Elon getting cheap on SXM

[shinytop]

I am unfamiliar with most streaming services as I use MP3's on a memory stick. Taking Tidal as an example, is there an app loadable on an MX or do you use an app on your hone and use that to connect to the car?

 

[xyeahtony]

just picked up a new Model X trading our 2016 non SXM version in. Found out that Tesla only enables satellite radio. No free trial. Really! If you get a ford or Chevy you get a year of SXM before signing on. Love the car but really!

Holy crap, Buys a $100k car and complains about lack of free satellite radio. Well Tesla gives you free streaming radio for either lifetime or one year. Does Ford or Chevy do that? Tesla has probably given you six months of free supercharging, did Ford or Chevy give you six months of free gas? for crying out loud. I remember when i bought a $58k lexus 5 years ago, it didn't come with a free year of XM radio, but nobody would ever dare accuse Lexus of being "cheap" lol

 

[Don TLR]

Both 2 lifetime subscriptions over a decade ago,, well that was a bargain...

 

[rajen]

I never activated my Sirius subscription in last 2 BMWs I got. Not worth the hassle to cancel at the end of trial period and dealing with endless phone calls and snail mail to do convince me to subscribe.

If I love the service that much, would rather pay from Day 1 rather than looking for free trial.

 

[testarossa]

What kills me about XM radio is their sound quality. 48 kps compared to streaming off the internet which is 196-320kps. It's literally like listening to AM radio. Their content is really good, but hard to enjoy good music on it.

 

[Galve2000]

I actually didn't think it was that hard to cancel. I just told them my car lease ended and my new car doesn't have the XM equipment. They did try to retain me but I declined and was done.

 

[frank-datank]

It’s MP3 quality vs CD quality in terms of Spotify (192-320kbps) and Tidal (1400kbps). Bigger difference on higher end equipment but I notice a huge difference in the X with premium sound upgrade.

SXM is something like 64-128kbps depending on the channel.

But Tidal HiFI is required to get the CD quality and it’s $20/month.

I'd never heard of Tidal until they partnered with Plex. Haven't given them a go yet, but $20/mo seems pretty steep.
Also, how are you getting Tidal to your car, Bluetooth? Isn't that the bottleneck when it comes to quality here?

I'm only a couple of weeks in on having my first Tesla, so I'm still trying to find the right compromise between convenience (Slacker) and quality (USB stick), but would be interested if there's something I'm missing with Tidal, or anything else out there. Except XM. I definitely agree with what several others have said about their business practices; charging for paper bills, offering 90% off when you go to cancel, difficulty canceling, etc. is enough to lump them in with the Comcasts of the media world in my eyes.

 

[carguy84]

I thought I had used the USB connection from my phone to the car for Tidal. Won’t be back at my car for a few weeks to see though.

 

[patrick40363]

who would want XM Radio?

People who have no cell service.

 

[Bridor]

They couldn't pay me to use the Sirius service. If a song comes on that you do not like, you have to hunt for a different station. I love slacker and my USB stick.

 

[bob_p]

We had XM in our 2012 S P85 until we traded it in last summer, and have it activated in our 2017 S and 2018 X.

The primary reason is to have access to live sports & national news, especially in our X that lacks AM radio.

And with the subscription, we can also use our smartphones to stream XM over Bluetooth for additional channels, such as getting our team's sports broadcasts when the satellite stream is using the opposing team announcers.

Other than sports and national news, we don't use XM for anything else.