Spotify Apple Watch new features

Photo Credit: Spotify

Spotify is rolling out a suite of upgrades for its Apple Watch app aimed at transforming the device into a more capable standalone music companion.

Historically, the Apple Watch’s Spotify functions were mostly remote controls for the app. Now premium subscribers have the ability to stream music and podcasts directly from the Apple Watch—even if the paired phone is left at home. The new feature is available to users of the Apple Watch Series 3 or later running at least watchOS 7.0.

Spotify’s new enhancements help resolve a pain point for those who found it inconvenient to carry both a phone and a watch for every day activities. As Spotify itself has stated: “We’re focused on developing experiences that enable users to listen to Spotify wherever and whenever they want—regardless of the device or platform.”

Spotify Premium users can now stream their content over WiFi or a standard cellular connection with no phone connection needed. This means users can listen to a curated playlist, their favorite podcast, or a new album while jogging, walking, or even golfing. As someone living in the Pacific Northwest, being able to cue up a Spotify playlist while kayaking or paddle boarding and leaving the phone behind is a godsend.

For users without a separate cellular plan, streaming is fully supported over WiFi, covering a variety of everyday settings. Premium users can also download playlists and podcasts directly onto the Apple Watch for offline listening—valuable in areas with poor connectivity. Users can’t download individual songs though, they must add the songs to a playlist that will be downloaded in its entirety. The watch can hold at least 10 hours of offline content, while each playlist download is capped at 100 tracks.

The updates to the Apple Watch app come as Spotify works to maintain its daily active users following a startling Q2 revenue report. Now both Spotify and Apple Music can stream directly from the Apple Watch over WiFi or cellular, download playlists and albums for offline streaming, and more. The only thing Apple Music has over the Spotify Apple Watch app is that users of Apple Music can download individuals tracks straight to their watches. Apple Music also automatically syncs recently played music automatically, while Spotify requires manual syncing.