$120 Music Unlimited annual sub promo (15 million songs) for $60, or $12 for PS+ members

That's awesome. Was wanting music service on PS3 but want a very simple solution. This is it.

This seems like a good deal, but.... I"m not super sensitive to compressed music but I couldn't listen to XM streaming, so tinny. Pandora wasn't much better but listenable for me in small doses. I currently use Slacker and am pretty pleased with its sound. $3.99 a month is a decent price too. So, this service at $1/month sounded good, so I googled its bitrate. I'm no expert but this is concerning:

http://www.trustedreviews.com/sony-music-unlimited_Mobile-App_review_performance-value-verdict_Page-2

I wonder how long this deal will be available. I'd like to do the free trial first to see if this is something I'd even use and if it has enough of the kind of music I like (I don't care much for pop music of the last decade or so--guess I'm just getting old :shrug:).

This is a valid concern, the decay of fidelity in the move to digital streaming. I'm not a big fan of video streaming, but it's serviceable as a rental outlet. Never had a music streaming service but I can see the concern.

For only $12 it's worth trying out for yourself. I plan on jumping on this deal just because it's so cheap. I figure they have one year to try and make some real money off me

I have a 30 day trial and through my receiver,and my Touchpad Android tablet it sounds great -- to me anyway.

the offline play functionality is great too.

I just checked out the preview mode in the PS3 app. Does anyone know if there's a screen saver in the full paying mode? I didn't find one in preview. This could be a deal breaker for me--even for $12.

I wanted to, but I can't add money to PSN for the last 3 months. I just move oversees so I think that might be the problem.

Wow. That's awesome. I'll definitely be signing up when I get home. $12 for a year? Sold.

I signed up, I listen to Spotify all the time, but free so I don't get iPhone support. $12 for a year is a no-brainer. It's already running on my iPhone and Vita.

Yes, under Settings there is a screensaver mode with 5, 10, 30 and 60 minutes.

Thanks for the info.

By the way, I just got a PSN message from Sony advertising that this special offer is only good until Nov. 27 (I imagine when the store updates).

Sounds pretty sweet thru headphones on the Vita!

I kept getting a cannot connect to server error message last night and this morning, so I just deleted the app and reinstalled and all is good. I'm on the 60 day trial ATM, but will definitely sign up for the deal before it expires.

This morning I was hitting all the music I enjoyed during my college days and own on cassette (and haven't listened to in 20 years because they sound like crap), but never bothered to purchase in digital format. Don't know if I could justify spending $10/month after this year runs out, but will see. Maybe by then it will always be free to Plus members.

Unfortunately Music Unlimited isn't supported on Roku or the Kindle Fire (as far as I can tell), the only other media streaming devices, I own.

I streamed using the Music Unlimited website on my Kindle Fire, and that was actually the only success I've had with this service so far. Don't like the browsing setup on the PS3 and the Android app keeps locking up on my phone. I also had connectivity issues on my PS3. If things don't improve for my situation, I'll be pursuing cancelling the service (yeah, I know, it's only $12, but for $12 I should get a usable service).

Thanks for the tip about the Kindle browser. I'll have to check that out.

I'm no longer having connection issues on the PS3, and in another forum, people who said they were having connection issues on Thursday seem to be fine now. Are you still getting the server connection error message? After hours of playing around with it on the PS3, I'm finally getting the hang of its less-than-intuitive interface.

My biggest problem right now is creating a channel of instrumental background music (that isn't too New Age-y) I can have on while working. I have no problem creating the right channel on Pandora, but on MU, when I use the same artists to create a channel, most of the songs are uptempo with prominent lyrics.

So not interested. The interface sucks and having to run a dedicated client to use the service is garbage.

I currently subscribe to rdio which is $5 a month if you use the web app and which runs on anything that has a decent web browser. For free, I'd try Music Unlimited again but at the same or higher price than rdio definitely not.

Why not just roll this into PS+ at no extra charge? The "value" of PS+ seems to be decreasing rather than increasing these days.

Not if you have a Vita! But I would love for this to be part of PS+...agreed...

I'd sign up in a second if it was compatible with Sonos. Too bad.

That's kind of my point. Why charge an extra $1 on top of the $50/year? It's all going in Sony's pocket already. Why the need for separate subs? Just seems like a way to eke a few more bucks out of people.

Unfortunately, that seems to be the direction that both PS+ and XBL are going: using the initial subscription as a "gateway" subscription to even more subscriptions. And the more financial commitments they get out of you, the more embedded you are in their ecosystem. I won't play that game. That's the same reason why I haven't been a cable subscriber in almost 15 years. And it's the same reason why I canceled my XBL Gold sub last year. No regrets about any of those.

A bit off topic, but: yes, in terms of dollars-to-hours, the free games on PS+ are a great value. But for me, I kept waiting and waiting for those must-have games to come down the pipeline, and they never came. Yes, I could have a PS+ sub and have dozens of games to play, but I figure my time and money are better spent on games I really want to play rather than those I just "sort of" want to play.

If you aren't playing that game, then you probably shouldn't be purchasing any new video games, which can all be seen as a "gateway" to buying DLC, sequels, soundtracks, skins, avatars, XMB themes, etc.

I don't feel like Sony is eking extra money from me with Music Unlimited. Quite the contrary, I almost feel guilty that they won't make any real money from me with this deal, as there's no way I'd ever pay full price for this service. (Though to be honest, I have bought DLC for a couple of the free games I've gotten through Plus.)

Plus isn't for everyone, but everyone should be able to get their $50 worth of value over the course of a year between the 3-4 free games per month, discounts, and other perks like the MU offer. Unfortunately, to get the "must-have" games for free, you have to stop buying them on day 1.

You say "trolling," I say "being critical." If this forum was just going to be dedicated to announcements and promotions, we may as well all get paid by Sony. As for me, I prefer to keep this forum dedicated to discussion. If you don't like my general skepticism, put me on ignore. It's not hard. I've never been anything but honest and straightforward about my general distrust of the console manufacturers. I'm a gamer, not a "consoler."
Everyone draws that line differently. For me, that's where I draw mine. You all may draw yours elsewhere. I'm not a fan of subscription services, especially when I already pay for everything those services provide (internet access, software, movies, music, etc., etc.). Buying games is something else entirely since I'm not paying for a service, but for a product. But like I said, everyone draws that line differently. That's mine.
Edited by confidenceman - 11/25/12 at 1:43pm

For anyone who hasn't signed up yet, sign up for the 60-day trial first before purchasing the one year in the PS Store for $12 (or $60 if you don't have Plus). I finally paid for the full year today after signing up for the 60-trial a few days ago, and now my account settings say my expiration date is 1-21-2014. (Before, it said 1-21-2013.) Also, be sure to disable auto renewal in the account settings so you don't forget a year from now if you don't plan on paying the regular price ($9.99/mo.).