No matter whether you’re a fAndroid or an iFanboy, it’s simply impossible to ignore the impact Apple has had on the digital music scene. The iPod and the iTunes Music Store weren’t the first on the scene, but both proved the point that doing it right was better than doing it first. Can Apple repeat the magic with music streaming? Apple Music may be late to the party, but can it turn up the volume enough to outsmart the entrenched players and offer the best service for Indian listeners?

Apple Music
The newest kid on the block, Apple Music ticks off all the key boxes — genre and activity based playlists, recommendation and offline playback. In particular, the curated playlists are high quality stuff, and a great way to introduce you to new music. I personally loved the Beats 1 radio channel — Internet radio isn’t a new concept, but Apple (and its round-the-clock RJs) has done a class act with this channel.

If you’re not on an iOS device though, your only option is to use Apple Music from within iTunes (ugh!) until the Android app rolls along later this year. Also, while Apple has got the pricing spot-on for India (a three-month free trial, followed by Rs 120/month for individual plan and Rs 190/month for a six-person family plan), the library of Indian music is limited — if the situation doesn’t improve past the three-month trial, it may be a tough sell for many local-language music lovers.

Rdio 
The other big international player in this list, Rdio, launched earlier this year soon after its acquisition of Indian music streaming service Dhingana. Whether you use Rdio through its Web view or its well designed apps on Android/iOS/Windows Phone, you’ll find the service is a good balance between international music and Indian music. The service has even launched a bunch of curated music stations handpicked by “some of the world’s most iconic and prolific record labels and local influences”, seemingly in response to Beats 1, and allows you to follow friends to share your music tastes and playlists. The service is free (ad-supported, with limited song skips) but you’d really want to pony up the Rs 119/month full plan for unlimited offline song downloads.

Saavn
Long before Apple Music and Rdio came along, there was Saavn, and the music streaming service has stood the test of time, with well designed apps and a highly intuitive Web view that lets you listen on a computer of your choice. While its curated playlists could do with some serious work, the service is great if you know what music you want to listen to — and with an extensive collection of regional and international music, you’re more than likely to find the song you want. If anything, Saavn is let down by a slightly pricier Pro plan (Rs 250/month for five devices) with no download limit, though you can choose a Lite plan (paid via credit card or carrier billing direct to your cellphone bill) which lets you download up to three  GB of songs on one device.

Gaana
If you’re looking for multiple platform support, Gaana is the most obvious choice with support for Android, iOS, Windows Phone, BlackBerry 10, Java-based devices and on the Web. The music catalogue available is middling, but Gaana somewhat makes up for it by offering the best priced plan — Rs 120/month for Gaana+(unlimited downloads and local storage of songs on five devices), and an ad-supported level which only permits streaming music, with no offline downloads.

Airtel Wynk and Hungama 
If you’re an Airtel customer, you could do well to consider the Wynk music service, where you can stream unlimited songs for free and pay just Rs 29 or Rs 60/month (Android/iOS, Rs 120/month for other network customers) to download an unlimited number of songs. Depending on where you stand on the Net neutrality debate, you could pay Rs 129/month for data-charge-free downloads on Airtel. Audio quality is good, and the Wynk library is among the best on offer — but there’s noWeb view for you to listen to the music when you’re away from your phone. Hungama’s an option too, but only if you’re listening primarily to Indian music and don’t really care for international music — plus you’re willing to put up with their horribly clunky app.

technocool@kanwar.net; follow me on twitter @2shar