Music Download Review

Comparing online music websites

For this update we found the best reviews of music download services at computer-oriented magazines and websites. PC Magazine reviews the most music sites, and its individual reviews have plenty of details. CNet.com covers fewer websites that offer music downloads, but does a better job in clearly outlining the differences between them, although some of their reviews are rather old. Another useful and especially interesting music downloads roundup comes from an unlikely source: AFBAccessWorld.com, a website for blind and visually impaired people. The review's author, Janet Ingber, signs up for five major download services, and reports what she finds concerning catalog size, usability, customer service and other features.

Most reviews of music download services favor the bigger sites, which have had the most time to mature and expand their catalogs. If you're mainly interested in mainstream pop or alternative music, reviews say most online music services have very similar catalogs, but things are more uneven if your tastes run to jazz, classical, world or indie recordings (see the section on other musical genres below). Unfortunately, most reviewers don't delve too deeply into genre issues, but instead tend to focus on price, user interface, compatibility with iPods or other MP3 players and (sometimes) copyright concerns. If music that veers from the mainstream is of interest to you, we suggest checking out the catalogs of any online music sites you are considering before committing to a long-term relationship. Most sites for music downloads will let you browse their catalogs before subscribing and/or offer a free trial.

iTunes (*est. 99¢ per track) is, of course, the largest and most popular service for music downloads, thanks in no small part to the success of the iPod. Most major online music services offer their songs in a file format that includes DRM (digital rights management) to prevent unlimited copying and distribution; iTunes is no exception, but Apple uses a format called AAC that is only compatible with Apple's iPod players. Most other download services use the more popular WMA format, which the iPod, of course, does not support. (For more information on music file formats and DRM, see "Music formats and DRM" further below in our Full Report.)

That means that when it comes to iPod/iPhone users, iTunes is the best music download choice for most, though services that offer non-DRM-protected MP3 files -- such as indie-oriented eMusic (*est. $10 per month and up) and AmazonMP3 (*est. 89¢ to 99¢ per track) -- will work as well. For non-iPod owners, other services are certainly a better choice for loading tunes onto MP3 players, and because the WMA format is more widely used, might be a better choice for those who just want to listen to music on their computer. In addition, while most large music download sites offer a subscription plan, Apple also bucks the tide by steadfastly refusing to add that option to iTunes.