Deezer gets rid of paid music streaming plans on the desktop
Sure, PCs aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. But there’s no denying people nowadays also prefer to listen to music on a smartphone, tablet and even a gaming console, not just their laptop or desktop. So, taking a cue from rival Spotify, streaming service Deezer is now prepared to stop charging users for its web-only, ad-free listening experience. Earlier today, Deezer confirmed this to The Next Web, stating that its Premium desktop place was no longer required because “listeners needs have changed.” As a result, Deezer’s service will only offer two options going forward — one of which is free with ads and usage caps, the other being a £10-per-month, unlimited and ad-free plan. The obvious winner: users. Thanks to this, you can stream tunes on your computer free of charge, so long as you’re willing to deal with pitches from companies here and there.
Filed under: Desktops, Internet, Software
Source: Deezer
Amazon Testing ‘Kindle Unlimited’ E-book Subscription Service
Amazon appears to be testing a new e-book and audiobook subscription service it’s calling “Kindle Unlimited,” which brings unlimited access to 600,000 e-books and thousands of audiobooks for a fee of $9.99 per month.
According to information discovered by users on the KBoards Kindle forum (via Gigaom) the Kindle Unlimited service will be available on all devices, including the iPhone and the iPad likely via Amazon’s Kindle app. Amazon has pulled the pages that were found this morning, but information on the service can still be seen through Google Cache and a single test page.
The now defunct Kindle Unlimited section on Amazon.com lists several popular e-book titles, including Water for Elephants, Life of Pi and the entire series of Harry Potter and Hunger Games books. The titles appear to mirror many of those available through Amazon’s existing Kindle Owners’ Lending Library, a service that allows Kindle-owning Amazon Prime subscribers to rent free e-books.
There are several existing e-book subscription services like those from Oyster and Scribd, but Amazon has a larger catalog of books to offer, advertising more than 600,000 titles compared to Oyster’s 500,000 and Scribd’s 400,000, plus more than 7,000 audiobooks. Thus far, Kindle Unlimited appears to include books from publishers like Open Road Media, Workman, Algonquin, Bloomsbury, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
It is unknown when Amazon might officially launch its Kindle Unlimited subscription service and thus far, it has not made a statement regarding the test pages.
Samsung intros new Level brand of premium audio products
Samsung on Wednesday rolled out a new, premium “Level” brand of mobile audio accessories. Arriving at various retailers over the next few weeks, customers can look for over-ear, on-ear, and in-ear audio solutions as well as a standalone Bluetooth speaker.
- Level Over ($349.99) – an over-ear headphone designed for an immersive sound experience. Level Over delivers powerful, clear, sharp sound, ergonomically designed comfort and wireless Bluetooth technology. Includes Active Noise Cancellation, employing four mics on the inside and outside of the headphones to cancel outside sounds. In addition, Level Over includes technology that prevents resonance between the vibration plate and the frame, avoiding unnecessary booming and helping to provide the original sound. Users can control volume, navigate tracks, pause or stop music, answer or end a call all using the Smart Control Technology on the side of the headphones.
- Level On ($179.99) – an on-ear, wired headphone that packs a powerful, clear and pure sound in a compact design. Soft polyurethane cushioning provides comfort with a foldable ergonomic design makes this the perfect headphone for the on-the-go mobile user.
- Level In ($149.99) – an in-ear, wired headphone that packs a powerful three-way speaker system that controls treble, mid-range and deep bass, providing clear sound separation and rich, natural sound quality.
- Level Box ($169.99) – a premium, compact Bluetooth speaker that streams high quality audio from any Samsung Galaxy phone – or any other Bluetooth compatible device – directly to the speaker for crystal-clear sound. The sleek, distinctive design is optimized to provide noise reduction and echo cancellation, and a built in rechargeable battery offers up to 15 hours of continuous playback on a single charge. One touch Near-Field Communications (NFC) or the dedicated Bluetooth pairing button provides effortless synching. Control buttons make it easy to adjust volume or play/pause music, and a high-quality HD built in microphone makes it a great device for phone or conference calls.
Gilt.com is offering its members exclusive, first access to the portfolio, tomorrow, Thursday, July 17 at noon ET at www.gilt.com/level. What’s more, there will also be an exclusive bundle of the Level On and Level Box for $299.99. The Gilt sale will last for 72 hours.
The entire portfolio will also be available on Amazon.com (July 20), Samsung.com (July 21) and select Samsung Experience Shops at Best Buy stores (July 27).
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Google adds former Ford CEO to board of directors
Google today announced that Alan Mulally has recently joined its board of directors. As the former President and Chief Executive Officer of Ford Motor Company it stands to reason he’ll bring his auto expertise to Google’s Android Auto initiative. It appears, however, that he’ll take on a different role in at least the short term.
A veteran corporate executive of the automotive and aviation industries, Mulally will serve on Google’s Audit Committee.
Looking at his background we also learn that Mulally has spent time on other various boards, including NASA, U.S. Air Force Scientic Advisory Board, and multiple universities and institutions.
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Seidio Dilex, Surface Color Collection: Reveiw
Seidio makes many varieties of cases for a large range of phones. The Seidio Dilex is a two-part case that comes in ten different colors. Electric blue, royal blue, glossed white, garnet red, black, violet, orange, rose gold, shamrock green, and orchid. Some of the colors are not necessarily for everyone but do allow your phone to stand out from the rest. The bonus of this case is the added kickstand. The kickstand is a much-needed accessory to today’s large screen phones.
Seidio has been in the case business for quite some time now. This case has some benefits but tends to fall flat in common areas. The case is thin and light as well as rugged. The kickstand is the biggest positive for this item allowing you hands free entertainment. The largest problem with this case is the inner rubber liner. The rubber is flimsy and grabs just about everything it touches. Thinness of this case is a plus given that the Galaxy S5 is already a large phone.
Seidio Dilex is $34.95 and come in a variety of colors. Some colors are very bright and vibrant giving you phone a unique look. The case has a two-part design but seems flimsy in some areas. Drop protection from a standard height is adequate. Rubber grabs everything and is very thin and stretchy. Kickstand is solid and provides a great angle for watching shows or reading.
The post Seidio Dilex, Surface Color Collection: Reveiw appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Amazon testing Netflix-style subscription service for e-books
Ever heard of Kindle Unlimited? Us either, at least not until now. Originally spotted by kboards, a forum site that welcomes Kindle chatter, this previously unknown service appears to be an upcoming all-you-can-read subscription service from Amazon. For $9.99 monthly, as described by the image above, Kindle Unlimited is said to offer access to more than 600,000 books and “thousands” of audiobooks. Not surprisingly, that healthy digital library doesn’t appear to include any of the major US publishers (Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin Random House and Simon & Shuster) — something e-book subscription service Scribd is vary familiar with, since it only carries titles from one of the “Big 5.” Amazon has yet to announce Kindle Unlimited, but after seeing these ads slip through the cracks, we can safely say it’s only a matter of time before it becomes official.
Source: Kindle Boards, Gigaom
Former Panama dictator Manuel Noriega is suing Activision for putting him in Call of Duty
The studios behind the Call of Duty series may have garnered some extra sales by putting real people into their over-the-top shooters, but it looks like that strategy could land them in court. Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega has sued the games’ publisher, Activision, for using his likeness in Call of Duty: Black Ops II without his permission. He argues that he’s entitled to damages because his presence both violated his publicity rights and helped “heighten realism,” leading to added profits that should have been his.
There’s no doubt that it’s Noriega in the game, but he may have a tougher time getting a check from game developers than, say, college football players. As attorney Jas Purewal tells the BBC, Noriega isn’t an American resident and might not even get his foot in the door. He’s also a historical persona, and a notorious one at that — we wouldn’t expect the courts to sympathize with his alleged plight as much as they would with an actor or star athlete that genuinely depends on his visage for a living. Activision isn’t commenting, but it may not have much reason to worry even if the lawsuit goes forward.
Filed under: Gaming
Via: BBC
Source: Courthouse News Service
Exploring Asia with T-Mobile’s free global roaming
On a mild fall day last October, I attended a free Shakira concert in New York City, along with thousands of screaming fans and T-Mobile customers. The occasion? T-Mobile’s Un-carrier 3.0 event, where CEO John Legere announced a shockingly generous benefit for Simple Choice customers. Anyone on a $50-and-up monthly plan would have access to unlimited data and texting in more than 120 countries around the world. As a frequent traveler, I was ecstatic — I spend hundreds of dollars on local SIM cards or roaming products every year — but as with anything that sounds too good to be true, there was a catch here.
That unlimited international data actually came along with a pretty nasty limit. Regardless of the partner network you’re using abroad, speeds are capped at 128 Kbps — in many cases, that’s a tiny fraction of the pipe overseas carriers offer to their own customers, and to a partner’s users with a pay-per-use roaming plan. 128 Kbps sounds almost unusable, and it is, but for certain tasks, T-Mobile’s restrictions won’t make much difference, as I discovered during a week-long trip to Taiwan.
Social media apps worked seamlessly, so I was able to browse and post tweets, check in on Foursquare and even view and upload Instagram photos at reasonable speeds. Google Maps also worked very well, provided I was using the native app and not the browser-based version. It did take longer for destinations and directions to load than I’m used to at home, but the speed was definitely usable. Email was also functional, especially with push activated, since messages can sync in the background.
Browsing the web, however, was an entirely different experience. Chrome, my mobile browser of choice, was never able to load search results or a webpage. If you’re in a foreign country and you’re trying to pull up a quick translation, menu item description or information on a particular attraction, you’re bound to get frustrated with T-Mobile’s speed. And this should come as no shock, but you’re not allowed to tether with the free plan — given the paltry performance, I didn’t dare try.
While the experience may not be as good as it could be from a performance perspective, T-Mobile’s free offering is incredibly easy to use. All you have to do is enable roaming and you’re good to go. There’s no need to fuss with alternate SIM cards or APNs, and you don’t have to worry about coming back to a humungous bill. You also don’t need to have an unlocked phone — if your device works with T-Mobile at home, it’ll roam for free as well.
Admittedly, while I brought the T-Mobile SIM along on a trip to Italy a few weeks later, I didn’t end up using it at all. I purchased a local SIM instead, which got me 1GB of unrestricted data for about 40 bucks. Performance was far better, and while I could have had data for free, I didn’t mind paying a bit for a faster connection. Still, considering you’re already spending enough on other travel expenses, such as flights and accommodation, if you’re paying $50 for a T-Mobile Simple Choice plan, you might as well take advantage.
Update: T-Mobile does offer faster international data for a fee, but it’s hardly a bargain:
- Single day pass: $15 for 100MB (high speed data capped at 100MB)
- 7 day pass: $25 for 200MB (high speed data capped at 200MB)
- 14 day pass: $50 for 500MB (high speed data capped at 500MB)
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, T-Mobile
Wico and Goophone Beat Apple to Market with Android-Based iPhone 6 Clones
Months before Apple is expected to release its next-generation iPhone, functional iPhone 6 clones already are starting to appear in China’s mobile phone marketplace. One of the first clones, the Wico i6, is profiled by 86DIGI (via Nowhereelse.fr) in a two-part hands-on video.
(Note: Contains fairly loud soundtrack of The Carpenters’ “Top of the World”)
Like most clones, the Wico i6 is quite detailed for a fake, with authentic-looking FCC labeling and the characteristic Apple branding. The phone also closely mimics the rumored styling of the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 with a thin chassis that houses a side-mounted power button and elongated volume buttons.
Wico isn’t the only clone maker ready to enter the mobile phone black market, however. Chinese clone maker Goophone has also announced (via GizChina.com) that it is preparing the Goophone i6 for release in August, ahead of Apple’s expected September iPhone launch.
The GooPhone also borrows its styling from the rumored schematics of the iPhone 6 and pairs it with a quad-core Mediatek MT6582 chipset, 1GB RAM and 13 megapixel rear camera. Similar to previous Goophone clones, the i6 model is powered by the Android operating system.
Apple to Pay $450 Million to Settle E-Book Price Fixing Case
According to court records filed on Wednesday, July 16, Apple will pay $450 million as part of an out-of-court settlement with class action lawyers and state district attorneys over e-book price fixing, reports Reuters.
Apple first reached a settlement agreement with the 33 U.S. states and territories involved in the lawsuit in June, successfully avoiding a lengthy and expensive damages trial. Settlement details were sealed at that time, however, pending court approval. $400 million of the $450 million is earmarked for consumers.
The settlement is contingent on a pending appeals case Apple filed in February with the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York. In the filing, Apple asked the court to overturn the original ruling that found the company guilty of conspiring to fix e-book prices.
“We have obviously studied Judge Cote’s July 2013 ruling in detail, and believe that the 2nd Circuit will agree with her conclusion that Apple did violate federal antitrust laws,” said Steve W. Berman, managing partner of Hagens Berman and lead attorney representing the consumer class. “In any case of this magnitude, there are high degrees of uncertainty, and Apple’s appeal of Judge Cote’s well-reasoned ruling is an example of that uncertainty.”
Though found guilty, Apple has maintained its innocence throughout the dispute, claiming that it “kick-started competition in a highly concentrated market, delivering higher output, lower price levels, and accelerated innovation.” Should Apple’s appeal be successful, sending the claim back to District Court, the company will pay out $50 million to settle consumer damages claims. If the appeals court reverses the initial decision entirely, Apple will pay no damages.
Along with $450 million in damages, Apple has also been subjected to several penalties levied by the U.S. Department of Justice, including an order to hire an external antitrust monitor. Publishers involved in the case, including Hachette, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, and Penguin also settled for a total of $166 million, which has already been making its way to customers in the form of refunds.
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