Hands-On Walkthrough of Apple Music and Beats 1 Radio

by

Apple's much-anticipated music service, Apple Music, launched this morning as part of iOS 8.4, bringing on-demand streaming music, the Beats 1 radio station, and Apple Connect, Apple's new social network aimed at letting artists connect with fans in new and unique ways.

We went hands-on with Apple Music in iOS 8.4 to give you a look at how the new service works, what it looks like, what it costs, and how to use it. Check out the video below to get a thorough overview of all three Apple Music components.


Apple Music's main streaming feature is a "For You" section within the Music app that offers up on-demand music recommendations based on preferences you've entered and music you've listed to previously. "For You" is able to offer more refined, tailored recommendations as you listen to more and more music.

applemusicforyou
The "New" tab, also part of the on-demand streaming service, displays a variety of music that's new and popular, organized into songs and albums. This section also includes music picks from Apple Music editors.

curatedmusicnew
Much of the content in these two Music app features requires a subscription to Apple Music, which is free for three months, after which it's priced at $9.99 or $14.99 for a family. A third "Radio" tab in the app houses the new 24/7 live Beats 1 radio station and other radio offerings, and radio content will always be free to access.

beats1radio
Apple Connect, the artist-centric social network, is also available through a tab in the Music app, and it displays status updates, photos, videos, and more from artists you follow. The final section is focused on "My Music," housing music you've added from Apple Music, songs you've purchased from iTunes, and playlists you've created, all in one spot.

applemusicconnect
All of these features that are available in iOS 8.4's new Music app are also available in iTunes 12.2, which was just released this afternoon. iTunes 12.2 offers up all of the same tabs and access to music, radio stations, and curated playlists.

Because Apple Music is free for the first three months, all iTunes users can download it and check it out for themselves without having to shell out cash. If you haven't downloaded Apple Music yet, it's well worth giving it a look.

To read more about setting up Apple Music, make sure to check out our guide on Getting Started with Apple Music and Beats 1 on iOS, Mac, and PC.

Tags: Apple Music Guide, Beats 1

Top Rated Comments

BoxerGT2.5 Avatar
BoxerGT2.5
101 months ago
Settings > iCloud > Family planning
Proceed to put phone in pocket and let the radiation kill all your sperm. iSterilization
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dugbee Avatar
dugbee
101 months ago
The new UI is a step back. Clicking through artists > albums > then having to go through each album to find a song doesn't make sense. The old way of listing songs under the albums was so much easier- especially while driving. Why remove this and require more work and clicks? I don't understand the reasoning.
In my mind this is a huge step "forward" to the old glory days. I hated, hated, having to scroll though hundreds of songs (when you have an artist with lots of albums) that came with iOS7 and above. Now it looks like if there's more than 2 albums in an artist, it shows you the album view. Thank you Apple!!
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dilster3k Avatar
Dilster3k
101 months ago
This service is top notch! Eat your heart out Spotify!
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AngerDanger Avatar
AngerDanger
101 months ago
I totally hate the new Apple "My Music" UI. It requires too many clicks for basic things. Can't enjoy my purchased music on my iPhone no more, need to go back to an iPod. :(
If anything on iOS requires clicks, you're doing something wrong. :p
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iapplelove Avatar
iapplelove
101 months ago
I don't stream anything, gave up on Netflix don't do spotify don't even use the free pandora. Had no interest in apple music but I signed up for it anyway and to be honest I have yet to stop using it. Love it.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zoomcrypt Avatar
zoomcrypt
101 months ago
best new product apple has released in years. apple music and especially beats 1 absolutely ROCKS. and this is just the beginning!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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