SweetFM Review: A Not so Sweet iTunes Helper
The iTunes helper application has become a very popular class of application to develop for. Most developers, like the people behind CoverSutra and Bowtie, have been very successful in their attempts. But unfortunately it was only inevitable that a not so well designed one came along. I’m talking about SweetFM from choco moko.
Ringer Review: Easily Create Ringtones for You iPhone
The iPhone has a limited selection of built in ringtones, and only select songs are available for purchase on iTunes as ringtones. Ringer, by Pixel Research Labs, was made to fix this problem. Ringer lets you create any unprotected song into a ringtone. Using the application you can browse your entire iTunes library and quickly create ringtones from audio. This doesn’t only apply to music, Ringer can use audio from videos too.
Songbird Review: iTunes Killer?
Many have tried to take down iTunes, but none have succeeded. They say that video killed the radio star, but no one has even come close to killing the iTunes store. Songbird is no iTunes killer, but it gives it a pretty decent shot. Songbird is open-source music management software put out by a group that calls themselves “Pioneers of the Inevitable.” After years of development, betas, complete redesigns, and what were likely many hours and tears: Songbird 1.x is out in the wild.
AirPhones Review: Bluetooth Headphones Without the Bluetooth
The world is getting wireless and so is your headphones. Products such as bluetooth headphones have been popping up here and there to allow you to get rid of that pesky cord that tugs and gets in the way of your work. Unfortunately, these products can be quite expensive and require the expense of constant battery replacement. What if I told you there is a way to experience the freedom from the cord and the heaviness of your wallet at the same time? Introducing AirPhones: the app that takes your iPhone/iPod Touch and turns it into wireless headphones.
doubleTwist Preview: Your Virtual Digital Hub
If you’re like me, then you have a ton of digital devices that you use almost every day to go about your daily digital life. I’ve got my Cell phone, iPod, PSP, digital camera, and video camera that I use all the time. Apple has done a wonderful job developing a suite of apps known as iLife designed to manage your main digital devices. Unfortunately, the range of these devices are limited to an iPod, digital camera, video camera, and an iPhone. Here is where doubleTwist comes in. This app is your middle man for transferring pictures, music, and movies to all of your digital devices simplicity and ease.
News: Sirius XM Coming to iPhone
Over the past year satellite radio has been forced to reinvent itself. Sirius and XM, formerly competitors, were forced to merge to survive. Shortly after merging their programming the newly formed company declared this past February that it may have to file for bankruptcy. And while they averted any immediate shuttering of their doors thanks to an investment from Liberty Media, the satellite radio universe knows it’s on thin ice.
Slacker Personal Radio Review: Create Your Own Radio Stations on Your iPhone
One of the long-standing iPod rumors has been a model that included an FM tuner. Some people still can’t believe Apple never included that “simple” feature. Now, with the iPhone/iPod Touch being able to stream music from the Internet, I think it’s safe to say there will never be an iPod with a terrestrial radio. And using an app like Slacker Personal Radio, you wonder why anyone would still want one.
There are several streaming music players in the App Store, with Pandora being the most popular. Slacker is very similar to Pandora — choose an artist or song, and Slacker builds a radio station with similar music. There are also several pre-built genre stations to choose from. Slacker doesn’t seem to use the “musical fingerprinting” that Pandora does. Instead, it appears to be based on the genre of the artists. Still, it manages to put together a good playlist.
Boxee Soon to Open Its Doors to All
Many sites have been abuzz for a little while now about a piece of software called Boxee. Maybe you’ve heard of it? If not that’s fine as this can serve as a brief introduction to a very nice piece of media center software. Forums were filling up with post after post of people wanting invites to try out Boxee. The reason for this was since due to the wanting to scale their server architecture. They kept things under control by using an invite system. Well that’s all about to change.
Radioshift Touch Review: Radio for your Phone
One of the heaviest hitters in the world of Mac apps is Rogue Amoeba. They have created some of the most innovative audio related apps available: Audio Hijack Pro, Airfoil, and Radioshift. In hopes of extending their success, they’ve developed their first iPhone application: Radioshift Touch. Radioshift Touch is an application that allows you to listen to radio streams from both terrestrial and online stations.
Unfortunately, I feel as though this application falls flat and only really offers the same features as its free counterparts. Like the AOL Radio application, Radioshift allows you to find all your local radio stations and search for others using an intuitive list of music genres. But unlike the AOL app, Radioshift also allows you to search for your favorite station by name.
SoundSoap 2: Get Rid of that Unwanted Noise!
A few months ago my school put on a concert of student musical performances. MacBook Pro in hand, I went to the concert, set up in the audio booth, and decided to try my hand at recording some of the songs played. Unfortunately, the conditions and equipment weren’t ideal, and many of the recordings had a large amount of noise.
I then set out to find a Mac application that would allow me to make an attempt at cleaning some of these tracks up. After a little bit of searching, I found a company by the name of Bias Inc., that made an application called SoundSoap which was right up my alley.
