Apple has not only packed a number of new features in iOS 14 but also updated a number of core system apps with new features and user experience. The Music app is one such app that has received some major usability improvements on the iPhone and a complete overhaul on the iPad. Here’s everything that’s new with the Music app in iOS 14 on the iPhone and iPad.
If you use Apple Music on your iPhone or iPad, the experience offered by the Music app is going to be particularly important. Apple has ample competition in this regard as well as Spotify’s iOS app is pretty slick. So, below is everything that’s new in the Music app on iOS 14.
You can always wait for Apple to release iOS 14 or iPadOS 14 in fall this year to experience all the changes made in the Music app. If you wish to though, you can install the iOS 14 public beta on your iPhone and enjoy all these changes right away.
1. Listen Now
Apple has replaced the For You tab in the Music app with Listen Now. The new tab is aimed at helping you find more music to listen to easily and curates a selection of playlists, custom mixes, albums, and artists based on your listening preferences. One of the major complaints that Apple Music subscribers have had is that music discovery has always been very poor when compared to Spotify. Apple is hoping to change with the new Listen Now tab in the Music app.
2. Redesigned Search Tab
The Search tab in the Music app has also received a redesign and now lets you filter music based on artists, albums, songs, playlists, and more. Switching over to the Search tab will also allow users to check out music from various categories. You can now also search for music only in your library. When in the library tab, swiping down will reveal the search bar which will only search through your Apple Music library.
3. Autoplay Music
One of the most annoying things with Apple Music is that it will automatically stop playing music when it reaches the end of a playlist or album. There’s no option to endlessly playback music. Thankfully, this will change with iOS 14 as Apple has added a new Autoplay button which will ensure that the music keeps playing even after all the tracks in a playlist or album are exhausted. This feature, however, is only going to be available for Apple Music subscribers.
4. Revamped iPadOS 14 Music App
The Music app on the iPad is no longer a gigantic version of the iPhone app. Instead, Apple has redesigned it from the ground up to take advantage of the bigger screen real estate that’s available on the iPads. There’s now a sidebar on the left to help one quickly navigate through their music library, their favorite playlists, genres, and more.
The Now Playing screen has been redesigned to take up the entire display. It will display a blurry gradient background which will be based on the colors of the album art. Users also have the option of showing timed lyrics in full-screen in the Now Playing screen which will replace the Up next queue. The media playback controls and volume slider have been repositioned to the left.
5. Minor UI Redesign in iPhone App
The Music app on the iPhone has also received a slight redesign in iOS 14. The screen when you view an album has been redesigned and puts the album art front and center, with the Play and Shuffle buttons below it. The redesigned album page looks cleaner and puts the download button and the ellipses button right next to each other for better user experience.
6. Music Widget
Taking advantage of the widget support in iOS 14, Apple has added a new Music widget as well. It is not a Now Playing widget though. Instead, its a Recently Played widget that will show your recently played music. The widget is available in three sizes: small, medium, and large. The small one will show just one of your recently played albums, while medium and large will bump them to five and nine, respectively.
One can tap on the widget to launch the Music app as well. Since widgets in iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 cannot be interacted with, it means that the widget cannot be used to control music playback right from the home screen. While there was a widget for the Music app in iSO 13 as well, it was only available in one size and was not that useful.
7. New Music App Icon
The Music app icon has been updated in iOS 14 with a red background that makes it looks more eye-catching.
Apple is also improving the AirPods experience with iOS 14 so you are going to get a better music listening experience once the update drops. Add in all these changes and your music listening experience is going to get notably better on your iPhone or iPad once iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 drops later this year.
