Anyone out there remember the days when DoubleTwist was THE alternative for iTunes? Its claim to fame was the ability to deal with a user’s iTunes library on an Android device in a very Apple-like way. Before streaming services became the norm, DoubleTwist was a very popular service.
While it’s user base has likely taken a hit with the advent of streaming music services like Spotify and Google Play Music, there are still many people who still buy music by the album and love the idea of owning a personal collection of music. Whether collecting the physical media or purchasing via services like iTunes, local music collections need smart and effective syncing solutions.
As a matter of fact, this service was a huge factor in the iPod and iTunes digital music revolution in the mid 2000’s. As a user’s library grows, keeping the entire catalog on a mobile device becomes unrealistic. A syncing solution is needed, and early on for Android users, there simply wasn’t a good alternative to iTunes’ stranglehold on the industry.
Along came DoubleTwist. They gave Windows and Android users the same functionality as iTunes without the ties to Apple. Admittedly is was buggy, but it did manage to work with all of your non-DRM (remember DRM?) iTunes music too, so the shackles Apple had on users were loosened a bit by its arrival.
Back To The Present
Fast forward a decade and the whole industry looks different. DoubleTwist has continued to evolve, now offering cloud syncing with known services like Dropbox and Google Drive. While many are fine with paying monthly streaming fees to basically ‘rent’ music, there are many who enjoy the ownership of their music.
DoubleTwist has been there for them the whole time, and now they’ve added a fantastic feature: Chromecast support.
For anyone who uses a Chromecast, media players not having this feature can become enough to stop using them. I know I’ve abandoned services for their lack of Chromecast support. Thankfully, for all those who use DoubleTwist as their music hub, Chromecast support is here.
And not a second too soon for its users, I’m sure.
Moves like these further solidify the Chromecast’s place as a substantial and crucial success for Google. Every day there seem to be more and more services and apps adding support for the affordable, lovable dongle. And with each addition, the Chromecast becomes that much more of a household name.
For that, we are happy. Chrome sticking around in all it’s varied forms and brands is something we are clearly rooting for around here.
