Review
Roderick Scott 0

All Android users have thoroughly enjoyed all of the features Google’s OS has to offer but it seemed like there was a missing piece to it being complete. Recently Google announced the Music Beta app for Android & PC/Mac, which allows users to play their music library & playlists to your Android device via the cloud. Which gives Android users an in-house music manager a la Apple. Having recently received my invite last week, let’s look into the app for Android users.

Music Manager For The Desktop
The Music Beta PC Side Of Things

After first receiving your invite, you must first download the Music Beta Music Manager for your desktop first. The Music Manager uploads your iTunes or your Windows Media library to it via the cloud. Then afterwards download the app on your Android device as it will upload everything to your device. Bad news if you purchased any songs from the iTunes Music Store as Google Music Beta only supports only non-DRM music. And if you’re interested in purchasing new music, that option isn’t available yet as you can only add music you own or borrow. Google does offer to you a few free music selections to your library.  However for music junkies with over 1,000 songs on your library, it can take a while to upload. I had about 1,453 songs (around 7.61GB) and it took around a little over an hour with my home internet speeds of 16Mbps down/4Mbps up. Of course, you experience may differ. After it is all uploaded, it gets better.

The Android Side Of Things
Now that your music library is in the clouds, you can begin rocking out on the go.   From your Android device, you can play your tunes sorted by Artist, Albums, Songs, Playlists, or Genres.   You have the ability to shuffle music like any other music player as well.  You also have the option to stream or download your music Wi-Fi only to spare some battery life.  A cool feature is that you can download the selected songs or as much of your library straight to your phone by hitting Menu and selecting Make Available Offline.  Making no need for an internet connection or if the Music app is acting up to enjoy it. 

TG 2 Cents
First thing’s first.  Google’s Music service is still has a Beta part of the name just like Gmail so don’t expect perfection.   The Android app can be a little buggy as some songs may play with some distortion or the app can just crash without warning.   Also, Google hasn’t reached any deals with any of the music labels so at the current time you can’t purchase any music from the app.  With all this said, you may think this app sucks but the potential of having your music stored/accessed via the cloud on your Android device opens many possiblities.   Android owners will still enjoy the app as it is a good app/service but needs some fine tuning.   Google Music Beta will get better in time like fine wine.  
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Categories: Android Google Review