Alongside WWDC 2021, Apple rolled out a bunch of features for its Music streaming service. The Lossless and Spatial Audio update, as well as other enhancements, are now available for Apple Music on Android.
Update 7/22: Version 3.6 of Apple Music with spatial listening, lossless audio, automatic crossfade, and library search enhancements is now rolling out via the Play Store to all existing and new users. The test period for those that signed-up for the beta channel lasted just over a month, and ended this afternoon.
In this update, Apple Music adds a spatial listening experience on compatible devices, with thousands of tracks in Dolby Atmos available at launch.
Other updates include:
• Lossless Audio, a new way to experience uncompromised sound, with bit-for-bit accuracy.
• Automatic Crossfade, a new way to listen that blends each song into the next for a seamless experience.
• Search enhancements to library, which allow you to more easily find your favorite music with in-line search.
Original 6/14: These new features require signing up for the beta channel in the Play Store, and are not yet rolled out to stable users. It should roll out to all devices soon.
Once updated, you’ll have access to Spatial listening “on compatible devices,” with Apple touting “thousands of tracks in Dolby Atmos available at launch.” The company has usefully curated a playlist of available songs, while you can look for the “Dolby Atmos” badge that appears just above the list of tracks on an album page.
That’s also how you check for “Lossless.” In Settings, there is a new “Audio Quality” menu to enable “Lossless Audio.” Preference let you choose between the different tiers and where it applies (Cellular, Wi-Fi Streaming, or Downloads):
- High Efficiency: AAC with low data usage [Cellular only]
- High Quality: AAC 256 kbps
- Lossless: ALAC up to 24-bit/48 kHz
- High-Resolution Lossless: ALAC up to 24-bit/192 kHz
Meanwhile, Apple Music for Android now offers Automatic Crossfade to complement the existing “Manual” option — up to 12 seconds, while there are also library enhancements.
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