Apple Mac HQ

Amazon recently launched their newest online service, Amazon MP3. Amazon MP3, currently in Beta, is a digital music service that will compete with iTunes, eMusic, Amie Street, and others. I decided to kick the tires today and test out Amazon’s newest product.

Browsing the site is pretty much like using Amazon to purchase any of their other products. You can perform a search or use the navigation bar on the left side of the page. I purchased a song on the Top Songs list so didn’t venture too much into the interface but it seems very easy to use from my limited experience.

Once you find a track you want, click the Buy MP3 button and you’ll be prompted to download the Amazon MP3 Downloader. The downloader is necessary for album purchases but not for song purchases. I went ahead and downloaded it anyways.

I went through the checkout process and a .amz file was downloaded to my laptop. Double clicking the file begins the song download in the Amazon Downloader application. About 5 seconds later, the song was downloaded and it was automatically added to my iTunes library. If you want to manually manage your music, you can turn off the auto add to iTunes feature in the preferences of the downloader application.

Be careful about clicking the Buy MP3 button. Once you are logged into Amazon, clicking the button will automatically purchase the song much like the 1 click buying. I clicked the button by accident and purchased a song i didn’t really want to buy. Good thing the track was only $.89.

iTunes may finally have some competition with Amazon MP3. Most tracks are only $.89 and most albums $8.99. The songs are all DRM free and encoded at 256kbps in mp3 format. Right now the selection is a little limited, but I expect that to improve over time.

Competition is good for consumers, but we’ll have to wait and see if Apple changes the iTunes store in response. If you purchase from iTunes, Amazon MP3 is worth your time to check out. The reviews are out, and so far they are positive.

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