Hands-On Walkthrough of Apple Music and Beats 1 Radio

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.

Popular Stories

Apple Watch Ultra Night Mode Screen

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Launching Later This Year With Two Key Upgrades

Wednesday July 2, 2025 1:13 pm PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 appears to be nearly over, and it is rumored to feature both satellite connectivity and 5G support. Apple Watch Ultra's existing Night Mode In his latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is on track to launch this year with "significant" new features, including satellite connectivity, which would let you...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 14 New Features

Friday July 4, 2025 1:05 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are just over two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:Apple logo repositioned: Apple's logo may have a lower position on the back of the iPhone 17 Pro models, compared to previous...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Max Battery Capacity Leaked

Thursday July 3, 2025 5:40 am PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature the biggest ever battery in an iPhone, according to the Weibo leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post, the leaker listed the battery capacities of the iPhone 11 Pro Max through to the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and added that the iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature a battery capacity of 5,000mAh: iPhone 11 Pro Max: 3,969mAh iPhone 12 Pro Max: 3,687mAh...
iPhone 17 Pro Lower Logo Magsafe

iPhone 17 Pro's New MagSafe Design Revealed in Leaked Photo

Wednesday July 2, 2025 8:37 am PDT by
The upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are rumored to have a slightly different MagSafe magnet layout compared to existing iPhone models, and a leaked photo has offered a closer look at the supposed new design. The leaker Majin Bu today shared a photo of alleged MagSafe magnet arrays for third-party iPhone 17 Pro cases. On existing iPhone models with MagSafe, the magnets form a...
airpods pro 2

AirPods Pro 3 to Help Maintain Apple's Place in Earbud Market Amid Increasing Low-Cost Competition

Thursday July 3, 2025 7:25 am PDT by
Apple's position as the dominant force in the global true wireless stereo (TWS) earbud market is expected to continue through 2025, according to Counterpoint Research. The forecast outlines a 3% year-over-year increase in global TWS unit shipments for 2025, signaling a transition from rapid growth to a more mature phase for the category. While Apple is set to remain the leading brand by...
Wi Fi WiFi General Feature

iOS 26 Adds a Useful New Wi-Fi Feature to Your iPhone

Wednesday July 2, 2025 6:36 am PDT by
iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 add a smaller yet useful Wi-Fi feature to iPhones and iPads. As spotted by Creative Strategies analyst Max Weinbach, sign-in details for captive Wi-Fi networks are now synced across iPhones and iPads running iOS 26 and iPadOS 26. For example, while Weinbach was staying at a Hilton hotel, his iPhone prompted him to fill in Wi-Fi details from his iPad that was already...
iOS 18

Apple Releases Second iOS 18.6 Public Beta

Tuesday July 1, 2025 10:19 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the second betas of upcoming iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 updates to public beta testers, with the betas coming just a day after Apple provided the betas to developers. Apple has also released a second beta of macOS Sequoia 15.6. Testers who have signed up for beta updates through Apple's beta site can download iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 from the Settings app on a compatible...

Top Rated Comments

BoxerGT2.5 Avatar
131 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
131 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
131 months ago
This service is top notch! Eat your heart out Spotify!
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AngerDanger Avatar
131 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
131 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
131 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)