Jenn- I totally agree. Last.fm takes the cake here for sure. Slacker also seems a bit to main stream, and you know those web folks don't adopt mainstream to easy.
Great post.
Michelle
· 10 months ago
I like Slacker a heck of a lot more it's very user friendly and straight forward. I've tried Last FM and the interface is terrible it's the worst thing I've ever seen, I have no idea how to actually use it. And the Android app is just ponderous, so far I've only figured out how to get to one station.
Luke O'Rafferty
· 10 months ago
What about Spotify or Blip.fm? How do you think they compare? My personal set up at the moment is to use last.fm for general listening and then move to Spotify when I want to listen to something specific (obviously set up to scrobble to last.fm).
Spotify worked really well for a recent party too. I sent out invites a few days beforehand so lots of people could create a playlist and then combined them all into one and paid the 99p to play with no ads.
Now lots of people form the party want invites to Spotify...
Jennifer Van Grove
· 10 months ago
Michelle, you have a valid point when it comes to Last.fm's interface, and admittedly it took me awhile when I first started using Last to actually discover how useful/functional the site really is. I would argue, though, that the feature set far out weighs that of Slacker, especially in the areas compared in this article.
Brad
· 10 months ago
Slacker gives me way more control over what's playing and sounds better on the iPhone. When I don't want to make my own station, Last.fm usually does a better job of creating the station for me.
Fred
· 10 months ago
Although I do agree that Last.FM has more compelling social features, I think you are missing one key analysis in this head-to-head...the quality of the programming.
Last.FM is great if you want to hear one specific song or tell everyone you know that you listened to that specific song, but, if you want to hear a "radio station" that plays the kind of music you are in the mood for, then Slacker is the clear winner. From the professionally programmed stations to creating your own custom station, Slacker plays better songs, better versions of songs, doesn't repeat songs as frequently and keeps me listening for hours.
Last.FM is something I listen to for a song or two and then leave.
So, in terms of Music (the most important analysis), which is really what most people would use these sites for, Slacker is definitely a much better choice.
Also, I agree with Michelle that Last.FM's layout is terrible and very complicated.
Otis
· 10 months ago
Fred is exactly right. I was a long-time Pandora user and hesitated to try anything new. But when I finally got around to comparing Last.FM and Slacker to Pandora, Slacker was far and away the winner. Slacker's programming is outstanding.
Zell
· 10 months ago
I love slacker and finds that it plays more of the music I want to listen to, but also love the social features of last.fm so I use lastslacker.com to automatically update my last.fm acct when listening to Slacker. Best of both.
SosiaIsOn
· 10 months ago
I think you are comparing two services that have very little in common beyond the music streaming function. Last.fm is a service that was born out of a socially networked music discovery concept. Slacker Radio is exactly that, web radio. It doesn't have any designs on being a social music network. It is more appropriate to compare Pandora and Slacker since both are web radio first and any social features are only added bonuses.
Last.fm obviously wins the social aspect but their streaming selection is lack luster and their mobile app (for the iPhone) is the slowest of the four major streaming apps (Pandora, Slacker, Last.fm and AOL Radio). Stream quality is also highly diminished on 3G with Last.fm. With Pandora and Slacker there is a quality difference from wifi but not as much.
If you want to discover new hipster tunes Last.fm is a great option but for ease of use and pure music enjoyment Slacker is superior. I often find an artist through Last.fm and then add them to one of my stations on Slacker.
Oh and just FYI Slacker does have a pay option with unlimited skips for about 4 dollars a month.
Shigueta
· 10 months ago
slacker: "We're Sorry Slacker Personal Radio is not available in your area. Unfortunately, Slacker Personal Radio is currently only available in the United States. While we are working to extend our licenses to other parts of the world, at this time we can only play music to our listeners within the United States."
last.fm: Been using it everyday.
deepikaur
· 10 months ago
Yes, Last.FM definitely wins in my book as well (though Pandora is my choice of online radio). I had given Slacker a chance, but the site's look and feel are major turn-offs to me.
Jeff
· 9 months ago
There is also Jango.com and Finetune.com.... How do those compare? I have been using Pandora mostly but am starting to use last.fm more now. I like the new changes. It sounded from their site that I should be able to put my last.fm playlists on my iPod.... anyone figure out how to do that?
Playster.org
· 4 months ago
If you're looking for music events, you should check out http://www.playster.org - We currently index Upcoming, Last.fm and Meetup, and have a wealth of music events that you can search by keyword.
All Comments
Great post.
Spotify worked really well for a recent party too. I sent out invites a few days beforehand so lots of people could create a playlist and then combined them all into one and paid the 99p to play with no ads.
Now lots of people form the party want invites to Spotify...
Last.FM is great if you want to hear one specific song or tell everyone you know that you listened to that specific song, but, if you want to hear a "radio station" that plays the kind of music you are in the mood for, then Slacker is the clear winner. From the professionally programmed stations to creating your own custom station, Slacker plays better songs, better versions of songs, doesn't repeat songs as frequently and keeps me listening for hours.
Last.FM is something I listen to for a song or two and then leave.
So, in terms of Music (the most important analysis), which is really what most people would use these sites for, Slacker is definitely a much better choice.
Also, I agree with Michelle that Last.FM's layout is terrible and very complicated.
Last.fm obviously wins the social aspect but their streaming selection is lack luster and their mobile app (for the iPhone) is the slowest of the four major streaming apps (Pandora, Slacker, Last.fm and AOL Radio). Stream quality is also highly diminished on 3G with Last.fm. With Pandora and Slacker there is a quality difference from wifi but not as much.
If you want to discover new hipster tunes Last.fm is a great option but for ease of use and pure music enjoyment Slacker is superior. I often find an artist through Last.fm and then add them to one of my stations on Slacker.
Oh and just FYI Slacker does have a pay option with unlimited skips for about 4 dollars a month.
"We're Sorry Slacker Personal Radio is not available in your area. Unfortunately, Slacker Personal Radio is currently only available in the United States. While we are working to extend our licenses to other parts of the world, at this time we can only play music to our listeners within the United States."
last.fm:
Been using it everyday.
using Pandora mostly but am starting to use last.fm more now. I like the new
changes. It sounded from their site that I should be able to put my last.fm
playlists on my iPod.... anyone figure out how to do that?
Enjoy!