Zune HD gets a little time in the sun at CES 2010.
(Credit: Donald Bell/CNET)LAS VEGAS--Microsoft didn't exactly take our breath away with yesterday's CES 2010 keynote, but we're getting word that Zune HD users will soon have some good news to shout about.
Come Spring, the Zune HD should receive a firmware update providing support for MPEG-4 part 2 Advanced Simple Profile videos, including the torrent junkie's format of choice, XviD. When pressed on whether DivX support would also be added, our contact explained it was unlikely, because of proprietary restrictions. Also unclear is what range of resolutions will be supported, although we did confirm that the new format support will maintain compatibility with the HD AV dock accessory.
The firmware update will also bring over a Smart DJ feature, which currently is found only in the Zune's client software. The addition of Smart DJ playlists brings the Zune HD in line with the on-the-fly Genius playlist capabilities of the iPod Touch. Better yet, Zune Pass users ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
The Philips Activa fitness MP3 player wants you to get moving.
(Credit: Philips)LAS VEGAS--Wishing that your MP3 player would act more like a personal trainer? Me neither, but Philips is banking on finding an audience of motivation-starved fitness types for its newly announced Activa MP3 player ($129), available worldwide in April.
To put a new spin on working out with your MP3 player, the Activa gives gym rats real-time voice feedback on their performance. Only time will tell if the voice is more in step with the Wii Fit style of chipper encouragement, or with the Tony Little brand of aggressive shouting.
Assuming that the voice can be switched off for those who prefer not to be nagged, the Activa includes the subtler (and arguable more useful) capability to play music that matches the tempo of your workout. If your music collection tends to run a little on the easy listening end of things, Activa comes preloaded with a collection of uptempo music.
The cynic in me feels compelled to point out that Yamaha ... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
Like all apps for the Zune HD thus far (including the recent batch of 3D games), we expect that the Twitter app will be free to download and include a momentary ad banner each time the app is launched. Currently, Zune HD users are able to use the device's integrated Web browser to access and update Twitter but have no way to cache the communications offline.
Unfortunately, Facebook updates will still need to be done the old fashioned way (through the browser) until an app materializes. With 15 days left in 2009, there's still a chance Microsoft will pull this one off in the nick of time. Granted, Apple will have reached its trillionth app by that point, but the effort will not be lost on the Zune faithful.
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I know this is a post about tech's big annual Consumer Electronics Showcase, but for a minute, let's talk about the annual Macworld Expo. Rather, let's talk about what Apple's backing out of the Macworld Expo means to CES and the category I cover (portable audio and video).
In years past, my January's involved a dizzying dash between San Francisco's Moscone Center and the Las Vegas Convention Center, as I strained to cover Apple's Macwold keynote and a week's worth of CES announcements in the same breath. But without Apple's presence, this year's Macworld (now in February) is far less significant, and I suspect that the iPod-centric vendors who were previously split by the two events will now come home to roost at CES. In short--iPod accessory announcements will likely play a larger role at CES this time around.
Griffin's iTrip was the first with iPod/iPhone app integration, but it won't be the last.
(Credit: Griffin)The flip side of this observation is that iPod competitors will probably have a harder time being heard. That's of course assuming there are any substantial iPod competitors left, beyond Microsoft.
Last year, Sony made a big stir with their OLED touch screen X-Series Walkman. Today, that same Walkman is being passed over in the discount bin and Sony's latest Walkman models aren't even slated to come to the U.S. We were also excited to see an affordable iPod Touch alternative in the Samsung P3, but by the time the promised 32GB model finally became available, many had already begun pinning their hopes on the Zune HD (and appropriately so). Creative can't even seem to be bothered to ship us their latest player, possibly because they're too busy cooking up smartphones. SanDisk came out with their SlotRadio player, and the world promptly yawned.
The takeaway from all of this is that I suspect we're going to see fewer manufacturers launching iPod contenders at CES just to watch them fail, and more companies exploring the iPod/iPhone accessory space.
Specifically, from the e-mails I'm already getting, I'm going to be up to my neck in... Read the full post at CNET's CES 2010 blog
Tentatively known as The Cube, this concept from Mintpass puts a retro spin on a conventional MP3 player.
(Credit: Mintpass)If you love the look of old reel-to-reel tape decks, hi-fi receivers, and analog mixing boards, the latest MP3 player concept from Korea's Mintpass design team will probably leave you drooling.
The Cube MP3 player offers not one but three analog VU meters, capable of displaying volume, battery live, and FM radio frequency.
If the menage a trois of vintage analog gauges wasn't enough, the Mint Cube includes two rows of apologetically chunky buttons that hearken back to an era of cassette decks and bad hair. Other proposed features include Bluetooth audio, FM radio, A-B looping, shuffle, and a standard headphone output.
Of course, the whole thing is purely fiction at this point, with not even a hint of price or release date. Also, my gut is telling me that this thing would be wholly impractical to build. My retro nerd heart, however, is keeping hope alive.
(ViaTechfresh)
Jasmine and Donald discuss the implications of MOG's new $5 music service and lament Spotify's disappointingly slow start in the States. Also, Jasmine falls in love with a tiny speaker that is oh-so-wallet-friendly, and we give props to the Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide. You'll also get treated to some off-the-cuff gift suggestions from the esteemed audio editors. Finally, a listener tip on shaking up your iPod's Shuffle.
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This week, Donald and Jasmine talk up the new iAudio players from Cowon and how they're going to have Apple shaking in its boots (not), and also take an inordinate amount of time to espouse upon something that has very little to do with digital music: a possible monthly subscription plan for online video from iTunes. Plus, some very unsubtle earbuds from Stonedcandy--er, Skullcandy--and some listener feedback on iPod usage.
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An Apple patent design shows what would happen if its iPod Shuffle and Bluetooth headset mated.
(Credit: United States Patent Application)In a future where we're all walking around wondering how our iPod brain implants came to exist, historians can point back to this Apple patent application from 2008 and glimpse the missing link: an in-ear iPod.
Of course, others may see this as simply a Bluetooth headset with integrated memory and audio playback capabilities (music, voice mails). The Orwellian in me, though, is fairly certain this gadget will mark Apple's slow crawl into our skulls. Read the patent's abstract to judge for yourself:
Additional functionality in a wireless headset allows it to be used during times that the external device with which it is wirelessly coupled is not being used, but when the headset is nevertheless being worn. This is accomplished by integrating a media player into the wireless headset. The media player may be an audio player, capable, e.g., of playing audio files such as MPEG-3 ("MP3") files. Optionally, the media player may include a recording function as well, so that a user can record voice notes. In addition, if the external device is a telephone (mobile or landline), the availability of a recording function could make it possible for the user to record all or part of a conversation. Similarly, voicemail messages received on the user's telephone could be uploaded into the headset for later off-line playback. Media files recorded by the headset also could be downloaded to the external device.
(Via Electronista)
Donald and Jasmine discuss some iPod numbers as well as a troubling issue with the Zune HD that Microsoft appears to be ignoring, at least for the time being. Also on deck is a new music service from Google that's aiming to make your music hunting experience a little easier, and some first impressions on the DoubleTwist software, which has been making waves among Palm Pre and other music phone users. Plus, we have some listener curiosity and hit on the fact that we're not tech support for Dell.
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Apple is allegedly building a new app for its iPhone and iPod Touch that will bring FM radio to the devices, according to a report on 9 to 5 Mac.
(Credit:
Apple)
Citing anonymous sources, the Apple news site says the functionality of the application will be similar to what Apple built into the iPod Nano. That includes the ability to pause live FM transmissions and fast-forward when you resume playing.
According to 9 to 5 Mac, the delay in getting the app to market is Apple's decision to integrate it with the iTunes Store, which is built into the devices. With this integration, people will be able to tap on a song they hear on the radio and buy it through iTunes.
Of course, Apple wouldn't be the first company to offer some type of FM functionality on the iPhone. Applications like Wunder Radio have been around for over a year and enable people to stream Internet radio to their iPhone and iPod Touch.
The big advantage Apple would have is linking its application to the iTunes Store, which creates the potential for more revenue.








Donald Bell is an electronic musician, a veteran record store employee, and a fearless hardware hacker. He's also CNET's Senior Editor for MP3 and digital audio.
Jasmine France is CNET's resident digital audio doyenne, writing and editing product reviews, crave blogs, and feature stories on all things MP3. And if you need advice on headphones, she's your girl.

