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CNET editors' rating:
stars
Excellent
Detailed editors' rating - Average user rating: 3.5 stars out of 26 reviews
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Product summary
The good: Lala.com provides an easy, inexpensive, and entertaining way to trade used CDs; the site also hosts a decent assortment of Internet radio stations including the once-defunct WOXY, plus user-programmed selections; Lala recently began streaming live performances; community features such as buddy lists, member home pages, member blogs and user-created music reviews make the Lala experience all the more engaging; Lala also offers low-cost new CDs.
The bad: Some CDs languished for months on our Have List without finding any takers; for the best experience, you need to create a relatively large Have List containing 50 or more CDs; you currently have to request the privilege to create your own Internet radio station; because of copyright laws, you can't listen to your own Internet radio station; other limitations also apply.
The bottom line: If you have CDs that you don't want anymore, you can trade them on Lala.com, a very cool online swap meet that also offers Internet radio stations and compelling community features.
CNET editors' review
- Reviewed on: 02/21/2007
In addition to its CD-trading service, Lala.com offers numerous Internet radio station streams, which help make the site a real destination. In October, the service resurrected and incorporated WOXY, a venerable and much-revered indie rock station. In addition to professionally programmed stations, Lala also features user-programmed selections. Although you have to request the privilege to program your own radio station, if you trade a lot of CDs on Lala, they'll probably let you have at it. There are some catches though. Your station has to be three hours long, you can add only two tracks from each album, and--even worse--due to copyright restrictions courtesy of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), you can't even listen to your own station.
When you get to the Lala site, it's fun to start out by firing up an Internet radio station. Listening to music while you shop makes the whole experience more engaging, and more like being in a real-world record store. If the station is playing something you like, you can add it to your Want List directly from the playback screen. A budding virtual record label, Lala has also begun streaming live sessions. Some of the performances can be downloaded for transfer to your iPod or other MP3 player. Lala seems serious about this endeavor; cofounder John Kuch told us of plans to open studios in Austin, San Francisco, and Brooklyn.
In terms of its online interface, Lala is well organized and pleasing to use. Throughout the site, CDs are listed along with cover art images to keep things interesting. After you've created an account, Lala sends you a starter kit, which contains Netflix-like prepaid shipping envelopes and plastic clamshell-type disc cases. When one of your CDs has been requested, you log on to Lala.com where you'll find a completed shipping label ready to print. Affix the label to a Lala envelope, insert the disc, include the cover art if you have it, and simply drop the package into the mail. It really is that easy.
You may be wondering at this point how Lala gets along with the artists whose CDs are traded on the site. The answer is, quite well. Although the company is by no means required to do so, Lala contributes 20 percent of the revenue generated by trading directly to the individual artists. Of course, an artist must be registered--and alive--to collect the funds. But Lala doesn't just keep the money that would go to those that don't meet the requirements. Instead, the company donates that share to a fund that helps pay for independent musicians' medical insurance. We think that's just swell.
In addition to its CD trading services, Lala has a partnership with New England music chain Newbury Comics, through which it offers reasonably priced new CDs. This is a good feature, because with hot new titles, there simply aren't enough discs in the trading pool to fulfill member demand. Plus, the more in-demand an album is, the lower the price--Lala saves on bulk orders and passes on the savings to the customer.
The site also boasts numerous community features that help you feel connected to music culture. Each member has a home page that displays the member's Have List and Want List, as well as any blog entries and CD reviews created by the member. A buddy list lets you develop a network of friends on Lala, and you can also post comments on other members' pages.
In our experience, trading CDs through Lala was a pleasure. Although some CDs, such as Iggy Pop's Brick by Brick, languished on our Have List for months without being requested, others went quickly. According to the Lala forums, some members have had certain CDs listed for nearly a year without finding any takers. It's important to list as many CDs as possible in your Have List (Lala recommends listing more than 50) so that selections from your collection are frequently requested, allowing you to make trades and earn karma. Lala says there are currently 5 million discs available for trading on the service. Reportedly, Lala has around 200,000 members. As more members join, the overall experience should only get better. So what are you waiting for? If you have crates of discs collecting dust, definitely sign up for this fun and simple service.
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- Average user rating: 3.5 stars out of 26 reviews
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