iPhone Gossip » Portable Audio News

Lawmakers eying taxation on digital downloads

Darren Murph — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 10:08:00 +0000

Color us completely unsurprised, but it's being reported that a number of state politicians are looking at the possibility of imposing new laws to levy taxes on digital downloads as a method of taping up shattered budgets. Yep, anything from music to videos to books are at risk, as a growing number of lawmakers are looking to start collecting taxes from each iTunes track and Kindle eBook you purchase. Of course, this idea is far from new, and a number of US states already impose such taxes, but it seems that the ever-growing amount of content purchased online has caught the eye of those looking for new streams of tax revenue. Needless to say, the issue as a whole is about as far from black and white as you can get, but we're not asking you to take our word for it -- tap the read link to get a good feel of just how sticky the situation really is.

[Image courtesy of Izzy]

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Sega Toys and ZMP team up for Miuro-like Music Robot ODO

Donald Melanson — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 22:03:00 +0000

Filed under: Portable Audio, Robots

ZMP's Miuro may have been doing the whole music-playing, rolling robot thing even before Sony's Rolly stole the spotlight, but it had the slight disadvantage of costing nearly $1,000. The company now looks to be changing that situation, however, with it teaming up with Sega Toys to release a slightly scaled-back but considerable cheaper version of the iPod dock, now dubbed the Music Robot ODO. Among other things, this one drops the built-in WiFi and camera of the Miuro, although it does hang onto the LCD that displays the ODO's "emotion" as it's dancing, and you do get a remote control to keep it from straying too far. No word on a release 'round these parts, naturally, but those in Japan can snag one for the not unreasonable cost of ¥15,540, or about $150.

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Sony’s PFR-V1 headset rated “very good” despite impracticability

Thomas Ricker — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 10:26:00 +0000

Filed under: Portable Audio

It was a long time coming, but we finally have a full review of Sony's PFR-V1 "personal field speakers." C|net's intrepid review team took the headphones for a spin and not unsurprisingly found them to be "expensive and impractical" and almost entirely lacking in bass. Goofy looks aside, they did move the music from inside your skull to in front of your face as promised. Of course, that little novelty comes with excessive sound leak to the annoyance of those around you. As such, the headphones are limited to at-home or closed-door office use unless you relish the scorn of others. C|net still rewards the $500 oddity with a generous 7 out of 10 (very good) rating despite a long list of qualifications.

[Thanks, TI]

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Nintendo’s DS Lite doubles as MIDI sequencer (again)

Darren Murph — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 21:20:00 +0000

Filed under: Handhelds, Portable Audio

Nintendo's DS Lite tends to find itself intertwined in obscure MIDI projects fairly often, so it's no shock to see yet another enterprise linking the handheld to some fairly swank beats. By utilizing a homegrown DS MIDI apparatus along with dSTAR sequencer software, the DS Lite is able to transform into quite the potent little step sequencer. Of course, anything musically-related digests easier with video, so jump on past the break for a lengthy demonstration (and peep the read link if you're eager to replicate).

[Via MAKE]

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Switched On: Slacker in your slacks (Part 2)

Ross Rubin — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 13:57:00 +0000

Filed under: Portable Audio

Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about technology, multimedia, and digital entertainment.

Last Switched On introduced the Slacker Portable, a device that is as noteworthy for great value in bringing a steady stream and great variety of free music -- including on-demand favorites from those with a premium subscription -- as it is for its design quirks.

None of these are are as frustrating as the device's touch strip used to provide quicker access to on-screen selections. Unlike the touch strips on older Creative Zen models, it uses absolute positioning that activates the button at that part of the screen. Unfortunately, this means that stray touches can cause the interface to jump from screen to screen and even skip tracks. The Slacker team may have considered the touch strip a compromise for a device without a touch screen, but at some point realized that their implementation wasn't up to the task. Slacker turns the touch strip off by default, and it will need a major overhaul to prove useful in future players. Fortunately, the jog dial Slacker includes is almost as efficient.

Other controls fare better as they represent hardware counterparts. The device's left side has a Favorite button (which designates that a track be played more often) and a Ban button (that prevents it from being played again in the future); its right side has the Skip button, which Slacker sees as a key differentiator from satellite radio. Most station management tasks, such as creating a new station or designating which stations show up on the device, need to be done from the Slacker site or desktop application.

The sides of the device are already control-heavy, but the Portable could take a cue from decades of terrestrial and satellite radio receivers that provide quick-access buttons for favorite stations. Using the Slacker Web site or desktop software, stations can be fine-tuned to designate how stylistically far from the target genre they'd like to go, or how mainstream versus obscure they'd like the music to be.

All in all, if you are the type who gushes over Apple's elegant designs to the point where core functionality is a bonus, the Slacker Portable's smooth plastic exterior, rubber port covers and starkly angled lower back probably won't excite you. Much like the similarly faceted Amazon Kindle, the Slacker Portable is all about its content, and the Slacker service is a great value. Even the entry-level $199 product holds 15 stations -- days of music that can be listened to practically anywhere without the hassle of playlist crafting.

Unlike the Amazon Kindle and Dash Express, the Slacker Portable relies on inexpensive WiFi connections to refill its stations. A recent firmware update added support for DeviceScape's software, which allows the Portable to top off at T-Mobile and AT&T / Wayport hotspots. The Slacker story will become even more compelling when the company releases its car satellite kit, which will refill the device via satellite at a fraction of the infrastructure cost incurred by XM and Sirius (or the two's combined entity, should the FCC approve their merger with favorable conditions). Just like satellite radio, consumers will encounter old favorites and new discoveries, and six skips per hour combined with multiple customized stations ensure that most listeners won't have to tolerate many songs they don't like.

Juxtaposing the Slacker Portable's solid service and uneven hardware, it's clear that the iPhone or iPod touch would be a promising platform for Slacker listeners. Apple's emerging mobile platforms exceed Slacker's hardware in nearly every respect except entry price point. There would be much ground to cover between Apple allowing such a service with its SDK and Slacker deciding to pursue such development. Even today, though, the Slacker Portable provides a welcome change for those times when an MP3 player's familiarity has bred contempt.

Ross Rubin is director of industry analysis for consumer technology at market research and analysis firm The NPD Group,. Views expressed in Switched On are his own.

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The iBig Box inflatable “Ipod” player makes us long for the sweet release of death

Thomas Ricker — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 11:07:00 +0000

Filed under: Portable Audio

We don't really know what to call it as the name convulses between the iBig Box, the iBoombox, and "Inflatalbe" Boombox on the product page. Regardless, somebody out there has single-handedly put the "ass" back into plastic. The only features listed besides inflatable are a pair of speakers and what we presume to be a line-in connection for the "Ipod" and any other portable media player. Oh, and a weight of exactly 12.00. $60 if you dare.

[Via NewLaunches]

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MobiBLU launches the Cube3 towards Earth

Joshua Topolsky — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 04:26:00 +0000

Filed under: Portable Audio

You'd think that after three whole versions of the MobilBLU Cube, the company could get itself off of .mac and onto a real server -- but you'd be wrong. Regardless, the Borg-ship-aping media player is back, this time sporting a whopping 2GB of storage (just enough for those 14 LPs you own). Of course, you can't beat its support for MP3 and WMA files, compatibility with PlaysForSure content, FM tuner, and shiny, happy OLED display... or can you? We're not completely sure, but if you want to get to the bottom of this mystery, grab one on May 1st for $99.

[Via Engadget Spanish]

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Copulare’s $2,350 iCoral iPod dock is just as absurd as you think

Darren Murph — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 21:28:00 +0000

Filed under: Portable Audio

To be honest, JVC's P-Series LCD line may still hold the crown for most expensive iPod dock, but at least it comes with an expansive 1080p panel, right? Pushing aside a number of a worthy opponents on its charge to most absurd / unnecessary iPod dock evar, the iCoral supposedly features a top plate constructed from artificial coral and is proudly decorated with a "very artistic design" (Copulare's words, not ours). 'Round back, you'll find USB, S-Video and stereo analog outputs, but we're simply not seeing the slit in which your currency of choice comes out of at the press of a button. Due to that unfortunate omission, we're suggesting you hold tight to your €1,500 ($2,355) -- unless you're one David Beckham, of course.

[Via UberReview]

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Remote control spy glasses offer built-in camera, music playback

Darren Murph — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:19:00 +0000

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Portable Audio, Wearables

Comically enough, these aren't the first sunglasses we've seen with a hidden camera built right in, but for those who don't need full motion video to catch someone red-handed, this much cheaper alternative should certainly do the trick. As you can tell from the not-at-all-noticeable modules flanking the sides, there's a 1.3-megapixel camera up there along with a rechargeable Li-ion, 1GB of storage and a pair of earbuds to keep the elevator music going even after you reach the eleventh floor. You'll also find USB 2.0 connectivity and a remote control for slyly snapping shots, but really, if you roll into a debutante ball with these gracing your face, expect your cover to be blown in record time.

[Via The Red Ferret Journal]

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Edirol spruces up its high-end voice recorder with the R-09HR

Paul Miller — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 01:57:00 +0000

Filed under: Portable Audio

Nothing like a minor spec bump to a digital audio recorder to get the blood pumping on a Saturday evening, but we're real suckers for these things. Edirol released its high-end R-09 portable recorder back in 2006, and now they're taking things up a notch with the R-09HR, which can handle 96KHz recordings (up from 48KHz) and supports SDHC up to 8GB instead of the 4GB max of the old model. The recorder also includes a monitor speaker, remote control and playback speed control -- a big win for fans of Alvin and the Chipmunks or for those who need to transcribe interviews, two camps which we conveniently find ourselves in. No word on a US release, but the R-09HR is available in the UK for £249.00, about $497 US.

[Via Brad Linder]

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