Wired for Sound

OMG! Napster has finally gone apple here in the UK.

I do believe it was way back in September last year that napster announced it's iPhone app was coming to the UK. Blogs went crazy, tech magazines went into overdrive - the granddaddy of music downloading was back in the game. OK, so I'm exaggerating slightly but I think you catch my drift.

Unfortunately there was then a pregnant pause, of about 9 months, until the thing finally went live last month. The fanfare seems to have been scaled back so much this time around that I actually heard nothing, nada. I just happened to be telling my sister how I couldn't wait to get rid of my spotify subscription when the napster app finally arrived, and managed to stumble on it. I guess the napster marketing team were scared of another disappointment so muffled the fanfare.

Anyway, no use crying over spilt milk it's here now and that's all that matters. Now people will see how second-rate spotify really is. Napster wins hands down in terms of back catalogue, user interface and functionality. And all this just in time for my latest favourite purchase, my ipad2. Whoop whoop!!!!

Napster for iPhone Uk

Somebody somewhere please sort it out. Have now been using spotify subscription for over 6 months and it just doesn't cut it.

Why oh why oh why is this so hard

And if it's in the US then why not here?

And then 'the industry' wonders why illegal downloading goes on. Probably because the greed and lack of competition in certain services makes it difficult, for those that want to legitimately pay for e-music, to access it in a way that suits them.

Disgruntled of Shropshire

Do they have wi-fi?

Modern technology is great isn't it? Advances in digital technology and connectivity have opened up new worlds for individuals, businesses, communities and countries.

At the same time, I firmly believe that this same ubiquitous connectivity is responsible for much of our modern-day stresses and pressures. Put simply, we are always on.

20 years ago, when there were few mobile phones, people simply couldn't be reached when they were travelling, or on holiday, or out for dinner. Emails would not be read, let alone actioned, until the following working day, if the recipient had already gone home.

Now, with mobiles, blackberries, iphones, ipads and other time-saving, sanity-sapping devices, we are always on. And I'm really not trying to raise the gender thing here, but guys, you are by far the worst at this, yet you doth protest the most. Mobile phones are answered in restaurants, cars (obviously), planes and trains (even with the dreadful Euston to Birmingham signal). Blackberry messages are picked up and sent at all hours of night - what must their partners think of them? Do they sneak off to the bathroom to send these messages??

Anyway, my point here is that being on 24-7 can't be good for us. Where is the down-time, moment of calm in the day, R&R? How can we possibly recharge our batteries when we are always on?

One of the great bosses I had a few years ago always used to leave the first hour and a half of every day completely free. No meetings under any circumstances. He also used to like going for a walk at lunchtime. I admire this self-discipline.

I currently find myself in an organisation where, if you will allow it, you will always be on.

I know this because when my friend booked us in for a spa break this week, I said to her, "Do they have wi-fi?"

iphone 4 - gutted

nothing more to say...

Wanted: iphone music subscription

I'm not the first, and I won't be the last, but when will we get more choice around downloadable music on a subscription basis, for iphone??!!

For me, this is currently the biggest drawback with iphone, and was almost a reason for me going with nokia over Apple. I simply must have my music collection with me wherever I am, and I need to limit the number of devices I'm carrying, hence phone must double as an mp3 player.

I chose iphone because I eventually decided all of the other functionality outweighed the music thing (!) But I was ecstatic when I discovered the spotify subscription. My initial take on spotify was that it wouldn't fly unless it could go mobile and I think I have been proved right. That is, assuming they are making money out of this of course. It could not have been cheap to get Apple to agree to an itune 'competitor' on its devices, but then I guess Apple's main thing is not content, because as we all know all digital content will soon be 'free' of sorts (discuss)

So where are the others? I thought they would be piling in? I really don't get it. Perhaps napster have lost the spunk they first started with back in the pirate days, and the new Swedish kids on the block are now the ones pushing the boundaries, even securing the offline access before Rhapsody - the only other (as far as I know) iphone subscription service, in the US.

Now we just need films and books on the same basis...

i-hooked

Yes, indeedy. i have had my new gadget for just a few weeks now and i am converted.

Although my Wired subscription might suggest otherwise, i am no techie, neither am i a geek, or a typical early adopter. But this iphone is completely revolutionising my sh*t! To an unprecedented level. i mean i am all over it. The functionality and accessibility is absolutely mind-blowing, unlike any other phone, gadget or gizmo i have ever had.

Where do i start? firstly it is like having a personal computer on hand at all times, so i can do pretty much everything i would do on my laptop, on my iphone - wherever, whenever. Secondly, thanks to spotify - the only decent music subscription service for iphone (come on napster!) i pretty much have my entire music collection, plus new music i recently discovered on last.fm, right at the tips of my fingers...Marc Broussard and Colbie Caillat in case you were wondering.

i am now in the process of pulling together my online shopping list after watching Jamie's top cooking tips (Jamie's 20 min meals iphone app), which includes essential larder ingredients. A-ma-zing! And then there is catchup tv.... 20 seconds behind BBC, ITV etc - cant be bad. AND ALL THIS ON MY PHONE!!!!

Personally i think other phone manufacturers should just call it a day, or at least, focus entirely on the corporate market - iphone have this sewn up. Should Apple ever find a way of making it affordable for PAYG customers, i seriously believe it would be curtains for others. I predict that unless there is a major game changer in the next 5 years, iphone will become the verb for mobile calling. Steve Jobs i salute u