Using BLUETOOTH and your existing DATA connection on your cell phone (Tested with ANDROID Samsung Galaxy III and IV and LG Viper) will allow you car to connect to
(tested with my 2014 Impala LTZ, 2014 Corvette Stingray Z51, 2015 GMC Yukon SLT, ex's 2014 Buick Verano Turbo, and my assistant's 2014 Chevy Cruze LTZ) Apps:
iHeartRadio
Tune-in
Milk
Pandora
and from what I speculate any other like those.
I use iHeart, Pandora, and Milk all the time due to them allowing the "Create Your Own Station" features. I love listening to Prince, Doug Stanhope, Greg Gilrado, Robert Schimmel, Jim Gaffigan, Hendrix, Led Zep, Motown etc stations that I've created.
When listening to them you:
1) turn on Bluetooth connection and connect to your paired car.
2) press app that you wish to use and select any of the stations in said app (eg. Press iHeart app, then Prince Station , yours or otherwise.
3) Wait for station to load for like 2 secs.
4) It will display on both your phone and the car's headset. The info will essentially be exactly what U see on the phone screen
5)
BTW I have never used the PANDORA app on the actual headset in the car because the Bluetooth is sending the audio and info right to the Headset anyway. The Pandora App on the car's haedset, if used would allow U to rate music (thumbs up and thumbs down) but cold care less about that.
This does obviously use your phone's data plan.
Hotspot isn't necessary. As long as you have a data signal strong enough it will work. The broadcast by app default have a forward delay, which means that if you are listening to something and your data were to conk out... the app has about 15- 20 seconds of the broadcast stored and will continue to broadcast until hopefully your data connection buffers and reloads.
I have unlimited Data thru a grandfather contract with Sprint that I will probably never change. The amount of Data is still minimal. Although 128 Kbps is the default rate of Wi-Fi, Pandora's iPhone and Android app allows you to choose between 64 Kbps and 128 Kbps when using a cellular connection. The default setting is 64 Kbps. If U listen 1 hour per day for 20 days per month example, data use would be just over 500MB.
Since I have an unlimited amount of data and a Hotspot on that phone, I have also been able to hook my Roku into Yukon's rear entertainment and stream Netflix for kids while on the road., I have also been able to hook my Roku into Yukon's rear entertainment and stream Netflix for kids while on the road.
Grandfather clauses save some of us don't they? :thumbs:
With my Sprint one we have 4 phones on one plan and we literally share unlimited data. Every one of these phones have a hotspot programed into them
which allows for, on trips, my passengers to use their Laptops, or tablets willy nilly. It also allows for Netflix streaming to our Roku (or Apple TV, NeoTV and Chromecast).