Spotify macOS client update adds Touch Bar, AirPods auto-pause support

Users with the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar now have controls similar to iTunes. The Touch Bar can be used to "scrub" through a track, pause, play, induce a search box, and shuffle.

While not specifically trumpeted by Spotify, the update also pauses playback when AirPods are removed from one of the listener's ears, and resumes when re-inserted.

Spotify has over 30 million songs, and 100 million monthly active users, with 40 million paid subscribers. In early December, Apple Music was reported to have over 20 million subscribers, after 17 months of service — a milestone that took Spotify 7 years to obtain with a mix of free and paid plans.

A dedicated desktop client has been one of Spotify's smaller advantages over Apple Music, which is mostly mobile-oriented and can only be reached on Mac and Windows systems through iTunes — software burdened with several other tasks.