Xbox Music on Windows Phone 8.1

On the podcast this week Jason commented how the Xbox Music app performance on Windows Phone 8.1 was pretty poor compared to how it was on Windows Phone 8 and it looks like Microsoft are going to address the issues pretty quickly. Next week the Xbox Music app for Windows Phone 8.1 will be updated fixing the stability issues and polishing the UI. The app will also has Cortana integration so you can start playlist by name from Microsoft’s personal assistant. The update is due out next week (April 22nd).

You can then expect update every couple of weeks and include Live Tile integration, improved performance and support for kids corner.

Here are the details from Microsoft:

Here is what’s coming in WP8.1 Xbox Music application update week of April 22nd.

Numerous stability fixes, including many of the reported black screens

Cortana integration is complete and now supports playing playlists by name

UI polish to improve animations and transitions between UI views

Improved messaging for encountered errors, such as unplayable content in collections

Background initial sync of local and cloud content

What more to expect in the coming releases?

Based on initial feedback we have received through developer preview forums, we continue to prioritize features you are asking for and issues impacting your experiences. Things you can expect to see over the next few bi-weekly releases include:

Continued focus on Stability and Performance

Live Tile integration

Quickplay improvements, including “recent” lists

Kids Corner Support

UX improvements (Search result grouping, creating new Radio Stations, improved Network status messages, Blue UI language alignment, now playing improvements and more)

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