These days, there is a plethora of audio content available to stream over the Internet. Even traditional terrestrial radio often offers content streamed over the Web, diversifying the choices for how consumers can enjoy music and other audio. Although the legality is questionable, there are--and will always be--ways to record these streams. Streamed audio recordings for music are not going to offer the same sound quality as a ripped CD or even a purchased MP3, but it's a good option for talk programs and mixes that might not be available in other formats. This tutorial will show you how to record streamed audio as an MP3; just be sure to read the usage rules for any recording source before beginning.
Editors' note: This tutorial was completed using Windows XP.
Cost: Free
Time commitment: Varies
System Requirements: Windows
The music discovery Web site imeem.com officially launched its very own iPhone app on Thursday, May 14. Imeem's app is free and bears a resemblance to similar offerings from Pandora, Last.fm, and Slacker, offering the ability to stream, search, and purchase music over Wi-Fi or cellular connections.
But before you write off the Imeem app (download) as some late-arriving Last.fm wannabe, there's one killer feature to be aware of: cloud storage. Apps like Last.fm will go so far as to create personalized radio stations based on a random selection of songs from your collection, but the Imeem app allows you to call up any song or album in your collection and play it without the restrictions associated with most services (i.e. limited skips, and the inability to play songs from the same artist back-to-back).
In order to stream music from your personal collection, you first need to upload your music to imeem.com from your desktop using its free Mac/PC-compatible client. Now before you go thinking that you can upload that 300GB iTunes library to Imeem and stream it anywhere in the world, there's a catch. Imeem won't charge you for the first 100 songs you upload to the site, but anything more than that will require a VIP service ($29.99 per year for up to 1,000 songs, or $99.99 per year for up to 20,000).
Beyond the appeal of streaming your music collection form the cloud, the rest of the Imeem application falls somewhere between the simplicity of the Pandora app, and the more personalized, social approach of Last.fm. The main menu screen offers ... Read More
For music lovers, the Pandora internet radio application for the iPhone and iPod Touch is a welcome addition.
(Credit: Donald Bell/CNET Networks)
Apple publicly unveiled the Pandora Internet radio iPhone and iPod Touch application during the unveiling of the iTunes App store on Thursday, July 10. Tim Westergren, CEO for Pandora, was kind enough to give me a personal tour of the new application. The following is a synopsis of just about every question I had for Tim. Editors' note: This is not an interview transcript, but a roundup of information on the Pandora iPhone application presented in a FAQ format.
An option key allows you to bookmark artsist or songs, or purchase the current song directly from iTunes.
(Credit: Pandora)How much will iTunes charge for the Pandora application?
It's free.
Will the iPhone version of the Pandora application stream music over the new 3G cellular connection?
Yes. New iPhones can use the Pandora app to stream music over 3G or Wi-Fi. Updated first-gen iPhones can stream over Wi-Fi or Edge, and the iPod Touch will obviously only stream over its Wi-Fi connection
What's the audio quality like?
Pandora's serves its iPod Touch and iPhone audio streams as 64Kbps stereo MP3 files; however, the quality and file format may be retooled once Pandora's tech team has some time to work with the new iPhone's hardware.
How will Pandora make money off a free application?
Pandora may eventually consider placing short audio advertisements in its streams, but, Pandora's first priority is to grow its user base.
Will Pandora stations I've already created using the Web service be available on the iPhone application?
Yes. Any stations, artist bookmarks, and song like/dislike preferences will be identical between the Pandora Web service and the Pandora application.
You can create and save custom stations directly from the Pandora app.
(Credit: Donald Bell/CNET Networks)What can I do with the Pandora application for the iPhone and iPod Touch?
Most of the features of Pandora's Internet radio Web service will be available on its iPhone application as well. People can create radio stations based around artists or songs, bookmark favorite artists or songs, pause and skip tracks, vote on songs, and view descriptions of why a currently playing song was included in your stream. You also have the option to purchase the currently playing song directly over the iTunes Wi-Fi store.
Pandora's intelligent recommendation engine explains song choices.
(Credit: Donald Bell/CNET Networks)Can I stream Pandora wirelessly from my iPhone over Bluetooth?
The iPhone does not currently support streaming stereo audio over its built-in Bluetooth; however, third-party Bluetooth audio adapters are available that fit any minijack audio output.
If I can connect my iPhone to my car stereo and stream Pandora over 3G, why would I listen to music on commercial or satellite radio?
Keep in mind that Pandora is a music-only service, so you'll need to get your talk radio, sports, and traffic reports elsewhere. That said, so long as you have decent 3G reception in your area, streaming Pandora internet radio to your car stereo via your iPhone should work fine.
Pandora's song voting system has made it to its iPhone app as well. Voting on songs helps fine-tune Pandora's personalized song recommendations. People can also pause and skip tracks.
(Credit: Donald Bell/CNET Networks)Can I wake up to Pandora radio if I dock my iPhone or iPod Touch into an iPod alarm clock?
Not likely, since most alarm clock docks trigger song playback from your music library. Some iPod alarm clock docks include an auxiliary input, however, so if you kept music streaming from Pandora all night (and somehow managed not to run down your battery), then it's possible. Seems like a pain though.
Will Pandora music streams display album art?
Yes, although some music in Pandora's catalog is still without cover art.
The Pandora playback screen looks much like the standard iPod playback screen, complete with cover art.
(Credit: Pandora)Does the Pandora iPhone/iPod Touch application have the same limitations on track skipping as the Web version of the Internet radio station?
Yes. Because of legal restrictions, users cannot skip tracks on Pandora more than six times per hour. Fortunately, Pandora's Music Genome Project is pretty good at coming up with song selections.
Will using the Pandora iPhone application run down my battery quickly?
Yes. Reports so far suggest that the new iPhone's battery performance is at its worst when using its 3G connection. Streaming Pandora content over the iPhone's Wi-Fi connection should produce better battery performance than using 3G.
Will AOL's streaming radio app open the door for others?
(Credit: AOL)Details of AOL's streaming radio application for the Apple iPhone 3G have surfaced after it was revealed that the application won an Apple design award for "Best Entertainment Application" at this year's WWDC. The free application will be available for the iPhone 3G next month, allowing users to stream 200 AOL online radio stations and 150 terrestrial radio stations over both Wi-Fi and 3G cellular connections.
While news of streaming radio capabilities coming to the iPhone is certainly exciting, personally, the thought of listening to terrestrial and AOL online stations doesn't exactly get my blood pumping. The larger story here is that Apple and AT&T have shown a willingness to integrate streaming media into the iPhone, opening a door for streaming audio services such as Pandora, Last.fm, Muxtape, and others.
Of course, converting interactive Adobe Flash-based streaming audio Web services into iPhone applications is no easy task, and the payoff has yet to be proven worthwhile. The possibilities are promising, however, and if the same application can be ported over to the iPod Touch (maybe even integrated with the iTunes Wi-Fi music store), consumers really will have a new way to discover music on the go.
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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.
