# The Beatles finally available for Android! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 24, 2015, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293 "2015-12-24T21:09:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2015, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293/21 "2015-12-29T19:32:56Z")
I’m also glad to have the Beatles our on streaming media (I listen on many devices and locations so I don’t often have access to my hundreds of ripped CD’s). However, one thing I hate about streaming music is their killing of the flow of songs that go together. Perfect example is the “medley” on the 2nd side of Abbey Road. Those songs are the pinnacle of pop song-writing but the forced gaps kill it. ---
**Author:** ![Wolf333](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf333/32/3460_2.png) [@Wolf333](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolf333)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2015, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293/22 "2015-12-29T20:18:20Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > I’ve had Beatles music on my Android since I got my first smartphone in 2010. I’m sure earlier Androids also had the capability to play any music you desired. Apple users are the only ones stifled by these weird sorts of licensing agreements. The Beatles catalog has been available on iTunes, DRM free, since 2010. And, yes, they were in mp4 format, which is cross-platform, which works just fine on Android. As was mentioned in another post, users also had the to rip their Beatles CDs, either with iTunes, or any other ripping software. > **[The Beatles come to iTunes at last](https://www.cnet.com/culture/the-beatles-come-to-itunes-at-last/)** > > Fans of the Fab Four can now get the entire Beatles catalog via the iTunes store. The news marks a long-time-coming, personal victory for Apple's Steve Jobs. [http://www.fastcompany.com/1128135/apples-itunes-drops-drm-adds-tiered-pricing-3g-downloads](http://www.fastcompany.com/1128135/apples-itunes-drops-drm-adds-tiered-pricing-3g-downloads) I’m not really sure what the hell tethering has to do with all of this. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2015, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293/23 "2015-12-29T20:24:05Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > I’m also glad to have the Beatles our on streaming media (I listen on many devices and locations so I don’t often have access to my hundreds of ripped CD’s). However, one thing I hate about streaming music is their killing of the flow of songs that go together. Perfect example is the “medley” on the 2nd side of Abbey Road. Those songs are the pinnacle of pop song-writing but the forced gaps kill it. What program are you using? Spotify has a gapless playback option. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2015, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293/24 "2015-12-29T20:30:57Z")
> [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > What program are you using? Spotify has a gapless playback option. I use the full Spotify app at home and the web client in a couple work locations as well as the iphone app. I just checked and my phone is already set to gapless but I don’t see a way to do this with the web app (I’m guessing the full client has the option). Thanks for the info! ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2015, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293/25 "2015-12-29T20:44:14Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > I don’t need Google’s permission to use my phone how I see fit. If I had an iphone, I would need to get my carrier’s permission to use the wifi hotspot feature. My assumption, erroneous though it may have been, was that music licensing worked the same way. If Apple doesn’t approve, you don’t get it. My mistake. Though the premise of this thread (that the music you are “allowed” to listen to on your phone depends on your OS) made that mistake pretty easy to make, in my opinion. I’m not entirely sure what you mean, but what files play on what devices is largely a function of where you obtain the music files and what DRM (Digital Rights Management/copy protection) is included. Your point that Android is more flexible than iOS is generally true, but I don’t think Apple users have it too bad with music DRM these days. I know in the early days of the iTunes music store a lot or all of their tracks had copy protection, but I think you can buy MP3s from iTunes as well now. All MP3 files have no DRM and can be played anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![Wolf333](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf333/32/3460_2.png) [@Wolf333](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolf333)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2015, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293/26 "2015-12-29T21:05:13Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > I’m not entirely sure what you mean, but what files play on what devices is largely a function of where you obtain the music files and what DRM (Digital Rights Management/copy protection) is included. > > Your point that Android is more flexible than iOS is generally true, but I don’t think Apple users have it too bad with music DRM these days. I know in the early days of the iTunes music store a lot or all of their tracks had copy protection, but I think you can buy MP3s from iTunes as well now. All MP3 files have no DRM and can be played anywhere. Sigh… iTunes music has been DRM free for a few years now. The files are MP4, not MP3. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2015, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293/27 "2015-12-29T22:38:21Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > Whether I use the wifi hotspot or not shouldn’t have anything to do with my carrier. They provide me the pipe, I hook up whatever hoses I want to it. This is the problem I have with iphones. It isn’t my carrier’s decision what I do with the bandwidth I bought from them. They just need to send me the bits I request, no matter what device does the requesting. A device that sides with carriers against users is user hostile and should not be used by anyone. Look, I feel your pain as it were. Like I said I am a die-hard PC guy, I’ve never so much as double clicked a Mac (other than in Best Buy). I originally went with an iPhone because I wanted a devoted hardware mount for my car, not one of those universal things. I wanted to be able to insert & remove it easily with one hand, and back then the Galaxy had yet to become the dominant Android phone so the only hardware-specific car mounts were for the iPhone. And the first few weeks with my first Apple product were frustrating, but eventually I got it to do everything that I wanted (and I still use a Windows desktop at home). And then after using others’ Android phones and seeing what a confusing mess of versions, skins, carrier and hardware OS-customizations they all were compared to the consistent interface of iOS I decided to stay with the iPhone. Even now new Android phones remind me of late 90s PCs that came with tons of AOL, MSN and manufacturer (Dell, HP etc.) bloatware, custom-branded internet browsers and even alternative desktop GUIs pre-installed. And saying that Apple is simply ‘siding’ with carriers against users is a little naive. They have to support each other and make money (and keep users happy) as best they can. Besides, you could always jailbreak an iPhone to allow you to tether without paying extra (it was one of the biggest reasons people did it). ---
**Author:** ![zbuzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zbuzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zbuzz)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2015, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293/28 "2015-12-29T22:42:59Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > Whether I use the wifi hotspot or not shouldn’t have anything to do with my carrier. They provide me the pipe, I hook up whatever hoses I want to it. This is the problem I have with iphones. It isn’t my carrier’s decision what I do with the bandwidth I bought from them. They just need to send me the bits I request, no matter what device does the requesting. A device that sides with carriers against users is user hostile and should not be used by anyone. You seem to be saying that this is an iPhone problem, but it is not. It’s a carrier problem- the carriers want to double bill people for tethering, not Apple. Apple isn’t siding with the carriers anymore than Samsung or LG is. There is a hotspot function built straight into iOS. So whatever problem you think you have with iPhones in this situation, you don’t actually have it. It’s the carrier you have a problem with. > [@DrCube](#): > > I don’t have to worry about that with Android, because any competent programmer can fix it so it isn’t an issue. And by fix it, in this case, you mean willfully subvert the contract you signed with your carrier? Again, I’ll point out that, I too, think it sucks that they charge for tethering, but that doesn’t mean I would abuse a feature of my phone to weasel out of paying for it, like you’re doing, and then talk that weaseling up as a virtue against the competition. > [@DrCube](#): > > I don’t need Google’s permission to use my phone how I see fit. If I had an iphone, I would need to get my carrier’s permission to use the wifi hotspot feature. You don’t know it yet, but you actually would love an iPhone. iPhones can be jailbroken, which, for the purposes of what we’re talking about, is kind of the same as rooting. Once your iPhone is jailbroken, you can install any app you want, and there are plenty of tethering apps that will let you violate your carrier contract just as easily as you do with your Android. > [@DrCube](#): > > My assumption, erroneous though it may have been, was that music licensing worked the same way. If Apple doesn’t approve, you don’t get it. My mistake. Thanks for clearing that up. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-beatles-finally-available-for-android/741293.md?page=1)