Microsoft's Xbox Music Receives New Features For Android, iOS Versions

Microsoft has released several enhancements for the Xbox Music. The latest version for the iOS and Android received new features, one change in particular is the removal of the $10 a month access for access to the software’s key features.

The Xbox’s music streaming service has faced challenges from its competition such as Spotify, Pandora, Rdio and the new Apple Music. The Xbox Musicm released on 2012, was Microsoft’s replacement to its unsuccessful Zune service. The replacement app offered music streaming, storage and purchasing. Xbox Music has been available through PCs and mobile apps, but it has been limited to Windows 8 and 8.1 for the PC.

The Xbox Music will appear as Groove in Windows 10 when it launches on July 29, where it will get more spotlight. However, it will still need to compete with other streaming services that have a wider audience.

Microsoft has also been making efforts to put focus on apps and services for other operating systems, such as iOS and Android. It no longer limits itself to products as mobile Office and Xbox Music to just Windows and Windows Phone owners. The company realizes that it has to expand its offerings and reach out to other users to gain greater exposure.

To further enhance the experience for iOS and Android versions of Xbox Music, the app now offers certain key features without the need to purchase the $10 Xbox Music Pass. User can now play music, access albums and playlists for free. Users can’t however, access the Xbox Music Radio Station, which creates custom stations based on their favorite artists.

It is also possible to play any music stored on Microsoft OneDrive online music folder, just as on the Xbox console. The music from the OneDrive folder appears as part of the song collection so it is easily accessible.

Another new feature is Offline Playback. This new feature allows access of any music for offline use on many devices. It is also possible to filter music to view which tune are available offline.