Spotify is extremely slow to sync offline playlists on iOS

[fr8d]

Hi,

I'm running the latest Spotify for iOS 5.0.1 version + did a complete restore on 2 iPhones 4S yesterday. I have the same problem on both my iPhones: Spotify is unbearably slow to sync offline playlists.

I have 1200 songs that I want to sync for offline listening. The mobile Spotify app is extremely slow to sync songs and usually stops after 20-25 songs. This has been happening for weeks if not months.

I have a blazing fast cable connection: 100Mb download speed + backup 8Mb download DSL. I've tried on these 2 connections + a 20Mb DSL connection at work and I have the same issue. Wifi signal is 5/5 on both iPhones and bandwidth tests are good.

Friends of mine living where I live (Strasbourg, France) don't seem to have the same problem. I can only think that it might be related to my account.

In addition, I've had to re-download all my playlists something like every 2 weeks for the last 4 or 5 month. I'm only using Spotify for offline listening on 2 devices so it has nothing to do with the 3 device limit.

I usually turn offline mode off every 5 days to make sure my offline playlists will stay on my 2 iPhones but I still have to re-download everything very frequently.

Spotify has become unbearably painful to use because of all this...

Please help!

Thank you,

Fred

[davep1]

Thought you'd all be interested in the response i received from Customer Service:

"As it's an iPhone 5, it might be the case that it's having problems with the current version of our app. Our developers are hard at work on updating the Spotify app to iron out any niggles that we've encountered with the iPhone 5. For now, please be patient. :)"

Not ideal, but at least it's a response.

[hex0x2a]

WTF?!

This is not a iPhone 5 problem. 😕

I have two iOS devices and a Windows PC. It's slow on all devices. 

[nerdnina]

It's actually a glaringly obvious issue with all devices, if you look at the number of posts that were made prior to last Friday when the iPhone 5 was released...

[motifuser]

Confirmed. This is not an iPhone 5 related problem. Just synced my iphone 5 next to my iphone 4, at same quality settings. They download at exactly the same speed even though iPhone 5 has WAY more songs. 

[user-removed]

i'm having the exact same issue as outlined here: http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/1985407

it takes over a minute to sync over wifi but a few seconds over LTE.  i know wifi isn't bogged down as its been fine for everything else.  it's my wifi network at work.

[timhodges]

Same problem here. Will give it two weeks then I'll be unsubscribing. Patience is a thing of the past. I want fast sync now.

[Jano365]

I have a iPhone 5 and iPhone 4 and it is definitely the iPhone 5 and possibly iOS 6. iPhone 4 is on 5.1.1 and syncs wifi offline playlists at a fast rate while iPhone 5 is extremely slow on iOS 6. Hopefully a update to the app will fix it!!!

[rexkern1968]

I FINALLY got my last 1000 songs to synch to new iphone 5 last night (I've been trying to synch over 2000 songs since last Friday).

[nerdnina]

Again... it's not an iPhone 5 or iOS 6 issue. there are many many complaints about this earlier in this thread before either of those were released. I'm using an iPhone 4 which was struggling bigtime on 5.1.1. I'm not sure if iOS 6 made any difference yet because I haven't had the time to leave my phone syncing for over 4 hours...

[rmin]

nerdina. I'm not sure if you have an Iphone 5? however I've had both, syncing was always unusually slow on the iPhone 4 (just took longer than desktop). However you could still sync 1000 or so songs in a night easily (where as the desktop might have taken half hour or so to do the same thing.

The iphone 5 (or maybe IOS6) takes it to a whole new level of slowness. I'm lucky to syncronise 100 songs in 8 hours of sleeping, which is just rediculous. The same thing takes 3 or 4 minutes on the desktop.

Wifi speeds from the iphone 5 are otherwise good (using speed test apps). It's just the spotify app that's the problem. And the problem does not exist while using 3G or 4G.

[nerdnina]

No, I don't have an iPhone 5. There's no need to upgrade from a 4. But what I'm saying is that I agree with you that it's the app, not the device or iOS that is the issue. Because even though it might be a bit slower from one iOS or device to another, the problem was still around long before the 5 and iOS 6 were available. 

[ianlellis]

Agree, this issue is not new to iOS6 or the iphone 5. I've been using an iphone 4 with Spotify for a long time, and my playlists are very very slow to sync. I've tried multiple wifi networks, deleting and resync, even going thru doing weird things with my playlists like deleting "chain linked" tracks wondering if it would fix the issue. Take's somewhere around 6-8 minutes per song on my 25MB connection.

I should add this is an iphone 4 running iOS 5.1.1 and the latest Spotify app.

[TroyS]

Same issue here, just paid for premium and its crap 😐 going to be canceling, its actually quicker to obtain song illegaly... 

[oceanblaze]

I recently switched from an android phone (HTC One XL) to the iPhone 5 and am really frustrated by the slow sync on the iPhone. On my previous HTC everything synced quickly. My mobile service provider has a service similar to Spotify but the streaming is unmetered and doesn't count towards my monthy quota, essentially rendering offline syncing useless so if the syncing issue is not resolved soon I will most likely be switching. 

[grey_bird]

I FIGURED it OUT - at least for my setting

So here it goes:

Create any Playlist (or use one you allready have)

Make SURE your mac's spotify client ist NOT running (sorry not tested for WINies)

(worst: clip your computer's wifi-connection)

the just open the desired playlist on your iphone (make sure you have wifi connected)

and shift the "offline" switch atop a the list to "ON"

enjoy watching a RAPID sync progress

Worked fine on the following setting

early 2007 MacBook - Lion (10.7.4)

Iphone 3GS - iOs 6.0

Spotify App (downloaded 12_12_03)

(parallely I synced the new "The XX" album on "extreme/320kb) - it's was times quicker the dropping this few lines)

(extra - works also for the "all titles" summary in playlist folders)

greez from the grey

[rmin]

Huh, I dont see what is unique about your proceedure except for turning off the desktop client during syncing. I just tested this and it doesn't work.

[grey_bird]

you're right - had that too yesterday in a wifi where a sync-connection between iPhone and stationary client was already established

thern I went home - and there it worked, my MacBook was OFF that moment

- so maybe you have to restart your stationary or just shut it down

anyway the "download/snyc" for offline titles doesn't require the stationary spotify client

all you need is your iPhone and a Wifi

P.S. Just testet for Spotify-titles (which I added newly from the spotify-library)

don't know about localy stored songs you already have - but therefore i use itunes.

But Itunes playlists are automatically imported and you can "offline" them directly without your computer

if spotify has the songs.

[nerdnina]

This makes no sense what so ever, seeing as it won't sync anything AT ALL unless you have spotify open on both your phone and computer... Unless its different for maccies

[kshae]

I have been attempting a sync of 500 songs for over 24 hours now.  Just turned spotify off of all my devices except one iphone.  Did not increase the sync time.

[ianlellis]

Not sure why, but today I have been syncing at a rate of about 250 songs an hour at extreme bit rate. Big change from from the past syncing of like 18 per hour. Just curious if anyone else has had the same increase because I didn't make any changes to settings