play queues and the like look different between iOS and Apple Music. It’s strange. Audiobooks being part of the Apple Books app makes sense, but it might be useful to integrate them into the Apple Music app. At least that would really streamline things and make Apple Music feel like Spotify’s one-stop-shop.
Let me control my Mac app with my phone and vice versa
Spotify does this cool thing where I can log into my laptop and choose to continue listening to music on my phone or switch to the Mac app. If I choose to continue listening on my phone, then I can use my Mac app to control the music on my phone, which is perfect if my phone is plugged in across the room to a wired HiFi. It’s also really funny if someone borrowed my account, and I can change the tune to “tiptoe through the tulips” when they thought they had Taylor Swift. Hilarious.
Apple Music, on the other hand, does none of that. Instead, it can be a real nightmare of “You have too many devices playing Apple Music” and then just refusing to let me listen to anything until I’ve closed and reopened it. ‘application. Apple Music should tell me where I last listened, ask me if I still want to listen there, then do what I tell it. Controlling the music on my phone is possible with an in-house workaround, but it’s a massive pain behind. All of these things need to be simple and built into apps so I don’t notice them happening. I thought we were good at this, Apple? Let’s sort it out. Please.
Improve what plays at the end of an album or playlist
I discovered loads of new music through Spotify radio, with loads of great stuff after the end of the album I chose. The option to have something similar exists in Apple Music, but it’s buried in the settings menu and usually contains more nonsense than anything I’d actually want to listen to.
It is obvious that the algorithms to make a good ‘Apple Music Radio’ work exist. Apple just needs to improve theirs and do more. Personally, I think Spotify radio is one of the biggest draws to the platform – I can press play and forget. With Apple Music, I press play and keep an eye on it. And there’s something about it that I think misses the point of streaming music. Help me discover more obscure Swedish death metal, Apple Music. I will love you for that.
Give me a car mode boys, come on
Like many, I don’t have the chance to drive a car with Apple Car Play. When I drive my car, my phone sits in a holder next to my steering wheel. Therefore, when listening to music, I want the buttons to be easy to press and not so small that I have to take my eyes off the road. Spotify offers a car mode. The buttons get bigger and the user interface becomes much simpler. It’s almost like Spotify knows I need things to be easier to use while driving a car. The coolest ? It kind of knows when you’re driving and automatically switches to car mode. cool.
Apple Music does not. I understand you want me to buy a car with Apple built-in Apple CarPlay, but I can’t afford to. My car isn’t even that old, for God’s sake. No, just let me press a button before I start that lets me activate a car mode and make my journeys a little easier – and safer.
Apple Music could be much better
Apple Music has already taken a lot from Spotify. These soulful lyrics videos that let you sing along to the tunes, soulful album art and the new ’22 Replay website. There’s still more he can steal, however, proving that a thief’s job is never done.
You really have to take them, though. Apple Music is good, and I will continue to use it for a long time, but it has to be great. And it’s really not there yet.
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