NYT: Rdio to offer free streaming by year's end, strikes deal with traditional radio company
Having a hard time making it in the internet radio space? Maybe you should take a feather from the cap of a firm that still rides the airwaves. That seems to be Rdio's approach -- according to the New York Times, the company is partnering with Cumulus Media (a company that owns for-real radio stations) to create a free version of its audio streaming service. Rdio will also trade a stake in its parent company, Pulser Media, for chunks of Cumulus programming and promotion on the traditional airwaves. Cumulus will sell ads for Rdio's impending free service, as well as compile playlists from its catalog of syndicated programming. This could buffer Rdio's music library with news and talk shows, which will hopefully give the service a competitive advantage over services like Spotify, Pandora and iTunes Radio. Although the deal doesn't involve a cash exchange, the Times reports the value of Cumulus' services at over $100 million. As for that free Rdio overhaul? It's predicted to be out sometime before the end of the year. The deal will be officially announced on Monday, until then, check out the NYT report at the source link below.
Filed under: Misc, Portable Audio/Video
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Source: NYT
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How would you change the Droid Incredible 4G LTE?
When we reviewed the Droid Incredible 4G LTE, we said that Verizon customers had a distinct choice. Either they bought the Galaxy S III, and if they didn't like its large form factor, they could settle for this. While Verizon passed on HTC's critically-adored One X, our Zach Lutz felt that this device was more than an adequate replacement. Of course, now we want to ask you, the thousands or millions of Droid Incredible 4G LTE owners who bought one of these and has lived with it for the last few months. Was it worth it? Tell us what you love, what you loathe and most importantly, what would you change?
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Refresh Roundup: week of September 9th, 2013
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Filed under: Mobile
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Google Glass no longer requires tethering plan for smartphone data sharing
An Explorer Edition of Glass is already a pricey piece of tech, and smartphone tethering plans required to give it a mobile Internet connection have only made ownership that much more expensive. However, there's good news for Google's guinea pigs: the latest update to the headgear quietly implemented a way around the additional monthly fees. With XE9 loaded onto headsets, the companion Android app pipes data to and from the hardware, bypassing both the smartphone's Bluetooth tethering settings and extra plan previously needed from some carriers. To match the change, the application's notification icon sports two arrows to signify the flow of info. We doubt telcos will be fazed by this development for now, but we don't know if that'll hold once Glass arrives on shelves and hits the streets en masse. We've contacted Google to find out if the feature will make it to retail units.
Filed under: Wearables, Mobile, Google
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Weekly Roundup: Apple iPhone 5s and 5c hands-on, LG G2 review, Moto X's Texas factory, and more!
You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
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Sprint early upgrade program in the works, promises to 'One Up' the competition
The Now Network is finally ready to join the early upgrade party, and plans to launch its own smartphone installment program later this month. According to CNET, Sprint One Up will launch on September 20th, giving consumers the option to split the cost of a new device into 24 monthly payments. Partaking in the program puts customers on a slightly discounted version of one of Sprint's new Unlimited, My Way or All-in plans -- a savings of up to $15. It's not a bad concession, considering the fact that a $649 devices tacks an extra $27 on your monthly bill. A chart uncovered by CNET pits the program against Sprint's competitors, literally illustrating how the upgrade deal "One Ups" the competition. Cheesy, but effective marketing. Take a gander at the pricing table above, or see CNET's full report at the source link.
[Image Credit: Roger Cheng, CNET}
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Sprint
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Source: CNET
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Switched On: For Samsung, more is more
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.
Motorola's return to the smartphone market after a year ensconced in Googliness raised many questions about how the handset pioneer would introduce a competitive smartphone without appearing to have most-favored manufacturer status from Google. The company responded in two ways. First, instead of trying to smother the look and feel of Android, it embraced it nearly to the extent of a Nexus phone. Second, it added a few thoughtful differentiators. These include a pulsing time display that adds notifications even when the screen is off and camera activation via a twist of the wrist. More notably, it enhanced access to Google Now by enabling hands-free activation with the prefix, "OK, Google Now..."
LG, another Android handset company that had fallen from feature phone grace, came next with its G2. Like the Moto X, the G2 implements some clever sensor-driven and gestural features, including a "knock" (double-tap) to activate the screen and an automatic call-answering feature activated by putting the phone up to your face. But unlike Motorola, LG muscled up its device with a nearly bezel-free 5-inch display, a battery that more efficiently fills the case, a 13-megapixel camera with optical image stabilization and the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 800, which sees its US debut in the G2. (LG also highlighted much of its rear-mounted power and volume control placement, which is different, but not necessarily better (at least for the right-handed).
Filed under: Cellphones, Apple, Samsung, Google
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Alienware 14 and 17 review: Dell's new gaming laptops are fast, powerful and well-lit
Picking a gaming laptop is a difficult task these days: machines can be found in all shapes and sizes, from pricey thin-and-lights to oversized behemoths. That wide selection is a good thing, allowing buyers to pick and choose the best machine from dozens of manufacturers, possibly even finding a deal on a lower-cost ODM system. Still, there needs to be some sort of benchmark buyers can look to, and for many, Alienware serves that purpose. The brand, now owned by Dell, is known for offering powerful, high-quality machines at the market's going rate; that is, not too cheap, not too expensive, but reasonably priced with just a hint of prestige. Considering Alienware's 2013 hardware refresh, it seemed about time we took a closer look at Dell's updated family of gaming portables. We picked out two: the Alienware 14 ($1,199+) and the larger Alienware 17 ($1,499+). Let's see how they stack up.
Filed under: Gaming, Laptops, Dell
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Leaked Kindle Fire render lends credence to incoming refresh
The case for an incoming Kindle Fire update seems to be getting stronger every day -- not only have we seen benchmarks and alleged photos of the device, but now @evleaks seems to have come across an official render. The purported press image matches previous leaks in bezel size and design, but lacks the front-facing camera Amazon introduced with the Kindle Fire HD. This leads us to suspect that the render is of a non-HD model of Bezos' latest tablet. The flagship model is rumored to have a 2,560 x 1,600 resolution, the aforementioned camera upfront and an OS based on Android 4.2.2. We're still waiting for Amazon to give the official word of course, but for Kindle users waiting for an upgrade, it's something to salivate over.
Filed under: Tablets, Amazon
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Source: @evleaks (Twitter)
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Inhabitat's Week in Green: lane-straddling bus, invisible skyscraper and space vegetables
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green.
When it comes to public transportation, taking the bus is the least sexy option. Buses are slow; they make frequent stops; and because they share the road with cars, they get stuck in traffic. But a new proposal for a giant lane-straddling bus would eliminate traffic congestion by letting cars pass right through the middle of it. The futuristic bus is just one of several stories about innovations in green transportation on Inhabitat this week. Mercedes-Benz just completed the first cross-country trip for a self-driving car with its S500 Intelligent Drive research vehicle, and BMW unveiled the official production model of its 2015 i8 plug-in hybrid sports car at the Frankfurt Motor Show. In other green car news, Nissan announced that it is in the final stages of developing its second electric vehicle -- the e-NV200 compact van. In an effort to make flat tires a thing of the past, Korean manufacturer Hankook has produced a puncture-proof, airless tire that is made from 95 percent recyclable materials. And in more good news for green cars, August was the best month ever for US sales of electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and conventional hybrids.
Filed under: Misc, Science
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Bowers & Wilkins P3 headphones arrive in red this October for $200
The words red and October together might conjure up thoughts of Tom Clancy or Kanye West, but now you can also associate them with Bowers & Wilkins. Starting next month, the company will offer up its compact P3 headphones in the vibrant hue. The latest color option for the iPhone-compatible on-ear cans joins the likes of the blue, black and white variants for the same $200 price tag. If you like your headphones to look as loud as they sound, you'll find more details in the press release after the break. Here's to hoping the P5 gets a similarly rosey treatment soon.
Filed under: Portable Audio/Video, Wearables
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Google Keep code hints at future Drive and video integration
Google Keep stores its content in Drive, but it doesn't pull content from Drive. That may change, however, as Google Operating System has spotted some unused Drive integration code within the Android app. They suggest that users could attach Drive files to their notes and either view them directly or open them in third-party software. Media hounds wouldn't have to upload video, though -- there's mention of embedding YouTube clips. The code doesn't guarantee that Keep will be file-savvy in the near future, but it does show that Google is at least considering such an upgrade.
Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Google
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Via: The Next Web
Source: Google Operating System
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