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MP3 Player News & Headlines
Apple Intros iPod Phone
Apple today introduced iPhone, a new device that combines a state-of-the-art mobile phone, a widescreen iPod with touch controls, and an Internet communications device with desktop-class email, web browsing, searching and maps—into one small and lightweight handheld device.
Internet Age re-inventing music business: Bandwidth
(AFP)
AFP - Music and Internet worlds merged on San Francisco's posh Nob Hill as insiders brainstormed about industry rocking Web 2.0 trends from social networking to smart phones with cameras.
SpeckTone Retro Stereo Speaker System for iPod
The SpeckTone Retro is one of the few iPod accessories that has caught our eyes recently. The fifties look of the all-wood speaker cabinet is finished with a high-gloss lacquered piano finish, and is a surprisingly nice complement to the modern look of iPods.
Otafuku Rex; Mix Them, Mash Them Up
The new band Otafuku Rex has debuted their music video, Do Me, I'm the Best, and is inviting fans to get in on the action and create their own remixes by mashing up the groups video and music, adding in their own music and video, and sending the results to friends.
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.
NAMM Update: iKey Plus Turns Audio Into MP3s
iKEY-Audio introduced the iKEY PLUS – a device that records live audio and converts it into high quality MP3 and WAV files and saves them directly to an iPod or another USB compatible storage device.
Two New iPod Games Announced
Electronic Arts today announced the availability of two new games for the fifth generation iPod – EA Sudoku and Royal Solitaire.
The Strangest iPod Accessory Ever?
Thanko has introduced a bizarre iPod box speaker that may be the strangest iPoc accessory ever.
MP3 Tech Commentary
Buying Guide: Before You Buy a Portable Media Player
Portable media players are, by definition, MP3 players which do much more than just play your favorite digital audio files. These specialized devices also let you watch your favorite television or movie programming in a portable format as well as letting you view lots and lots of your favorite digital photos. There are a lot of portable media players on the market today, so it is important to consider the most important features when making your selection. To get you thinking about these critical functions...read more
Free Digital Music Creation Software If listening to other people's music simply isn't enough, then why not have a try at creating your own masterpiece? There is a surprising amount of software out there tailored to making digital music without the steep learning curve that is often associated with premier audio software such as Steinberg's Cubase etc. If you want to take things to the next level but don't want to commit yourself financially until you've had a go, then free music creation software is your next step. It can be very satisfying producing your first piece of music, and you can even upload it for others to hear on social networking sites like MySpace. For more information, read our Free Music Creation Software guide on the best free audio programs to download. Related Articles:
New Sony boombox looks like a saucer The ZS-E5, available next month for an undisclosed price, is said to be Sony's most personalized and least expensive boombox to date. It sports a compact body, four body color choices (pink, blue, red, aqua) and a rather unique design compared to more expensive devices in this category.
Features of the ZS-E5 include a built-in analog AM/FM tuner, an integrated CD player that supports CD-R/RW playback, and a line-in jack for digital music players. This is on top of the large LED display. More details, when available, can be found at the Sony Web site.
Photo Credit: Sony
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 models out – the latest being the rather saucer shaped ZS-E5.
Free Music Downloads This Week In our music discovery slot this week, we bring you a whole album of free music. There's also a selection of free tracks covering various genres that you can listen to or download. The free MP3s this week are:
The HDTracks music service has compiled a free album consisting of various Jazz and Blues artists. The Jazz & Blues Experience album can be downloaded in various high resolution formats such as AIFF, FLAC, or 320 Kbps MP3.
- Tonight (Day + To-Nite Mix) (4:48)
- Beach House (3:53)
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Free Music Downloads This Week Here is another selection of free promotional tracks that you can download for free. These full songs will hopefully give you a good taster before purchasing the band/artist's music. The free music downloads this week are:
Superteen is a garage rock song from Care Bears on Fire which is featured on their new album, Get Over it! (S-Curve Records), available now.
- MySpace Transmissions Session (15:19)
- Do It Again (Blogula Remix) (3:42)
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Free Music Downloads This Week In the music spotlight this week, we bring you another selection of promotional tracks that cover a wide spectrum of genres. The free music downloads this week are:
Repeaterbeater is an indie/progressive rock track from Danish band, Mew. Their forthcoming album, No More Stories is due for release in the U.S. on Aug. 25 (Columbia Records).
- Almost Never (3:23)
- Butter EP Version (4:33)
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Product Preview: Digital Foci Photo Book - A New Portable Digital Photo Viewer The Digital Foci Photo Book is a portable digital album with an eight-inch, 800 x 600 LCD display set in a soft leather-like case. This case, described as a portable album, doesn't completely address the desires of a more traditional photo album in digital form, but its design is better suited for passing around while sitting in a living room or during a business presentation...read more
Image copyright: Digital Foci
A problem some have with the look and feel of portable digital image viewers is that, as cold metal devices, they don't capture the warmth of the images they are displaying. Some hope instead a digital photo viewer could look a little more like photo albums of old. Digital Foci is trying to capture at least part of that sentiment in a new “digital photo album.”
Ultrasone Edition 8 headphones pop at $1,500 each The Ultrasone Edition 8 is a black and silver closed-back headphone which uses special acoustic technology to provide what Ultrasone feels is a very “spacious tonal perception.” Comfort on the interior ear cups is provided courtesy of Ethopian sheepskin.
Technical features of the Edition 8 headphones include an impedance of 30 Ohm, a frequency range of 6 – 42.000 Hz, 40mm drivers and a SPL of 96 dB. More details on these headphones, available now, can be found at the Ultrasone Web site.
(Note: Product mentions on the Portable Electronics blog do not certify endorsement of the product, but rather provide details on new products which might be of interest to consumers.)
(Photo Credit: Ultrasone)
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 be that different. It is called the Edition 8 and it prices for around $1,500.
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