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MP3 Player News & Headlines
Griffin Intros Hi-Way Case for iPod Hi-Fi
Griffin Technology today announced Hi-Way, a versatile, custom fit, roadworthy carrying case for the iPod Hi-Fi compact stereo.
Da'Zoo scores with sponsors
(Reuters)
Reuters - Animated chimps having sex, a smattering of radio airplay and a college tour don't exactly add up to a traditional path to Billboard's Top Latin Albums chart. But Sony Music Latin threw out its rulebook when it came to the new act Da'Zoo.
Jury Orders Music Swapper to Pay $1.92 Million
(PC World)
PC World - A woman who won a retrial after a US$220,000 verdict against her for sharing music files has now been ordered to pay $1.92 million by a jury in Minnesota.
iTunes Hits Two Billion Sold Milestone
Apple today announced that more than two billion songs, 50 million television episodes and over 1.3 million feature-length films have been purchased and downloaded from the iTunes Store.
Big fine could be big trouble in downloading case
(AP)
AP - The $1.92 million verdict against a Minnesota woman accused of sharing 24 songs over the Internet could ratchet up the pressure on other defendants to settle with the recording industry — if the big fine can withstand an appeal.
Mac Laptop Explodes Flames
Apple laptops are known for their tendency to run hot; apparently, they run hot enough that they sometimes burst into flames....
MP3 Tech Commentary
Smart Playlists: Create Song Lists That Keep an Eye on Your Music Library If you've got a sizable music collection, then creating playlists is an essential task for playing, burning, and syncing your music in an efficient way. Most, if not all, software media players support the use of playlists which you can use to organize your music library in many different ways. The only downside to using normal playlists is that unless you update them manually, they never change. So, what's the alternative? Some software media players such as Windows Media Player 9 and higher, support the use of smart playlists that dynamically change depending on the contents of your music library. Windows Media Player uses Auto Playlists which intelligently follow rules that you set. For example, if you define an Auto Playlist to contain only a certain genre, then it will populate itself with tracks from your music library that meet that rule. Even if you update your library with more of the same genre, your Auto Playlist will keep up to speed by automatically updating - this saves time when compared to normal playlists which would need to be manually edited. If you regularly add music to your collection and want a consistent order to your playlists, then smart playlists are worth using. For more information on creating smart playlists in Microsoft Windows Media Player, be sure to read our guide on Creating Auto Playlists. Related Articles:
Amie Street: What's the Real Value of Music? Most 'paid for' music services on the Internet rigidly set the price of songs they sell. If you're an independent artist looking for a promotional platform to show off your hard work and reap the benefits, then you'll be interested to know that Amie Street offer its artists 70 percent of the profits. As a music fan, it’s a great feeling to know that most of the money spent on a song will be going where it should - to the artist. Music fans also get cash rewards on Amie Street for recommending their favorite songs - this can then be used to download songs that you would otherwise have to pay for. For more information, be sure to read our full Amie Street Review. Image © Amie Street, Inc. Related Articles:
Even though services such as the iTunes Store have recently introduced a variable pricing structure (blog)- it's still some way off from being a totally dynamic system. Amie Street for example is one such service that uses a community-driven pricing system that reacts to how popular songs are. This in effect gives music fans the power to set song prices depending on how many people buy a particular song. Most new songs start off as free downloads, or very cheap, and increase in price as they become popular. The maximum price a song can be is 98 cents which keeps the service competitive; albums too have a maximum of $8.98 - unless you see a new one that you can grab for free.
Ultrasone Edition 8 headphones pop at $1,500 each
Ultrasone, a maker of high end headphones, unveiled a couple of days ago some new special edition headphones which, considering the price compared to other Ultrasone models, may not actually...
Last.fm Founders Announce Their Departure One of the largest music streaming services on the Internet, Last.fm, is to lose its founders two years after it was bought by CBS. Last.fm was purchased by CBS Interactive in 2007 for $280 million and now has 37.3M monthly unique visitors. Even though their blog doesn't go into detail on why all three founders are leaving the company, the rumor that circulated earlier this year about Last.fm allegedly passing user data onto the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), is still being talked about in the blogsphere as a possible reason. However, the chief executive of CBS Interactive, Quincy Smith, has been eager to deny any private data has been shared with the RIAA, and has said that the rumor, published by TechCrunch, isn't the reason for their departure. There's no word at the moment who will be replacing them, only that they will be staying on as consultants until September. Image © Last.fm Ltd. Related Articles:
The announcement was made via a Last.fm blog in which the founders (pictured from left to right: Martin Stiksel, Felix Miller, and Richard Jones), thanked all its users for 'scrobbling' over the years to make Last.fm what it is today. In the blog, Felix Miller wrote, "Being a part of CBS, and the recently formed CBSi music group, continues to open up many opportunities for Last.fm. Recent product releases such as the new visual radio, and the Last.fm on XBox announcement, are an indication of how much more Last.fm will achieve".
Product Preview: Philips GoGear Opus - A New Portable Media Player
The Philips line up of GoGear portable media players has churned out over the years a steady stream of quality devices known for their sleek looks and easy to use...
Buying Guide: Before You Buy a Portable Ebook Reader
The age of the portable ebook reader is upon us. Though nothing will ever replace fully the beloved paperback, the idea of being able to take hundreds of digital paperbacks...
New Sony boombox looks like a saucer
The boombox, despite ever popular MP3 players such as the Apple iPod, will continue to remain a favorite for at least some. That is why Sony continues to trickle new...
Recycle Your Songs: Make Free Ringtones Using iTunes If you regularly use Apple's iTunes software, then you'll have probably come across the option to generate ringtones from the songs that you have purchased; these can then be used on your iPhone. The only problem with using Apple's software to generate ringtones is that you have to pay a fee - even after you've purchased the full song. For many music fans, this may seem a little unfair considering that the full song has already been paid for, and some may even argue that you're effectively paying twice for the same song. Creating ringtones in iTunes the normal way can end up expensive if you have a lot of songs that you want to convert, so what are your options? You can of course use an audio editor to create MP3 ringtones, but some require steep learning curves that may not appeal if you're a beginner. Another type of tool at your disposal is an audio splitter which can be used to create a portion of an original song. Although this is a good option which produces quick results, audio splitters don't always support the audio format you want (.M4R for the iPhone). But, there is a way to do it in iTunes for free, and legally too! If you're willing to invest in a little bit of time, you can create as many ringtones as you want for free; you're also not restricted by having to use only songs purchased from the iTunes Store. For more information, follow our step-by-step tutorial on How to Create Free Ringtones Using iTunes. Related Articles:
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