Recently in Audio-Video Category

Nokia Philippines has got a treat for those who want to be the first to own the much awaited Nokia 5800 XpressMusic touchscreen phone. You can now pre-order online and if you’re among the first 58 individual to claim their pre-orders, you’ll receive a Sennheiser HD-205 headset and SVIP pasess for two to the Nokia 5800 Hedkendi Playlist Party that’s going to be held on January 23 at the A.Venue Hall in Makati City. The next 100 claimed orders won’t go empty handed as they’ll also receive an access pass to the said event. It'll also come bundled with an 8GB microSD card, and preloaded with exclusive content such as Kjwan’s highly-awaited album “13 Seconds to Love” and access to downloadable content from Universal Music and Nokia Indie Artists Club. While the SRP isn’t available just yet, we hear that it’s around the P20K mark and is expected to become available in the early part of January 2009. Sure, the recently announced N97 will make you think twice before pre-ordering the 5800 XpressMusic, but considering that the N97 is filled to the brim with features, it means that it’ll likewise come with a heftier price tag that's well above the P35K mark. Similarly, you could make a case that the LG Cookie is way more affordable, but then again, the 5800 XpressMusic is definitely far more superior in terms of feature set.

Those who have purchased a 2nd generation iPod Touch will be happy to know that aside from its more polished look and added volume control and built-in speakers, Apple has likewise included something which they failed to mention when it was launched: a faster 532MHz processor. The inclusion of this new processor translates to a 30% boost in overall performance which makes the 2G iPod Touch the fastest iPod to date. Heck, it's even faster than its more versatile twin, the iPhone. It makes you wonder though; with the iPod Touch already offering 32GB capacities and now touting a better and faster processor, when will the iPhone get blessed with such features? Isn’t it about time Apple did some major upgrading in the iPhone’s hardware considering that it is, after all, their flagship mobile phone? My guess is that it won’t likely happen this year, but next year is a completely different story. We’ll just have to wait and see, won’t we?

It looks like Nokia-rival Sony Ericsson is going to battle it out with the Finnish company in the realm of the music download scene. While Nokia may have struck the first blow with their Comes with Music service, Sony Ericsson has been reported to be considering going the same route.   If Nokia has chosen to bundle their servic with their Nokia 5310 XpressMusic phone, word is that Sony Ericsson is planning to offer theirs with their Walkman series of phones. No word though if it'll be available for the entire line or specific models only, but we'll probably hear an official announcement within the month. If everything goes accordingly, it might be offered in Europe before the year ends. The rest of the world will probably have to wait until next year for the service to roll out in their region. As for the here and now, Sony Ericsson currently has an existing mobile download service with around 5 million DRM-free songs at their disposal. With that massive collection at their beck and call, Nokia might be in for some stiff competition as far as the music download scene is concerned.

iPod fanatics will have something to look forward to as Apple has unloaded a bag of iPod goodies for them to enjoy. First off is the improved 2G iPod Touch. It may look the same as the 1G Touch, but if you look more closely, you’ll notice that it now sports a contoured rear design similar to the 2G iPhone. It’s also thinner and comes equipped with hardware volume controls, a built-in speaker, Nike+ receiver and a redesigned WiFi antenna cover. The minimal changes in the design is greatly compensated by the added functionality provided by the new features in this latest iteration. The 2G iPod Touch will cost $229, $299 amd $399 for the 8GB, 16GB and 32GB respectively. Next is the iPod Shuffle. While there may not be any major improvements in this line of iPods, Apple has unveiled the new colors of the Shuffle. The 1GB ($49) and 2GB ($69) capacities are, unfortunately, still the same. Last, but not the least, the 4G iPod Nano finally made its public debut. It looks like a cross between the 3G and the 2G Nano, and is touted as the thinnest iPod ever. The curved design is likewise carried over to this model, and packs in a large 2-inch display despite its already compact size The capacity of the new Nano is now bigger than ever at offering 8GB ($149) and 16GB ($199) models and will be available in 9 delectable colored variations to choose from. On the software front, there's the new iTunes 8 which features the new Genius sidebar, album art grid display option, and faster back-up and sync time. The new Genius feature basically monitors your listening habits and based on the data collected, creates custom playlists and recommends possible music content you may like to download and purchase from the iTunes Store. While some people may find this new feauture a bit intrusive, it's a nice option to have especially if you don't want to decide on what tracks you want to listen to at the moment. The iPhone/iPod Touch 2.1 firmware update was also announced during the event which should fix the various problems brought about by the previous updates. It is expected to hit iTunes worldwide this week. iPod Touch users will have to pay $10 for it, but those who have upgraded to 2.0 won’t have to pay a cent as it’s free for them. While we wish there was something more significant announced regarding the iPhone, the new iTunes, 2.1 firmware update and the various iPods that Apple debuted is enough to suffice nonetheless. Better start saving up because these new iPods sure make for a very sweet addition to any Christmas shopping list.

Nokia has announced that they will start offering their Comes with Music service next month in the UK and will have an official launching on October 2. After the debut in the UK, the rest of Europe and Asia will follow thereafter.  If you still remember this service we reported a while back, the Comes with Music gives Nokia users free music downloads along with their phone. Now, it's more concrete and specific. UK Carphone Warehouse will sell Comes with Music Nokia 5310 XpressMusic phones that include a year of unlimited music downloads. Too good to be true? Well, sort of. The service isn't actually free and the cost is already included in the price of the phone which makes it more expensive than an ordinary Nokia 5310. As for the music downloads, yeah, it's unlimited alright, but the DRM limits playback to the phone only so say goodbye to music sharing. However, once your subscription expires, you'll still be able to play the tracks you’ve downloaded to your phone. Locally, the new Nokia 5320 and 5220 XpressMusic phones come bundled with vouchers that allow you to download 100 free music tracks from a Nokia website. I don't know if its also comes with DRM, but it's a nice inclusion nonetheless. It could be a prelude to the whole service before it's launched in the Philippines, or it could be its local counterpart.  Whichever the case maybe, it's a nice way of marketing a particular product to a target audience. I'm not happy with the DRM, but hey, if that's as good as it gets, I'll take it.

You've got iTunes for your iPod, but why not use it also to transfer music to for your mobile phone or other mp3 players as well? With Media Sync by Salling Software, you can now do just that. Media Sync currently supports a variety of Nokia, Sony Ericsson phones and the HTC Diamond as well as several Sony Walkman products too. If you're not sure if you're gadget is supported, check out the list of compatible devices here. I am optimistic, though, that more devices will be supported in the near future. The basic product is free to download and there's a version available for both Windows and Mac. The fast sync version, however, will set you back $22. It's expensive for a piece of software, but I guess if you like how the Media Sync app works, then I guess its worth it in the end. Try it out for yourself and share with us your experience while you're at it.

While Sony maybe known in the industry as a staunch advocate of proprietary technology, they’ve decided to go against the grain this time around with the release of the S-AIR wireless audio system. It not only provides you with a sleek and stylish wireless speaker system, it’s also an iPod dock which is a first for the company. The standard package comes with the dock that also features a built-in FM/AM tuner and two wireless speakers that can receive signals up to 164-feet away. It'll cost around $400 when it lands in stores next month in the US. It’s definitely more expensive than the EOS wireless system, but this one’s got tons of sex appeal written all over it. Additional speakers will cost $130 a piece (the same with the EOS). No word though whether it will become locally available or not, but I’m pretty optimistic it will.

Crave of CNet UK gets up close and personal with iRiver’s new PMP baby, the Spinn. We reported about its existence some time ago, and based on the initial impression the Spinn has left on the guys at Crave, it makes me even wonder more how such an astounding device isn’t available in more countries, especially the Philippines.   The AMOLED display is truly of its more outstanding features, but to hear that it also has amazing sound quality, well, that just icing on the cake. Aside from the touch screen, you can also navigate through the various menus through a mechanical scroll wheel cleverly disguised into the design. Though their opinion with this alternative control system is divided, at least the option is there for those who don’t want to spoil its brilliant display with fingerprints and smudges. Despite its overwhelming appeal, it does have its share of shortcomings. AAC is not supported, and even though it’s supposed to support Adobe Flash, they were only able to successful load one flash game. Nevertheless, the numerous praises they gave the Spinn is enough to intrigue me. So now, I’m hoping (against all odds) that it might see the light of day in Manila. Any else who shares the same sentiment?

 

Everyone dreams of one day saying goodbye to all those eye-sore cables that all our electronic equipment use; and maybe, just maybe, those days are just around the corner especially when you see stuff like this. The EOS (no relation to Canon) iPod dock Wireless Speaker System is just that, a dock for your iPod that comes with one satellite speaker that allows you to wirelessly feed music up to 150 feet away barring any obstructions. Gizmodo has a lightning review on this baby.

It may not look pretty, but it sure is a nice alternative especially when you think of all the wiring you’ll have to do in a traditional system. The basic unit costs $250 while additional speakers cost $130 each (max. of 4 speakers to a base). It’s not actually that cheap, but on the other hand, if you’re looking for a wireless solution for your iPod-based sound system, this maybe the only customizable solution right now.

  Starting yesterday, Ynzal has put all of their items, ranging from Mac systems and iPods to 3rd party peripherals and accessories, on sale. This is probably to get rid of their old stock considering that it’s time for the mid-year inventory, but it’s more likely a result of the recent events that led to the revocation of their Apple Reseller license. You can download a copy of the pricelist here if you want to see if its worth braving the rain and metro traffic, but to be quite honest, some of the items on sale are really quite tempting. There’s no definite time frame for the sale and it’s up until supplies last only. The timing is just right especially after a payday so you can now spruce up your worn out iPod with a new case or finally get your very first Mac at a more affordable price.