Slacker: music device and service via web, WiFi, and satellite

Remember the mysterious San Diego startup called Broadband Instruments, which pulled executives from Diamond / Rio, MusicMatch, and iRiver, and promised "a new type of integration with online radio stations"? Well, that company now has a product and a plan: Slacker will provide a internet radio network that won't just reach you via browser, but will also stream to a Slacker portable by way of WiFi and -- get this -- satellite service. (On the Ku-band, if you're really interested.) It's all a little complicated, but it'll go something like this: at launch (i.e. now) users will be able to get Pandora-like streaming internet radio for free (the caveat is you only get to skip six songs per channel per hour), with a $7.50 per month plan around the corner that kills the ads and skipping limitations. The Slacker player, which will feature a massive 4-inch screen with scrolling touch strip and debut this summer in varying capacities between 2, 4, and 8GB up to 120GB for between $150 and $350, will have track metadata via AMG, and gobbles up and plays back audio content via WiFi and USB (with tracks purchasable for $1). The satellite part comes into play with a docking station at home or in the car, so you can get Slacker content while on the move or if you're out of range of internet access. Sounds a lot like the WiFi iTunes experience people have been asking for since, well, forever, but definitely with an internet radio bend to it. What we're really dying to know, however, is whether this satellite radio service of theirs will provide enough competition in the market to help the Sirius and XM merger get its wheels greased.

[Via Mashable and Wired]

[lh @ Mar 14th 2007 1:51AM]

挺好～～

[Filipp @ Mar 14th 2007 2:02AM]

Just signed up and tried it so far its pretty awesome the songs are crisp clear and you can make your own radio stations based on the artist you like they pull other artists that are similar and make the station.

[Josh Warner @ Mar 14th 2007 2:29AM]

So let me get this straight: you could pay $150 for a player with what appears to be a killer screen and satellite connectivity and the satellite radio service is _free_ (granted, there are non-draconian restrictions)? This as opposed to Sirius/XM where you get to pay for the player AND the receiver? Sign me up.

I hope that thing also doubles as an ebook reader - not perfect because it isn't e-ink, but it seems like s function they could add pretty easily.

Please, please say they didn't cripple it to not work with mp3 or other open formats...


I think they really have something here, and I'm interested in how it pans out.

[Juaquin @ Mar 14th 2007 3:31AM]

Sounds good - please don't let the player end up being vaporware.

[Neptune2603 @ Mar 14th 2007 3:46AM]

First, I am the Apple lover of Apple lovers, I even sport a mac in my car.

I could see this edging out my iPod. I'm slightly too lazy to keep updating my library and buying all the latest songs I like off iTunes. This seems REALLY cool, if it has OS X support, I'll buy one for myself and my girlfriend.

This has to be one of the cooler practical electronics I've seen recently.

Also, I've been a TV on The Radio fan for 2 years now, I didn't know anyone else knew who they were!

[Mike @ Mar 14th 2007 8:01AM]

The radio is phenomenal in quality, and the playlists are pretty good mixes. I dig it.

[jopari @ Mar 14th 2007 8:26AM]

O_O

All the good aspects of satellite radio, yahoo! launch/pandora, and the iPod (videos on a 4' screen!), plus visualizations, on board reviews for albums that you might not have heard before, and a cache system so that you never have to leave your station. i have never said this seriously, but this is the iPod killer. this is everything that the zune should have been, and i would easily pay ~$500 for the 30gb version. this is simply the holy grail of mp3 players. i've always said that apple should have hired some of the ex-rio employs; this is proof.

[Unis @ Mar 14th 2007 9:24AM]

Oh I want one...

This is the most exciting product announcement this year! I am definately a slacker and never have time to update my Zune.

[deusfaux @ Mar 14th 2007 3:44PM]

TV on the Radio? Sweeeeet

[nyc @ Mar 15th 2007 1:15AM]

I wish it would be PlaysForSure compatible. Then I'd buy it. But not until then.

[What the... @ Mar 15th 2007 11:30AM]

Holy astroturfing...

Ummm... I went to slacker.com and looked around... it looks like they might be on to something here.

But my favorite part was when their site made IE crash.

[Josh H @ Mar 15th 2007 1:51PM]

I just found out about it today and LOVE it. It took me a couple of minutes to figure out how to get something to show up in the "Custom Station" section, but this thing is AWESOME!

Yeah, I have music that's pretty much tethered to my iPod because of DRM, but I really wouldn't have a problem using the Slacker for when I know I'm going to be around WiFi and using my iPod for when I take a long trip where I know I wouldn't be able to update it. At least that's what I'm telling myself in order to justify setting aside another $150 - $200 for one of the portables.

[Norock @ Mar 16th 2007 12:42PM]

If this is anything like Pandora, you can work around the skips per hour thing by switching channels rather than skipping songs; just going back and forth between the two. They don't want to limit how often you can do that, but they don't have the resources to keep track of where you are in each song, save that, and force you to listen to the rest of the song upon resuming playback of that station. In Pandora, it just goes to a new song, and I have a hunch it'll perform very similarly on the Slacker. Looks like quite a device!

[Patrick McKinnon @ Mar 22nd 2007 6:17PM]

This player is awesome,

I wrote a mashup to integrate last.fm tracking into the Slacker web interface if anybody is interested:

http://lastSlacker.com

[Quest @ Jun 1st 2007 2:05AM]

I think this has the makings of greatness, with a few minor tweaks. First off, the player is great, but the personal mp3 library set up sucks monkey balls. I like seeing everything in a coherent and logical form, and I feel as if this player hides my stuff from me. The radio is excellent the songs are crisp, and the music selection is quite intelligent. Now on to a BIG concern. This slacker player looks awesome, however no one knows or has talked about the specs besides the 30gb hard drive! I want to know if I can play videos on this big chunk of cumbersome yet beautiful goodness! And I agree with the Ebook thing too ,thats a great Idea. Also, If Im paying 200 dollars or more, I want great battery life, or at least a slimmed down model thats more pocket friendly. That is all. You may return to your browsing.