Turning android phone into my main music device

[robino2001]

I briefly searched the threads in here to see if this has been discussed much but I figure I'll just start a new one...

I've had a zune for 4-5 years now and the HD is starting to die on me. I was going back and forth between buying a new zune or an ipod. I've never had an ipod... not against it, just would rather not pay the price. Also, at least a new zune should seamlessly transition into my zune software and retain my song ratings, settings, playlists, etc. I'd have to redo all of that for itunes if I switched.

I don't know why I never thought of it before, but it dawned on me this morning to potentially make my android phone (Galaxy S) into my main music device. The phone has a 16 GB internal HD but I'd like buy a 32 GB card from Amazon in addition. I've been looking at various apps all day and I wanted to get some of your thoughts/opinions as to what programs to use should I go this route. I should also mention upfront that I listen to a bunch of podcasts in addition so that's kinda important too.

Winamp looks like a possible winner... wireless syncing with the PC, etc. I haven't played with it too much yet since I'm at work. I have played with a lot of the podcasts apps (google listen, acast, etc) and I'm not super sold on any of them. I'd love something that could do both the podcasts and music together, easily. Winamp looks like it may do that. Anyway - any suggestions on things to look at?

[leemajors]

I think Doubletwist has an air syncing option too. No idea about media players for android devices themselves. I think Zune pmps are going away as they focus more on win phone 7.

[robino2001]

I think Zune pmps are going away as they focus more on win phone 7.

You're right - they are. I was planning on adding that as well as a minor reason I kinda don't want to buy one but I accidentally left it off.

I'm hopeful I can/will do this for my phone and I'm sure I can but I'd love to skip the growing pains of dealing with shitty software/apps

***Edit - also wanted to add I'm pretty late to the entire smartphone party... this is my first one and I got it in February... so I'm pretty behind in general on this one :)

[Nathan Explosion]

Personally, while it cost more money, I actually like keeping my phone and MP3 player separate. I have an 80 gig iPod that has all of my music and some movies. My iPhone just has podcasts and 1 movie that I can have my kids watch when I have to wait somewhere for more than 15-30 minutes (they're 2 and 4. Getting kids that age to sit still for more than 30 minutes is hard).

I like using my phone for podcasts at work because I can quickly pause and play from the headphones. I have so much music on my iPod I forget that I have songs on there. I use it in my car mostly.

With the expandable card I don't think memory should be an issue. I have friends that swear by Winamp. I use iTunes because it's easy to sync with my iPod and iPhone and because I have my podcast subscriptions on it.

[Drachen]

I honestly don't know how the amazon cloud player works, but you could check that out too. 5GB free, and 20 GB as long as you buy one album a year from their music store. I have heard that there are $0.69 albums on there.

[leemajors]

I honestly don't know how the amazon cloud player works, but you could check that out too. 5GB free, and 20 GB as long as you buy one album a year from their music store. I have heard that there are $0.69 albums on there.

I think it was .69 "top" singles

[Wild Cobra]

I wouldn't us an Android as my main music, but I was flat out surprised the first time I put headphones into it. The music quality was amazing.

[robino2001]

Music quality out of the phone is good - just can't find software that I like. I found a podcast app for the phone I think I like pretty well... I'll try it for a couple of more days. Winamp is not user-friendly enough for me I think. I hate the zune software with a passion, but it's does some of the simple stuff I like - setting the zune in the dock and it syncing automatically... auto-updating playlists (rated songs, etc). Winamp seems to be able to do all of this but in a very very unfriendly manner.

[Drachen]

Music quality out of the phone is good - just can't find software that I like. I found a podcast app for the phone I think I like pretty well... I'll try it for a couple of more days. Winamp is not user-friendly enough for me I think. I hate the zune software with a passion, but it's does some of the simple stuff I like - setting the zune in the dock and it syncing automatically... auto-updating playlists (rated songs, etc). Winamp seems to be able to do all of this but in a very very unfriendly manner.

how does doubletwist do? have you tried that one?

[Nathan Explosion]

Music quality out of the phone is good - just can't find software that I like. I found a podcast app for the phone I think I like pretty well... I'll try it for a couple of more days. Winamp is not user-friendly enough for me I think. I hate the zune software with a passion, but it's does some of the simple stuff I like - setting the zune in the dock and it syncing automatically... auto-updating playlists (rated songs, etc). Winamp seems to be able to do all of this but in a very very unfriendly manner.

Music quality is so dependent on the headphones too. I had some cheap headphones that I bought for work and they were okay. The Apple headphones are much better than them and my bluetooth headphones do a very nice job for being on the cheaper side of bluetooth ($60).

[jimo2305]

i like using slacker the app on my android..

theonly thing i knock against using android as the primary device is just battery life.. i wish htc would make longer lasting batteries

[lefty]

Personally, while it cost more money, I actually like keeping my phone and MP3 player separate. I have an 80 gig iPod that has all of my music and some movies. My iPhone just has podcasts and 1 movie that I can have my kids watch when I have to wait somewhere for more than 15-30 minutes (they're 2 and 4. Getting kids that age to sit still for more than 30 minutes is hard).

I like using my phone for podcasts at work because I can quickly pause and play from the headphones. I have so much music on my iPod I forget that I have songs on there. I use it in my car mostly.

With the expandable card I don't think memory should be an issue. I have friends that swear by Winamp. I use iTunes because it's easy to sync with my iPod and iPhone and because I have my podcast subscriptions on it.

I'm thinking of buying a cheap iPod for the gym

I dont want to take my iPhone4 to my crappy gym

[Nathan Explosion]

I'm thinking of buying a cheap iPod for the gym

I dont want to take my iPhone4 to my crappy gym

Get a used one of an older generation and you should be good. Again, I love my 80 gig because it has more room than I could possibly need. Plus I don't want my phone to get stolen either.

[Dr. Gonzo]

I found PowerAmp to be a superior player. I still haven't completely switched my phone as my primary music player yet. I'm still planning on it though. The problems I do have are the battery life of my phone and the fact that I only have a 16GB microSD card. Besides that I like that it plays .flac files and the interface is great.

[MannyIsGod]

Those of you with stock androids would probably see a huge battery life increase if you rooted your phone.

[leemajors]

Those of you with stock androids would probably see a huge battery life increase if you rooted your phone.

Ya my buddy has an Evo and he said the latest Cyanogen was like night and day. Coincidentally, his job (Dell) gave him one of their new phones with wp7 for work, and it sucks ass. He was hoping to be able to cut down to one phone after 6 years.

[Dr. Gonzo]

I'm planning on rooting some day soon. I'm just afraid of bricking by being careless and missing a step. However, if it's as simple as jailbreaking the ipod touch then I would definitely do it. Is there a one-click root available?

[z0sa]

I'm curious about an easy root as well.

[lefty]

Get a used one of an older generation and you should be good. Again, I love my 80 gig because it has more room than I could possibly need. Plus I don't want my phone to get stolen either.
Yup

[jimo2305]

yea ive got the 120 gig zune but zune marketplace is such a joke.. their libarry sucks.. the only good thing i guess is their podcasts..

[MannyIsGod]

I'm planning on rooting some day soon. I'm just afraid of bricking by being careless and missing a step. However, if it's as simple as jailbreaking the ipod touch then I would definitely do it. Is there a one-click root available?

If you have an Evo its my understanding there is. I have an older Samsung Moment but it wasn't hard at all to root. I started a thread here and it took me 10 minutes.

Now thanks to the development community I've got it running Froyo with better performance than anything Sprint ever put out.

[Cry Havoc]

I'm thinking of buying a cheap iPod for the gym

I dont want to take my iPhone4 to my crappy gym

Screw that:

http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-Sansa-Clip-Player-Black/dp/B002MAPT7U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1304727282&sr=8-1

That's all you need. Light as hell and fast, easy to use, and at least on par sound with an iPod.

[Cry Havoc]

I briefly searched the threads in here to see if this has been discussed much but I figure I'll just start a new one...

I've had a zune for 4-5 years now and the HD is starting to die on me. I was going back and forth between buying a new zune or an ipod. I've never had an ipod... not against it, just would rather not pay the price. Also, at least a new zune should seamlessly transition into my zune software and retain my song ratings, settings, playlists, etc. I'd have to redo all of that for itunes if I switched.

I don't know why I never thought of it before, but it dawned on me this morning to potentially make my android phone (Galaxy S) into my main music device. The phone has a 16 GB internal HD but I'd like buy a 32 GB card from Amazon in addition. I've been looking at various apps all day and I wanted to get some of your thoughts/opinions as to what programs to use should I go this route. I should also mention upfront that I listen to a bunch of podcasts in addition so that's kinda important too.

Winamp looks like a possible winner... wireless syncing with the PC, etc. I haven't played with it too much yet since I'm at work. I have played with a lot of the podcasts apps (google listen, acast, etc) and I'm not super sold on any of them. I'd love something that could do both the podcasts and music together, easily. Winamp looks like it may do that. Anyway - any suggestions on things to look at?

OP, what are you planning to do with it? Are you just going to be using it to play music in casual situations, or do you think you're going to work out with it too? What's your budget? What kind of headphones do you have?

I ask these because there is a LOT you can do to increase the quality of your Mp3 player, depending on how much you want to spend.

[Nathan Explosion]

OP, what are you planning to do with it? Are you just going to be using it to play music in casual situations, or do you think you're going to work out with it too? What's your budget? What kind of headphones do you have?

I ask these because there is a LOT you can do to increase the quality of your Mp3 player, depending on how much you want to spend.

If it's a casual thing like listening in the car or while at the grocery store, then the OP should just go with the phone. However, if he's going to use it a lot, I'd recommend an MP3 player of his choice. I have an iPod and the thing works great. The Sony MP3's are pretty cheap as well, although I can't attest to the sound quality or UI.

As far as what the best players are, I personally think it's preference. Some people swear by iPods. I like how simple they are to use and sync, although I'm sure that are players that have better sound quality or better specs and what not. If you do get an iPod, DON'T get a touch though. You might as well use your phone for that.

Personally, I would spend more than $150 (actually closer to $100 depending on your memory needs) on an MP3 player because of your ability to use your phone as a player as well. Sandisk and Sony make players in that range just off the top of my head.

I guess that's my final recommendation. If you want sporadic use, use the phone. But if you want the use it for hours on end, then definitely get a separate player. That's what I do anyway.

[lefty]

I have the Sandisk Sansa Clip

It's somewhere in my appartment, don't remember where exactly :lol

Super stuff for the gym, not expensive

Sound quality is great

[robino2001]

First, my bad... went out of town for the weekend and forgot to monitor this... but thanks for all of the responses.


how does doubletwist do? have you tried that one?

So here is where I was at Friday. I tried Winamp Thursday night and it wasn't user friendly enough for me. I used to use winamp, what... 10+ years ago...? So I know HOW to use it, it simply wasn't simple enough and I don't have the time to dedicate to it like I did in high school/college. So I tried doubleTwist as a last resort. It really seemed to be a winner. But I ran into a few preferences that were lacking... I'll address that below...


I found PowerAmp to be a superior player. I still haven't completely switched my phone as my primary music player yet. I'm still planning on it though. The problems I do have are the battery life of my phone and the fact that I only have a 16GB microSD card. Besides that I like that it plays .flac files and the interface is great.

I haven't tried/heard of PowerAmp. I'll look into it.


yea ive got the 120 gig zune but zune marketplace is such a joke.. their libarry sucks.. the only good thing i guess is their podcasts..

I'll hit on more of the zune in the end likely, but I did go buy the 32 GB ZuneHD Friday - mainly to lock in the price at Best Buy if I decide to go that route (was on sale for $200). I did open it up (fingers crossed for no restocking fee) and used it this weekend to try it out. It does everything I want it to do, but I think I can get the same thing out of my phone if I found the right stuff - so I'd be paying $50 for the 32GB memory card instead of $200 for the zune. Plus I'm not a fan of the UI on the ZuneHD... I actually liked the old one better I think. Buttons were better than a touch screen to me - especially while driving - so I could control the zune without looking.


OP, what are you planning to do with it? Are you just going to be using it to play music in casual situations, or do you think you're going to work out with it too? What's your budget? What kind of headphones do you have?

I ask these because there is a LOT you can do to increase the quality of your Mp3 player, depending on how much you want to spend.


If it's a casual thing like listening in the car or while at the grocery store, then the OP should just go with the phone. However, if he's going to use it a lot, I'd recommend an MP3 player of his choice. I have an iPod and the thing works great. The Sony MP3's are pretty cheap as well, although I can't attest to the sound quality or UI.

As far as what the best players are, I personally think it's preference. Some people swear by iPods. I like how simple they are to use and sync, although I'm sure that are players that have better sound quality or better specs and what not. If you do get an iPod, DON'T get a touch though. You might as well use your phone for that.

Personally, I would spend more than $150 (actually closer to $100 depending on your memory needs) on an MP3 player because of your ability to use your phone as a player as well. Sandisk and Sony make players in that range just off the top of my head.

I guess that's my final recommendation. If you want sporadic use, use the phone. But if you want the use it for hours on end, then definitely get a separate player. That's what I do anyway.

So to address these two posts... I used my old zune pretty heavily. I used to use it for a bit of video at work, but not so much anymore. Now it's probably 60-70% podcasting, 30-40% music. I do use it to work out. I use it often - sometimes will plug into a stereo at home (but now have last.fm/pandora apps for those systems, etc). I use it in the car all the time... don't listen to radio anymore. Used to use satellite radio in the car - still have it/pay for it - but I think I'm cancelling it this week. So it gets heavy use. Budget - $200 for the ZuneHD sucked but I can live with it if that's the route I go. I'd rather not spend more. Headphones, I use the Sony noise cancelling ones at my desk, Zune premium earbuds when working out/moving (actually great quality for earbuds - don't know if they sell them anymore) and then have a pretty solid stereo in the car. The sound quality differences between phone and zune doesn't seem to be noticeable to me so far - so I don't think that is an issue.

Here's the petty point where I'm at. I've had my music library since 99 (Napster years, etc)... so needless to say, it's monstrous. With all of the music I have.... all but ~1000 tracks are rated (either the 5 star system or Zunes like/dislike system) and I have ########lists set up based upon ratings and genres. That's big for me. I know Zune, itunes and WMP all do ########lists. doubleTwist will take ########lists from itunes or WMP and then sync them into my phone if I go that route. That's awesome... exactly what I want. The only catch - doubleTwist has the 5 star ratings system in it's player (pc and phone) but they're worthless. They don't sync/port back to the music - they just go into a black hole. I know it's a minor thing... but those ratings are a little minor factor to me that almost makes me just want to go the zune route.

When I get new music, I have an "unrated" ########list that the new stuff dumps into. I listen to it, rate it, and it goes to it's appropriate place. I do 99.9% of that rating on my zune while driving around. I never ever sit at my home office desk (where my HD is with all of the music on it) and listen to music there to rate it. So if I switch to the phone and use a program that lacks a ratings system that syncs, then I'm kinda locking my music into place (if that makes sense). I have to make more of an effort to keep my music up to date. Again - it's such a MINOR thing - but it merits weight in my mind. It seems like such a simple thing that I can find something that will do it.

Podcasting - no problem... I have been using ACast... seems to be working well so far. As for music... I used the new Zune this weekend and it's nothing special compared to the old Zune I had. I abandoned doubleTwist Friday night but as the weekend progressed, I kept leaning back towards it more and more saying it might not be so bad - will just take a little more effort on my end. Maybe Cry Havoc or others might have a couple of other ideas for me. Still undecided on which path I'll settle on... I have a couple of weeks to tinker before the Zune has to be returned.

***Edit/Addition... after some more looking... it looks like moving my stuff into iTunes (ick) and using iSyncr with PowerAmp or another player may be the way to go. Anyone familiar with any of this (iSyncr mainly)?

[TheMACHINE]

Wow...Amazon Clould Player is amazing...my bro just uloaded about 500 of his songs from his computer on to my amazon account now i can listen to that shit on any device (other then iOS of course).

[Nathan Explosion]

Wow...Amazon Clould Player is amazing...my bro just uloaded about 500 of his songs from his computer on to my amazon account now i can listen to that shit on any device (other then iOS of course).


I like that iOS saw this cloud feature and added it. For $25 you can copy any song on your iTunes account (if it recognizes the file), even ones that you downloaded illegaly and copy them to their cloud database. And they do the work themselves and all at once, instead of one by one, which is awesome.

So they outdid Amazon. I wonder what Google will do to beat that (because it's the new standard in cloud players).

[TheMACHINE]

Hmmm...isnt that what Amazon is doing but for free? unless I am misunderstanding

[Nathan Explosion]

Hmmm...isnt that what Amazon is doing but for free? unless I am misunderstanding

You have to upload one by one and if I recall, it was music bought through them. Also, there's a limit to start (5 gb). iTunes is allowing music obtained through all methods (legal and not) as long as they're able to match the song.

I've already seen some purchases go up on the cloud without having to lift a finger, although one purchase I made long ago didn't show. No matter though because I don't really want music on my phone, I have an 80 gb iPod with music. I do like the apps being put on the cloud and ready for download to any iOS device though.