Shazam’s Android widget got a much-needed upgrade, allowing users to quickly find songs with a tap right from the home screen. The old widget worked like a glorified app shortcut by simply launching the app, but the latest Shazam app update introduces a better, easier, and faster way to identify music.
Download or update Shazam from the Google Play Store. Any Android smartphone running Android 9 or higher will get the latest version of the app (version 13.7). Long press on an empty space on your home screen, tap “Widgets” and scroll down to find the Shazam widget for Android. Next, press and hold the widget icon and drag it to your home screen. Unlike previous iterations which required a 1×1 slot, the new widget’s 5×1 size requires more space. Finally, select “Tap Shazam” to start identifying music without leaving the home screen.
How to use the Shazam app
Once the widget identifies a song, it will display the song title, artist, and any available album or cover art. The app makes it easy to find song information through persistent notifications in your phone’s notification drop-down list. This also provides quick access to links to find a song’s lyrics or share song information with others.
Widgets have made a comeback on Android since the changes introduced in Android 12, so it’s possible to resize the Shazam widget if you don’t have enough space on your home screen. It can be as small as a 1×1 widget, display the app logo like before, but still work like a one-click music identifier instead of an app shortcut button. The widget can also be made larger to cover the entire home screen panel. However, it doesn’t contain any extra information, it just makes the button bigger.
Users can also use Google Assistant to find and identify music on Android smartphones. However, it’s slower than the Shazam widget and takes users away from the home screen by pulling up results on Google Search, whereas Shazam provides discreet notifications for users to find later. Apple has integrated Shazam into all of its products since acquiring the service in 2018, so it’s great to see improved apps and widgets now available on Android.
Source: Google Play Store