Apple Music for Android updated with new Friends Mix and more.

Apple Music on Android brings over 40 million songs for users to listen online or offline and the app has been downloaded over 10 million times. Which is not bad considering how antagonistic Apple and Android fans are. And the reviews in Google Play Store are quite positive. 

In case you're wondering, I had to resort to Apple Music for my music consumption for the simple reason that Google's Play Music is not available in my region. Sure I can buy or rent Movies, but no music. And now I'm deep into Apple's musical ecosystem, no matter what Google does, the chances to get me out of it equal to zero. So much for you Google.

This update includes some nice features, but my preferred one is the "Friends Mix". Basically, it compiles a list of the songs that the app thinks I'll like from everything my friends are listening to. This is cool and saves me from browsing the long list of songs available on the platform. And better yet, Apple Music also plays the top 100 songs from countries around the world. Again saving me from perusing the list for something I like. I'm kind of lazy if you haven't figured out by now.

Here are the other features in this update:

• Android Auto: The best of Apple Music in your car.
• Search by Lyrics. Use a few of the words to find a song.
• New Artist page: Play an artist with one tap, or browse all the music with the improved design.

Apple Music is free to download in Google Play Store. Subscriptions start at $4.99 per month. 

Apple Music for Android now lets you skip back your favorite song when listening to a radio station.

Apple Music for Android received a few improvements today that the company calls minor. the first improvement will let users skip back to play a song again when listening to a radio station. A nice addition if you want to listen to a song you liked again. This update also lets users "adjust how your music sounds with the included Equalizer."

This update is already live in Google Play Store to download.

Apple Music lets users watch videos while browsing the app and listen to music videos in the background.

Apple Music received an update on Android that brings some improvements to music videos within the app. The changelog contains four items, all of them related to music videos, and one of my favorite new features is the ability to continue watching videos while browsing the music app. A Picture-In-Picture (PIP) capability in Apple Music itself. Unfortunately, Apple is not enabling PIP on Android yet. A full-featured PIP on Android would allow users to continue watching videos while using other apps on Android 7.1 or 8 devices.

My second feature is the ability to listen to music videos in the background. Another nice feature which comes in handy when I want to, say, read an incoming email without Apple Music pausing the video.

The other two items in the release notes are:

• Watch them [music videos] in full screen or inside Now Playing.
• Add your favorite music videos to playlists to watch them back-to-back.

Hopefully, Apple will surprise us with full PIP support in a future update. Why not? They're close anyway or so I want to believe. Until then, check Apple Music in the Play Store and enjoy music videos.

Apple fixes an issue that prevented users from adding to their library.

About a week ago, Apple brought an important update to Apple Music on Android. The company added a feature for users to follow their friends to see the music they are listening to and the playlists they shared. To enjoy this, users are required to create a profile to “discover music with friends.” In addition, Apple also included Voice Search powered by Google. Users can “touch and hold the home button or say “OK Google” to use your voice to play artists, albums, songs, and Beats 1 on Apple Music.” That was it for version 2.2.

Today, the Cupertino company released another update, albeit a minor one which raises the version number to 2.2.1, which fixes an issue that “may prevent users from adding to their library.”

That’s all there is to it, so head over to Google Play Store to download this update.

Apple Music for Android fixes an issue that may prevent listening to downloaded music while offline.

Tomorrow most of the world will be celebrating music day and Apple has issued an update for its Apple Music app on Android, surely unintentionally, to fix an issue that prevented listeners from listening to downloaded music while offline. The update also includes the usual “minor app and performance improvements”.

Apple Music on Android brings over 40 million songs for users to listen online or offline and the app has been downloaded over 10 million times. Which is not bad considering how antagonistic Apple and Android fans are. And the reviews in Google Play Store are quite positive. I cannot compare how Google Music fares against Apple offerings since the former is not available in Mauritius. However, Google Movies is open. Go figure.

If you’re a hardcore Android fan, or not, and would like to give Apple Music a try, go to Google Play Store to download the app and you can sign up for a free three months trial. An Apple ID account is required.
  

Apple makes it easier to enter verification code when Two Factor Authentication is turned on.

Apple has issued an update for its Android Music app today that "makes it easier to enter a verification code when your Apple ID has Two Factor Authentication turned on." I use Apple Music on my Android and iPad, but I never activated two factor authentication, which is a bad idea. I do not recommend you follow me on this, especially now that Apple is making two factor easy for its subscribers. The change log also mentions another fix that "resolves an issue where text may display incorrectly for certain languages you choose in Android Settings."

Get Apple Music in Google Play Store.

Apple Music for Android gets new design and provides lyrics for you to sing along as you listen.

Having to Pay Apple to stream music on my Android device is kind of a bummer to me and I have Google to blame for not opening up their Music service to my region. The funny thing is that I've never used Apple Music app on the iPad I once owned, but with Google still denying me access, I had no choice but to subscribe to Apple's service to listen to music and I like it. Should Google finally open up their music service in the region, I'm just going to ignore it. That aside, lets look at the update Apple published to the store today.

This is a major update which raises the version number to 2.0 and the most striking change is the app design which is similar to Apple's Music app for iOS. Apple just does not give a damn to Google Material design. Anyway the latter is not a requirement to get apps published in Google Play Store, but are guidelines for developers, should they choose to use the material design. 

In addition to the design change, Apple Music will now also show the lyrics for the songs we listen to and which be be helpful as we sing along.

The Hamburger menu has also been revisited. It now shows less categories. In fact, the entire app looks less cluttered, making navigating titles fast and easier.

Here's the complete change log:

An all-new design brings greater clarity and simplicity to Apple Music:

Now Playing. Read lyrics for songs as you listen.

Library. Navigate your music easily and see the Downloaded Music you can play offline.

For You. Get recommendations for playlists, albums, and more—based on music you love.

Browse. Listen to new music first, plus playlists for any mood or activity.

Radio. Tune in to Beats 1 shows or listen to stations for any genre.

Download or update Apple Music in Google Play Store and get an individual membership for $4.99.

Apple Music for Android drops beta moniker.

Just a quick note about Apple Music app for Android that has dropped its beta moniker yesterday and thanking users for their feedback. The app already has over 5 million downloads in the Play Store. This update includes an equalizer settings and "a variety of performance, playback, and stability improvements."

Apple offers three memberships subscription you can choose from:

Individual Membership
For $9.99 per month > For less than the price of most albums, you get access to the full Apple Music library, expert recommendations, our take on the best music and on-demand radio stations.

Family Membership
For $14.99 per month > The whole world of music for the whole family. Up to six people can enjoy unlimited access to Apple Music on their devices.
Student Membership
For $4.99 per month > Get the complete Apple Music experience with personalized recommendations, the best new music, and more at a price designed for students.

Get the update from Google Play store for free.

Apple Music for Android update fixes a playback issue and albums appearing in unexpected order.

Apple Music is still in beta on Android and you might want to give it a try as Apple is still offering a free three months trial before you decide to pay for a subscription plan and enjoy all the music you like among the 30 million songs in the catalog.

Apple offers three memberships subscription you can choose from:

Individual Membership
For $9.99 per month > For less than the price of most albums, you get access to the full Apple Music library, expert recommendations, our take on the best music and on-demand radio stations.

Family Membership
For $14.99 per month > The whole world of music for the whole family. Up to six people can enjoy unlimited access to Apple Music on their devices.
Student Membership
For $4.99 per month > Get the complete Apple Music experience with personalized recommendations, the best new music, and more at a price designed for students.

As stated above, the Apple Music app is still beta and Apple is regularly offering updates ta make the experience as enjoyable as on iOS, the OS that powers their iPhones ad iPads. The update they published today does not introduce anything new but fixes a few things like a playback issue where songs skip over the first two seconds of music. There is also a fix "where albums added to a playlist appear in an unexpected order."

Grab the update for Apple Music Beta in Google Play store.

Source: Apple