Michael Bizzaco / Digital Trends
One of the originalmusic streaming servicesis a fiddling service called Pandora . And whileSpotifyandApple Musicmay be the more relevant tune meccas of 2024 , Pandora music is still around and is a great way to indulge in many of your favorite album , artists , and stations .
But how much does a Pandora music subscription cost , and what devices can you savor this serving on ? We put together this exhaustive templet on Pandora to answer those questions , plus several others .
Michael Bizzaco / Digital Trends
What is Pandora?
Pandora is a music - pour service that give way you access code to an vast subroutine library of album , artists , playlists , and podcasts . With an emphasis on curation and recommendations , the Pandora app permit you to build “ stations ” that are algorithmically colligate to the type of music you enjoy heed to . The more you listen , the more attuned to your predilection the stations get .
You ’ll also be able to apply Pandora to create and share your own play list and to download euphony for offline listen ( mobile only ) .
How much is Pandora?
Pandora euphony offer one free listening grade andtwo pay subscriptions . Under the free architectural plan , you ’ll be able to savour a issue of Pandora ’s features but with the episodic disruption of ads for both background and wandering streaming apps . You also wo n’t be able to make or divvy up any playlists or download any tracks for offline listening .
Unfortunately , if you ’re all about those playlists , you ’ll in all likelihood desire to sign up up for Pandora ’s highest - price plan , Pandora Premium for $ 11 per month ( or $ 121 annually ) . On the highest shelf , you ’ll get all the same welfare as the Plus tier , along with the power to make and partake in playlists . Premium is also offer at a discount rate for families , bookman , and those in the military .
For $ 18 per calendar month , the Family plan grants Premium welfare to up to six phallus of your crime syndicate , along with a unparalleled playlist feature call Our Soundtrack that builds a mini - song program library based on your own musical mouthful , plus that of your kin .
The Student design adds a 50 % deduction to a Premium subscription , and the Military plan brings the toll down to $ 8 per month from $ 10 .
How do you use Pandora?
We took the Pandora streaming inspection and repair for a mental test drive using the macOS background app on a MacBook Pro , and with the iOS app on an iPhone 12 . We sign up for a Pandora Premium account onPandora ’s land site .
When you first launch the desktop app , you ’ll be on a page calledMy Collection . apply the search bar in the middle to search for a song , creative person , album , or podcast . While you ’ll be able-bodied to listen to any song or album that you ’d wish ( under positive and Premium design ) , Pandora ’s algorithmic good word for your personalized station get better the more you use the platform . So if you want to find new music that sounds similar to the polka artists you bed , check that to give a thumbs up to the new and Hellenic tracks you hear that you think sound good .
That being pronounce , have ’s break down the many parts of Pandora ’s background and mobile apps , as well as its web internet browser - found role player .
At the top of the desktop app , you ’ll see three master tab : Now play , My Collection , andBrowse . Under theNow Playingtab ( pictured above ) , Pandora will play medicine tailored to your taste and based on tracks and artists you ’ve already listened to on the platform . You should see a list of “ stations ” in a incision calledTune Your Station . These human action like filters for the type of music Pandora will curate for you , with options likeDiscoverbeing particularly expert for see new tunes . TheCrowd Favesstation is essentially a top - hits playlist for the different genres you ’re listening to . On any place , you ’ll also be capable to scroll down to find lyric for whatever caterpillar tread is presently play , as well as Pandora ’s recommendations for similar - fathom artists .
TheMy Collectiontab ( pictured above ) is home to all of the music you ’ve “ compile ” through Pandora , which is break down into artists , albums , song , stations , playlists , podcasts , and podcast episode . There ’s also aRecently Playedsection at the top and aRecommended Stations for Yousection at the bottom of the page . When you choose thePlaylistoption , you ’ll be able to see what play list you ’ve collected , as well as create your own .
When you select an creative person , you ’ll be taken to the creative person ’s Pandora Sir Frederick Handley Page . From here , you ’ll be able to play the Pandora station linked to that artist , roleplay the artist ’s top birdsong , and share the pageboy with others . The rest of the dashboard is taken up by categories likeLatest Release , Top Songs , Top Albums , anAboutsection , and aFans Also Liketier for find similar artists .
The Pandora desktop app ’s UI is n’t great when compared to the first-rate - clean layout and arrangement ofApple Music and Spotify , and feels a second clunky and superannuated .
As for the iOS layout , it could also be more visceral . Four principal tabs are list at the bottom of the home sieve : For You , My Collection , Search , andProfile . TheFor Youpage is n’t really curated to your tastes ; it ’s just a big list of Pandora ’s top artists , stations , and playlists , with a few creative person and playlist recommendations thrown in for good measure . My Collectioncarries over most of the screen background app’sMy Collectionfeatures but optimize the control for show on a phone or pill .
TheSearchfunction is self - explanatory andProfilelets you cover how many thumbs - ups you ’ve given , how many playlists you have , how many followers you have , and who you ’re survey . you’re able to also tap the gear icon in the top - correct corner to get at the setting computer menu , where you ’ll be able to link the app to Alexa or an Apple HomePod , adjust telling , adjust audio caliber ( more on this below ) , and more .
We used Pandora ’s web browser - base player on Safari . It ’s essentially the same exact layout as the desktop app , but endure a tad bit tiresome .
What is Pandora’s audio quality like?
Decent , friends . have ’s get one thing squared off though : Thou shall not use Pandora forHi - Res Audioplayback , for said program does n’t host anything lossless . If you ’re the kind of listener who cares about top audio frequency performance , service of process like Apple Music , Tidal , Amazon Music , and Qobuz may be a better set .
How do you download music from Pandora?
Offline listening is useable for all paid Pandora subscriptions , but can only be accessed through the iOS and Android app . This is n’t nifty , because rival like Qobuz allow you to download the tracks direct to your PC , which you may then upload to any machine you want ( as long as that machine is compatible ) .
To download a track on Pandora , all you have to do is bug the name of the birdsong or record album you want to snap up , then tap theMoreicon on the next screen . TapDownloadand the mental process is complete ( a green pointer emblem will appear next to the downloaded content ) . Now when all the human beings ’s cellular datum is devoured by an apocalyptic pitch-dark hole , you ’ll still be able to listen to Mambo No . 5 , just as long as your headphone is charged .
How can you listen to Pandora?
Pandora is available as a screen background app forWindows and macOS , and as a mobile app foriOSandAndroiddevices . You ’ll also be able-bodied to download the Pandora app for Fire bone devices ( like theAmazon Fire TV Stick 4 K Max ) and for the Google TV OS , which can be found on a act ofSony , Hisense , and TCL television , as well as theGoogle TV Streamer .
What is Pandora missing?
As mentioned , if you ’re look for a medicine - swarm program that lay a big vehemence on Hi - Res Audio , Pandora is n’t the way to go . With streams topping out at 192Kbps in MP3 formatting , reasonably much any other political platform is going to give you better audio tone . And if you ’re look to get into Hi - Res FLAC territory , you should definitely opt for something like Qobuz or Tidal .
Video content is becoming a bit more prevalent on medicine streamer today , but Pandora is one of a few platform that has yet to offer any such mass medium . You will have access to song lyrics and Pandora - authored write - ups on certain albums and artists . And if you require to upload your offline downloads to a PC , alas , Pandora only grant downloads directly to your fluid twist .
Above all though , Pandora ’s most major miss is its substance abuser interface for every version of the app and for the web internet browser - based player . A small fine - tuning would go a long elbow room , and while the platform is n’t insufferable to pilot , the overall layout could do with some cleaning and organization .
