Sky Tunes: 5 Cloud Music Services Worth Checking Out

Amazon's not the only game in town. Keep your ears open to these cloud-based music services.

Apr 05, 2011
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Image via Complex Original
Not Available Lead
Image via Complex Original

Amazon recently made some

waves when it released its new Cloud
Player—a media tool that stores and plays your entire music catalog via

computer or Android phone. No synching or copying required. Sick, right? Very, but

the online retail giant isn't the only company streaming music from the skies. Companies like Rhapsody have been doing it for years, while new comers like mSpot and the recently introduced DropTunes have launched web and mobile applications that allow users to listen to their tunes wherever they can get an Internet connection. With cloud music services advancing and offering features like music playback, social integration, and multi-platform support—it's not only becoming the essential back-up storage plan—it's becoming the media player of today. Take a look at 5 Cloud Music Services Worth
Checking Out.

mSpot

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mSpot

Price/Storage: Free (5GB), $4.00 (monthly, 40GB) 

DOPE

• Basic content
management: By assigning one desktop folder for

synchronization, you can import all songs, ratings, playlists, and album art in

one shot. Any added or removed content is automatically updated to your

mSpot account.

• Quality
performance and playback: Music sounds great and runs smooth

with little to no lag. The web player also has an

"Upload Editor" to choose and delete specific uploads and

improve audio settings.

• Hi-speed and
mobile support: mSport supports 4G, 3G, and wi-fi connectivity, along

with all popular i-Devices (iPod Touch, iPhone, and iPad), BlackBerry,

Windows, Palm, and Android 2.0 devices.

NOPE

• Long upload times:

Depending on how huge your music catalog is, you might be spending a couple of

hours uploading the entire thing.

• No DRM support: The

service supports all popular media formats (MP3, AAC, WMV), except DRM

files. Which won't really effect you unless your entire music catalog is made up of songs purchased through iTunes. 

DropTunes

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DropTunes

Price/Storage: Free, 2GB; $10 (monthly), 50GB; $20 (monthly), 100GB

DOPE

• Works with Dropbox: Dropbox is already one of the premier cloud storage services on the market, DropTunes allows all of its users to easily transition into the service.

• Clean and
simple interface: Dropbox users can already play songs in their folder through a very rudimentary player. DropTunes brings a nicely stylized, minimalistic HTML 5 player to the table that users can play easily in any browser. Also, you don't need to have Dropbox installed on a computer in order to use DropTunes. Awesome.

• Easily share songs with friends: Through DropTunes, users can easily share their music folders with other Dropbox users. This may be the true Amazon Cloud Player alternative. 

NOPE

• No mobile apps: At this stage in the game, there are no mobile apps available for the service. Though, thanks to its HTML 5 player, you could, in theory, play your tunes through your phones mobile browser. 

 

Grooveshark

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Grooveshark

Price/Storage: Free, $6 (monthly, Plus), $9 (monthly, Anywhere); Unlimited

DOPE

• Straightforward and
advanced UI: A standout taskbar and a big

search box make standard functionality even simpler. Plus there's the ability

to drag and drop music selections into your playlist like iTunes. The service also

restores tracks after you log out or the app crashes.

• Social media connectivity: Save

and embed singles or playlists on other websites, blogs, and social media networks using the GrooveShark widget. Also share playlists with friends.

• Performance value:

Grooveshark does a great job maintaining an error-free stream experience, providing

fast uploads and good sound quality as well.

NOPE

• Small music
catalog: Grooveshark’s music library is smaller than some of the

other cloud services with about 7 million songs, but it’s steadily increasing.

• No iPhone App: Apple

removed it from App Store, but users can still download it for Android, BlackBerry,

Palm and Nokia devices.

Qrocity (Sony Music Unlimited)

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Qriocity (Sony Music Unlimited)

Price/Storage: $3.99 (Basic), $9.99 (Premium); Unlimited

DOPE

• Music catalog and multi-platform support: Offers access to millions of records from major labels like EMI and Universal Music Group that you can listen to via PC, PS3, Bravia TV, Blu-ray player, and Blu-ray Home Theater system.

• SenseMe channels: Sony's "12 Tone Analysis technology" offers a unique category system that groups music channels by genre, era, time of day, and mood (Emotional, Energize, Dance, etc.).

• Stylish and user-friendly UI: Easy-to-use menu settings and features like the "Music Sync" program make transporting and managing your music catalog simple. Plus its cool animations and album cover carousel add make it look better than most Sony software. 

NOPE

• Limited functionality: Under the basic plan, users can only stream content and create playlists on their computer.

• No Mac compatibility: If Sony's looking to compete against Apple's iTunes service, it might want to think about a future iMac/MacBook update.

• Missing mobile apps: There's no Android, BlackBerry or iPhone app available. But Sony claims the service will be available for the Sony PSP and NGP.

Rdio

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Rdio

Price/Storage: $4.99 (monthly, web), $9.99 (monthly, web and mobile); Unlimited

DOPE

• Robust social network layers: The developers of Skype give you the opportunity to follow friends, post and share recommendations, and listen to their playlists by connecting to your Facebook, Twitter, or Last.fm account from the app.

• Recommendation-ready: Rdio creates on-demand artist channels and stations based on your music likes. It also offers personal recommendations and allows you to create playlists with others.

• Mobile app availability: It's available on Android, Apple, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone 7 smartphones.

NOPE

• Unpredictable synching software: Though the desktop software scans your entire iTunes and Windows Media Player library, it has a tendency of only recognizing and transporting about 60 percent of it.

• Limited mobile social features: It would be cool to search for new friends or share songs with certain users.

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