Last.FM has finally released the highly anticipated update to their iPhone application. Initial App Store reviews for the debut of the Last.FM app weren’t very high. The app is currently rated at three stars, compared to its competitor Pandora‘s five star app.
However, we think this update to the Last.FM app is incredible and will probably improve its ratings. Here’s a hands-on review of the latest update to the Last.FM app.
Major Improvements
Yesterday evening Last.FM updated their blog with an announcement of what users will find in the latest update of their Last.FM app. Users can expect the following:
- VASTLY improved user interface all around (tap to zoom album art included)
- Ability to tag songs
- Personal tag radio
- Calendar based events view
- Common artists when viewing a user profile
- Many other usability and back-end features
So how do we think users feel about the latest features and improvements? We think you’ll love them.
Tagging
The new tagging feature was highly requested and Last.FM delivered in full. You can not only submit new tags to a song, but also select from any of your previously used tags. Users can still see tags that other users have submitted. The new ability to play radio stations based off of tags takes things to the next level. Simply start typing a tag and the Last.FM app will auto-suggest tag stations as you type. The list of tags available to choose from is endless!
Common Artists
The common artists section on user profiles will be highly appreciated. This section provides up to five artists that you have in common with another user. Selecting any of the artists in the ‘common artists’ section will take you directly to that artist’s radio station. We think this feature is a little overrated now. In the future, we’d also love to see related artists from our friends in order to branch outside of our current listening habits.
Calendar View
The new calendar based events view replicates the Calendar app interface on the iPhone and it looks great. Users still have the option to switch back to list view, but we find the new calendar view to me.
A Must Grab Update
This is a must grab update for the Last.FM app. We did run into one stability issue in our tests. When trying to view our friends profiles the app would suddenly crash. However, a restart of our iPhone seems to have solved the problem. We found streaming quality to be much faster over our EDGE connection. We were not able to test streaming quality over 3G and Wifi. The update to the user interface is great and feels less cluttered. The simplistic new design also means more taps for users. However, we felt the trade-off was worth it. So head on over to the App Store in iTunes or on your iPhone and grab this awesome update.
