iLounge

In the iLounge Discussion Forums this week: with the announcement by Apple and Motorola of upcoming ‘events,’ make sure you keep up with the forum discussion on the iTunes phones.

Still wondering what to make of this whole ‘podcasting’ thing? Understanding the Podcasting Revolution & Bookmarking might clear things up for you....

With the publication of the comprehensive iLounge Fall 2005 FM Transmitter Shootout, some other options for FM transmitters may be found in the In Car Solutions forum. If, after reading the “Shootout,” you still feel that you want another option, see what methods other iLoungers have employed integrating their iPods into their cars.

The most recent Lounge Poll, “What’s the highest price you would pay for a video-equipped iPod this year?”, is now closed.

With nearly 5,000 votes cast, the single most popular response was $399, with 36% of respondants choosing this price. Roughly a quarter of those surveyed were willing to pay $499 or more, while 37% said they would pay $299 or less ($199). The numbers were surprising in that they suggested that a majority of respondants were willing to pay some premium for video functionality on an iPod.

Complete results are available in Read More below, and at the Lounge Poll archives. Our new poll, “Will you buy an iTunes-compatible phone?”, is now open. You can find it on the left column below Ask iLounge.

Now available is the eighth iLounge Week in Review podcast, hosted by iLounge Editor-in-Chief Jeremy Horwitz.

This week, we’re debuting a visually enhanced podcast format, complete with pictures and direct-to-iLounge links for all of the stories and reviews we’ve covered. News topics for the podcast are Apple’s special event to be held next week, reports on Motorola’s iTunes phone, battles between Apple and record lables over iTunes pricing, allegations by Creative of an iPod patent violation, and a request for support for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. We also cover reviews of Griffin’s new iTrip with LCD Screen, our FM transmitter shootout, new speakers from Sonic Impact and Ignitek, and more.

Past podcasts, including last week’s edition with audio samples from the voice recorders iTalk (2) and iFM, are available through our iTunes Music Store podcast pages, as well as our podcast feed below. As always, your comments are welcomed.

Direct download: Enhanced Version (includes photos and URL links)
Direct download: MP3 Version
Subscribe to our Podcast feed
Subscribe to our iTunes Podcast feed
Listen to Past Podcasts

A writer from Giant magazine wants to hear from iLoungers who purchased a first-generation iPod the day it was released (November 10, 2001).

“I would love to see a dated receipt to reproduce in the mag, also interested in original packaging, or even a shot of your well-loved original iPod if still in use,” he says. “But mainly I want to hear about why you bought it in the first place, what it’s meant to you, and, of course, what you’re listening to these days.”

Email Giant with contact info at

Apple’s new iTunes Worldwide Charts let you quickly see the top selling songs and albums from the 20 different iTunes Music Stores across the globe.

Taiwanese iPod part supplier Inventec Appliances Corp. reported its revenue more than doubled in the first half of this year to NT$47.9 billion (US$1.47 billion).

T-Mobile may offer an iTunes-compatible phone from Motorola. The company hinted at such plans in a slide during a German press conference yesterday.

BusinessWeek looks at Napster’s brand in the uphill battle against Apple. “The online music service has iTunes in its sights, but the latter may have developed a huge lead that’s tough to overcome.”

Griffin Technology today announced the availability of its redesigned iTrip FM transmitter (iLounge Rating: A/A-).

The new iTrip gains a backlit LCD screen and tuning knob to more easily select a broadcast frequency. The device also features selectable LX or DX broadcasting modes for optimal clarity, the ability to set the iTrip to either US or International tuning modes, and an auto volume control.

Griffin’s new iTrip, which works with third and fourth-generation iPods, retails for $49.99 but is available for an introductory price of $39.99.

As relief efforts begin in the areas hit by Hurricane Katrina, we urge you to please make a donation to the American Red Cross. By providing financial support, you’ll be helping the hundreds of thousands of victims of the tragic disaster. In addition to the Red Cross website, you can donate through Amazon.com and the iTunes Music Store. Our hearts go out to all of those affected.

Apple may soon come under legal pressure from Creative Technology now that the Singapore-based company has been awarded a patent that it says the iPod infringes upon. Creative has already openly accused Apple of violating the patent, which covers the way users navigate music selections on a portable device, and the company told The New York Times that it is considering every option available to defend the patent, including possible legal action.

Craig McHugh, president of Creative’s United States operations, said yesterday that Apple was the only company identified so far that was in violation of the patent, though Creative was investigating others. “We are looking at all our alternatives right now,” McHugh said. “We have always been very vigorous in our defense of our patent portfolio.”

NPR has posted a beta version of its new podcast directory. It is currently offering 130 podcasts in numerous categories and topics.

Brad Hale, director of product marketing for MP3 chip maker SigmaTel, says music phones will only whet the public’s appetite for full-featured digital music players. “When there are MP3 capabilities in a phone, it’s going to expose the technology to someone that’s a non-MP3 user and it’s going to cause more and more people to want to adopt stand-alone MP3 players. At the end of the day the phone is not an optimal solution from an audio quality standpoint, from a battery life standpoint, from a user interface standpoint, from a storage capacity standpoint.”

Greenhouse, a Japanese electronics maker, has created an amplifier and speaker dock for the iPod shuffle looks “suspiciously like a Bose SoundDock.”

Creative has confirmed that 3,700 of the company’s Zen Neeon MP3 players that shipped from a company factory in late July contain a Windows worm (W32.Wullik.B).

TheStreet.com’s Cody Willard says a video iPod is still a ways off. “While there are millions of video files being traded on piracy networks and sent via email, and hundreds of millions of videos available for download on the Internet, the mainstream user isn’t exactly downloading those files, burning DVDs from those video files and watching them on a TV set. That day is coming, and Apple is certainly going to make a move into that market when the time is right. But that’s not next week. And probably not anytime in the next quarter, or two or three.”

Motorola has gotten Madonna, Iggy Pop and several other music acts to star in commercials for its upcoming iTunes-enabled mobile phone, according to reports.

“Motorola has signed an artist from every generation to appear in the ads, including Little Richard, Bootsy Collins, Lil’ Jon, The White Stripes, Sleater-Kinney, Sum 41, Mya, Pussycat Dolls and Billie Joe from Green Day,” reports Brand Republic. “Look-a-likes of Beethoven, Jimi Hendrix and Biggie Smalls are also featured.”

“Madonna, who was recently in the press after falling from her horse during her 47th birthday celebrations, filmed her piece for the ad at Shepperton Studios yesterday. A Motorola spokesman refused to comment on the ads but confirmed that Madonna and Iggy Pop were to star.”

In an interview with BusinessWeek, Hewlett-Packard’s new CEO Mark Hurd explains why his company decided to stop selling rebranded versions of Apple’s iPod.

“There are a lot of bets we can make, but we want to make those bets in markets that are exciting, have growth, are worth dominating—make that ‘leading,’ the lawyers don’t like ‘dominating’—and in which, by the way, we can lead,” Hurd said. “So think about putting our logo on the iPod. Is the market worth leading? Maybe it is. But can we lead it, with no or very little technology differentiation? Doubtful. You have to go into places where you can lead.”

HP said it would stop reselling Apple’s line of iPods in late July, saying only that “the iPod doesn’t fit in with our digital entertainment strategy.”

Apple and Motorola have reportedly teamed with mobile operator O2 to offer the iTunes-compatible phones in the UK. The London Times reports that the first phone will be available in Britain “in the next few weeks” from O2.

“Apple is expected to unveil the new technology in the United States in partnership with Cingular Wireless next week. A British launch is expected shortly after, with the new devices available in time for the Christmas shopping season,” the paper reports. “It is understood that confirmation of the partnership could come as soon as today. O2 will have a period of exclusivity on the latest version of the new iPod.

Interestingly, The London Times reports that the phones will allow customers to “buy music while on the move, enhancing the power of the iconic device.”