RealNetworks opens Rhapsody to Macs
RealNetworks announced on Monday that it will make Rhapsody.com available to Mac users as a “core experience” of their subscription-based Rhapsody digital music service. Mac users can now stream 25 songs free of charge per month from Rhapsody.com. Differnet subscription levels allow for greater amounts of streaming audio (both popular music and internet radio). So far, the there are no plans as to when the Windows-only desktop client necessary for the purchase and download of music from Rhapsody will be available for the Mac. TUAW
Can anything be better than iTunes? And why now? I think Rhapsody’s getting in too late.
Since I’ve started using iTunes, I’ve never used any other music application. Since it’s is also available for Windows users, iTunes is the closest Mac experience a Windows user can ever get (that and the iPod user interface).
Technorati Tags: ipod, music, realnetworks
dave c 6:40 AM on December 7, 2005 Permalink
at $.99 per track you must be an idiot to think i-tunes is better than rhapsody. maybe you should remove yourself from steve job’s lap
Joel 7:04 AM on December 7, 2005 Permalink
dave, you stumbled upon a blog dedicated to the Mac. I’m happy sitting on steve job’s lap, the same way as I’m happy sitting on bill gates’ lap when I’m playing my PC games. :)
$.99/song is a good price for me because I buy at a per song basis. It’s the same price at Rhapsody right? Another plus factor for a Mac user like me… iTunes is already built in. I don’t want to install extra apps like the Rhapsody Player Engine to listen to music.
If you’re happy with Rhapsody, then good for you :)
Rolly 7:51 AM on December 7, 2005 Permalink
You get what you pay for … and at 99 cents per song at iTunes — you get more than just a song. You get a very simple yet highly innovative music management/player software (with video to boot!) that is perfectly paired up with equally elegant music-playing/management portable devices (i.e., the iPod family). Simple, elegant, works like a charm … why ask for anything else? Rap on Rhapsody if you must — I’d rather tune in to iTunes.
Chaz 9:47 AM on December 7, 2005 Permalink
Here’s my deal. I’m not going to pay $.99 per track for lossy compressed music or about $10 per album when I can get a CD from Amazon.com for about $12. I’m sorry. It’s not that good a deal, and that’s not just criticism of iTunes but online music in general right now. What do I have to show for that $10 album purchase? No CD, no album art, and less freedom with what I can do with the music I just purchased. My CD, on the other hand, can be ripped to any format I want (I’m a fan of Vorbis) without any further loss in quality, and it’s guaranteed to work on any device I want to listen to music on. That’s certainly not the case with iTunes or any other online music service out there.
As far as iTunes, I’m a Windows user and I echo your sentiment that I don’t want to install any “extra apps” just to be able to use the iTunes music store. Heck, I can’t stand iTunes which makes the iTunes music store even less attractive. So while it MAY be true that iTunes is the best game in town right now, that’s not saying very much.
Joel 10:57 AM on December 7, 2005 Permalink
Chaz, thanks for dropping in… it’s the convenience that’s gets me to use iTunes, the same way as getting CDs and ripping them at your own time is convenient for you.
Music formats and distribution is a hot topic and arguments can go on for quite some time without anyone “winning.”
Respect is the key here. As long as we enjoy our respective music applications for our respective discrimitating tastes, without forcing others to like what we like, then all would go well.
Joe Cheng 2:48 PM on December 7, 2005 Permalink
FWIW, the main advantage Rhapsody has over iTunes is unlimited access to their entire library each month for $10. Yes, you do have to put up with a clunkier UI than iTunes, but if you’re an adventurous music lover who isn’t hung up on “owning” music, $10/month is an unbelievable deal. Really.
Except of course that the service is incompatible with the iPod.
There’s no question that iPod users are deprived of the subscription model right now, although it’s unclear how many of them actually care–yet. The idea of “renting” music seems way less desirable than “owning” it, I’m guessing mostly for emotional/irrational reasons, even though in the long run ANY serious music lover would save a ton of money overall with renting.
I for one don’t own an iPod and don’t intend to get one until either it works with Rhapsody/Napster/Yahoo/etc. (cold day in hell) or Apple offers its own subscription service (hmmm…).
Joel 3:22 PM on December 7, 2005 Permalink
Hi Joe. Why pay for access when you get streaming audio for free? I’m thinking about online radio stations like club977, hitzradio, and smoothjazz.com. These are free but with minimal ads.
On the Mac, I’ve been playing with iFill (shareware) and RadioRecorder (free). Both record streaming radio station audio. The streams are tagged by song title but since songs are usually crossfaded, you get a chopped up collection. It’s funny to hear one song crossfading into the next only to be cut by a different song. However, it’s close to perfect if you choose to only record from one station.
iFill and RadioRecorder support the iPod. Just don’t set the iPod to play randomly! So what I do is set iFill to record before I sleep and disconnect the iPod with “my” new 85+ songs in the morning.
Oh, the songs are not synced in iTunes, the songs are just saved in the iPod in their own playlist.
I’m sure there are similar applications for Windows. ;)
RobRoy 7:37 AM on August 2, 2009 Permalink
I am currently struggling with the decision to buy a Mac and run Rhapsody on it using Parallels or Bootcamp. I am a die hard Rhapsody fan. The option of all you can eat streaming for at the small subscription fee is a must have. And don’t forget – its not just unlimited streaming on your desk top you get – its also unlimited downloads to your MP3 player. You only need to pay for a song if you want to burn it or put it in a playlist on your MP3 player (you can create playlists on the dek top already for the monthly fee). As a result I rarely pay for individual songs and keep my “record budget” to $10 a month.
But besides the cost – there is one aspect of this that makes the iTunes a deal breaker for me and hence my can-I-runRhapsoy-on-Bootcam dilemma: as a crazy jaz fan, I am always on the digital equivalent of Cliff Huxtable’s trips to the used record store……in search of a certain jazz artist doing a particular song. When found just from browsing on Rhapsody or read about on the web, digging in Wikipedia for a movie songtrak credits, or heard about on NPR (who DO have a lot of free audio content) I can find it quickly and audition the ENTIRE CUT. Once, or maybe a few times. 30 seconds doesnt cut it in jazz: I need to hear the bridge before I decide to buy.
If I had iTunes I would have spent 50 bucks this month alone on songs that yes I would listen to again and again – but I didnt have to spend that.