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WahWah.FM Lets Users Broadcast Personal Radio Stations

Posted by Kevin Stout on May 17th, 2012

What happens when a location-based service like Foursquare and a radio streaming services like Pandora are mashed together? We end up with something like WahWah.FM. WahWah.FM, a German-based start-up, is a music service that lets users create their own radio stations by picking music on their own iPhones and simultaneously listening and streaming those songs to anyone else who'd like to listen.

Unlike Pandora and other services that may use algorithms and recommendations to pick songs for stations, every user is their own DJ and can choose which songs they will listen to and broadcast to their listeners. Users can tune into to other users all over to world to check out what they're listening to. Stations can be posted to Facebook to let friends know that music is being broadcasted. And there are even ways to interact with the listens to the stations each user has created.

WahWah.FM is a free service and is now available on the App Store. Check it out and start streaming.

Personal Cloud Service, PocketCloud, Released

Posted by Kevin Stout on April 18th, 2012

With the rise in popularity of “cloud” services like iCloud, Dropbox, and Box, another category of cloud services has started to pop up describing themselves as “personal clouds” or “private clouds.” PocketCloud, and it’s iOS app PocketCloud Explore, is one of those services.

These personal clouds often provide access to a remote computer instead of uploading all files to a “cloud” server in possession of the service. With the free version of PocketCloud Explore, users gain access to one remote computer, have 2GB of actual cloud storage, are limited in upload/download size, and audio and video streaming are restricted to 30 seconds. Subscribers can use ten remote computers, the upload/download limit increases to half a GB, and video and audio streaming becomes unlimited in length (Windows only, Mac coming soon).

PocketCloud comes with a companion program that must be installed on the remote computers users wish to access on the fly. The program is available for both Mac and Windows, but the Mac version is unable to stream audio and video as of now.

A PocketCloud subscription will cost $5 per month, but it’s currently on sale ($7.99 for three months and $23.99 for the year).

GDC 2012: PC Games Streaming Via iSwifter Coming Soon

Posted by Jennifer Allen on March 6th, 2012
iPad App - Designed for iPad

Remember iSwifter and its impressive capabilities in terms of bringing Flash to the iPad? That same cloud-based technology has gone one step further now, with news coming out of GDC, that the firm will now be offering a licensing program for PC-based gaming applications to be streamed to iOS devices.

As co-founder of iSwifter, Rajat Gupta, explains "It is virtually impossible for developers to bring PC games to mobile as quickly as we can through our lowest cost streaming cloud service, and to provide a native-like user experience with automatic enablement of touch gestures," so this is potentially huge news for iOS device owners. The lofty ambition, according to co-founder and Chairman, Peter Relan, is to "do to applications what Netflix™ did for movies."

As always, we'll keep up to date on the latest progress with such a move. While waiting for companies to embrace this concept, why not check out the current iSwifter app?

Free Movies To Stream From Popcornflix

Posted by Jennifer Allen on February 20th, 2012

Movies are great, right? How about free ones streamed directly to an iOS device? No, I'm not talking about a subscription service like NetFlix but an entirely free ad-supported service.

Popcornflix promises hundreds of free full length movies all at the tap of the screen. These films aren't going to be huge blockbusters, but that's not to say the quality is dire. Plenty of different tastes are catered for with the ability to browse according to genres such as Action/Thriller, Comedy, Romance, Horror and Family. All films are professionally mde and full of (sometimes vaguely) familiar stars.

In particular, I'd personally recommend quirky indie film Lymelife starring Alec Baldwin but there are sure to be other hidden gems out there. The makers of Popcornflix promise that at least one new movie is added every day so users should struggle to ever run out of options.

Popcornflix is out now, it's an Univeral app and completely free to use.

NPR Updates Official Music App for the iPad

Posted by Brad Hilderbrand on February 17th, 2012

Today is a good day for fans of music like the indigenous folk rock music of southern Papua, New Guinea as NPR has launched an updated version of their music app for the iPad. The newly launched NPR Music is a one-stop listening shop for iPad users, providing free access to basically everything NPR has to offer. Users have access to extensive music collections from a variety of genres, all organized by category for easy perusal. Furthermore, you can check out news, signature NPR programming, listen to live events or even stream entire stations all with a couple taps and swipes.

In a move that will really please audiophiles, NPR Music allows you to save playlists for later offline listening, a free service which normally locked away as a "premium" features in apps like Spotify. We do however assume that at some point the app will bombard you with endless pledge drives until you find some way to insert $20 into your iPad. But isn't that a small price to pay the first time you whip out your iPad, load up your NPR app and completely blow the minds of your hipster friends?

Fandor Launches iPad App for Indie Film Fans

Posted by Greg Dawson on January 19th, 2012
+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad

Fandor, an online indie film streaming service that caters to both independent film fans and the mainstream movie crowd, released an iPad app today. This move comes shortly after announcing a partnership with the Roku streaming set-top box back in November. Going mobile brings one of the web's largest collections of entertaining films that celebrate cinema to iPad users. The films within the collection include the likes of FILM SOCIALISME from the Legendary director Jean-Luc Godard. A magisterial essay on the decline of European civilization, the film was an official selection of the Cannes Film Festival. Fandor offers its users great films such as this as well as others not found anywhere else.

The app features a unique way in which to discover new films via the "Spinner" which offers members a way to have a film randomly picked for them or to select criteria such as era, genre or length before spinning. Members can also take advantage of integration with Twitter, Facebook and email to recommend their favorite movies with friends. The company supports indie filmmakers by sharing a portion of its subscription fee with them as well as with distributors. New members can sign up via a seven-day unlimited free pass on Fandor. Subscriptions range from $2.99 per week or $99.99 for the year.

MyStream Mobile to Mobile Music Sharing App Announces Update

Posted by Greg Dawson on December 20th, 2011
iPhone App - Designed for iPhone, compatible with iPad

MyStream, the mobile to mobile music sharing app that launched earlier this year, has announced a recent update that adds additional media file type support, fixed a few bugs within the MyPlayist function and improves the loading screen behavior. The app, created by entrepreneur Richard Zelson, acts as a virtual earphone splitter and allows users to share their music via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

Now, the app features social networking integration and a new expanded playlist sharing functionality, which allows the full song to be played by turning on "Access MyPlaylist" and selecting a top 10 list of songs to be made available for others to enjoy. This was a major point of feedback from users of the previous version. Previously, the app only allowed full playback of the host's song in real-time while others could only be played as 30-second samples. MyStream is available as a free download in the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

Rdio Just Got Better With Discounted Family Plans

Posted by Rob LeFebvre on August 22nd, 2011
+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Our rating: starstarstarhalfstarblankstar :: STILL WAITING FOR SPOTIFY :: Read Review »

Rdio Unlimited Family, announced today, is a new discounted way to have more than one account for your family and friends. Calling it "the industry's first digital music family plan," Rdio hopes to allow folks who know each other group their accounts in bundles of up to three at a time. Each account acts as it's own individual account, with the ability to listen to an individual mix of the over 10 million songs on the Rdio service. Users can also follow other Rdio listeners, and share songs and playlists with other users, Facebook, and Twitter. The accounts are fully functional Rdio accounts, able to access their unique settings on a variety of devices and platforms, including the iPad, iPhone, Android, BlackBerry and Windows Mobile 7, as well as home devices like Sonos and Roku.

"When we first introduced Rdio, everyone in the industry offered the same rates and service plans for on-demand music: five dollars per month for Web-only access and ten dollars per month for Web and mobile," said Drew Larner, CEO of Rdio. "Now with whole families using Rdio, we've had a tremendous number of requests from our users for a family plan. We're really proud to be the first digital music service to bring this type of plan to market."

The new Rdio Unlimited Family Plan, users can save 10% with a two-account plan, at $17.99/month. If there are three accounts purchased in the bundle, there is a 23% savings, coming in at $22.99/month, while additional accounts above and beyond the three are charged at the standard $.9.99 per month. So, while a family of six will save some on the first three accounts, it might behoove them to purchase two family accounts, with up to three accounts each.

We hope to see more services adopt this "buy more, save more" approach with time, and Rdio is leading the way. I look forward to the time when the discounted savings includes more than three at a time, but this is definitely a step in the right direction.

Stream Video And Audio Easily With Air Playit

Posted by Jennifer Allen on August 16th, 2011

Wi-Fi has given technology buffs a huge amount of freedom. It's not that long ago that we were all constricted by cables making the likes of video streaming possible but a little awkward and requiring plenty of forward planning. Now we've got the wonders of Wi-Fi and apps like Air Playit.

Air Playit is an app that enables its users to stream any video or audio files that are stored on their PC straight to their iOS device. Video conversion tools mean that video libraries can be converted instantly to a format that iOS devices can read. Users aren't restricted to being on the same Wi-Fi network either with it being possible to set up the server to work across the internet too.

The app also supports Apple TV-Out so that users can stream content to their TV via their iOS device. Options to customize output quality and audio parameters are also available. It's a pretty comprehensive app indeed and one that offers tons of convenience.

Air Playit is out now in iPhone and iPad varieties. Both are free.

BBC iPlayer Puts the BBC on the iPad

Posted by Rob Rich on July 29th, 2011

Ages ago, when mankind first learned of fire and kept small dinosaurs as pets, I used to work in a very large bookstore. One of those big ones that sold DVDs and wooden toys on top of books and stuff. Stick with me, the bit about the DVDs is important. So, having worked in a store that sells DVDs I've come to learn something about our society: American people go absolutely nuts for British television.

Seriously, so many people would spend upwards of $80 or more on a single season of some show about a woman who marries people and lives in wine country or something. And maybe solves murders. Average citizens solve a lot of murders over there, don't they?

Perhaps it's because they've finally realized that their shows have a massive global appeal, or maybe it's because they finally got the funds together, but BBC Worldwide has created (and is unleashing) their BBC iPlayer: an iPad app that allows a fairly extensive (1500 hours worth on day one) amount of their catalog to be streamed digitally. The managing director of BBC.com (Luke Bradley-Jones) has told guardian.co.uk that the service will feature newer episodes but also grant users access to "... the best from the catalogue stretching back 50 to 60 years."

Some content is available for free (add-supported, of course), but subscriptions are available for €6.99 (roughly $10) a month and €49.99 (about $72) a year. Sure subscription fees are always daunting, but considering the fact that most BBC enthusiasts plunk down more than triple that in a year or less, I think this seems like a great deal. Especially when considering the perks that the US version will include: 3G and Wi-Fi streaming, as well as (this is the big one) downloading videos directly to the iPad for offline viewing. I mean seriously, who wouldn't be willing to pay a little bit each year to be able to load up some Doctor Who, Primeval, Top Gear and more, whenever they'd like? Imagine how awesome those commutes would be.

The BBC iPlayer is due out "Thursday" in 11 Western European countries, but US, Canadian and Australian residents will have to wait until later this year. Bummer.

[via guardian.co.uk] [ image credit: guardian.co.uk ]

Pixies Official App Released

Posted by Rob LeFebvre on July 26th, 2011

The Pixies, the seminal indie-rock and grunge alternative-rock band from Seattle, formed in 1986, disbanded in 1993, and reunited in 2004. In 2011, they released Pixies Official, an app chock full of streaming Pixies music, available for free on the App Store.

Developed by Topspin Media, Inc., the Pixies Official app features free streaming of their Purple Tape, free download of the 2004 Coachella show, artwork from Vaughan Oliver and Simon Larbalestier, who are the creators of the original artwork for all five of the Pixies' studio albums, and on-demand streaming of a ton of archive performances. These include a show from Manchester in 1988, the first 2004 reunion show at the Fine Line Cafe, and the acoustic 2006 Newport Folk Festival show.

The app also contains fan profiles, fan badges and leaderboards, integration with Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare, and (duh) an in-app store where users can buy the complete catalog of studio albums and a ton of Pixies merchandise.

[Source: Music :) Ally]


Spotify is Here! Celebrate With a Free Invitation

Posted by Chris Kirby on July 18th, 2011
+ Universal & Apple Watch App - Designed for iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch

Spotify has landed in the US with a great deal of press coverage and speculation, but what is it, exactly?

Spotify is a streaming music service - more akin to Rdio or MOG than the randomly-generated playlists of Pandora - that has one killer feature its competitors don't. It's free. Yep, once an account is established (which is tricky at the moment - more on that in a bit), streaming is enabled for Macs and PCs through the iTunes-like Spotify desktop client. The catches are relatively minor. The free service is ad-supported, so expect to hear song snippets when you least expect them, or see an ad for Coke dominate your Spotify screen for a few seconds. Taken as a whole, however, it's a lot of content for the surprising cost of nothing.

For those wanting more, Spotify offers an Unlimited Plan for $4.95 which features unlimited streaming to PC/Mac with no ads or a Premiere Plan for $9.95 a month to stream all content to the iPhone and select other devices. If you're hurting for an invite to join the fun, you can jump to the head of the line by purchasing an Unlimited or Premiere plan...or...

You can win one of two invites to Spotify USA by helping us reach 2,000 fans on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/148apps. Once we hit that magic number, all of our recent fans' names go into a hat for a random drawing. Two lucky winners will receive invites to the music party of the year.

Spotify for iPhone Review

By Chris Kirby on July 15th, 2011
Are you Spotified yet? It's worth more than a quick look.
Read The Full Review »

iRadio Review

iPhone App - Designed for iPhone, compatible with iPad
By Jason Wadsworth on June 6th, 2011
Our rating: starstarstarstarblankstar :: MUSIC GALORE
iRadio takes just about every internet radio station you could ever stream and crams them all into one app with some handy tools.
Read The Full Review »

Spring Training Is Here, Download MLB At Bat 11

Posted by Chris Hall on February 25th, 2011

There's nothing overtly new about this seasons variety of the amazing MLB At Bat apps, but with baseball season just around the corner, it's now prime time to pick up the app. As an extra treat for those who download early, the MLB will be streaming around 150 spring training games this season as part of the free MLB.tv mobile preview. In addition, each game will receive the same on-air radio treatment and batter-by-batter action that each game gives you during the regular season. Check out the full list of Spring Training goodies:

  • Customize At Bat's home screen to feature your designated favorite team

  • Watch Live streaming of about 150 Spring Training games with a special mobile free preview of MLB.TV

  • Listen to available radio broadcasts of Spring Training games

  • Follow batter-by-batter action for every Spring Training game

  • Enhanced video library archive, searchable by player or team

  • Breaking news, schedules and interactive rosters and players stats for every team
  • For the first time ever I'll get to see my Astros play spring training ball in the Grapefruit League. I'm more than just a little excited.

    For those who had never used MLB At Bat in the past, it is the most amazing baseball game day app that you will ever touch. With the app you can follow any game in the country for free (well, after the app cost), and even listen to the games (you can choose between the home and away broadcast team) over internet radio. Best of all, if you purchase MLB.tv, you can watch each game via live streaming to any iOS device. The additional price ($99+) may seem a bit steep at first, but with well over 100 games going on this regular season, it's a hard deal to pass up for real baseball fans.

    [Source: MLB.com]