Pandora is out with an update today that brings Siri support to its Apple Watch app as well as improving Siri support on iOS. The underdog music service that is Pandora continues to show Spotify how third-party music services should work on the Apple Watch. Pandora now supports two key features that are must-haves on watchOS…
Spotify has complained over the last year that Apple doesn’t play fair when it comes to working with third-parties. Meanwhile, Pandora has continued to roll out support for great features like streaming on Apple Watch and before that offline playback. Today, Pandora has debuted Siri support on Apple Watch along with upgrading its Siri capabilities with iOS.
My colleague Bradley Chambers argued almost a year ago when watchOS 6 launched with an API for third-party streaming on Apple Watch that it was time for Spotify to “ship or shut up,” and in 2020 we’re still watching Spotify integration lag way behind competitors like Pandora.
Spotify did release Siri support for Apple Watch earlier this month, but two major features it’s lacking are offline playback and streaming support (Pandora has both for watchOS), leaving Spotify on Apple Watch as a remote control for iPhone.
Spotify has heard feedback from lots of its users about bringing the Apple Watch up to snuff, but for some disappointing reason, it hasn’t been a priority. Some Spotify users have even mentioned leaving the service over the lack of Spotify’s follow-through.
Notably, all the way back in 2017, a third-party app called Snowy (previously Spotty) included offline playback for Spotify. The company then started “working” with the developer on it but the app was later killed off.
Time will tell if Spotify gets its Apple Watch act together in 2020. At any rate, Pandora keeps showing Spotify that what they want to do is certainly possible.
As for Pandora on Apple Watch, here are the latest improvements:
- NEW: Edit Shuffle Stations feature
* Available for Premium listeners
* Select which stations you want to play on shuffle
_- NEW: Siri on Apple Watch
* Ask Siri to play stations, songs, albums, and podcasts: “Hey Siri, play Thumbprint Radio on Pandora.”
* Tell Siri you like or dislike the current song: “Hey Siri, I like this song.”
_- ADDED FEATURES/IMPROVEMENTS: Siri on iOS
* Ask Siri to add music to your collection or for a specific playlist: “Hey Siri, add Hotel California to my collection on Pandora.” (Premium listeners only)
* Tell Siri you like or dislike the current song.
* Even more personalized discovery to help you find and listen to the music you love.
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