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Amazon won't let you upload your own MP3s anymore
Streaming services from Spotify, Apple, Google and Amazon have all but made personal MP3s extinct in most circles. It's not a huge surprise, then, that Amazon has decided to end a program that allowed customers to upload and listen to their own MP3 tracks. Originally noted by Slashgear and reported by TechCrunch, members of the free plan cannot upload music with the Amazon Music app as of on December 18th. New subscriptions will be accepted until January 15th, 2018, however, which means you can still pay to upload up to 250,000 songs before then.
Sound off! Is the end of the portable MP3 player nigh?
It's no secret the number of iPods that Apple has sold has significantly decreased over the last few years. As our smartphones have become more powerful and the types of tasks they're capable of have grown, there's been less of a need for having a device dedicated to only one type of activity. Is a dedicated portable MP3 player past its prime or does this type of device still have some life left? Visit the Engadget forums and let us know if you think the MP3 player can be saved.
GarageBand on Mac now lets you export songs as MP3s... again
As meaningful as GarageBand's mobile life is to Apple, the tune-making app is still considered a valuable piece of real estate on the desktop. However, last year GarageBand for Mac lost MP3 exporting as a feature, something which unsettled some of its users. The good news: today's release brings that back, once again allowing you to export those music creations as MP3 files. Additionally, Apple's thrown in a few Drummers and drum packs from various genres, including songwriter, rock and R&B. Who knows, these kits might play a part in you becoming the next Pharrell. Maybe, just maybe.
Jarre AeroSystem One gets a Lalique crystal facelift, we go hands-on
We saw the original AeroSystem One saunter into our lives a couple of month's back, and now Jarre Technologies has collaborated with crystal house Lalique to give it a makeover. The partnership sees the original iPod dock covered in smooth glass and cut metal, which certainly sets it apart from pretty much any other dock we've ever seen. The dock connector sits at the top, and being inset, isn't suitable for iPads, but if you're getting one of these, we imagine you don't want to ruin the aesthetic by perching a slate on top anyway. There is, however, a USB connection meaning this isn't an iDevice only affair. If you've got the estimated £10,000 (or about $15,840) lying around, it'll have to keep burning that hole in your pocket until some time in March. We managed to get a quick hands -- and ears -- on with the only two units in the UK, but couldn't explore much beyond how it looked in-store, bar an awkward moment when we placed an iPhone on it, only to discover it set to full volume. Check the gallery below for a closer look, or hit the PR after the break for more info.Mat Smith contributed to this post
Digital music finally outsells physical media, books look on in alarm
That sharp sucking of air you heard at the end of 2010, well, that was the record industry wincing as sales of CDs continued to tumble while digital media sales remained flat. The relieved exhale that you just heard echoing through the atmosphere? That was the collective sigh of executives who just picked up the latest Nielsen report indicating that digital music sales are on the rise again and, for the first time ever, have finally surpassed physical media. Sales as a whole were up, but while CDs were down 5.7 percent, digital track sales were up 8.4 percent and digital albums a stunning 19.5 percent (perhaps most interestingly, though, vinyl was up over 36 percent). CDs still outsell virtual albums by a factor of two, but it's clear the trend toward binary media is back on track. It may be a narrow victory but, with 50.3 percent of the market, audio files are new king of the hill. Check out the full report at the source.
Hands-on with Google Music MP3 store for web and the new Music app
By now, most of us are familiar with Google Music, but as Mountain View just outed its new tunes purchasing platform, we had to try it out for ourselves. It's a painless process, particularly for those who have used the Android Market and already have a credit card in Google's system. To grab songs or albums through the new service, you simply go to the Google Music page and click on the "Shop" link in the upper right hand corner. That'll bring you to the music section of the Android Market, where you're then able to purchase individual songs or entire albums to find your personal sonic bliss. Pricing's pretty much identical to what you've seen elsewhere: songs are either 99 cents or $1.29, and albums are around ten bucks. Once you've made a selection, you'll be prompted to log into the Market if you haven't already to complete your purchase. After doing so, it also asks if you'd like to share your new tunes on Google+, and lets you choose who gets to see (and listen to) the musical post on your profile. Easy peasy. Shortly after buying the album, it showed up in the Google Music app on our Android device and we were listening to Jay-Z's lyrical stylings in no time. While doing so, we poked around the updated app and found a few new features in the update. The UI has been tweaked slightly, as you can now scroll horizontally through the categories up top, which makes sifting through your library by title, artist or genre easier than ever. Users can also create instant mixes from playing songs and the player itself has gotten some sprucing in the looks department. Unfortunately, the Market app doesn't enable music purchases on phones just yet, but Google said it's in the pipeline, and we'll be letting you know all about it when it arrives. Until then, let us know how Big G's new music store is treating you in the comments below. %Gallery-139675%
Jarre AeroSystem One's music makes the audiophiles come together
We've all got that one friend who just cannot believe you'd listen to 128kbps MP3s. Well, forget the rent, slap a handful of Benjamins down, slot this AeroSystem One next to your IKEA furniture, and then continue to play those low bit rate tracks -- it should drive'em nuts. Designed with a decidedly anti-regressive approach to sound quality, Jarre's lamp-like audiophile rig is the Lady Liberty of digital music, accepting not only all generations of Apple's iPods and iPhones, but also tunes recorded in any digital format. The stainless steel and toughened glass-made sound system, measuring about three and a half feet tall and weighing about 32lbs, pumps up those iTunes jams with the aid of two 30W satellite speakers and one 60W subwoofer. Oh, and that cost? Yeah, the sound of this music's gonna run you 799 Euros (or $1,135), but hey -- a month or three of ramen never hurt anybody. Right? [Thanks, Nick]
Walmart to shutter its online music store, somewhere Steve Jobs is smiling
It seems like only yesterday that Walmart was doing its best to beat Apple at the digital music game by delivering us DRM-free digital music. Alas, the inexorable might of iTunes has, at last, become too much to bear. According to Digital Music News, Wally World's MP3 store will shut its digital doors forever on August 28th. Chin up, Walmart, we won't be coming to you for the new Kanye jam (not that we ever would), but we'll still head on down when we're in need of damn near anything else.
Amazon launches 69-cent MP3 store for chart-toppers
Those with more obscure tastes may not find much to their liking, but we're guessing Amazon's latest move to sway customers from a certain other music store will please plenty of folks. The company's just launched a new $0.69 section on its website, which offers best-selling tracks for (you guessed it) 69 cents apiece. That's down from $0.89 before, which already had iTunes handily beat in terms of pricing -- Apple is still asking $1.29 for many of the same songs. Hit up the source link below to check out the current chart-topping singles available.
SanDisk debuts newly designed Sansa Fuze+ PMPs
SanDisk's finally updated its Fuze PMP with the Sansa Fuze+. The newly designed device boasts a 2.4-inch LCD, with three capacities -- 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB -- to choose from. It also comes in red, white, purple, blue and black in the latter two models, while the 16GB only comes in black. Other than that, it's pretty low on features: the Fuze+ (you'll be happy to know) features full compatibility with slotRadio (and all microSDHC cards), supports all the major file formats, and a new barebones user interface. The Fuze+ lineup is available today, and the 4GB will cost you $79, the 8GB model will run $89, while the 16GB is priced at $119. Full press release follows below.
John Mellencamp calls the internet the most dangerous invention since the atomic bomb
Oh, the old folks. Funny, the way they insist on inserting their feet into their mouths about technology, isn't it? Well, John Mellencamp -- the 'salt of the earth'-type rocker who had plenty of hits which we remember but which you certainly may not -- has said that the internet is the most dangerous invention since the atomic bomb, and that it's destroying rock n' roll. Well, that sure is over the top, but the man makes a few decent points if you ask us -- MP3 players have gotten us used to listening to bad, low bit-rate versions of music -- but, then again, we're not sure that the internet can really be blamed for "destroying the music business." During a public seminar at the Grammy Museum Mellencamp delivered plenty of eyebrow-raising remarks, adding that the internet, while okay for personal communications, has been destructive to both the music and movie industries, and that he believes that in the future, nobody will barely remember who The Beatles or The Rolling Stones are because of the destruction of the legacy' of rock n' roll. We weep at the thought, John.
Syabas provides tease of upcoming PopBox UI
We've already seen a lot of the Popbox, which is due out on July 23rd, but now we're getting a peek at the UI. Screenshots revealed on the company's blog showcase a welcome screen featuring quick access to the media library, apps, search and settings. We've also got a center "home" bar of presumably customizable widgets for at a glance weather and Twitter updates -- two snippets that you'll undoubtedly be refreshing at a near-maddening pace. Prominent features in the shared media library view include a top navigation bar for browsing by media type and a left sub navigation rail for media subgroups. Features aside though, these slightly distorted images definitely resemble the original Boxee interface, but we're all reminded that what we're seeing now is just an initial version. In other words, don't be shocked and appalled if significant updates come quickly after the device's official launch, cool? %Gallery-97450%
Billboard: iTunes prices up, sales down
I coulda told you this, though I am a little surprised that we've seen the results so fast. Despite iTunes having put the new tiered pricing into effect just last week, Billboard is reporting that they've already seen sales drop on the higher-priced tunes. The iTunes Top 100 chart has 40 different songs with a new price of $1.29, and one day after the changes, those songs dropped an average of 5.3 places on the chart, while cheaper songs moved up on average. And on the second day of the price change, ten of the tracks that saw their prices rise within 24 hours dropped a huge 12.4 chart positions on average.Of course, we're talking only a matter of days here, and there are all kinds of things that could have affected this average drop -- lots of the tracks that became expensive were from a Rascal Flatts album, and it could be just that the album has lost popularity, bringing the average down. And don't forget that even though these sales figures may be dropping, they haven't dropped nearly enough to show a loss of revenue (though fewer songs may be selling, they're still making more money).But for those convinced that higher prices mean lower sales numbers, these first few days of figures will seem to connect all of the right dots. We'll have to wait and see if the long-term effects match up to the figures Billboard has seen so far.
Windows 7 beta update saves your MP3s, all other versions get security patch
Microsoft has pushed out its first patch for the Windows 7 public beta. The update saves your MP3s from a rather nasty bug that trims seconds off any song that's been edited, either by you or via automatic updates from Windows Media Player. If you've got afflicted files, there's a chance they're salvageable via properties window, according to the patch notes -- and if not, then here's hoping you backed up your library. Additionally, a new update has gone out to Windows 2000, XP, Vista, and Server 2003 / 2008 that fixes some vulnerabilities in the Server Message Block (SMB) protocol. Beta users won't get their fix until the next public release, explains Microsoft Security Response Team's Christopher Budd, since it's only considered a "moderate" risk for the new OS. Read - Microsoft issues first Windows 7 beta patch Read - Patch notes / how to fix afflicted MP3s Read - Security update
SuperSync adds support for TiVo Mp3s
We posted about SuperSync last year, and we just posted about another iTunes library syncing app, Syncopation. But just in case you've been waiting to sync your music libraries not just across iTunes but also to your TiVo, the wait is over -- SuperSync version 2.3 now does just that. You can connect to a shared library with any series 2 or series 3 TiVo, and even use the remote to browse and play music.And of course, SuperSync will still let you do all the other stuff other sync tools will let you do -- browse multiple libraries and copy music between each, transfer whole playlists, and even browse and play music over the 'net. A two-machine license (the app has to be running on both computers you use the transfer the music to and from) costs $29.TiVo support is all well and good, but I can haz Xbox 360 support, too? Connect360 is great, and Rivet seems interesting, but if we could roll up the sync tool and the sharing tool into one app, all the better.[Via Macworld]
ZOMG MySpace vs iTunes
Ohai ZOMG. Realz! MySpace can has fab nu Music cheezburger. Wurks with iPod, all 4 awzom Muzik labels! Dayz wil haz MP3 for $$. "MySpaceMusic" so kyoot! Universal Music/MySpace fwends -- bai bai "copyright-infringement lawsuit" for realz. iTunes ftl. MySpace ftw. kthxbai.
IBM, Fujifilm developing 8 terabyte magnetic tape cartridges
If you thought that magnetic tape cartridges were headed the way of Zip disks and five-and-a-quarter-inch floppies into the storage medium graveyard, think again, because IBM and Fujifilm are currently working together to make the venerable technology capable of storing a Blu-ray-humbling eight terabytes-per-cartridge. Using barium ferrite crystal film from Fuji and read/write technology from IBM, the two companies are reporting success in creating storage densities of up to 6.67 billion-bits/square-inch, which is something like fifteen times the capacility of current backup tape. Unfortunately there is no word yet if the cartridges, which should be available in about five years, will be able to fit in your old 8-track player for rocking millions and millions of MP3s.
