Over the last month or so I have been spending a lot of time over on Plug.dj as I’ve mentioned in a few of my latest posts. My experience over the last month or so has felt similar to the time when I first joined Turntable.fm last year, when I would spend countless hours in the various rooms sharing music and talking to other folks. Over time though I moved away from Turntable, something I don’t imagine will happen as quickly with Plug. This is because while Turntable has remained the same with very little innovation over the last year, Plug offers so much more to its users. While the radical new look/layout might feel strange at first (this was originally a problem for me, but I quickly got used to it), I feel that the majority of Turntable users will be able to appreciate the improved experience that is found within this site.
Below are just some of the reasons why you should take a look at Plug.dj.
Video: While Turntable is great for sharing audio, being able to share video on Plug is even better. This aspect of Plug brings about even more uses to the site other than just listening to music, which can lead to some interesting results. Some rooms I have seen have included movies, random internet videos, stand up comedians, and more. Not being limited to just audio is one of main reasons I have almost completely switched over to Plug these days.
Playlists: I’m a fan of many different genres of music, which can sometimes become a problem with Turntable. Being limited to a single playlist can be frustrating when you move over to different rooms, especially if you are dealing with a large amount of songs. Plug fixes this by offering the ability to make up different playlists. Now I can have specific lists that contain music for the different types of rooms I want to join.
International users welcome: Unlike Turntable, Plug is open to the international community. This allows for more diversity not only in the user base, but also with the content that is being shared. I have heard a lot of music that I probably wouldn’t have ever looked into before and have talked to some great people from all over the world thanks to Plug.
Control over rooms: Plug offers a lot of control to those who wish to start a room. In the latest update to the site, there are now wait lists, max plays, booth locking, and even more features. Some of these things can be utilized on Turntable, but a lot of it is through the use of unofficial modifications, bots, etc. It’s nice that Plug builds these features into the site which makes it very convenient to get the room working exactly how you would like with minimal work required. Expect even more features to be included in the future as the site continues to grow (You can even e-mail ideas@plug.dj to make suggestions!).
Live events and guests: Because Plug can display video, it is also possible for rooms to stream events as they are happening. There have been some live concerts and events on the site so far, but it is something I imagine growing even more as people find out about Plug and realize all of the potential this aspect has. Plug has also had many fantastic guest rooms where a musician or web personality has been able to share their favorite videos and interact with their audience on a personal level. I can see this taking off in the future too as the site becomes even more popular.
As you can see, Plug is doing a lot of things right. While Turntable.fm is certainly great, there is definitely room for websites like Plug.dj as well. While it wasn’t the first site to enter this relatively new space of social music, they are working very hard to innovate in places where the competition simply hasn’t focused on yet. As the young site continues to grow, I imagine Plug will eventually become one of the more popular destinations for those wishing to share music and video with others.