TuneIn Radio is the embodiment of how Web-based communication can both replace and improve on older technologies. You can listen to just about any local radio station with the app, and, if it's an AM station, you'll get crystal clear audio instead of the static-y, distorted sound you often get tuning in the old-fashioned way. It's not just about duplicating existing content, though: There are tons of Web-only broadcasts and podcasts that you can enjoy through TuneIn radio, such as the excellent SomaFM or the many 1.FM channels. With Wi-Fi and mobile data now ubiquitous, apps like this spare you from needing another device around—just use the same smart phone or tablet you use for countless other activities.

We've long been fans of this app on other platforms, such as TuneIn Radio for iPad, where it gets a rare five-star rating. While the Windows Phone version of the app does the essentials—tuning you into that wealth of audio content—it lacks a number of features you get in the iOS version. I tested the app on a Nokia Lumia 928. Let's talk a walk through using TuneIn Radio on this excellent smart phone, noting both the good and the bad.

Setup and Interface

In a refreshing difference from most Internet-connected apps these days, you don't need to sign up for an account; you don't even need to yield up your email address to use TuneIn radio. Just grab it from the Windows Phone Apps+Games Store, and start tuning in. You do have to allow it to know your phone's location, if you want it to be able to find local radio broadcasts.

When you first run the app, you'll see the same screen you see every time you start it: A big search bar to find Web stations at the top, and a list of browse options including local radio, music, talk, sports, by location, by language, and podcasts. One of the wonderful things about using TuneIn rather than a standard radio is that you can listen to stations broadcasting from anywhere in the country or world. It can give homesick expats a taste of their homeland and native tongues without the need for a long flight.

If there are local stations you like, TuneIn for Windows Phone can use your phone's FM tuner for local stations, too—something not possible on iPhones—which can save on data usage charges.

Once you've found a sound source you like, just tap its icon to start playing. On its page, you'll see the station info and art, or album and performance info if that data is supplied by the station. From buttons along the bottom you can stop the currently playing station, add it to your Favorites, or pin a tile for it to your phone's Start screen. (Inexplicably, I couldn't add podcasts to my favorites, as I could on the iPhone version.) While playing, swipe-through pages show the Lineup (if the station provides playlist data—another thing that's impossible with standard radio), Related Stations, and Options (including different stream bitrates if available).

TuneIn Radio's interface is as clear as it gets, making use of standard Windows Phone app design practices. The app takes advantage of Windows Phone's lock screen, which shows you the track name and lets you pause it. Also clear is the sound quality, though that will depend in large extend to the broadcast quality.

What's Missing?

Unfortunately, a couple of my favorite TuneIn features from the iPhone version are AWOL in the Windows Phone apps. One of these that I particularly appreciate is the Sleep timer, which lets you set a radio station to play for a specified amount of time—from 15 to 120 minutes—after which hopefully I'll have drifted off into cloud-cuckoo land. The opposite feature—an alarm clock—is also missing in this version of the app.

Another major hole in the Windows Phone version of TuneIn: there's no recording feature. The iPhone version even lets you set a timer for making recordings of your beloved broadcasts. A final thing I miss from the iOS version is the list of Recents, so you can go back easily to that last station you were rocking out to.

Still…Don't Change that Dial!
Yes, you get more features in other platforms' versions of TuneIn Radio, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't install and use it. The most important capabilities are there, in a good-looking, clear interface you get access to thousands of sources of music, talk, sports, and more audio goodness from everywhere on the globe. While the excellent Pandora music app is considered "radio"—we all know it's not real radio: just try finding talk or sports shows on it. TuneIn lets you tune into real radio, and there's nothing that comes close to it in the Windows Phone store, making it a PCMag Editors' Choice.