In order to use Google Music, you don’t pay anything. There is no limit to the number of devices you can listen on. If you want to listen on your mobile device, you can download the free Google Music app, available now for Android and probably soon for iOS (if Apple approves it). Until then, if you want to listen to Google Music on a mobile browser, all you need is a web browser. Most mobile devices nowadays have web browsers.
So why would anyone use iTunes Match over Google Music — aside from loyalty to Apple or pure ignorance about the existence of Google Music? The key differences between the two services don’t swing the needle toward iTunes Match; they’re inconveniences, trifles and petty critiques.
Argument one: Google Music takes days to upload a music library; iTunes Match takes minutes. This is Apple’s knockout punch? Once everything is uploaded, who cares? Unless you need your entire music collection ready for that party across town IN TWO HOURS (note to self: pitch idea to Disney), this is a silly point of contention. Save yourself some money (or donate it to charity!), and wait a few days for your library to upload.
Argument two: iTunes Match plays all of your songs in high-quality 256 kbps AAC; Google Music plays them in whatever format they were downloaded. Most non-audiophiles don’t care about the specific format of their music; most non-audiophiles can’t tell the difference between MP3 and AAC and are quite happy with the quality of the music they own. Moving on.
Argument three: iTunes Match can hold 25,000 songs, while Google Music can hold only 20,000. So if you have between 20,001 and 25,000 songs — if your music library falls within that golden range of tracks — perhaps it is worth ponying up $25 to use iTunes Match. Or perhaps you can be realistic about your needs and choose a few thousand songs that you don’t have to have available at all times.
What else is there? iTunes Match has a nicer interface than the admittedly oddly spaced Google Music homepage, but that doesn’t seem worth $25. iTunes is also a more familiar interface to most; some people will find it inconvenient to learn how to operate a new set of functions. Understandable but unsustainable in the long run, especially as all data and storage moves to the cloud.
What seemed like a bargain a week ago, iTunes Match at $24.99, now seems like an outrage. Such is the fast-moving world of competitive tech. Simply put, iTunes Match either has to drop its price to free or offer an all-you-can-eat option like Spotify to justify its price and make it seem attractive next to Google.
The event at which Google Music was officially unveiled was advertised with the catchphrase “These Go To Eleven.” While Spinal Tap did not make an appearance, Google really did give itself that little push over the cliff with its new cloud-storage service. iTunes Match got matched and surpassed. Now Apple needs one more thing to compete.
Just as Google affirmed with their announcement yesterday, their music service is “opening up to a broader audience and that it will integrate with the music store on Android Market to make music discovery, purchase, and sharing easy and fast.” Well, the Google Music App has just launched right now for the Google TV, as well as the Android Market now opening up to music purchases to select Android smartphones. So for all you Android and Google TV users out there, feel free to start downloading and listening to your favorite tunes.
The Google Music for Google TV app syncs in the cloud with your Google Music account, removing the need to stream from a computer or download tunes to the TV. In a few easy steps, simply download the Google Music app for Google TV from the Android Market, log in to your Google account, and start enjoying your entire music collection through the system of your choice. These are the instructions: go to music.google.com on your computer, sign up for the free service, upload your music to the cloud or buy music on the Android Market. Once done, you can play all of your songs on Google TV as easily as you can do on your computer, smartphone or tablet.
Google also promises that they’ll continue to improve your Google TV experience by way of future updates to the Google Music app along with other new apps coming to Google TV. With this move. Google seems like they’re finally trying to step up to the music game, which they’ve really kind of late to, with all the popular music services that are out at the moment. And for all you musicians out there, don’t forget that you can get in on the action from the other end with Google’s new Music Artist Hub.
[via Google TV]
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