What does this mean? Google Talk for the iPhone.

Google announced Thursday that it has developed a new Web app version of Gtalk for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Just point Safari to http://www.google.com/talk and you’ll be launched into a much improved, albeit stripped down, interface. From there you can view contacts, send instant messages, update your status, and “go off the record” if you don’t want to store your chats in Gmail.

That’s fine and dandy. But in all honesty, Gtalk users — and users of any chat service — have wanted native chat clients for the iPhone since it debuted a little more than a year ago. More importantly, they don’t want to lose a chat connection when they switch from chat to answer the phone, to send a Tweet on Twitter, or browse the Web using Safari.

This is due to the fact that the iPhone cannot run more than one application at once, other than playing the iPod. Running more than one app at once also drains the battery.

Even so, many iPhone users have hoped that Apple will have solved this dilemma with the upcoming release of the iPhone 3G. For months they’ve been holding out that native chat applications are coming once the App Store opens in a week or two.

But is the new Gtalk Web app an indication that a dedicated client isn’t coming anytime soon — not just for Google Talk but for other chat services on the iPhone? Why would Google spend the time, money, and energy revamping its Web-based chat app if a native client is coming out in a week or two?

As it stands now, the new Gtalk Web app could be the slickest, greatest, most unbelievable chat solution for the iPhone and it still would be pretty useless. Nothing is more frustrating than engaging in a chat, answering the phone, losing the chat connection, then having to log in to chat all over again.

Do this more than a couple of times and you give up. No matter how good Gtalk for the iPhone is.

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This is a guest post by Michael Pinto who is the Creative Director of Very Memorable, Inc. a design firm that specializes in the youth market and interactive media.

Over one year after EMI took the first step to offer DRM-free downloads (April 2007) Rhapsody has decided to play catch up. Rhapsody is a joint venture between Real Networks and MTV, and that’s where its problems start: At this point for the youth market MTV is no longer associated with music - if anything on cable it’s been replaced by MuchMusic and on the web there are upcoming dynamic brands like Pitchfork.tv that are poised for high growth.

The sad reality is that while MTV is doing better than ever before, its original core competency has faded with time. But even if you go with the nostalgia value of MTV, then it’s a poor idea to keep the name “Rhapsody” which carries no branding weight - if anything the service should incorporate the MTV moniker in some shape or form, even if it’s something as simple as download.my.mtv. If Rhapsody is to break out of its generic funk it’s going to need to take advantage of the creative packaging that MTV Networks use to be well known for - but up to this point has been ignored.

Continue reading “How to tune up a tone deaf Rhapsody” »

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Leave it up to Radiohead to find every new distribution method possible for their latest effort “In Rainbows.” This time the band has teamed up with Last.fm to offer the album in its entirety for free, ad-supported, on-demand streaming.

“In Rainbows” can be accessed on Last.fm here. Already nearly 1.5 million listeners have streamed the album.

Radiohead is a popular band on Last.fm. Its songs have been “scrobbled” more than 108 million times.

When Radiohead introduced “In Rainbows” in October 2007, it was first made available as a download fans could purchase at whatever they wanted to pay. At the time, Last.fm noticed the interest in Radiohead was high for its community of 21 million music fans.

“Radiohead understand that the Internet is changing music distribution,” said Martin Stiksel, Last.fm’s co-founder. Last.fm is now owned by CBS Corporation.

“We believe that music fans should be able to access music for free, and just as importantly, that artists and rights holders should be paid when their music is listened to. Last.fm makes this possible.”

Continue reading “Radiohead teams with Last.fm to offer “In Rainbows” for free, on-demand streaming” »

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AT&T announced pricing details today for the iPhone 3G, which goes on sale at 8 a.m., July 11. There’s been a little grousing here and there, but for the most part the No. 1 carrier in the U.S. — and its accomplice, Apple — have received a free criticism pass.

Now that official pricing is here, we should be disappointed in AT&T and Apple. The iPhone 3G is going to be a heck of a lot more expensive to own.

In fact, the whole iPhone 3G pricing scheme smacks of corporate America — a product hits it big, so the next time out let’s milk it for every penny possible.

That’s what it feels like.

Here’s a quick review of what it will cost to own a brand-spanking new, faster, sexier iPhone 3G.

Continue reading “AT&T releases official pricing plans for iPhone 3G; total cost of ownership is going up” »

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Bono and the rest of team behind the non-profit (RED) are to launch a new music subscription service this autumn with half of revenue going towards buying “life-saving medicine for those living with AIDS in Africa.”

For a small monthly fee, subscribers will be sent weekly updates, including tracks from established artists such as U2, Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello, Elton John, Emmylou Harris and Death Cab for Cutie, along with up and coming acts. Tracks are download to-own and offered as unprotected MP3s. Additionally, (RED) will pass on regular news of the charity’s work in Africa.

Continue reading “Bono to launch philanthropic (RED) music service” »

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Three down, one to go

Nokia continues to cozy up to the music industry, announcing today that Warner Music has signed onto ‘Comes With Music’, the company’s all-you-can-eat music subscription plan. The major recording label becomes the third of the Big Four to have agreed a partnership with Nokia, following earlier deals with Universal Music and Sony BMG. The remaining major holdout is EMI.

Announced last December at the annual Nokia World conference, “Comes With Music” will enable customers to buy a Nokia device with a year of unlimited access to “millions of tracks”, and - rather surprisingly - get to keep any downloaded tracks once the twelve month subscription period ends. The only way to then continue accessing the service, however, is to purchase a new “Comes With Music” device (see our follow-up report).

Continue reading “Warner Music jumps on-board Nokia’s all-you-can-eat music plan” »

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Sony’s next PlayStation 3 update, firmware 2.40, will deliver several features that owners have been wanting for a long time.

We’ll let the Sony dudes explain the new features in detail in the video following the jump. For the most part, the enhancements include:

• the ability to access and move throughout most of the PlayStation’s interface, known as the XMB (or Xcross Media Bar), while in-game
• to read or send messages while in-game
• to change the music selection in-game, creating a custom soundtrack
• and to keep track of your success with Trophies, which is a more elegant Achievement system than the Xbox 360’s.

  Continue reading “Sony’s PS3 firmware update adds nifty new features” »

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Not only did Rhapsody launch a DRM-free MP3 music store — see Steve O’Hear’s coverage today — but it also has engaged with Verizon Wireless to offer a new mobile subscription plan called VCAST Music with Rhapsody.

Verizon notes that, for the cost of a single CD, its wireless users can subscribe to VCAST Music with Rhapsody for $15 a month to gain unlimited access to Rhapsody’s five million songs. These songs will carry digital rights management to protect against copyright infringement and illegal file sharing. Users can authorize three PCs and three mobile phones for use with the service.

However, Verizon subscribers also have the option to purchase music over-the-air for $1.99 a track, which includes a “complimentary” DRM-free master copy that users can download from their PCs via a VCAST Music with Rhapsody software program at a later time. This software is not available for the Mac.

Continue reading “Verizon, Rhapsody also team up for VCAST Music with Rhapsody service” »

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Another day, another DRM-free music store

Rhapsody, the joint venture by Real Networks and Viacom’s MTV Networks, is the latest digital music service to launch a DRM-free music download store. Although the company isn’t ditching Digital Rights Management software altogether - its music subscription service still relies heavily on copy-protection technology - the new Rhapsody MP3 Store is selling DRM-free MP3s priced at .99c per track or $9.99 for the complete album, which is pretty much inline with the rest of the industry.

Rhapsody MP3 Store will face stiff competition from a host of similar services, not least Apple’s iTunes and Amazon’s own MP3 store. Along with other DRM-free competitors to iTunes, the store’s website is extremely keen to highlight that tracks are compatible with Apple’s iPod music players. “Fill your iPod or any other music player with the tunes you want”, reads the site’s About page.

Rhapsody Vice President Neil Smith told Reuters: “We’re no longer competing with the iPod, we’re embracing it.”

Rhapsody also does a good job of explaining the broader benefits of a DRM-free service.

Continue reading “Rhapsody launches DRM-free MP3 music store” »

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Here’s a summary of the week’s digital lifestyle action on last100. Note that you can subscribe to the weekly wrapups, either via the special weekly wrapup RSS feed or by email.

Internet TV news

Google enters the PC to TV arena

Google has made its own contribution to solving the PC to TV problem with the release of Google Media Server. The Windows-only software works in conjunction with Google’s desktop search application - Google Desktop - to locate various media (photos, music and video) stored on your PC and make it available for streaming over a home network to any UPnP compatible or DLNA ‘certified’ device, such as a PlayStation 3.

Sony’s latest plans: more networked devices, video download service for PS3, maybe a phone

Sony will be rolling out its much-rumored movie and TV video download service this summer in the U.S., followed by Japan and Europe later in the year.

Continue reading “Weekly wrapup, 23-27 June 2008 (Google TV, Nokia opens fire on Android)” »

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This one is obvious but cool nonetheless.

With the launch of the App Store next month, Apple will release free software that lets you control iTunes on your Mac (or PC, we presume) via an iPhone or iPod touch. MacRumors notes the discovery in a pre-release version of iTunes 7.7 seeded to developers last night. “In the Read Me of the iTunes installer is a hint at a previously unannounced iPhone/iPod Touch application”:

… the new Remote application for iPhone or iPod touch to control iTunes playback from anywhere in your home — a free download from the App Store.

Continue reading “Coming soon: iTunes remote control app for iPhone and iPod touch” »

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Google today made its own contribution to solving the PC to TV problem with the release of Google Media Server. The Windows-only software works in conjunction with Google’s desktop search application - Google Desktop - to locate various media (photos, music and video) stored on your PC and make it available for streaming over a home network to any UPnP compatible or DLNA ‘certified’ device, such as a PlayStation 3.

See our recently published guide: DLNA certified: how your computer, cellphone, games console, media streamer and other devices can play nicely together

While many UPnP server solutions already exist for Windows (it’s a pity Google hasn’t targeted Mac users), Google Media Server does bring a few specific features to the table. Namely support for Internet-based content from its photo sharing service Picasa, along with videos hosted on YouTube (using H.264 not Flash Video). From this we can conclude that Google Media Server is designed to make Google’s desktop search application that bit more useful, as well as offer another means of accessing YouTube on a TV.

Of course, Google Media Server could also be another sign that the company is testing the waters for a much more ambitious living room strategy — see Google wants to do for TV what it did for the Web.

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