iPod Shuffle woes
Recently, I picked up the new 1Gb iPod Shuffle. The thing is so small it is almost unbelievable. After syncing and charging it for the first time I took it for a test drive, and 2 days later I was still enjoying the tiny device without any problems. When the time came to plug it back into my PC I was greeted by an error message from iTunes. (more…)
Credible iTunes Alternative?
The BBC is running a story about a new music download service for us Europeans, eMusic. eMusic has been around for a while, but downloads were restricted to US customers. Their subscription rates seem reasonable, with the cheapest being £8.99/month for 40 tracks. The major selling point is that the tracks are in MP3 format and are encoded at 192kbps VBR. They are also DRM free - a nice change from iTunes restrictive policies, not mention their lower bitrate. Apparently they aim to make money from the fact that not everyone will download all their allocated tracks each month. They do have a download manager and I’ve yet to work out if it is required to use the service. However, it seems that once downloaded the music is in plain-old MP3 format.
Update: It seems that the eMusic experience is not as good as it appears (thanks Vicky). I’ve also been dismayed at the choice of tracks on offer after checking out the site a bit further. The catalog is restricted mainly due to the fact that they don’t have deals with record labels who demand DRM. A noble effort but the end experience is far from ideal.
