After countering Spotify's recent service expansion and its brand new (and somewhat limited) free streaming feature by expanding into twenty new countries, the popular music subscription service Rdio today refreshed its free iPhone and iPad application with a handy sleep timer function to stop playback after a period of time.
The new Rdio 2.5.4 also includes redesigned profile views with your photo right at the center, various subtle interface improvements and minor bug fixes...
Spotify is reportedly planning to launch a free mobile music service. According to a new report by The Wall Street Journal, the Sweden-based company has reached licensing deals with all three of the global music companies to use their recordings.
Spotify currently offers a free service for desktop and laptop computers, and offers a Pandora-like radio feature via its mobile app. But this new service would allow smartphone and tablet users to play a limited number of songs on-demand, with ads...
I'm loving my Apple TV and AirPlay, an Apple media technology which streams content from the iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Mac devices to television sets through the company's $99 set-top box.
Unfortunately, AirPlay is a proprietary technology that only works with Apple hardware. Don't you just wish the industry finally settled on a single cross-platform streaming media standard?
That's the issue a new application for Android devices is attempting to tackle. Created by CyanogenMod developer Koushik Dutta, the AllCast app lets you stream online (Dropbox, Google Drive and so forth) or locally-stored content to your Apple TV, Roku and a number of other set-top boxes and DLNA-compatible devices such as the PlayStation 3 console.
Currently in beta, the software works surprisingly well and I've included a video to show it to you right after the break...
Netflix caused quite a bit of commotion last night when it unveiled its all-new user interface that it's been testing for the past several months. The new design facilitates easier content discovery and unifies the user experience across platforms.
The updated UI will begin rolling out to smart TVs, Roku boxes, PlayStation consoles and Blu-Ray players today. But there are some devices that won't be getting the makeover, which Netflix executives are calling the service's largest to date...
Rdio, the popular Internet radio service, has just pushed a long-expected update that has finally enabled a music recommendation engine in its iPhone and iPad app. Fans will remember that the inaugural 1.0 build had that useful feature front and center.
Unfortunately, it was inexplicably pulled as the company started experimenting with stuff like Pandora-style personalized Stations and got busy implementing social features and other enhancements.
It was a little over a month ago that Rdio confirmed plans to bring back the popular music-recommendation capability and today they've made good on that promise...
Since Apple launched iTunes Radio back in September, industry watchers have kept a close eye on competing streaming music services. After all, the Cupertino company has the resources and user base to put a huge dent in the business.
But apparently the opposite has happened for Pandora. The company's CFO Michael Herring spoke yesterday at a Morgan Stanley conference in San Francisco, and he says listening has increased 9% since iTunes Radio made its debut...
During a recent quarterly earnings call, Netflix's Reed Hastings spoke about his ambitious plans for the company's future. The CEO hopes the streaming service will be "one of the big suppliers" of 4K (or Ultra HD) video by next year.
And this weekend it began testing the waters. GigaOM noticed that Netflix recently added a handful of 4K HD videos to its catalog. It's mostly test footage—people riding bicycles, etc.—but it gives you a good idea of what to expect...
It looks like Apple will provide a live stream of today's iPad event after all as Apple TV owners report that the Apple Events channel has been updated on their $99 set-top box to reflect Apple's invitation graphics.
"Watch the special event held at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater in San Francisco, CA," the event listing reads.
Additionally, the company will be live-streaming the show to iOS devices and Macs through the new October 2013 event section on its Apple Events web page...
Bloomberg is reporting this evening that it has learned Apple is working to rollout iTunes Radio to the UK, Canada and other countries by early 2014. The music service, which launched last month, is currently only available in the US.
Citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter, the outlet says that Apple has acquired the necessary licenses from labels to take its service international next year—likely beating Pandora and other competitors to several countries...
Amazon is readying an Apple TV competitor, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. The set-top box will offer access to the company's Instant Video and other streaming services.
Reportedly codenamed "Cinnamon," the device is said to be very similar in design and functionality to a Roku box. And Amazon is believed to be looking to launch it sometime before the holidays...
Last summer, Spotify updated its mobile apps with a free Pandora-like radio service, and it has since seen its subscriber base grow by more than a third. Today, Rdio is betting on the same horse with its own mobile radio feature.
Rdio’s radio service—which it calls 'Stations'—will be available via its mobile apps. Like Pandora or iTunes Radio, users won't be able to choose a specific song or artist. But they will be able to listen to music based on their tastes...
It appears that the PlayStation 4 isn't the only new gaming hardware we'll be seeing from Sony this year. The Tokyo-based company has just announced PlayStation Vita TV, a 6 x 10 cm console and set-top box that can connect to your TV.
The device is based on PS Vita hardware, and besides playing Vita, PSP and PS1 games, it also offers access to a range of entertainment services and PS4-specific features. And, priced at $100, it's aimed squarely at Apple's set-top box...