Two new features for the TIDAL streaming service, competitor to Apple Music, Spotify and the others. For starters, the iOS app has been updated with integration with Siri, enough to ask Apple’s voice assistant to play such a song or launch such a playlist. Be careful however, this integration is limited to iOS, this does not mean that the service is integrated into HomePod, as is the case for several competitors. It may come later, but for now the goal is only to use Siri on your iPhone or iPad to control TIDAL.
The other novelty is not reported on the App Store page, but it is a reader subscribed to TIDAL who tells us that he has received an email from the service. This message announces the arrival of Dolby Atmos on the iPhone, provided you use iOS 14.6 at least. If you’re using AirPods with spatial audio, you’ll be able to enjoy tracks that have adopted this multi-channel format that’s popular right now for streaming services.
Spatial audio battle rages between streaming services
TIDAL is no newcomer to this world, the streaming service was even among the first to offer tracks in Dolby Atmos. Since the summer of 2020, we can benefit from it in the Apple universe, but only on an Apple TV 4K and only on the condition of connecting it to an amplifier or a sound bar compatible with this format.
With the addition of iOS and iPadOS, there is only one Apple platform left to support: macOS. But for the moment, the TIDAL app is not compatible with Dolby Atmos and we don’t know when that will come, or even if it’s planned. A “Hi-Fi Plus” subscription billed at €19.99 per month is required to benefit from this superior quality.