iLounge

Danielle Demetriou of Independent Digital UK reports:

A reader has spotted another iPod clone at MP3mall.net. The Vonee Digital Jukebox M7 20GB has a similar look to the iPod as well as it being white. We’ve tried to learn more about the company Vonee, but found nothing of revelance on the Internet. Recently we reported that Apple had ‘threatened to sue’ Samsung over its latest Yepp MP3 player (in which they changed the design before releasing it to the public), and this makes us wonder if Apple is seeking other possible lawsuits as well.

Speck Products has released many new cases for iPod including the new, all clear FlipStand with dock port access for new iPods for $29.95, the iSport waist pack with a built in safety light for new iPods for $44.95, and iPod Skin featuring dock port access and KRATON plastic for new model iPods. iPod Skin for original 5, 10, and 20GB iPods are also available. The iPod Skins are available individually for $18.95 and in 3-packs for $28.95 and come in white, blue or grey. Speck Products is accepting pre-orders for all new cases. iPod Skin and iSport are expected to ship on June 30th while the FlipStand is due to ship on July 22nd.

Patrick Rapa of the Philadelphia City Paper interviews DJ Botany 500 who is renting iPods with customized catalogs of music to area businesses.

Jimmy Guterman has written an article suggesting that Apple sell customized, high priced iPods containing music from a recording artist already on it.

naviPod is the first wireless remote for the iPod consisting of a receiver that plugs into the top of the iPod and a 5-button infrared remote control that produces the same functions as the Apple iPod wired remote. “naviPod is really going to foster a change in the idea of stereo systems. With the naviPod and a pair of speakers, the iPod becomes a true alternative to the conventional stereo system,” says John Lin, CEO and founder of TEN Technology. naviPod for original iPod and naviPod for 3G iPod are available for pre-order from Dr. Bott for $49.95.

Your Mac Life is giving away Exhibit Hall Passes to this July’s Macworld Creative Pro Conference and Expo - a $35 value. All you have to do is send an email to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)!

Went to Best Buy last night and saw that they had 2nd generation 10gb iPods for $199. I’m not sure if they all have them but they do here in Atlanta.

There has been lots of discussion about how to play random MP3s without playing the iTrip tuning files. Well, I think I’ve got it figured out. If you delete the ID3 tag information from the iTrip mp3s (artist, album, and genre), they won’t show up if you browse by those categories.  You can set your iPod to random play however you prefer and those files won’t be in the pool of songs that get randomized.

Press release: The Think Different Store will be holding a daily giveaway of two Exhibit Guest Passes to the Expo. These passes entitle you and a friend to Free Exhibit Hall admission for all three days of the Expo. That’s a $35 value! To enter the contest visit the Think Different Store.

Dealmac: Apple’s iPod 10GB MP3 player costs $254.15 in the Dell Small Business Software and Peripherals store. (Search for “M8976LL/A” to find it.) That’s $15 off our last mention and the lowest price we’ve seen for a current generation iPod. Shipping is free, although sales tax is added where applicable. Offer ends June 18, 2003.

iTunes Tracker is a client which connects to a server maintaining a list of iTunes shared library addresses. This list is displayed on your computer allowing you to access any of the shared iTunes library on the list. For iTunes 4.0 ONLY.

iTunes Tracker detects if you’re sharing your iTunes library. If your library is shared then your address is added to the list of shared iTunes libraries. This list is what is downloaded when a client connects to the central server. For every client connected with a shared library the list grows. With more users comes more selections and so on.

New open letter to Apple needs everyone to help spread the news. With a catchy Apple-Like “Think Differently” image, I spent hours in the hopes that classic iPod users will be heard!

If, somehow, everyone could unite and possibly contribute a dollar we might even be able to put this image on a billboard somewhere near Apple Headquarters in Cupertino, Ca. How we’d accomplish that I’m not sure, but sending this page to let everyone know about how we’ve been treated by Apple is a great start!

Ediotr’s note: The above ‘open letter’ regards the fact that Apple has not released iPod Software 2.0 and all its new features for Classic iPods.

Charles Wright, columnist of The Edge, writes an opinion peice about all things iPod:

There is an active thread at Macintouch about shipping delays from Dell of up to 45 days for iPods that were discounted over $80 for one day only (reported at iLounge). Other users having this issue? I bought mine on May 19, and currently there is an estimated ship date of July 7.

MacMinute via BusinessWeek reports that Apple had ‘threatened to sue’ Samsung over the physical similarity of its Yepp YP-900 MP3 player to the iPod. Samsung has backed down from the threat and will be redesigning the Yepp player before releasing it to the public.

Dealmac: ClubMac offers the iPod 20GB for Mac or PC for $269. That’s $30 off our last mention and the lowest price we know to be available. Plus, a mail-in rebate yields free shipping. Rebate ends June 30, 2003.

Roberto Amorim of Rarewares.com is conducting a public test to find out which encoder is best at encoding AAC at 128Kbps CBR. Everyone is welcomed to particpate.

There is a weekly flash animation produced by the folks at HomestarRunner.com about a character named Strong Bad and the emails he receives. In this weeks episode, his brother Strong Sad enters the room at one point listening to what can only be an iPod!

Mind’s Eye Entertainment and Inksword.net are looking for a handful of beta testers for a new interactive fiction game that is in development for use with Apple’s new iPod. The game is a series of notes that are hyperlinked together, giving you the feel of the “Choose Your Own Adventure” books from the 1980’s. Beta testers must have a new iPod (10, 15, or 30GB models using iPod Software 2.0).