Shazam Debuts In-App Listening Feature

Chances are you don't spend a lot of time in the Shazam app. You probably use it for its main function—identifying songs—and that's it. But that might soon change.

Shazam on Wednesday debuted a new feature that lets you connect to Spotify or Rdio and stream full songs as well as other trending and featured music without leaving the app. This means you can identify a song, and then jam out to it right away.

Previously, you could only listen to short previews within Shazam. The new feature is available now on iOS, and "coming soon" to Android. You'll need to be a paying Rdio or Spotify subscriber for it to work.

Even better, all the music you identify using Shazam will now automatically be added to a playlist in Spotify called "My Shazam Tracks." This is really useful and should save a lot of time, as it cuts out the whole process of having to go into the Spotify app, search for the song, and then save it.

Besides that, there's a new home screen where you'll find news from the artists you've Shazamed. You can also find out which tracks your friends have Shazamed by logging into Facebook.

In addition to revamping its mobile apps, Shazam has completely "retooled" its website with new music content and more.

"It's loaded with customized artist-specific news so now the amount of information you can find on your favorite acts is mind-blowing," the Shazam team wrote in a blog post. You can also now search for songs and lyrics on the Shazam website.

Plus, there's a new Hall of Fame section celebrating the artists who have had the most success on Shazam. With more than 19 million tags, Avicii's "Wake Me Up" is the most Shazamed song of all time, followed by Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines," Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know," and Passenger's "Let Her Go."

The updated app is available in the App Store. Check in on Google Play for the Android version when it arrives. For more, see PCMag's full review of Shazam (for iPad).