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What to expect at Google I/O
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Google, Internet, Music, Software,
The Google faithful have converged at San Francisco's Moscone Center this morning to dive deep into the guts of the search giant's myriad services at Google I/O 2011. Sprinkled throughout the two-day blockbuster event will surely be some very important announcements (watch those keynotes closely) plus product and technology introductions. Here is some of what I expect.
Google TV
No discussion of what Google has up its sleeves is complete without a lengthy discussion about the fate of Google's converged TV and Web technology. Logitech, Sony and others have bought into it—big time. But consumers aren't buying and it's clear that Google has yet to arrive at a winning formula. I have an Apple TV device at home and I can guarantee you that at least one key ingredient is simplicity. No external keyboard, no large, hoary box, nothing above $150 dollars. That, for the most part, does not describe the current Google TV. Apple TV also has a super-easy—if you're an iTunes/AppStore member—way of purchasing new content. Google's focus on Web-based content and letting everyone handle commerce in their own way is not helping Google TV or any of its partners.
I expect Google to introduce a significant update to the Google TV platform. One that will shrink the hardware, swap out components, and introduce a wholly new commerce strategy.
Click to continue reading What to expect at Google I/O
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Google Music Beta: Request an invite
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Google, Internet, Music,
This morning, as part of Google I/O, Google announced their new music streaming service. They're calling it Google Music Beta, and it's currently an invitation-only affair. It's only available in the US for the time being. If you wanna get in on this one, you can request an invite through the portal that Google set up. No word on how long it will take to receive the invite once you put in your request, but hey, it's better than nothing.
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Today Pandora is expanding from Simon & Garfunkel to Seinfeld and George Carlin. The Internet radio service is adding 10,000 comedy clips from over 700 comedians to its existing music library.
A host of big names have already taken the stage, including: Bill Cosby, Bob Newhart, Cheech & Chong, Chris Rock, Eddie Murphy, George Carlin, Jerry Seinfeld, Joan Rivers, Richard Pryor, Mitch Hedberg.
"Adding comedians to the mix has been one of the top requests from our listeners," Pandora founder Tim Westergren wrote in a blog post. "We've taken the same approach to comedy as we have to music: carefully and deliberately analyzing comedic 'bits' across a very large number of attributes to capture the style, delivery and content of each performance."
Click to continue reading Pandora now serving over 10,000 comedy clips
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Spotify unleashes music downloads with iPod syncing
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Music, Portable Audio / Video, Software,
European online music service Spotify on Wednesday announced a new MP3 download service, as well as the ability to sync music on iPods and the Spotify iPhone and Android apps.
With Spotify's download service, users can purchase tracks in bundles. Ten tracks will set you back £7.99, 15 tracks will cost £9.99, 40 tracks will be £25, and 100 tracks will be £50.
"Spotify's new MP3 download service makes it possible to own your playlists in one easy step," the company said in a statement. "By introducing a range of MP3 bundles, we've been able to offer you some of the most competitive prices available—from as little as 50p per song."
Spotify features include the ability to: search, browse, and play millions of tracks; stream over Wi-Fi or 2.5/3G; access offline playlists; on-the-fly sync; a what's new tab; wireless sync of your local files to your phone; and the ability to tag favorites into a special list.
One of the most frequent requests, however, was the abilty to sync that music to Apple's iPod, something Spotify said is now a reality. Just connect an iPod to your computer via USB and it will appear in the "devices" section of the Spotify sidebar. You can then sync MP3s in your Spotify playlists to the iPod.
Click to continue reading Spotify unleashes music downloads with iPod syncing
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Will Amazon Cloud Player be successful?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Editorial, Features, Music,
Amazon needs a way to hold on to its music customers in a post-CD era, and tightly integrating its new cloud music service with Amazon MP3 purchases might help it do that, but the concept of a "music locker" is not exactly the most innovative approach and could face licensing issues, according to analysts.
Earlier this week Amazon unveiled a new cloud-based music service that provides users with up to 5GB of free, online music storage, and 20GB of free access for a year if they purchase an album via Amazon MP3. Beyond that, it's $20.
"Amazon needs to establish a strong post-CD role for its music customers, [and] this smartly positioned locker service is an important first step in building that future role," Mark Mulligan, a Forrester research analyst, wrote in a blog post.
Mulligan cautioned, however, that Amazon Cloud Player is not exactly revolutionary. "As logical a next step in the digital music market as locker services might be, they're not an innovation in the music product. They're simply giving people access to the music they have on the devices they own."
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Amazon Cloud Player streams your music to your computer and Android device
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Corporate News, Music, Storage,
Amazon unveiled its new cloud-based music service today, which will provide users with up to 5GB of free, online music storage.
The company is offering Amazon Cloud Drive, Amazon Cloud Player for Web, and Amazon Cloud Player for Android, all of which will let users upload their music collections to the cloud and access those songs on Android phones and tablets, as well as the PC and Mac.
No word on an iOS version, but Amazon recently launched an Amazon Appstore, so it's focus at the moment is likely on the Google-owned platform.
Amazon will provide users with 5GB of free storage. Those who purchase an album via Amazon's MP3 store will get 20GB of free storage for one year; albums purchased via Amazon MP3 are automatically added to Amazon's cloud service and do not count against a user's storage quota. Additional storage plans start at $20 per year, Amazon said.
Users can upload songs in AAC or MP3 formats, and can select certain songs, artists, or albums, or just upload the entire music library.
"The launch of Cloud Drive, Cloud Player for Web and Cloud Player for Android eliminates the need for constant software updates as well as the use of thumb drives and cables to move and manage music," Bill Carr, vice president of Movies and Music at Amazon, said in a statement.
Click to continue reading Amazon Cloud Player streams your music to your computer and Android device
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Soul by Ludacris headphones ship in May, pricing detailed
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Music,
Signeo's Soul by Ludacris series headphones are slated for release this May, the company said Wednesday. There are five headphones in the series, three over-ear and two in-ear headphones with prices ranging from $300 for the high-end SL300 to $69 for the entry-level SL49.
The SL49 in-ear headphones are your average sub-$100 cans. Priced at $69, the SL49 offers high-definition quality audio and has a tangle-resistant cable. Also included are three extra ear tips: small, medium, and large for an ideal fit. For $99 the SL99 offer nearly identical features as the SL49s with the exception of the construction of the ear buds, which are bigger.
For those who prefer over-ear headphones, Signeo and Ludacris offer three different models. The SL100, which retail for $149, are the smallest of the over-ear headphones and come in two different colors, with red/black and blue/black tones. All are compatible with iPhone 4, 3GS, iPad, and iPods, and they include standard and iPhone detachable cords with an in-line remote. The detachable cords are compatible with most devices with 1/8 or 1/4 headphone jack. For an additional $50, the SL150 offers the same features as the SL100 but are bulkier with bigger ear cups and come in two-toned black/white and white/black.
Click to continue reading Soul by Ludacris headphones ship in May, pricing detailed
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Bon Jovi says Steve Jobs personally responsible for killing music industry
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Music,
Apple CEO Steve Jobs is to blame for "killing" the music industry, rocker Jon Bon Jovi recently told the U.K.'s Sunday Times Magazine.
"Kids today have missed the whole experience of putting the headphones on, turning it up to 10, holding the jacket, closing their eyes and getting lost in an album; and the beauty of taking your allowance money and making a decision based on the jacket, not knowing what the record sounded like, and looking at a couple of pictures and still imagining it," he said.
Bon Jovi's music can be found on iTunes, but apparently, he's none too thrilled about it.
"God, it was a magical, magical time," the "Livin' on a Prayer" singer continued. "I hate to sound like an old man now, but I am, and you mark my words, in a generation from now people are going to say: 'What happened?' Steve Jobs is personally responsible for killing the music business."
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Apple releases iTunes 10.2.1, iOS 4.3 next
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Music, Software,
Less than a week after Apple released iTunes 10.2 with iOS 4.3 sync support, an update has arrived that seems to lack any new features.
At Apple's iPad 2 reveal last week in San Francisco, CEO Steve Jobs said iOS 4.3 would be available on March 11, the same day the second-generation tablet will go on sale. In anticipation of the update to the mobile platform as well as the new tablet, Apple released iTunes 10.2 last Friday. Then on Tuesday, Apple handed out iTunes 10.2.1, which contained the exact same description as iTunes 10.2.
The update is seemingly identical to the 10.2 version of iTunes, which has an improved version of Home Sharing that lets users stream content from their iTunes library between computers and to an iPad, iPad 2, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 (GSM), or iPod touch (third and fourth generation), as long as the device running the iOS 4.3—which means users will have to wait until Friday to take advantage of beefed-up Home Sharing.
Click to continue reading Apple releases iTunes 10.2.1, iOS 4.3 next
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In an age when Internet companies are struggling to make subscription-based services a success, music service Spotify has something to celebrate. The company announced this week that it now has one million paying subscribers.
"It's a testament to our fantastic users who continue to support us and spread the Spotify word, either by telling friends or sharing some of the 200 million playlists that you've put together so far," the company wrote in a blog post.
Spotify launched in October 2008 and reached 1 million users by March 2009. The service's features, however, have now prompted at least 1 million users to upgrade to Spotify's premium services.
Click to continue reading Spotify hits 1 million subscribers
