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Ask Engadget: best FM transmitter out there?
We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget question is coming to us from Wes, who is actually brave enough to even consider an FM transmitter. If you're looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com. "I'm in the market for a new car, and that has me thinking towards multimedia connectivity. I don't want to rule out direct iPhone integration, but since the car is almost certainly going to be used, I'd like to think more along the lines of AUX-in and FM transmitter capability. I've also read that many of the new products can enable hands-free cellphone use, so this would be great to include. Any recommendations for a good in-car charging unit with these features?" We'll go ahead and be straight with you -- if you're in the city or the suburbs, be prepared for long, frustrating fights to find a clear channel. We've never had much luck with 'em outside of the middle of nowhere, but maybe our dear readership will chime in with a few pointers below. Godspeed.
'Reformat the Planet' chiptune doc on DVD this month, Laserdisc version slated for 2012
It's no secret that we love chiptunes around here, so we'll just go ahead and say that we're super stoked about Reformat the Planet, an in-depth look at one of the few groups of people we can unequivocally say are geekier than we are: those who make music with Game Boys, NES's, and C64's. 2 Player Productions has combined footage from the insane Blip Festival with up-close-and-personals with some of our favorite retro-gaming musicians -- Nullsleep, Glomag, Tugboat and Bubblyfish -- for a thorough portrait of the rapidly-growing scene. A little art, a little science, a lot of awesome. The 2-disc set is out on August 24th, but for now, you can check the trailer (which includes an introduction to square-wave moshing) after the jump.
ESRB reveals unannounced Dance Central tracks by warning about lyrics
The ESRB, in its noble quest to protect young ears from potentially offensive songs that were on the radio twenty years ago, has inadvertently revealed some unannounced Dance Central tracks. The ratings board identified several problematic lyrics, which Siliconera matched with their origin songs (warning: we're about to reproduce the offensive lyrics!) "Did your girl's butt" and "You're bound to get shot" can be found in Craig Mack's "Flava In Your Ear," "Meet him at the door with nothin' on" comes from Christina Milian's "Dip It Low," and, best of all, "Body is soft, makin' me wanna squish her" means that Wreckx-N-Effect's "Rump Shaker" is in the game (yessssssss). Other cited lyrics that Siliconera didn't identify include "The interior like suicide wrist red" (from Snoop Dogg's previously announced "Drop It Like It's Hot") and "Remove your underwear," which we can't quite identify either. We Googled it, but ... yeah.
Chiptune documentary 'Reformat the Planet' on DVD August 24
Reformat the Planet is a documentary by 2 Player Productions about the 2006 Blip Festival and the artists who helped put it together (and then played a bunch of amazing chip music on stage), including Nullsleep, Glomag, Bit Shifter, Hally, Anamanaguchi, and more. 2PP just announced the date for the long-awaited DVD release: August 24. The two-disc package includes the original movie, as well as a "Reformat the Planet 1.5" featurette that follows up with the next couple of years of the New York chiptune scene (a clip of that can be found after the break). The discs also have music videos and songs from some of the included artists. In addition, 2PP partnered with Fangamer to create some lovely merchandise that can be purchased in bundles with the DVD. If you want to look like a person who knows a lot about music made with Game Boys, you can buy a shirt, square buttons (how is this possible?), a poster, and Blip Festival DVDs and CDs. Then you can watch the movie and actually know a lot about it!
i(Pad) of the Tiger
This is great! Photographer Jordan Hollender and musician Scott Harris put together this music video that covers Survivor's classic anthem and uses only iPad apps as instruments. The video itself was recorded with a couple of Canon HDSLR video cameras, but as you can see in the embedded version above, all of the music is created with iPad apps. Unfortunately, they don't identify the apps used, but that sounds like a great job for you TUAW commenters. I think I saw Pianolo HD being played on the floor there, and Pocket Drums is being used as percussion, but I couldn't find the guitar app or the DJ app that they are using. Of course, what I really want to know is where he got that sweet lightning bolt iPad strap. The video's great, though. Apparently it was all lit in one day and shot in another. There's no word on how long it took to make the song, but with the iPad involved, it was probably both magical and revolutionary. (Thanks, Rachel!)
MTV crowns its first Twitter jockey, remains mum on the prospect of actually showing music videos
So yeah, Jersey Shore deserves its own channel and all, but MTV has most certainly strayed from its roots over the years. Not that following the ol' dollar sign is a bad thing, but we digress. After a lengthy search-and-vote process, the network has selected its first-ever Twitter jockey, one Gabi Gregg from Detroit. She'll purportedly be relocated to New York City and given a six-figure salary, all while reporting on "pop culture news using Twitter, Facebook, blogs and MTV's website." MTV calls this position a "modern-day re-imagining of the pioneering MTV VJ," with Gabi's first assignment being at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards on September 12th. So, did social networking just kill the video star?
DJ Max Portable 3 gameplay mixes hot beats with quick cuts
DJ Max Portable fans eagerly awaiting a first look at the third game in action will be happy to see the intensely edited clip that we've dropped after the break. Look for the game on PSP sometime later this year.
Takara Tomy Neckphones: wraparound pillow speaker, coming soon to a Skymall near you
It may not have the same charm as the Flying Pasties, but Takara Tomy's Neckphones definitely have the "it" factor. Perfect for lounging in a nearby water hole (or watering hole, we suppose), this blow-up neck pillow has a pair of stereo speakers strategically placed near your ear canals, and there's even a pouch that we'd never, ever trust to keep your PMP safe from the liquids below. We suppose you could also take this on a plane, but don't bring your grumbles over here when the gals in 16A and 18B take issue with you blasting Now That's What I Call Music! Volume 11 for the entire coach cabin to hear. We're guessing you'd need to contact an importer to pick one of these up outside of Japan, but you'll have to let go of at least ¥1,800 ($21). We're surmising the hit in respect will be far more detrimental than the MSRP, though.
Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock takes the stage September 28
Anxious to get your hands on Activision's werething-infused rock-em-up, Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock? Activision revealed a launch date for the game during its annual investors call last night: September 28 (September 24 in the UK). For those of you keeping score at home, that's a full month before the arrival of its competitor, Rock Band 3, which is set to launch on October 26. Outside of being compatible with "your existing Guitar Hero music library," Warriors of Rock adds 95 new tracks into the mix, including re-recordings from Alice Cooper and The Runaways. Additionally, if you're one of the first million to purchase the game in North America, you get a free Soundgarden album.
Breakfast Topic: Soundtrack to my e-life
This Breakfast Topic has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW.com. A few days ago, I noticed a comment on this very site that moved me. The commenter was responding to one of the dozens of voice clips that have been leaking from Cataclysm. The commenter was asking for a simple transcript of the clip, because he or she is deaf. I was instantly felt I had to write it out for them. It wasn't until later that I realized exactly why I was moved so much for this person: I love the game's soundtrack. The music of World of Warcraft is a huge part of the experience for me, and I can't imagine playing without it. The soundtrack provides atmosphere for everything from a jaunty tavern to haunted forests and much more. Alliance players, do you remember the first time you journeyed through the Dark Portal? More specifically, Honor Hold? The trumpets, the last-stand vibe ... It was amazing. I still get nostalgic any time I happen to be flying through Dun Morogh at night. It should be a law that every Alliance player must have the game music on the first time they storm into Orgrimmar, and the same goes for Horde players raiding Stormwind. Every expansion, it seems I find one or two pieces that stick with me for years. In vanilla, it was the Song of Elune (played sporadically in Ashenvale). In The Burning Crusade, it was the theme to Honor Hold and Silvermoon City. Wrath, however, gave me my favorite: Wintergrasp. Do you have a favorite WoW song? Is there one tune that plucks your heartstrings and makes you remember days long past? Or do you mute the game and play to your own music? Have you ever wanted to write for WoW.com? Your chance may be right around the corner. Watch for our next call for submissions, and be sure to sign up for Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW.com. The next byline you see here may be yours!
Yoko Ono regarding Beatles on iTunes: 'Don't hold your breath'
There are two great mysteries of the digital age: how did a Welshman become the most powerful man in Japan and when will the Beatles be available for download on iTunes? While the former will forever remain a mystery, speculation picked up on the latter in 2006 after Apple and Apple Corps -- the record label owned by Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono and the estate of George Harrison -- settled a long running dispute. In September of last year, Yoko Ono apparently went so far as to whisper its imminent arrival only to be rebuffed by EMI which licenses the Beatles' recordings. Unfortunately, things don't look any closer to being settled today. Reuters is reporting an impasse, quoting Ono as saying, "Steve Jobs has his own idea and he's a brilliant guy. There's just an element that we're not very happy about, as people. We are holding out." She then added, "Don't hold your breath ... for anything," presumably while cracking a whip and laughing maniacally. Fitting don't you think, as legend has it that Lennon's first encounter with Ono involved her passing him a card that read "Breathe."
Apple slyly enables background iDisk music streaming in iOS 4
Well, would you look at that? The v1.2 update to MobileMe iDisk that Apple pushed out last month has a secret -- er, did have a secret. One of the concealed new features of the app is background streaming, or as Apple puts it, the ability to "play audio from your iDisk while using another app." For starters, it's pretty fantastic just to have this functionality in-hand for your own garage jams, but what's more is that any licensed music on your iDisk still streams perfectly fine. Only time will tell if any record labels (or that mean, mean RIAA) step forward with a grievance, but this could very well be the beginning of iTunes in the cloud. Or a reason for buying Lala. Or a mysterious combination of the two.
Capo 2 detects chords and tabs in your favorite songs
We reported on the original version of Capo a while back, and now the folks at SuperMegaUltraGroovy have released version 2 over on their website. The biggest feature in the new release is "a highly detailed spectrogram visualization," which basically means that they've implemented what the first app couldn't do; there's actual chord detection in the software. As you play the song, you can see visualizations of where the notes fall on the scale, and you can lay down chord markers that will automatically mark out your chords. Basically, you can reverse engineer the song. It's pretty wild. You'll still need some musical insight since the app doesn't always get it perfectly right, and you'll need to know where the chord changes are in order to mark them out. It's impressive, though. I was able to get a basic chord structure out of the first verse of the Decemberists song above, and if I played around with it some more, I bet that I could reproduce the song on the guitar. You can also have it write out tabs for you, and all of the features of the first version are back; you can mark out choruses and verses on all of your songs, correct pitch and speed, and set up loops to play along with. If you do any amount of playing around with your favorite songs, it's a fun tool to have. Capo 2 is US $49 as a new purchase or US $19 as an upgrade from the first version. It's also available as a free five minute trial download from the site.
Cloud-based iTunes will be "modest in scope"
We've heard a lot of rumors about a cloud-based iTunes service, and apparently Apple is working on exactly that, but the company has reportedly told a few music label executives that any service that debuts will be only "modest in scope." CNET says that Apple's strategy isn't exactly clear -- apparently Apple doesn't have the agreements it needs with music companies to actually distribute music from the cloud, but Apple has instead put streaming service Lala (which it acquired late last year) to work on video streaming, not music. Of course, this is all second- and third-hand, and Apple has yet to officially comment on the matter, but it sounds like Apple is working on something more like YouTube or Hulu than a music streaming service. The cloud-based deal would consist of "digital shelves," where users could store videos or other media, rather than a full music library. Interesting. There's no question that a cloud-based music database would be extremely popular, and indeed Google is already working on just that, supposedly. Engadget notes that the iPhone 4 launched with the same memory capacities as the 3GS -- perhaps memory isn't such an issue when you can store your movies in the cloud? It seems like Apple's past relationships with the record companies are making the road a little bumpy, so the first official word we see of the iTunes cloud may have nothing to do with distributed music whatsoever. [via TheMacObserver]
DJ Hero and other Activision peripheral bundles discounted at Kmart
Kmart continues to prove how serious it is about awesome game deals, with temporary price drops on some of Activision's big-box games. If you've been waiting for the right time to buy DJ Hero, we can now confidently tell you exactly when that right time is: August 8 through 14, when Kmart will be selling it for $40 on PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii. In addition, you'll be able to get the Guitar Hero 5 guitar bundle on the same three systems for $50, the full Band Hero bundle for $80, and, for whatever reason, Tony Hawk Ride for $40. These deals will be available both in-store and online, so you don't have to live anywhere near a Kmart to take advantage.
Get new Soundgarden album early with Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock [update]
Here's how out of touch we are with the music world: we get our music news from game industry announcements. We had no idea that Soundgarden was reuniting, nor that the group was releasing a retrospective album, Telephantasm, in October. Now you know about it too! Pretend you didn't already so we don't feel lame. Here's what you may not have already heard: Activision is giving away the album with the first million North American copies of Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock. In fact, buying the game will allow you to get the CD a week before it's released elsewhere! Not only that, the album will be available as Guitar Hero DLC at launch. Cool musical bonuses like this are likely to do much more to pique interest in the latest Guitar Hero game than, say, pig monsters. Update: Turns out the DLC won't be free! Activision's Dan Amrich changed his announcement post to reflect this corrected information. There's no word on the actual price yet, except that it's not free.
Dance Dance Revolution stepping to PS3
Konami recently elected to make an announcement about one of its oldest franchises in a fairly unconventional way -- by adding the teaser image seen above to its Facebook fan page. As you've probably sussed out, the publisher announced alongside the image, "we're bringing DDR to the PS3." We're wondering how long they've been holding onto this announcement, considering the relative age of the box art and straight chubby PS3 seen in the teaser. Almost no details surfaced about which iteration of the series would hit the console, or when we can expect it -- however, the announcement does mention the title will have a "launch party" on August 12. We're not sure if it means "launch party" in the traditional sense, or if they're only planning on "launching" the game's heretofore absent details. We've contacted Konami to figure out which kind of party we're dealing with, and whether or not we should bring snacks.
Apple's Lala music team working on video streaming service for 2010 launch?
When Apple acquired Lala, the obvious use for all that local scanning and internet streaming technology would have been to serve up our hard-drive-based iTunes music libraries from the cloud. Here we are though, eight months later, and the only significant impact from the acquisition was the closure of the Lala music service. And it doesn't look like that will change anytime soon. According to an investigative piece by CNET, Apple is telling the big-four music execs that it won't be offering any significant cloud-based music offerings within the next few months. In fact, CNET's sources claim that Apple still hasn't obtained the licenses required to store and distribute music via a cloud-based service. So what's Apple doing with all that Lala talent then? According to CNET, the team has been working on an "undisclosed video feature" instead of music. Additional sources at the major film studios claim that Apple plans to create "digital shelves" this year letting iTunes users store movies and other media on Apple's servers. Hmm, does that sound like Keychest to you? Naturally, all of this makes sense in light of Apple's plan to open a 500,000 square foot data center (pictured above) in North Carolina later this year at a cost of $1 billion. What better facility to serve up 99 cent streaming TV rentals to a completely overhauled Apple TV in the home, and highly mobile iPad, iPod touch, and iPhone devices on the go. Anecdotally, it's not like Apple's showing too much concern with storage limits on its iOS devices -- the iPhone 4 just launched in the same 16GB and 32GB offerings as the 3GS instead of the typical doubling of flash storage we've come to expect from new iPhone iterations. So really, the question isn't if, it's just a matter of when. Original image courtesy of Cult of Mac
Video game soundtracks on sale at Amazon MP3
Amazon MP3's frequently rotating selection of $5 downloadable albums has been visited by a handful of soundtracks from current-gen games. These include the harmonica-centric sounds of Red Dead Redemption, the ambient future-noise of Mirror's Edge, the eclectic tunes of LittleBigPlanet and more -- all for a mere five-spot. Of course, we'd suggest you also take some time to consider purchasing a handful of other MP3 albums which were marked down for the month of August, but that wouldn't be appropriate. Like, should you buy Huey Lewis and the News' Greatest Hits compilation? Well, of course -- but we can't tell you to do so, because we're not a Huey Lewis and the News blog. At least, not during the weekdays.
WD TV Live Plus gets reviewed, lauded for value
After being announced in early June, Anandtech recently put the Western Digital WD TV Live Plus through its paces and discovered the Netflix enhancement works as advertised. Like many Netflix-enabled devices though, the TV Live comes up short compared to the full PC experience since access is limited to only the Instant Queue. Its presence also sacrifices firmware hackability -- a quality which previously made up for the WD TV Live's lack of versatility as an HTPC. The ability to move, copy, and manage locally stored media files via the interface, on the other hand, was praised as a unique advantage over competing models -- exciting, we know. Sadly, video quality was docked as being "significantly less than the HTPC counterparts they've seen so far." However, it's possible this could be improved in the future via firmware updates, since its Sigma Designs processor features noise reduction and deinterlacing algorithms that strangely aren't currently enabled. File format-wise, DVD ISOs worked flawlessly, while Blu-ray ISO and some WMV video formats experienced issues that users may want to read up on before buying. Gripes aside though, Anandtech was still willing to place it "around the top of the list" for media player devices, thanks to its wide file compatibility and robust features. For more details, hit the review source link.
