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Pandora, SoundCloud and SiriusXM – Which One is Best for You

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Ellen Parker
Pandora, SoundCloud and SiriusXM – Which One is Best for You

Music streaming devices and services has become a huge part of the audio industry. Choosing the right selections for your personal taste and lifestyle can be a bit more of a challenge. Comparing some of the biggest players in streaming music today, here’s the pros and cons of the popular services Pandora, SoundCloud and SiriusXM – and tips on how you can determine which one might be best for you.

Pandora
A leader in music streaming since 2000, Pandora has won the hearts of early adopters in the music industry since the start. Offering selections based on listener’s preferences, Pandora has provided a great channel for not only listening to music you love, but also discovering new artists along the way. You can create up to 100 of your own personalized radio stations, and continue refining them with a thumbs-up or thumbs-down as each song plays.

Image Source: http://www.answers.com/article/30925619/5-awesome-apps-every-music-lover-will-fall-in-love-with

Some of the pros and cons to determine if Pandora is right for you: Pandora’s suggested pairings and thumbs-up algorithm is great for people looking to discover new artists and songs similar to those they already love. However for those who like control, the lesser variety of songs, limited skips and no rewind/repeat options may have some listeners in frustration.

Specs:

  • Streaming audio quality: 64kpbs for free, 192kpbs for paid version
  • Library size: 1 million+

Pros:

  • Free and paid versions
  • Refined selection of tunes with thumbs-up
  • Great platform for music discovery

Cons:

  • High volume of ads
  • Limited number of song skips
  • Limited international availability
  • Limited selection of music (1M songs)
  • No rewind / repeat

SoundCloud
Integrated to create and share sounds, SoundCloud has been a leader in audio streaming with a big network of social integration. With 175 million monthly listeners, industry experts at Tech Crunch are predicting it’s rise over Spotify in the near future.

Image Source: http://www.guidingtech.com/57679/pros-cons-soundcloud-go/

SoundCloud’s unique approach of combining social sharing and following has set them apart in the industry of music streaming. SoundCloud pros and cons: this is great for those wanting to connect to others with similar interests and share playlists and new favorite tunes. Users can even upload their own music and receive analytics based on performance. It also has a discovery-friendly interface allowing listeners to be introduced to new music and artists. The downside, free listening is restricted to 2 hours of upload time, after which you’ll need to pay.

Specs:

  • Streaming audio quality: 128kpbs
  • Library size: 135 million+

Pros:

  • Free and paid versions
  • High volume of free content
  • Social integration
  • Analytics on track performance
  • Large selection of music (135M songs)

Cons:

  • Free content time is limited
  • Poor quality of user-uploaded content
  • Non-intuitive search options

SiriusXM
SiriusXM is a leader in Satellite radio offering commercial-free music, and has found its way into the hearts and cars of listeners around the world. In fact, vehicle drivers are one of their biggest markets with applications prebuilt in GM, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, Mercedes and other leading car manufacturers. With commercial-free listening and multiple channels, SiriusXM is great for listeners who love music, and spend a lot of time on the road.

Image Source: https://www.siriusxm.com/

Note however that SiriusXM does not have the kind of customization options that other streaming platforms have – Instead they offer a variety of preselected radio stations that users can select based on preferences.

Specs:

  • Streaming audio quality: 64kpbs
  • Library size: 150+ channels

Pros:

  • No commercials
  • Multiple industry channels in addition to music
  • Pre-built in many vehicles
  • Large selection of channels (150 stations)

Cons:

  • No free version
  • No personalization of playlists

Devices
Once you decide on the service that’s right for you, consider the device that’s best optimized for each. While SiriusXM is primarily used in vehicles, Pandora and SoundCloud are best experienced on music streaming devices that are manufactured specifically with mobile in mind.

Wireless speakers are a great option to allow you to control your streaming music from your phone – without having wires hooked to your speaker itself. Some smart speakers like HEOS by Denon   have even launched customized app to help you manage music streaming more efficiently.

Look for mobile compatibility, and the listing of music apps supported when shopping for a device specifically for music streaming.

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Ellen Parker
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