Smartwatches have come a long way in the past few years.
For many people (like myself), smartwatches have even become an essential part of their daily lives, all thanks to their ability to track fitness, monitor heart rate, and send text messages, among many other things.
But what about music? Can smartwatches play music, too?
Yes, smartwatches can play music. In fact, many smartwatch models have built-in music players or the ability to control music playback on your smartphone. This feature is particularly useful for people who want to listen to music on the go without having to carry their smartphone.
However, the specific features and functionality of music playback can vary significantly between different smartwatch models and brands.
Some smartwatches have limited storage capacity for music, while others can stream music from popular services like Spotify or Apple Music.
If you’re planning to buy a smartwatch with music playback capabilities, make sure to do some research before making a purchase.
How Can Smartwatches Play Music?
The ability of smartwatches to play music depends largely on the brand and model.
For example, some smartwatches only have the ability to control music playback on your smartphone.
That means you can only control music playback on your smartphone including playing, pausing, skipping, and adjusting the volume. For this, your smartwatch must be connected to your smartphone via Bluetooth on which you’re playing music.
Alternatively, if your smartwatch has a built-in music player and internal storage capacity, you play music directly on the device.
To play music on such smartwatches, you just need to transfer music files from your laptop or smartphone to the watch’s internal storage using a USB cable.
Last but not least, if your smartwatch supports music streaming from online services like Spotify or Apple Music, you just need to download the app on your smartwatch to play music.
However, your smartwatch will need an internet connection either via cellular (4G/LTE) or WiFi connection, and a subscription to the music service.
Can a Smartwatch Play Music without a Phone?
Yes, some smartwatches can play music without a phone. However, this feature is not available on all smartwatch models.
As I said earlier, smartwatches with a built-in music player & internal storage can play music without the need for a phone. That’s because these types of smartwatches have their own internal storage for storing music files and built-in speakers to play music without a smartphone.
Similarly, if your smartwatch has the ability to connect to cellular or nearly WiFi networks and supports online music streaming, you can listen to music on the watch without a phone.
Just bear in mind that smartwatches that stream online music consume data & battery life a lot.
So, be sure to either monitor your smartwatch data plan usage or stream online music only when you’re connected to a WiFi network.
Can Smartwatch Play Music Offline?
Smartwatches can play music offline if they have built-in music players and can store music files directly on the device.
To play music offline on a smartwatch, you need to transfer the music files to your smartwatch’s internal storage. This can be done via Bluetooth or using a USB cable.
After that, you can play your favorite music by accessing the watch’s built-in music player even when you don’t have an internet connection or a phone nearby.
Additionally, you can even create playlists, control music playback, and shuffle songs all from your smartwatch.
How to Play Music on Smartwatch?
The method for playing music on a smartwatch can vary depending on the brand and model of your device.
Here’s a breakdown of the music-playing process for different smartwatch types.
How to Play Music on Apple Watches?
Playing music on Apple Watches is simple and straightforward.
If you have an Apple Music subscription and your watch is connected to Wi-Fi or cellular data, you can easily stream music without your iPhone. Just open the Apple Music app and browse and select the song or playlist you want to play.
Alternatively, if your Apple Watch isn’t connected to Wi-Fi or cellular data, you can still listen to music on your device.
For this, you need to connect your Apple Watch to your iPhone via Bluetooth and open a music app such as Apple Music or Spotify on your watch by tapping on the app icon or using Siri (“Hey Siri, open Music app”).
Once you’ve opened the app, use the touchscreen or digital crown to navigate the app and select the song or playlist you want to play. Finally, tap on the song or playlist to start the music playback.
How to Play Music on Samsung Galaxy Watches?
Samsung Galaxy Watches provide multiple ways to play music.
Here are the main three methods for playing music on Samsung Galaxy Watches:
- Offline Music — If you have a Samsung Galaxy Watch with built-in storage, you can transfer music files from your phone or computer using the Galaxy Wearable app and play music offline.
For this, you need to download the Galaxy Wearable app on your phone and connect it to your Galaxy Watch via Bluetooth.
Then, navigate to the Music section of the app and select the music files you want to transfer. Once the transfer is complete, you can use the built-in music player on your watch to play the music.
- Streaming Apps — Just like Apple Watches, Samsung Galaxy Watches also supports various music streaming apps such as Spotify, YouTube Music, and Pandora.
To play music using any of these apps, you need to download and install it on your Galaxy Watch. Then, open the app on your watch and select the song or playlist you want to play.
- Control Music on Your Phone — Last but not least, you can also use your Samsung Galaxy Watch to control music playback on your phone.
As long as your watch is connected to your phone via Bluetooth, you can simply swipe down from the watch face to access the Quick Settings menu and tap on the Music icon.
This will bring up the music playback controls, allowing you to play, pause, skip tracks, and adjust the volume without having to take your phone out of your pocket.
How to Play Music on Garmin Watches?
There are two ways to play music on a Garmin Watch: streaming apps and offline music.
Currently, Garmin watches support all four major music streaming services, including Spotify, Deezer, Amazon Music, and iHeartRadio.
You can download these apps on your Garmin watch from the Connect IQ app store.
Once the app is installed, you need to navigate to it through your watch’s music/media widget. From there, you can select the songs or playlists you want to play.
Alternatively, you can also play music on your Garmin Watch offline. Most Garmin Watches come with internal music storage. Here’s a list of all Garmin smartwatches with music storage.
Unlike Samsung Galaxy Watches, loading music onto your Garmin’s internal storage is a bit of a tedious process.
First, you’ll need to download and install the Garmin Express app on your laptop or computer.
Then, you need to follow the instructions provided by Garmin on how to transfer and manage music files on your watch.
How to Play Music on Fitbit Watches?
The easiest way to play music on a Fitbit smartwatch is through Spotify, Pandora, and Deezer.
However, Spotify does not support offline music, so you will have to keep your phone nearby, connected to the internet, and with the Fitbit app running in the background.
Pandora and Deezer come pre-equipped with Fitbit Sense, Ionic, and Versa. However, you’ll need to purchase a subscription to either of these music streaming services and have Wi-Fi connectivity.
Alternatively, you can always use the Fitbit Connect app to transfer your music files onto your Fitbit smartwatch and play music offline, like Samsung and Garmin Watches.
Summary
Smartwatches have revolutionized the way we interact with technology on a daily basis, and the ability to play music directly from your wrist is just another example of this.
Hopefully, I have answered all your questions related to the smartwatch’s music playback capabilities. But if you still have any doubts, don’t hesitate to reach out to me.