Here’s a clever idea. Marketing and design specialists Ralston 360 have come up with a great angle to market their services, a streaming video that explains all the basics of Podcasting all wrapped up in a ‘virtual ipod’.

There’s also a free 14 page whitepaper, ‘Podcasting-the Pod Has Landed’ (in PDF format) on the website (in exchange for your email, natch!) which explains a bit more. They also have another free download, ‘To Blog or Not to Blog’ which kind of speaks for itself but is worth a look for newbies if you’re thinking of starting your own.

Thanks to Steve Rubel at the Micro Persuasion blog for the lead.

Related Reading

The Buzzsonic Podcasting Round-up (Buzzsonic.com)

I’ve mentioned the free iLounge iPod book download here before (when iLounge.com was still called iPodlounge.com). Well this week the iPod gadget website released the latest version of ‘The Free iPod Book’, (Version 2.2) which Wall Street Journal’s Walt Mossberg recommended as the “free manual on getting the most from your iPod.”

The latest edition boasts 200 plus pages covering everything you could possibly imagine related to Apple’s iPod and iTunes and is available as a higher-res printable PDF or lower-res monitor friendly PDF download.

You can find a fuller description on the iLounge website here but its a rare thing on the internet, a freebie which carries more value than many paid downloads, whatever the category. Brilliant.
Download

The Free iPod Book 2.2 (hi-res 21mb PDF) Print Version
The Free iPod Book 2.2 (lower-res 13MB PDF) Monitor Version

Related Links

The iLounge Library (iLounge.com)
iPod Hacks (iPodhacks.com)
iPod Hackaday (Hackaday.com)
iPod and iTunes Product Guide (PlaylistMag.com)

We mentioned the prototype iPod DJ mixer from Numark back in April after its unveiling at Frankfurts Musikmesse exhibition.

The iDJ is a two channel mixer that lets iPod DJs use their portable music libraries alongside other music and sound reinforcement systems. It’s equipped with two universal iPod docking stations. Users aren’t restricted to using iPods: the iDJ has phono/line inputs for adding additional devices on both channels. The product also offers a USB port, so users can dock with their computers to input and edit music to the device. The device is set to ship in the summer in the US and will retail at $399.

Related Links

iDJ Overview PDF (Numark.com)
Computer DJing Summit (ComputerDJSummit.com)
Prototype Numark DJ Mixer (CreateDigitalMusic.com)
Playlist (iPod-DJ.com)
The iPod DJ Revolution (Methodshop.com)
No Wax (NoWax.co.uk)

That much over hyped headline, ‘iPod Killer’ made its now regular appearance in the news again last week (and has been appearing since 2003) when Nokia announced the N91 4GB hard-drive multi-media cell phone in Amsterdam last Wednesday. The N91 looks great and is impressive sounding enough, coming standard with MP3, M4A, AAC and WMA music compatibility.

There’s connectivity with your PC via USB 2.0 for simple drag and drop file transfer. Also included is an audio industry standard 3.5mm stereo headset jack, a two megapixel camera and multiple wireless connectivity options, including WCDMA, WLAN and Bluetooth technology.

Expected to be commercially available worldwide by the end of 2005, Nokia estimates the retail price of the N91 to fall between 650 and 750 EUR ($835-$963). For all its looks and killer features, without a substantial manufacturers subsiduary its hardly going to threaten or even tempt the average iPod demographic. In comparison the 30GB iPod Photo retails at $349, less than half the proposed price of the new Nokia.

Korea’s Samsung Electronics introduced the SGH-i300 last month with a 3-gigabyte hard drive, enough to store 1,000 songs. A 10-gig phone could hit the market within two years. Research firm Strategy Analytics estimates that in 2008 50% of the 860 million cell phones sold will be able to store and play songs, up from 8% today.

Related Reading

Nokia N91 Preview [InfoSyncWorld.com]
The iPod Killers? [BusinessWeek.com]
Of iPod Killers and Mobile Dreams [Billboard Postplay]
Attack of the Anti-iPods [Time.com]
Samsung Unveils SGH-i300 3Gb Hard Drive Mobile Phone [Pocket-Lint.co.uk]
The Father of the iPod [Cult of Mac Blog]
Inside the Apple iPod Design Triumph [DesignChain.com]
Microsoft’s iPod Killer? [CNet News]
iPod Killers Coming Soon [CNet MP3 Insider]

If you’re slow getting started on the MP3 portable player bandwagon, can’t afford an iPod and have a sizeable CD collection just waiting to get squashed into MP3 files and put into your pocket and on the move DAP Review put us on to a deal right now at J&R.com. Actually Amazon are doing the same too.

They are both shipping the 20GB Entempo Spirit for $99.98 and OK, the Spirit is never going to win prizes for the design, in fact they would if there was an award for ugliest hard-drive player ever, but besides that, even as a cheap hard drive back up its pretty impossible to beat at that price. All for less than the cost of the half gig Shuffle.

The blue and white unit comes with integrated FM radio and built in voice recorder, something even the mighty iPod doesn’t offer. There’s the usual USB 2.0 transfer, built in shock protection and WMA and MP3 compatability. The California based Entempo also have the much nicer looking 20GB Rubato which retails for double the price of the Spirit.

Thanks to DAP Review for the lead

MP3 Player Shopping

MP3 Player Love [MP3PlayerLove.com]
Digital Audio Player Review [DAPReview]
Top 10 Portable MP3 Players Guide [About.com]
MP3 Player Buyers Guide [CNet Reviews]

As a dance music producer myself and someone who has humped around boxes of 12 inch vinyl records all in the name of DJing in the past I’ve seen the ‘death’, or more accurately, the steep decline of vinyl for years. Instead of backbreakingly heavy piles of vinyl, a handful of CDs can take their place. With MP3 music compression it hasn’t stopped there however, why bother with CDs when you can carry all your music on a device the size of a box of cigarettes. The end of vinyl getting lost in transit for the DJ jetsetter, everything fits in your pocket. The only minus point about DJing with an iPod in the past has been the lack of pitch control. Not anymore.

DJ gear specialists Numark unveiled a prototype iPod DJ mixing console a few days ago at Frankfurts Musikmesse exhibition. Though camera shots of the unit were apparently shielded at the show, German HipHop website WebBeatz managed to grab some shots, one of which we have here the other is being shown at Engadget.

Details are sketchy right now but Engadget are reporting that Numark aims to put out a consumer model in the next couple of months, retailing in the $250-350 range, to be followed with a pro DJ version with pitch control and other goodies required by the pro mobile DJ. Both versions will feature the dual iPod dock with crossfaders and transport controls.

Another turntablist website, Skratchworx were showing the same leaked pictures.

Thanks to Engadget

Related Links

Prototype Numark iPod DJ Mixer [CreateDigitalMusic.com]
iPod For DJs [DJZone.net]
Playlist iPod DJ [iPod-Dj.com]
With iPod, Who Needs a Turntable ? [Wired.com]
Downloaded and Ready To Rock [Washington Post]
iPod Lounge [iPodLounge.com]
Everything iPod [Everythingipod.com]
NoWax [NoWax.co.uk]
Playlist Mag [Playlistmag.com]
The iPod DJ Revolution [Methodshop.com]

UK TV writers David Wellington and Adrian Peters production firm Mantlepies were asked to come up with some sketches for comedian Armando Iannucci’s end of year TV show for the BBC, 2004: The Stupid Version.

They came up with ‘iPod World’ a wry dig at the way the iPod is becoming ingrained into the fabric of society. 2004: The Stupid Version, was broadcast on BBC THREE, on New Year’s Eve. Its starting point is taking all the footage from the year and re-editing and re-voicing it to make it become something completely different.

Iannucci, talking on the BBC website said, “What’s been really heartening about making it was discovering lots of creative and funny people who do this sort of thing for a laugh, but in their homes or during the night in posh commercial editing suites. They then normally send these sorts of things out as virals on the internet.

What I wanted to do was bring some of them together and say to them, look, now you’ve got all the BBC’s resources at your disposal. If you need help, we’ll provide it. Don’t change what you do, just aim higher. And they did. I’ve always fiddled about with videotape anyway, so the programme was also an opportunity to get a few more of those jokes off my chest as well.”

View the clip here (in QuickTime .mov format) and grab it here (5.52MB) ( right click and save as-from Gizmodo).

As predicted for a while now just about everywhere, Apple CEO Steve Jobs yesterday announced Apple Computer’s Flash memory based MP3 player, dubbed the iPod Shuffle.

Unveiled for the first time at the Mac World Expo in San Francisco CEO Jobs said, “It is smaller than most packs of gum,” and, “It weighs about four quarters.”
The iPod Shuffle will sell for $99 and $149. Unlike other iPods, the Shuffle uses flash memory, rather than a miniature hard drive, to store songs and it is priced lower than many competing flash players with less memory than the 512 megabytes and 1 gigabyte Apple will include.

As predicted at MacMind over a month ago the unit comes without an LCD screen.
“Get this: NO SCREEN. Got a cellphone with one of those flat joysticks? This is apparently how you’ll get around on the screenless iPod.”
Like its big brother the hard disc drive iPod, the iPod Shuffle includes a navigation wheel. There’s also a slider on the back of the player that determines how tunes will be played. The first switch position tells the iPod shuffle to play songs from the beginning of the playlist to the end in orderm, one more notch and it will shuffle the songs on the device. The third position turns the device off.

Jobs told Conference goers, “With most flash-memory music players users must use tiny displays and complicated controls to find their music; with iPod shuffle you just relax and it serves up new combinations of your music every time you listen.”

Users can charge and transfer music from their Mac or PC by plugging iPod shuffle directly into a USB port. The Shuffle also doubles as a portable USB flash drive and comes with its own lanyard so you can wear the tiny player. Apple already have a number of accessories for the new iPod including an arm band, dock connector and sports case.

The players go on sale from today on the Apple website.

Related Reading

iPod Shuffle:First Impressions [PlaylistMag.com]
iPod Shuffle Sparks Stampede [Wired.com]
Apple Introduces iPod Shuffle [Yahoo Finance]
Apple Makes Tiny Steps for the Masses [Washington Post]
Apple: Jobs Unleashes Mini Mini Pod [Silicon.com]
Apple iPod Shuffle (512MB) [CNet Reviews]
Turn Any iPod into an iPod Shuffle in 3 Easy Steps! [Flickr.com]

Geeks and electronic gadget fans attention will be shifting from Las Vegas to San Francisco tomorrow as the much anticipated Mac World Expo opens just 48 hours after gadget-fest Las Vegas ends.

Much of the anticipation surrounds the expected official announcement of a smaller Flash based memory version of the iPod which has already been much whispered and speculated about web wide (including here). I cant think of a portable device that has sprung up so many speculative DiY designs and gossip ever.

The MacMind website was the first one to actually post leaked mock-ups early last month. A few days ago Think Secret had even more information (from reliable ‘sources’) with claims that the device will be in 1 and 2GB sizes with the Flash memory module sourced from Samsung. Prices are said to be $149 for the 1 Gig player and $199 for the 2 Gig (which is said to have two mini Flash modules) with manufacturing already underway in Taiwan courtesy of Asustek.

The other much talked about device expected to be elaborated on at the San Francisco Expo (there was a sneak preview at CES) is the Motorola iTunes capable phone which has been the source of frantic debate almost as much as the Flash iPod.

Related Reading

iPod Flash Will Have a Screen? [Engadget.com]
The Chinese MP3 Invasion [MusicbizNews24.com]
Applele [Applele.com]
iPod Flash Player Revealed? [MusicbizNews24.com]
the Cult of Mac Blog [Wired Blogs]

Needless to say the closed nature of the Apple iPod software hasn’t stopped the Open Source mob getting their hands dirty with a whole collection of unofficial hacks and software add ons enabling geeks to do things that the standard Apple gear restricts you from doing. One of the main reasons after market firms like Belkin and Griffin can charge $50 for add on devices that enable the recording at a strictly low-fi 8khz.

Philip Torrone at Hack A Day has come up with a hacked work around that enables high quality recording for no cost using the Linux based user interface Podzilla.

iPod Linux Links

WikiPodLinux [iPodLinux.org]
Linux for the iPod Review [XLR8YourMac.com]
iPod Linux Forums [iPodLinux.org]
iPod Linux Installer [Sourceforge.net]
Free Your Music [Hymn-Project.org]
iPodHacks [iPodHacks.com]
Using an iPod with Linux [MIT.edu]
myPod Project [Sourceforge.net]
Podzilla and PTK [Dotink.org]
iPod Mini with Linux [Freedos.org]

They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery, though we’re not sure if Apple will be so amused when they see the latest digital music portable from Taiwan’s ABoss.

ABoss were up to now renown for their entry level priced DVD players but have now jumped into the exploding market for portable MP3 players with the most outrageous iPod rip off so far. The closest copy that we have encountered up to now has been the German Medion MD 95200 pictured here.

The ABoss iPocket is as near as you can get to being a complete copy of Apple’s iPod Mini, even down to the same choice of five colors as the iPod Mini. They sling in the same four-button set-up from the third generation iPod just for good measure. Not many technical details available right now (try as we might no info found on memory capacity) bar for the devices built in memory card slot for removable Memory Sticks, MMC and SD cards and an OLED screen.

Thanks to the wonderful Engadget

Portable MP3 player chip manufacturer SigmaTel, released a consumer survey this week that shows up to 20 percent of Americans (13.5 million according to 2000 U.S. census data) between the ages of 18 and 35 are considering an MP3 player purchase within the next six months. The nationwide survey found that 59 percent of would-be buyers plan to give MP3 players as gifts. The survey was fielded by independent research firm StrategyOne on behalf of SigmaTel.

“In the U.S., the portable MP3 player category has expanded far beyond early adopters. A compelling selection of device form factors, storage capacities, price points and compatible online music services has driven this expansion,” said Susan Kevorkian, senior analyst with IDC. “Younger consumers have been on the cutting edge of this trend, which is only gaining momentum during this holiday season.”

“If consumer intentions are any indication, the MP3 market has moved beyond its infancy stage and is poised for significant growth,” said Ron Edgerton, president and chief executive officer of SigmaTel.

When asked why they would consider buying an MP3 player, 63 percent of would-be buyers cited new music download services and 69 percent cited audio quality. “This survey clearly shows us that consumers have embraced this technology and the wide range of MP3 players available to suit every budget and lifestyle,” noted Edgerton

In another report, “Today’s Handheld Electronics: What do Consumers Think About Current and Future Devices?” released this week by In-Stat/MDR they found that 90% of MP3 player owners are over the aged of 35. 31% of people have downloaded music (mainly over a broadband connection) and there is a 20% increase in those paying to download from last year. 30% of the respondents indicated they were familiar or very familiar with handheld audio/video players.

In a recent survey of buying preferences among U.S. teenagers, analysts at Piper Jaffray found a strong preference for the iPod over competing products. Of the 600 teens surveyed, 16 percent already owned an iPod, and 24 percent planned to get one within the next year. Only 8 percent planned to acquire another brand of music player in that time.

According to a market research study in September from researchers at the NPD Group Apple’s iPod maintained its strong hold on the market with a 87.3% share among hard drive-based players, down from 92.0%, followed by HP in second with its iPod made by Apple at 3.6%. Combining the HP and Apple percentages, Apple controlled 90.9% of the market share. Finishing out the top five of hard drive-based players was Rio with a 2.8% share, Creative in fourth with 2.6% and iRiver at 1.5%.

Related News

Digital Music a Prime Opportunity for Music Industry, But Challenges Remain [NPD Group]
Its All About the iPod [CNet News]
Creative, Apple Battle For MP3 Player Market [Slashdot.org]
The iPod Economy [Forbes.com]
iPod: How Long Will It Reign? [BusinessWeek.com]
iPod Share Slips 5% on Strong Flash Sales, HP Second [MacObserver.com]
MP3 Player Market Set to Explode [CNet News]

MP3 Audio Resources

MP3 Player Buying Guide [CNet Reviews]
MP3 and Digital Music Players [PCMag.com]
Flash Mp3 Players [Gizmopedia.com]
Everything iPod [Everythingipod.com]
HDD MP3 Players [Gizmopedia.com]
Tech Gift Guide [MP3.com]
Portable Audio [Engadget.com]
Audio GoGo [Audiogogo.com]
Digital Audio Player Review [DAPReview.net]

We’re not sure where the rumors of a smaller, Flash based memory iPod emerged, though it was quite probably here last month on the Apple Insider website:

Apple Computer in December will begin manufacturing a third variant of its flagship iPod music player, which will be based on solid-state flash memory, AppleInsider has confirmed through well placed and extremely reliable sources.

Unofficial sources predict that the player will be officially revealed at next months MacWorld Expo in San Francisco, come in at under $200 retail and feature a storage capacity in the range of 256 MB to 1 Gig. No official confirmation from Apple itself and although they dominate the market for hard drive based players with something around 90% share, that share drops to 65% when flash models are included in the tally.

Last night MacMind were showing off ‘exclusive’ mock ups from insider information they’d gleamed from a reliable “anonymous tipster” and their site went into meltdown after it got ‘SlashDotted’ this morning. Its said to have no display and set to retail at $99. Anyway, we’re not convinced by the 3D mockups, the player actually looks more like a mouse.

We much prefer the classy looking mock up from Japanese designer and Mac addict Isamu Sanada on his Applele site. Thanks to the Cult of Mac blog for that lead.

Related Links

Rumored iPod Flash Leaked [Slashdot.org]
the Cult of Mac Blog [WiredBlogs]
Apple iPod Flash Said to Ship January [the Register]
Flash Gordon [Daring Fireball]
Bronfman Likes Telcos in iPod Race [theStreet.com]
the iPod Year in Review 2004 [iPodLounge.com]

Since Apple introduced the iPod digital audio music player in December 2001 the demand for the device has been nothing short of astonishing, now coming into peak Christmas gift buying time company experts estimate that Apple will shift close to two and three quarter million copies of the highly coveted portable player next month alone.

Sales have climbed to 13.3million units up from the 9.5million mark a year ago and the Cupertino, California based company, despite being late to market currently boast close to a 80% share of the world market in hard disc drive based music players. Wall Street analyst Charles Wolf predicts that there will be 100 million iPod owners by the year 2008.

All kinds of companies are riding along on the crest of the wave too. Companies that provide the components, companies that sell after market accessories, add-ons and iPod clones. Major record labels, which at first failed to embrace the digital entertainment revolution are now aligning with legal digital music services with Apple’s iTunes currently sweeping ahead with a 70% market share of the paid download market.

Some of the major beneficiaries are makers of after market accessories like the iBoom ghettoblaster from Digital Lifestyle Outfitters. The enticing looking DLO iBoom is a 20-watt per channel, four-speaker boombox system with built-in digital FM radio. Users simply drop iPod or iPod mini into the iBoom dock, hit play and enjoy their music anytime and anywhere. The unit retails for $149.99.

Just as the black and beige look for the PC has become a running clique, anyone bored with the uniform white of the iPod can get a custom paint job on the unit at places like Minnesota based Colorware PC. And it seems the most interesting developments are happening away from Apple itself with a flourishing line of independent companies queing up to grab a share of the iPod boom. Online stores like Everything iPod will supply you with everything from a black jacket for the similar clad
U2 special edition iPod , a transmitter that’ll plug the iPod into your car stereo and an action jacket workout case that’ll attach the player to your arm.

If you have trouble keeping track of everything thats around, leading independent iPod resource website iPod Lounge introduced an 80 page “2004 iPod Buyers Guide” at the beginning of the month. Its available as a free PDF download on the iPodLounge site and is also being distributed via peer to peer file sharing networks.

Related Links

iPod Gains Ghettoblaster Accessory [the Register]
the Superstore For Your iPod [EverythingiPod.com]
iPod and Apple [MLAgazine.com]
iPod Killers for Christmas 2004 [MP3Newswire.net]
All Things iPod [iPodLounge.com]
iPod Custom Painting [ColorwarePC.com]
iPod Sales Hit 23.5million by 2006-Analyst [MacWorld.co.uk]
The iPod Economy [Forbes.com]
iPod Buyers Guide (44pg free PDF download) [OverMused.com]
Apple Release iPod [Slashdot.org 2001]

We had heard a few reports of a German manufactured ‘iPod-a-like’ this week but any definitive details were pretty hard to dig out. Still, with the help of Google and some cod English translation we managed to eek out some concrete details on the ‘mystery’ digital music player.

The Medion MD 95200 was released on Wednesday but apparently in only very limited amounts and only in some branches of the German discounter Aldi. All available copies were snapped up within the hour, though this could well be some clever PR on the manufacturers part. Mysteriously there was no mention of the new model on Medions German website but we did find several copies of the digital audio player for sale on the German Ebay (naturally).

The charcoal black player boasts a 20gb hard drive, which is just about standard issue nowadays and the unit retails for 199 Euros ($265). It has touch wheel menu navigation, like the iPod and a 160×128 pixel display. In addition it has a SD/MMC slot and an easily exchangable battery. The audio chip and management software inside the player are made by Portal Player, who also run the inside of Apple’s iPod.

Related Reading

Aldi Mp3 Player-iPod Inside [Heiss.de]
First Pics of the AldiPod [DapReview.net]
Aldi Mp3 Player Sold Out in Under 1 Hour [Tekrati.com]
Buy Aldi iPod Not With EBay ! [Tomorrow.MSN.de]

Motorola have unveiled a ‘mid-range’ audio player to add to the growing ranks of rivals after a chunk of the portable digital audio player market, currently ruled by Apple’s range of iPods and iPod Mini’s. The Motorola M500 takes a shot at the Mini iPod market with its 5gb hard drive though the M500 gains an FM radio and a removable battery. The design of the m500 borrows heavily from the similar sized Rio Carbon, unsurprisingly since it was engineered by Rio Audio.

The Motorola is also slightly bigger than the Carbon but both boast 20 hour battery life per charge. The m500 is only available at the moment from Radio Shack for around $229, the Carbon clocks in at $249. Other models in the 4-5GB player market include the Creative Zen Micro and the Dell Pocket DJ, both sporting 5GB hard drives and prices hovering around $200-250.

Related Links

Review of Motorola’s 5GB M500 [Engadget.com]
DAP Review [DAPReview.net]
Portable Audio [Engadget.com]

Newsweek magazine give an exclusive look at the new look iPod’s online on their MSNBC affiliated online presence today (which can also be seen in print in the July 26th ‘iPod Nation’ cover story).

The streamlined digital music player gets a slightly thinner (by 1 millimetre) case and 50% longer battery life this is accomplished, Apple says, not by a heavier battery but diligent conservation of power. More importantly the retail price takes a $100 price reduction for the 20gig (now $299) and the 40gig flagship model (now $399). The 15gig ‘midrange’ model is to be discontinued.

The Newsweek feature did not say when the new iPods would be available. The details were revealed as part of a cover story on the iPod and its impact. The cover shows Apple CEO Steve Jobs holding one of the new, still-white models.

Related Reading

Apple Hatches 4th Generation iPod [CNet News]
iPod Nation [Newsweek]
New iPod Arrives Tomorrow [P2PNet]
New iPod Expected Monday, is Thinner, Cheaper, 12 Hour Battery [MacWorld UK]

When Sony released details of the 20GB NW-HD1 Walkman they claimed to have trumped Apple with the number of songs that their device could hold — 13,000 compared to the iPod’s 10,000 — even thought the total capacity was half of the iPod’s. That message is misleading to consumers, according to Apple.

“We thought it was time to help set the record straight,” Greg Joswiak, vice president of Hardware Product Marketing at Apple, told MacCentral. “We’re disappointed that Sony has chosen to mislead folks with a marketing gimmick — we just want to make sure customer have the information so they can make an apples to apples comparison, if you will.”

Sony’s 13,000 song measurement is based on its ATRAC3 (Adaptive Transform Acoustic Coding for MiniDisc 3) compression system at the relatively low rate of 48Kbps (kilobits per second) while Apple’s measurement is based on the AAC compression system at 128Kbps. At the same bit rate, the Walkman can store around half as many songs as the iPod, which is consistent with it having half the storage capacity.

“ATRAC3 at 48Kbps is nowhere near CD quality,” said Joswiak. Funnily enough neither is Apple’s ‘near-CD quality’ 128Kbps. Normal CD’s are in general encoded at a bitrate of 1,411Kbps, AAC, MP3 and ATRAC are all ‘lossy compression’ methods and are most often used for compressing sound or images. In these cases, the retrieved file can be quite different to the original at the bit level while being indistinguishable to the human ear or eye for most practical purposes. Compression in the case of Apple’s sampling rate removes almost 90% of the original audio.

At the normal CD sampling rate each minute of audio takes up 10mb of space, audio compression shrinks that to roughly 1mb per minute (using Apple’s sampling rate example).

Apple also points out that Sony’s Connect online music store sells songs at 132kbps – proof, it says, that a higher bitrate is desirable.

Related Reading

Apple Attacks Sony’s Network Walkman Claims [NewsFactor Network]
Apple Sour With Sony [the Courier Mail]
The iTunes Phenomenon, P2P Networks and Music Lite [TechNewsWorld]
Sony’s First Walkman-Branded Hard Disk Player, NW-HD1 [Gizmodo]
First NW-HD1 Review (translation) [PC Watch-Japan]
iTunes Europe-A Preliminary Analysis (Buzzsonic.com)
Sony Introduce 20GB Music Player [Buzzsonic.com]
Sony vs. Apple, Sony Takes it up a Notch [EWeek]
EBU Technical Review-Internet Audio Codecs (PDF) [European Broadcasting Union,Switzerland]
Codec Review [Codecreview.com]
Results of Multiformat at 128kbps public Listening Test [Rjamorim.com]

Apple’s iPod mini music player will be released in the UK on 24 July. The 3.6oz, 4GB device, which holds up to 1,000 ‘CD-quality’ (in Apples proprietory AAC format) songs, will be available from Apple’s website, retail stores and authorised resellers for �179 later this month.

iPod mini for Mac and Windows has been only officially available in the U.S since its February debut there.

The mini iPod was originally penned for a UK launch in April though a harddrive shortage delayed the plans. Tight supplies of the tiny Hitachi hard drive at the core of the iPod mini forced Apple to delay increasing manufacturing (and worldwide availability) until July.

“The iPod mini has been a smash hit in the US, and we’re thrilled to finally be able to offer it to music lovers the world over,” said Apple chief executive Steve Jobs in a statement.

The iPod mini will be available in five colours: silver, gold, pink, blue and green. It has a click wheel similar to that found on the larger version and works with the iTunes music store, launched in the UK last month.

Related Reading

iPod Mini’s Set to Head Overseas [CNN Money]
World to Get iPod Mini [the Register]
Mini iPod to Debut Outside of US. [ZDNet News]
New Smaller, Flashier iPod Sells Out Fast [USA Today]
All Things iPod [iPodLounge.com]
iPod Mini Review [CNet Reviews]
MP3 Player:iPod Mini Review [PC Magazine]
Apple Unveils Smaller iPod, New Software [ATT.com]

It can’t be denied that Apple’s iTunes music download store (or iTMS to give it the official acronym) has become something of a media phenomenon, it has also become one of the most over hyped services in living memory. With unadulterated positive press flowing endlessly, iTunes, if you listened to the majority of the mainstream press, can do no wrong.

Thankfully some sense of balance seems to be returning as chinks in Apple’s seemingly impenetrable positive PR armour appear. Randall Stross in todays New York Times article, ‘From a High-Tech System, Low-Fi Music’ rightly points out that far from being the claimed ‘CD quality’ that all legal download stores claim (not just Apple) the paid downloads are are actually heavily compressed versions of the originals. Using a ‘lossy format’ codec and an audio file that is a fraction of the size of the original. Lossy, means lossy, converting the Apple AAC file to lossless Wav does not restore the lost audio.

The Times article goes on. Defending the company’s decision to encode its music at the low end of the bit rate range, an Apple spokesman, Derick Mains, says 128 provides good sound quality, “especially when used in iPods.” “The majority of people,” Mr. Mains said, “have absolutely no idea what a bit rate is.”

“The smaller files are handy for speedy downloads, space-saving for storage and perfectly serviceable for listening through ear buds when riding on the subway. Not what you will want, however, when your desktop computer becomes the home jukebox and wirelessly sends these simulacra to the entertainment center in the living room.” Explains Randall.

Customers are led to believe that they are getting a CD in all respects except the trouble of going to the mall. The iTunes store does not warn about the permanence of its method of compression; once freeze-dried, there is no way to reconstitute the music into CD quality for playing through a good stereo.

The bit rate for iTunes, 128kbps, is so low that when played side by side against the original (the sampling rate for normal CDs is 1,411kbps) the difference is audible not only to audio enthusiasts, but also to mortals with ordinary hearing.

Wes Phillips, contributing editor at Stereophile, says “128 is like an eight-track,” and he describes the combination of iPod and iTunes as “buying a 21st-century device to live in the 1970′s.”

Elsewhere, students at the Berkman Center’s Digitial Media Project (at Harvard Law School) have published a report that considers the legal foundation of iTunes Europe and the interplay of the service with European law. ‘iTunes Europe: A Preliminary Analysis’ examines the implications of the expansion of iTunes on the future of digital media, technology, business strategies, and international law.

The report points out that although Apple is the most popular Internet-based music service, its sales constitute at most 2% of total recording industry sales. At the same time, the record industrys apparent willingness to give up the staggered release dates and price discrimination practices in their sales through Apples iTMS is a striking reflection of the power that an end distributor like Apple has managed to garner in the music business. Apples iTunes Europe launch may very well have marked a change in how power and control are distributed in the music industry.

Read full report: ‘iTunes Europe: A Preliminary Analysis’ (PDF)

Related Reading

Low-Fi iTunes Downloads [P2PNet]
From High Tech Gadget, Small Files But Lower Quality Music [International Herald Tribune]
the Joys of the Celestial Jukebox [Guardian Unlimited]
Audio Data Compression
[Wikipedia]
Perceptual Coding: How Mp3 Compression Works [Sound on Sound]
Audio & Multimedia MPEG-2 AAC [Fraunhofer IIS]
Digital Audio Formats Codec Basics [Global Music Resource]