After years of waiting, Spotify is finally out to Australians. However, it’s a bit late to the game with many other services already available – such as rival Rdio, JB Hi Fi’s NOW service and Microsoft’s own Zune Pass service. But is Spotify better than all of the others? We compared the features, the apps support and the all important price of all four services, so you can make up your mind.
Microsoft has finally detailed the release date and some more details for the Windows 8 ‘Consumer Preview’, also known as a public beta.
The launch will come from Mobile World Congress on February 29, US time, from between 3PM and 5PM CET, which is around 3AM AEST on March 1. Being at a mobile conference, the launch could include demos on tablets or possibly even a look at Windows Phone 8.
A few weeks ago the Zune Music store finally arrived in Australia. But while we have enough online music stores, the big part of the announcement was Zune Pass. For $120 a year you get unlimited on-demand streaming music. But are there some hidden problems?
Well isn’t that nice. Right on schedule Microsoft has launched Zune Music for Australia. While this may sound like just another music store, a major key to the Zune puzzle is Zune Music Pass, which allows unlimited music downloads for $10 a month.
I don’t know how we missed this, but last Wednesday Microsoft held a local press conference detailing a number of new services available to Australian consumers. While Kinect Voice Control was announced at the event, I’m personally much more excited by the announcement of Zune Music purchases and Zune Music Pass for Australia. Samsung and Sony also have music subscription services in the works and available but Zune Pass, in my opinion, is much more interesting given the amount of devices it’s already available on in the US and right here such as Windows Phone, Xbox and Windows. It’s also very timely given the announcement of Nokia Windows Phone’s.
We’re back with a new episode, and while the tech industry is at a standstill, the Internet gets a red-light district, and the Zune bids adieu. Meanwhile, the week has been dominated by security flaw after security flaw, and Rebecca Black infects our Chris’ mind with the weekend.
What you see is the new Microsoft homepage. Does it look familiar? Well, if you have used Windows Phone 7, it does look pretty similar to the OS theme – “Metro”. And one of the biggest changes is that Microsoft has split “home” and “work” products into two sections.
While the Windows Phone 7 announcement doesn’t happen until 9:30am San Francisco time – just under a few hours – LG has accidentally leaked its Windows Phone 7 phone it will be releasing soon before taking it down – but a Google cache and the images are still uploaded on the server.
If you have an Xbox 360 and get excited by software updates listen up! Major Nelson has just announced on his blog that the Xbox Live dashboard update, which is launching with the Kinect later this year, is now accepting early registrations for testing. Read More »
Big news from Redmond for gamers, and those who use their Xbox 360s as a media hub. Microsoft has decided to extend its Zune platform to more markets – despite the fact that the Zune player is only available (officially) in the United States.
While 2009 might not be a year to remember when consumer demand was very low – before increasing at the latter end of the year – Symbian still dominates the smartphone market, according to Gartner. However, it might need to do some more to increase its market share after it dipped from 52.4 percent in 2008 to 46.9 percent in 2009, despite an increase of units sold.
Should we believe it or not? According to Twitter user crazyphoneguy (who posted it up), this is the Official Zune HD packaging. Though, I have never seen a Zune in my life – except in pictures – but hey, I so would want this to come to Australia, but we don’t have “HD Radio”.
Microsoft has today announced that it will be bringing out one of the worst kept secrets in the world, the Zune HD, this fall, where it will bring in some Xbox LIVE integration with its Video Marketplace, and will come in new markets, according to its press release.
On December 31, the final day of the year of 2008, gave users of the Microsoft Zune some frustration after the player would not turn on. Now, a person from zuneboards.com has claimed that he has found the problem that caused the mass shutdown – and it has to do something with the time.
Steve Ballmer, confirmed today that the Zune software will be coming to the Windows Mobile Platform.
“the Zune software will also be ported to and be more important not just with the hardware but on the PC, on Windows Mobile devices, etc.”