Browse recent news and commentary related to MP3 player developments, using the links below.
MP3 News & Headlines
MP3 Player Commentary
Browse the Archives
MP3 Player News & Headlines
NAMM Update: Numark Announces HDX HD/CD/MP3 player
Numark announced the HDX, a tabletop HD/CD/MP3 player with an high torque, motorized 12-inch platter.
Pirate Bay Sale Signals the Death of an Era
(PC World)
PC World - With all the outrage over The Pirate Bay going legit, I think it's time to reconsider the merits of illegally media sharing. The world has changed since Napster introduced peer-to-peer file sharing in 1999, and the culture that made the practice seem necessary has transformed.
Happy 30th birthday, Walkman
(AFP)
AFP - Thirty years ago Sony launched the Walkman, a gadget which revolutionised the way people around the world listened to music but has since been overtaken by an icon of the digital age -- the iPod.
New iPod shuffle Available Worldwide This Friday
Nearly half the size of the original, the new iPod shuffle is just half a cubic inch in volume, weighs just half an ounce and features a minimal aluminum design with a built-in clip, making it the most wearable iPod ever.
Apple Tries To Bury Stock Options Controversy
Based on an analysis of the findings of the independent investigation, Apple has recognized additional non-cash stock-based compensation expenses of $84 million.
Paisley: 'Hard to ignore' serious themes on new CD
(AP)
AP - As much as he enjoys singing about the double lives of computer geeks ("Online") and amorous country boys ("Ticks"), Brad Paisley says there's too much going on in the world to be too lighthearted on his new album, "American Saturday Night."
Correction: Music Downloading story
(AP)
AP - In a July 6 story about a Minnesota woman seeking a reduction in damages for illegally sharing copyrighted music, The Associated Press misspelled the surname of the woman's attorney. His name is Kiwi Camara, not Camera.
MP3 Tech Commentary
New High-definition Zune on the Horizon Zune users in particular will be interested to learn that Microsoft have announced a new Zune music player. 
The new Zune HD is Microsoft's next generation portable that focuses on high-definition (HD) entertainment. As well as being able to display HD video, the new Zune will also have a built-in HD radio receiver, Wi-Fi, Internet browser, OLED touch screen, and access to the Zune Marketplace online store. The announced specifications are:
The Zune HD will be available in the U.S. this fall.
Image © Microsoft Corporation.
Related Articles:
Voice Removal Software: Eliminate Vocals from Your Songs Have you ever listened to a song and thought, "love the music, hate the singing". In this situation, you can use a software audio tool that specializes in trying to filter out the frequencies of the human voice. Vocal removal can be a time consuming process that involves experimentation with various audio sources, but satisfactory results are achievable. The biggest stumbling block with voice removal is the nature of the music source. If you have a highly compressed song for example that has low quality audio data, then the chances of removing the vocals are poor. On the other hand, if you are working on a high quality audio file that has a good stereo image with vocals that are center-panned, then your chances of vocal removal are much higher. Overall, it really depends on how the song has been mixed and the frequencies involved.
There's a lot of fun to be had experimenting with the songs in your music library, and with an investment in time (and a little luck), you can produce some great results. For more information on removing vocals from songs, why not read our guide on Free Software for Removing Vocals. Related Articles:
Free Music Downloads This Week In our music discovery spotlight this week, we showcase another selection of free promotional tracks that cover a wide range of genres designed to broaden your musical horizons :
The first free track, Out of Control, is from DJ Adam Freeland's new album, Cope released by Marine Parade. It is an unusual fusion of alternative rock (shoegaze) with a twist of electronica thrown in. The album is available now in various formats from their web site.
- I And Love And You (5:01)
- I Love It - Fred Falke Remix (9:01)
Related Articles:
- Top 5 streaming music sites
- Free music download services
- Listen to free radio stations using Windows Media Player 11
New netbook can double as touchscreen portable media player The Touch Book is notable because it sports a detachable keyboard and 3D touchscreen user interface. This design choice, in effect, allows this netbook to become a touchscreen only device which can work as a standalone portable media player or handheld gaming machine. The screen size is 8.9-inches and it can run for up to 15 hours on its rechargeable battery.
Key features of this multi-form factor netbook include storage done by a micro SD memory card, built-in speakers, a headphone jack, multiple USB ports and open source software. It is said that the Touch Book will be available in late spring for a starting price of around $300. More details can be found on the Touch Book Web site.
Photo credit: Always Innovating
Netbooks – smaller, inexpensive laptop computers primarily designed for light functions such as Web browsing and checking email – are becoming extremely popular, especially in this downtrodden economy. Innovation is something possible in this category at the moment, and a small company by the name of Always Innovating is attempting such a feat with its new Touch Book netbook computer.
Publisher Hearst said to be preparing "periodicals" ebook reader Now comes word today, via the magazine Fortune, that mega-publishing empire Hearst is planning to launch a wireless e-reader of its own. What is reportedly different about this reader from other ones already offered is that it will be around the size of a standard piece of paper and targeted towards publishers like Hearst. The end result? A specialized, larger screen format reader which lets you subscribe to magazines and newspapers for wireless delivery.
It is said this new ereader, perhaps available by the end of this year, will be able to serve up ads mixed amongst the print content you are reading on the display. This may help throw a lifeline to print publications, most of which are seeing sharply declining revenues in the changing economy as well as how people look for information today. A number of well known publications have already folded, or are close to folding, so any additional ways for them to reach readers might be worth consideration.
Ebook readers continue to draw interest in the news and among consumers, mostly because of Amazon's newest model now available for purchase. The Kindle 2, which was previewed here recently, is drawing some early praise from consumers and reviewers alike. It has highlighted this product category so much, in fact, that we now have a buying guide for related products and features to consider.
Past News Headlines:
July 1 - July 2 - July 3 - July 4 - July 5 - July 6 - July 7