Spotify-based service puts an end to lousy coffee shop music

Chances are that the music at your local eatery sucks. If the owners aren’t just piping in elevator music or radio, they may be using CDs or internet stations. Soundtrack Your Brand has a better solution: it just launched a Spotify-based (and partly Spotify-funded) service that’s designed for public venues. The current platform lets companies stream an unlimited amount of music in five locations, with scheduled playlists and offline support; you won’t have to hear the same song every day at the coffee shop, even if its internet access cuts out mid-cappuccino.

The service is currently limited to Sweden, where it costs 349 Kronor ($53) per month. An upcoming 799 Kronor ($121) option will cater to larger outlets. There’s no word on a US deployment, but here’s hoping that it comes soon — if you’re like us, you’re probably a little tired of the recycled tunes at your favorite establishment.

Filed under: Internet

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Via: TechCrunch

Source: Soundtrack Your Brand

Verizon’s next-gen voice service still planned for this year, will come with video calling

Verizon and AT&T, the two largest mobile operators in the US, have spent the last couple years in a race to deploy next-generation voice technology known as Voice over LTE (VoLTE). With its announcement last week, AT&T was the first to deploy the fast-speed VoIP network, but don’t count Verizon out of the race quite just yet: executives explained to us today that it’s still on track for nationwide deployment sometime this year.

Considering AT&T launched VoLTE last week, it appears that Verizon may be experiencing a few setbacks. (Of course, Verizon originally promised its network would be ready by 2012, so we’d argue that setbacks are nothing new for VoLTE deployment.) However, execs pointed out that its competitor’s offering is currently limited to just a few markets and devices, whereas Verizon will launch VoLTE nationwide from the very beginning. Nationwide availability will be crucial to the network’s success, as calls using the new tech can’t fall back to CDMA when you leave LTE coverage.

Unfortunately, the company won’t say specifically when this year we can expect the new network, but we were told that when it’s ready, several devices will be VoLTE-capable either through purchase or an over-the-air update. Fortunately, Verizon confirmed that its network will be interoperable with any of its VoLTE-capable competitors — since you’ll only be able to enjoy richer call quality when both callers have compatible devices, this means the service won’t be exclusive to in-network conversations.

The company also tells us that it will offer FaceTime-like video calling as soon as VoLTE launches, which means that you’ll be able to activate the service directly from your phone’s dialer, and you’ll be able to easily switch back and forth between video and audio-only calls. Additionally, it’ll also launch HD Voice by leveraging AMR-WB, a wide-band speech standard that’s already used by T-Mobile for its high-def voice service.

[Image Credit: Getty]

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Verizon

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Wall Charger + Portable Battery Creates The Ventev Powercell 6000+ [Review]

Keeping our devices charged is, and sadly always will be, a battle. Until the day when our phones and tablets can remain on indefinitely, we will always need a way to charge the internal batteries. The market for such accessories is rather large. Nearly every company that can and plans to make accessories will be turning out car and wall chargers right along side portable battery banks. While I see plenty of innovation in design, number of ports, number of amps and watts, one thing seems to be consistent, very few companies ever try to break the mold. Why on earth should I have to have a separate accessories for the same job? Ventev has been working on consolidating our needs and I must say, I am rather impressed and happy to see it. So what happens when a wall charger and a portable battery bank get married? They create a hybrid dual-port wall charger that is also a portable battery bank.

What’s in the box

• Ventev Powercell 6000+
• User manual

The Ventev Powercell 6000+ is a 6000 mAh packing portable battery bank that goes beyond traditional battery banks. It offers dual-port charging, like others on the market. Both ports are 5v while one is a 1A (5W) an the other is a 2.1A (10W). On the top of the Powercell is a power button that you press and hold to turn on the battery pack. Just above the button is series of lights, in typical Ventev orange, that offers up  the remaining battery levels at a glance.

On the rear is where you start to notice the difference between most of the current battery banks on the market. Ventev integrated a flip down wall plug allowing you to directly charge the Powercell from the wall without the need for a USB cable or some other proprietary charging cable. It is quite brilliant really.

Ventev went a step further though. The unit also offers built-in bypass circuitry that will pass the power through the unit to your device before it charges up the internal battery. In a nutshell, plug it in and your device and both will be charged in the morning. Leaving you with a full device and 6000 mAh of power on the go.

The testing

I put the Powercell 6000+ through my usual testing using Battery Monitor Widget from 3c. I set it to track every 1% charge and let each test run for approximately 15 minutes each. Starting with 2.1A Rapid Charge port first. I used the T-Mobile Sony Xperia Z which houses a 2330 mAh battery.

Here are the results with the Xperia Z on the 2.1A Rapid Charge port for 15 minutes.

Seems pretty rapid to me. It boosted the battery 22%. That is 1.46% charger per minute. If the rate holds, and I left everything on, it should charge from 0% to 100% in 68 minutes. This is all math and not perfect by any means, but gives you a general idea.

Now the 1.0A port for 15 minutes.

As you can see, and like we would expect, the 1.0 amp port charged at a slower rate. It only pulled in 8% battery in the 15 minute charge. I am certain their are devices out there that charge better or are designed to charge off 1.0 A.

I also charged up the Lenovo Yoga 8 tablet which houses a 6000 mAh battery. With the internal battery being the same size as this portable battery, it should come as no surprise that it charged a little slower. The charge rates were the same, the % increase over the 15 minute window was slower. More so to the tune of 5% or so in the 15 minute time frame on the 2.1A Rapid Charge port. I wouldn’t rely in the Ventev Powercell 6000+ if I were in a pinch with my tablet, or any other battery bank/tablet for that matter, but if I needed it to have sufficient charge from lunch until I was off work, 4 hours would give me a nice bump.

The next test I ran with just the battery portion was dual charging. Utilizing the numbers above and the same 15 minute window, I came out with similar results. The 2.1 port charged up the Xperia Z by 21% and wasn’t hindered by a second device being connected. (yes, it is 1% off. THat could be attributed to notifications, 45 second variance or a number of other potential factors.) I didn’t think screenshots of that were really necessary.

The final test I did have to run one set of tests on the charger its self when plugged into the wall. Just to see if the ports made a difference in charge rates. While my brain said that it shouldn’t matter because the Powercell is set to pass the charge through, I was still curious to see if the 2.1A and 1.0A rated ports was also the output while plugged in. It didn’t make a difference which port I used, the charge rate was the same. Also, when charging a device the light will stay constant until your device, or devices, are fully charged. Once charged the light will blink as it charges the internal battery of the Powercell. A constant light could be irritating to some, but the light is orange and not overly bright.

What I like about the Ventev Powercell 6000+

• The style and design matches all their other products. They keep with the same logo, same color scheme and same materials. It makes them easily recognizable and keeps them from blending in with all the other black and white boxes out there.
• The 2.1A port is also a Rapid Charge port that delivers the fastest charge possible for your phones and tablets. After the initial round of testing it is clear the Rapid Charge port is ideal for those quick fix charging needs.
• A 15 minute charge with my Xperia Z powered on, with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi active, delivered a fair amount of charge. Enough to boost me up XX%.
• I am very fond of the integrated flip down prong. It is stiff and after flipping it open and closed 75+ times, I didn’t notice or feel any degradation in its ability to click open and stay clicked closed.
• Paired with the battery size and the pass through technology makes this the perfect travel charger to take with you everywhere.

What I don’t like about the Ventev Powercell 6000+

• While the style and design are nice, I feel like they could have made it a little smaller. I didn’t tear it open to see how much wasted space might be inside, but compared to other battery banks of similar mAh or larger, the Powercell seems like it could have been a little more compact.
• I would like to see future models offer two universal rapid charge ports.
• The lack of micro USB charging. While I find the prong a positive, it can also be a negative. For instance, I won’t be able to charge this battery bank from a solar panel that offers USB out charging. I would like to see both charging options. Although I am not sure that is practical or cost effective.

Overall thoughts:

If you travel often having a dual port wall charger not only saves on space in your bag, but saves space on wall sockets. hotels are getting better, but there are often never enough outlets near where you want to actually charge things. Freeing up one socket and ditching one more charging block is a bonus. Cutting back on needing to carry a battery bank with you too also cuts down on needing to waste a wall socket to charge it up as well as the added weight and space that it takes up in your bag.  I think Ventev did a great job with the product.

If the Ventev Powercell 6000+ sounds like exactly what you have been looking for o need, hit the Amazon link below to get one ordered. While you are at it, check out their flat band cables and the powerdash r900 car charger with a small battery bank inside too.