When I started working here in Waitsfield, I knew I’d be spending about a total of an hour and a half in the car every day for my commute and sitting in front of a computer all day. Therefore, I was going to need all the music to keep me rocking while I worked. Spotify has been my favorite app and music service for the past 2+ years. To me, to have access to millions of songs on demand is worth the $9.99 I pay every month.
However, there hasn’t been much competition for Spotify. Sure, there’s Pandora and iTunes Radio, but these are more like glorified radio stations. Enter Beats Music, a new music streaming service that launched Tuesday. The Beats Music app allows you to stream music with your paid subscription of $9.95/month.
What makes this service stand out or compete with other on demand music services like Spotify? With a tagline like, “Music that’s always right for you. Just hit play.” we can only assume that Beats Music is trying to push the message that it’s “the first music service that understands you.” You’re able to tell Beats Music where you are, what you’re feeling, and who you’re with and they will find you the perfect stream of music based on all of this information. Beats has also taken the time to make sure that it has the best audio quality and will provide you with the best version of a popular song (versus a live or cover version).
From a design standpoint, I’m loving the interface. It’s clean and simple, yet a bit more sophisticated than Spotify. Looking at some of the screen shots that they feature on their website, it also looks like there are a few more options and screens: a but more in-depth.
The one downfall of Beats Music is the fact that there isn’t a free version. If you want it, you have to shell out the $9.95/month. However, it is priced the same as Spotify, so it will be interesting to see how it does. If you have an AT&T contract, you can also add a family plan for $14.99/month and have up to five accounts with Beats Music.
If any readers out there have been using Beats Music, I’d love to hear your thoughts! Is it worth the switch?