Free Access to iTunes May Be Coming Your Way

According to the Financial Times, Apple is considering a plan that would give its customers free access to the entire iTunes library as long as they are willing to pay a premium on the purchase of their new iPhone or iPod device. While rumors have been going around the Internet for years regarding a decision by Apple to make its iTunes service completely free, this is the first time that there is any credence to the consideration. The plan would certainly be a bold move. Giving away songs on iTunes could anger some artists as well as creating a nightmare … Continue reading →

Lego Speakers (and More) for Your iPod

If you want to dress up your iPod, you might want to consider one of the hottest technology gifts out there this season. It is an itty-bitty desktop speaker that works with your iPod Classic, Nano and Mini. The speakers resemble Lego blocks and come in all sorts of bright colors, such as yellow, pink, green, white, blue and black, There is even a new speaker that is a bit large and resembles a stack of blocks in red, white and blue. The super compact little stereo is said to have great sound for its size; the speaker was even … Continue reading →

Onion-Powered iPod

Out in the world without a power outlet but you still have a burning desire to listen to some tunes? Not to worry, you can charge your iPod up with onion power! YouTube recently had a video posting that shows a user who charged his iPod with an onion. He used a screwdriver to poke a hole in a white onion. Then he submerged the onion in 2 cups of a gatorade power drink (I assume that almost any energy drink might work as well). After 30 minutes have gone by, half of the gatorade is absorbed by the onion. … Continue reading →

Apple and Starbucks

In a promotion to celebrate the deal made between Apple and Starbucks, the coffee chain will be giving away 50 million tunes to its customers in its more than 10,000 stores across the country. Beginning on October 2nd, Starbucks will hand out “song of the day” cards that can be redeemed at Apple’s iTunes online store. Featured artists for these songs include Joni Mitchell, Paul McCartney, Dave Matthews, Band of Horses and Annie Lennox and Bob Dylan. Starbucks will also begin selling cards that feature entire albums with bonus material, and again, these cards are redeemable at the iTunes store. … Continue reading →

The New iPods

Rumor has it that the iPod is in for the next revolution on the Apple agenda. Reports are coming in about a possible special media event to be held by Apple sometime in September. During that event, industry analysts predict that four new Apple iPods will be introduced, each based on the successful Mac OS X operating systems. Four new iPods models are predicted, each with NAND Flash. The iPods should be available in two distinct types: one type featuring the traditional click wheel, and another featuring a touch screen, much like the new Apple iPhone, but dubbed the iPod … Continue reading →

Treat Your iPod Like Your Baby

Kori Rodley Irons recently posted an excellent article about how many people compare pets, objects and life events to parenting. (You can click here to read it.) She makes some excellent points. Well, I have a strange new phenomena in the “just like being a parent” category for her. It seems that the iPod, that little wonder of technology, is inspiring maternal and paternal feelings in many of its owners. The Globe and Mail, a Canadian newspaper, recently published a story about a heat alert in the area. Along with warning parents and pet owners, it included a warning for … Continue reading →

iTunes: Over 3 Billion Served

Do you remember years ago when it was fun to watch the McDonald’s sign change to show how many burgers were sold. Somewhere along the line, they just couldn’t keep up any longer, and those signs changed to the line “billions and billions served. It is a very different world now, and success is measured in music downloads rather than patties with special sauce. Yesterday, Apple announced that more than three billion songs have been purchased and downloaded from the Apple iTunes store. “We’d like to thank all of our customers who have contributed to this incredible milestone,” said Eddy … Continue reading →

New iPods Coming in August?

Rumor has it that the next generation of Apple iPods, the sixth, will be hitting Apple stores as soon as the beginning of August. Many people are speculating about what new features will be available on the new iPods. For example, will they feature a touch screen interface? New operating system? New colors? Well the best guesses are as follows. The new iPods will probably not feature a touch-screen interface. I think that would take too much away from the glory and newness of the Apple iPhones. I think that the touch screen will eventually come to the iPod, but … Continue reading →

Is DRM-Free Music A Privacy Threat?

Recently I told you about the new iTunes Plus service that allows users to download protection-free (DRM-free) music selections from the iTunes store for a slightly higher price than standard music downloads. With DRM-free music downloads, sound is said to be of higher quality with less interference noise. DRM-free music can also be loaded onto other devices to play the the tracks, and the music can also be illegally shared over peer to peer networks. It was recently discovered, however, that these DRM-free tracks contain unencrypted details of the person originally purchasing the download, namely their name and e-mail address. … Continue reading →

iTunes Plus

Apple recently unveiled the new iTunes Plus service for iTunes customers. With the service, you can download higher quality audio tracks that are DRM-free for an extra fee. But is it worth it? DRM is the technology that protects music tracks from piracy. The drawback to DRM is that the quality of a track can suffer. DRM-free music, or unprotected music, generally sounds better, with clearer tones and less overwhelming noise or screechy-ness. Under the iTunes Plus service, audio tracks that are DRM-free will cost about $.30 more per track or song. This might be worth it to anyone who … Continue reading →