Should I sign up to Spotify?

[The Enigmatic Dr X]

Well, should I?

Does anyone use it? Is it reliable? What about offline use on an iPhone?

What is the quality? Does it sound better, worse or the same as something from iTunes?

[WoD]

I'm using Napster - similar I think.  Pretty good coverage of tracks and artists - quality is good.  You can (I think) have 3 devices to the one account which is good - and download to them for off-line use.  I had it for SONOS but found I use it on the phone a fair bit.

Maybe worth checking if Spotify has the majority of artists you're interested in.

[SuperSurfer]

Have you tried the free version of Spotify? I think the current version is excellent. It's given me some pretty good music recommendations. I haven't taken the plunge and gone for a paid version though.

[IndigoPrime]

With Spotify, it depends how much you're willing to pay. If you go for the top-end sub (£9.99 monthly), you get mobile caching and the high-end bit-rate (~320kbps), which is comparable to iTunes or Amazon downloads. Unlimited (£4.99) merely gets you half that bit-rate, which is closer to radio.

There's a 30-day free trial for Premium, so the sensible move would be to try that and see if it works for you.

[Third Estate Ned]

I think the range of what's available is what makes it work for me. If you're not too concerned about high fidelity and you want to use it more as a personalised radio service, you can discover tonnes of music you might not otherwise have heard.

I find it handy when reading music scene overview books like Our Band Could Be Your Life or The North Will Rise Again because I can easily access albums of the hundreds of bands mentioned to see if you like them.

[skurvy]

I'm using Napster too which is pretty good. You can use it on three devices plus three computers (I think). Another one that's worth looking at is Bloom (bloom.fm I think) - really nice design interface and there's various subscription offers starting from £1.

I think the good thing with all of these, Napster, Bloom and Spotify, is that you cancel at anytime. You don't have to sign up for long contracts or anything.