Microsoft announced an overhaul of its Groove music app for iOS yesterday, featuring a redesigned interface and a handful of new features for the subscription-based service, home to over 40 million tracks.

The 3.5.6 update promises a much faster sign-in for mobile users of the $9.99-per-month service and introduces a new Explore view to the UI where users can discover popular songs and new releases from top artists.

Microsoft Groove iOS
The update also offers significant improvements to playback reliability, as well as faster download of songs and albums for offline playing. Lossless OneDrive support and new sorting options when viewing music collections have also been implemented.

In addition, the update includes fixes to the sync process that requires users' music collections to be rebuilt from scratch, which Microsoft promises is a one-time procedure, as well as optimizations to screen resolution to support larger mobile displays.

The app still needs to be in the foreground to download music, although Microsoft says a background download feature is coming in a future update. 

Microsoft Groove is a free download for iPhone and iPad available from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Top Rated Comments

Red Oak Avatar
112 months ago
Who knew they even had a music streaming service. DOA
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MH01 Avatar
112 months ago
Did not know this existed.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Blakjack Avatar
112 months ago
Definitely didn't know they had a music app.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Daws001 Avatar
112 months ago
Microsoft has a music app? o_O
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
machpost Avatar
112 months ago
Cool, I can finally listen to WMAs on my iPhone.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DEMinSoCAL Avatar
112 months ago
Ha! While I almost never use Groove, I updated the app on my iPhone and launched it. Guess what? Freezes on opening screen then crash and burn. Nice work, Microsoft. Seems the Zune software days were your best.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

App Store vs EU Feature 2

Apple Says It Doesn't Approve of EU Porn App

Monday February 3, 2025 1:15 pm PST by
Apple does not approve of the "Hot Tub" pornography app that was released for the iPhone in the EU using alternative app distribution, Apple said in a statement to MacRumors. Further, Apple is concerned about the potential user safety risks with a pornography app, and says that it undermines consumer trust in the Apple ecosystem. We are deeply concerned about the safety risks that hardcore...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Horizontal 1

iPhone 17 Pro Launching This Year With These 8 New Features

Tuesday January 28, 2025 11:48 am PST by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. iPhone 17 Pro concept based on rumors Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of January 2025: More aluminum: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models ...
apple power beats pro 2

Apple Expected to Announce Powerbeats Pro 2 on February 11 With These New Features

Sunday February 2, 2025 6:15 am PST by
Apple previously teased that Powerbeats Pro 2 would be released in 2025, and now an announcement date has leaked. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said Apple plans to unveil the wireless earbuds on Tuesday, February 11. Powerbeats Pro 2 will be priced at $250 in the U.S., he said. Powerbeats Pro are a sportier, fitness-focused alternative to AirPods Pro with built-in, adjustable ear hooks...
applecare apple care banner

AppleCare+ Policy Change Coming to Apple Stores

Sunday February 2, 2025 8:34 am PST by
Starting next week, Apple's retail stores will no longer offer AppleCare+ plans as a one-time purchase, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Instead, he said the stores will only offer AppleCare+ as a subscription. For example, AppleCare+ for the iPhone 16 Pro Max costs $9.99 per month, or $199 upfront for two years. The latter option would no longer be available at Apple's stores....
iCloud General Feature Redux

Apple May Launch New iCloud Invite Tool Codenamed 'Confetti' This Week

Sunday February 2, 2025 6:42 am PST by
As early as this week, Apple plans to introduce a new iCloud-based service for event invites, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter, Gurman said the new service is codenamed "Confetti" within Apple. He said the service will offer users a "new way to invite people to parties, functions, and meetings." He did not say if this functionality would be available through a ...
top stories 2025 02 01

Top Stories: iOS 18.3 Released, AirPods News, and More

Saturday February 1, 2025 6:00 am PST by
January has come to a close, with Apple pushing out iOS 18.3 and related software updates in the final week of the month to deliver some refinements for Apple Intelligence, security fixes, and more. We're looking ahead to more substantial updates with iOS 18.4, while we also shared news and rumors about AirPods and the upcoming "iPhone 17 Air," so read on below for all the details! iOS...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: Latest iPhone SE 4 Rumors

Friday January 31, 2025 8:29 am PST by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the latest rumors about the iPhone SE 4 as it nears launch. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos The fourth-generation iPhone SE is widely rumored to feature an iPhone 14-style all-screen design with a 6.1-inch OLED display, Face ID, and USB-C. Images of dummy models showcasing the new design were ...