The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)http://www.tuaw.comThe Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.tuaw.com/media/feedlogo.gifThe Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)http://www.tuaw.comen-usCopyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only.Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Roxio announces Toast 10 at MacWorldhttp://www.tuaw.com/2009/01/05/roxio-announces-toast-10-at-macworld/http://www.tuaw.com/2009/01/05/roxio-announces-toast-10-at-macworld/http://www.tuaw.com/2009/01/05/roxio-announces-toast-10-at-macworld/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Toast is the granddaddy of CD burning apps nowadays, an act that itself has become relatively obsolete (between iPods, internet radios, FM tuners, and streaming services, do we even really need to put media on a physical format anymore?). Roxio isn't sitting back with their software, though: they've released Toast 10 at MacWorld this week, and they are doing their best to stay on your Mac, whether you use your CD burner or not. They added streaming back in Toast 9, but 10 brings with it the ability to extract and control almost any sound or video that comes through your computer, from DVD footage to web video, exported out to TiVo, your Mac, your iPod, or anywhere else that plays it.

The app is available right now on the website for $79.99 (after a $20 mail-in rebate), or they're offering a "Pro" version that comes with SonicFire Pro (that you can use to piece soundtracks together), Bias SoundSoap SE (which will wipe hums and static from recordings), FotoMagico (slideshows from pictures), and LightZone (photo editor and enhancer), as well as a plug-in for Toast that will let you author Blu Ray and HD DVD discs. All that comes together for $130 (after a $20 mail-in rebate).

Whew. Despite the fact that almost no one is routinely burning CDs or DVDs these days, Roxio seems to be going all out to make sure there's still a need for Toast.

[via Ars]

Roxio announces Toast 10 at MacWorld originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Roxio announces Toast 10 at MacWorld originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>authoringblu-raycd-burningdvdfotomagicohd-dvdmacmacworldmacworld09roxiosonicfiresoundsoaptoasttoast-10Mike SchrammMon, 05 Jan 2009 18:00:00 ESTTUAW Holiday Giveaway-tacular Part Five: the power bloggerhttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/28/tuaw-holiday-giveaway-tacular-part-five-the-power-blogger/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/28/tuaw-holiday-giveaway-tacular-part-five-the-power-blogger/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/28/tuaw-holiday-giveaway-tacular-part-five-the-power-blogger/#commentsFiled under: , ,


If you're looking to start a podcast or blog (or both) in 2009, this will get you started. The Snowflake mic is an awesome and portable audio tool, and MacSpeech Dictate is the "gold standard" of Mac transcription apps. Win both in this giveaway courtesy our friends at Dr. Bott.

Don't forget the rest of our Holiday Giveaway-tacular posts and all the loot you can win there as well: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4. Everything ends at the end of December 31, so get to clickin' and good luck!
  • Open to legal residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.
  • To enter leave a comment telling us what would be the subject of your podcast, if you had one.
  • The comment must be left before December 31, 11:59PM Eastern Time.
  • You may enter only once.
  • One winner will be selected in a random drawing.
  • Prize: Snowball Microphone ($69.95), MacSpeech Dictate ($199)
  • Click Here for complete Official Rules.

TUAW Holiday Giveaway-tacular Part Five: the power blogger originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 28 Dec 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)TUAW Holiday Giveaway-tacular Part Five: the power blogger originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 28 Dec 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>dictategiveawaymacspeechmicrophonesnowflaketranscriptionVictor Agreda, Jr.Sun, 28 Dec 2008 19:00:00 ESTPocket Tunes plays sweet musichttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/23/pocket-tunes-plays-sweet-music/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/23/pocket-tunes-plays-sweet-music/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/23/pocket-tunes-plays-sweet-music/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

What! Another internet radio player for the iPhone? Yes, Pocket Tunes [App store link] does play internet radio in a pretty crowded field of similar iPhone/touch apps, but this little player has some unique attributes.

Pocket Tunes, which is also available for Windows Mobile and Palm phones, has excellent audio quality, and a nice, but not overwhelmingly large, selection of stations. You can add your own stations of course, and Pocket Tunes plays more audio formats than most of the other players out there, including aacPlus v1, aacPlus v2, Shoutcast, RTSP, and the usual suspects like MP3, AAC and WMA.

There are a few things that set Pocket Tunes apart from the competition. The GUI is pretty, not just a jumble of text, and the app contains a web browser so you can surf while listening to streaming music, something you simply can't do with other radio streamers. The browser can't see your Safari bookmarks, and you can't make your own, but listening to music and surfing the web is certainly better than listening to music and not surfing. The browser does have a link for the Google search engine, so getting to a website is not too painful.

You can also connect to the iTunes Store to buy any music you've listened to, and Pocket Tunes remembers stations that you have heard and caches them without your having to save them.

The audio quality of this app is quite good, and I got reasonably fast load and buffering times even using the EDGE network. I even tried to listen to music while driving, but when I plug in my car iPod adapter cord to the iPhone, I just get my regular playlists. I could have used the headphone out on the phone into the mini plug input on the car, but I didn't have the proper cable. Note to self: always bring the proper cables.

Pocket Tunes is $9.99, and competes against some fine free apps like AOL Radio and Flycast, and some apps that aren't free like Tuner [App Store link] and Wunder Radio [App Store link] which are both loaded with features for $5.99. Still, Pocket Tunes works very well, and unlike all the other entrants (except Flycast), it will let you read this review while listening to your favorite stations.


Pocket Tunes plays sweet music originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 23 Dec 2008 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Pocket Tunes plays sweet music originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 23 Dec 2008 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>internet radioiPhoneiPod touchstreaming mediaMel MartinTue, 23 Dec 2008 18:00:00 ESTA musical scratchpad on your iPhonehttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/22/a-musical-scratchpad-on-your-iphone/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/22/a-musical-scratchpad-on-your-iphone/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/22/a-musical-scratchpad-on-your-iphone/#commentsFiled under: , ,

I've built a recording studio on my iPhone ... kind of. It doesn't output production-quality mixes -- or anything close -- but it makes a great scratchpad for recording and developing musical ideas. It didn't take any special effort, just a few apps which I've found really handy, especially when working with acoustic instruments.

Tuning up

First, I've been using GuitarToolkit ($9.99US in the App Store) for tuning, general metronome needs and finding chord phrasings. There are dozens of apps available with similar features, and I haven't tried enough of them to fairly judge merits (if you know of an outstanding app, let's hear about it in the comments!). I grabbed GuitarToolkit when it was a little narrower of a field, and it's been a sturdy, steadily-improving app which has never given me reason to look around.

Read on for the rest of the "mobile studio" ...

Continue reading A musical scratchpad on your iPhone

A musical scratchpad on your iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 22 Dec 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)A musical scratchpad on your iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 22 Dec 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>audiobeatmakerguitartoolkitiphoneloopymusicBrett TerpstraMon, 22 Dec 2008 14:00:00 ESTAudiko: an easy (and free) way to create ringtoneshttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/12/audiko-an-easy-and-free-way-to-create-ringtones/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/12/audiko-an-easy-and-free-way-to-create-ringtones/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/12/audiko-an-easy-and-free-way-to-create-ringtones/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

When the iPhone came out, things looked pretty bleak in the ringtone department. You were supposed to use the sounds that came with the iPhone, and like it. Things loosened up a bit, as Apple thought it was just fine to buy them from the iTunes store. If you already had the music you wanted to make into a ringtone, too bad, you had to buy the track again, and only if it was designated an 'official' ring tone capable song.

Then things got easier, and people started using GarageBand to do the deed, and Apple seemed to be looking the other way. Then iToner came out, and now we have PocketMac Ring tone Studio, which are utilities you can buy and create the ringtones you want from your own music. We've also reported on how to create ringtones using just iTunes.

Somewhat under the radar is Aukido. It's a website you can visit, upload one of your music tracks, cut it to a proper length, and even do a nice fade at the end so it isn't abrupt. I've tried it on a few tracks I own and it worked great. You can then download the track as an MP3, or better yet, the iPhones native M4R format. Then you drag it into your iTunes ringtone folder and you are ready to go.

The site is also crammed full of other ringtones people have created and left on the site. That could be legally murky, and I've only used my own tracks. Your mileage may vary, but Aukido is worth a look, and an upload/download.

Audiko: an easy (and free) way to create ringtones originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 12 Dec 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Audiko: an easy (and free) way to create ringtones originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 12 Dec 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>Audikoaudio editingiPhoneringtonesMel MartinFri, 12 Dec 2008 10:00:00 ESTFirst Look: Public Radio Tunerhttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/06/first-look-public-radio-tuner/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/06/first-look-public-radio-tuner/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/06/first-look-public-radio-tuner/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Whenever I'm not listening to my iPod in the car, I'm usually have my radio tuned to National Public Radio, where I get my fix of classical and jazz music. American Public Media has created an iPhone app that caters to those of us who want to listen to a particular NPR station, but don't happen to be near a computer.

Public Radio Tuner (click opens iTunes) is a free application that compiles the Internet streams from more than 150 public radio stations into a single list. You scroll through the list to your preferred station, then there is a screen with a play button and volume control. Over Wi-Fi, the station I picked came in clear with no interruptions. I can turn off the iPhone's screen and it'll keep playing. However, when I tried to launch Public Radio Tuner using a fairly strong EDGE connection, the application insisted that it wasn't connected to the Internet. I had to utilize another program that activated an Internet connection, then relaunch Public Radio Tuner, before it would work over EDGE. After that, it works as advertised, though American Public Media warns that some stations require a 3G or Wi-Fi connection to work properly.

It's a simple application, and does what it does well. It still needs some improvement. I would love to see a search tool implemented so you can bypass scrolling through the long list of radio stations; search by station name or by location would be great. The ability to bookmark your favorite stations would be an additional bonus, as well as tweaking the application to recognize a connection over EDGE without having to launch another application.

First Look: Public Radio Tuner originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 06 Dec 2008 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)First Look: Public Radio Tuner originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sat, 06 Dec 2008 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>first lookFirstLookiPhoneipod touchIpodTouchpublic radioPublic Radio TunerPublicRadioPublicRadioTunersoftwareMegan LaveySat, 06 Dec 2008 19:30:00 ESTApple finally offers in-ear headphones for salehttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/02/apple-finally-offers-in-ear-headphones-for-sale/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/02/apple-finally-offers-in-ear-headphones-for-sale/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/12/02/apple-finally-offers-in-ear-headphones-for-sale/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

We were recently wondering what happened to the in-ear headphones that Apple promised way back in September. Today, we're happy to see that the online Apple Store is finally offering them for sale with free shipping and delivery listed as 7-10 days.

These headphones promise to be of higher quality than the standard buds that ship with the iPhone. In addition to better drivers and sound isolation they include the new combo mic / remote that offers volume control on certain late model iPods (basically, the presently shipping models only). If you manage to grab a pair let us know what you think.

[via Engadget]

Apple finally offers in-ear headphones for sale originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 02 Dec 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Apple finally offers in-ear headphones for sale originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 02 Dec 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>headphonesin-ear headphonesIn-earHeadphonesMat LuTue, 02 Dec 2008 12:00:00 ESTConcept: the iPod shuffle bracelethttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/11/30/concept-the-ipod-shuffle-bracelet/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/11/30/concept-the-ipod-shuffle-bracelet/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/11/30/concept-the-ipod-shuffle-bracelet/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,


This seems pointless and yet brilliant at the same time, somehow -- iPhone Savior has concept pictures of the iPod shuffle extended out into a bracelet. You can already find lots of straps and wristbands for the shuffle, and with that clip on it, it's designed to be jewelry anyway, so why not carry the premise out to its conclusion, right?

It's almost perfect, and yet weird enough that Apple would never go for it -- they'd much rather make the hardware, and leave the straps and hooks to third-party vendors, I think. Still, it's an interesting idea. What other kinds of jewelry could include the smallest version of "the world's most wearable" mp3 player? A shuffle necklace? Shuffle earrings?

Thanks, Rymon!

Concept: the iPod shuffle bracelet originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 30 Nov 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Concept: the iPod shuffle bracelet originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Sun, 30 Nov 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>bracelethardwareipodipod-shufflejewelrymp3wearable-ipodMike SchrammSun, 30 Nov 2008 19:00:00 ESTFound Footage: live rig with TouchOSChttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/11/24/found-footage-live-rig-with-touchosc/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/11/24/found-footage-live-rig-with-touchosc/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/11/24/found-footage-live-rig-with-touchosc/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

I recently offered a little introduction to integrating TouchOSC with Logic. In response, TUAW reader Tom Phillipson sent us a link to a video of his own integration of TouchOSC into his live setup. He modded a Novation ReMOTE 25SL Compact, extending its functionality via TouchOSC on his iPod touch. Check out the video to see (and hear) it controlling Ableton Live and an Access TI Snow.

Thanks for sharing, Tom!

Found Footage: live rig with TouchOSC originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 24 Nov 2008 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Found Footage: live rig with TouchOSC originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 24 Nov 2008 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>found footageFoundFootagemusictouchoscBrett TerpstraMon, 24 Nov 2008 07:00:00 ESTTouchOSC and Logic: look mom, no cables!http://www.tuaw.com/2008/11/13/touchosc-and-logic-look-mom-no-cables/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/11/13/touchosc-and-logic-look-mom-no-cables/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/11/13/touchosc-and-logic-look-mom-no-cables/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

The App Store is somewhat deluged with music-related applications. While I find many of the instruments to be novelties, the iPhone-based remote controls available for various Digital Audio Workstations have really caught my attention.

I've been playing around with the various musical remote controllers available for a while now. When the various iTouchMidi controllers were released, I got pretty excited. Problematically, I'm a fan of Logic Pro, and these intriguing but mostly Logic-incompatible controllers weren't up to snuff for my personal needs. It was a few weeks before I discovered the available OpenSound Control (OSC) apps in the App Store.

I've played with the lineup of controllers such as OSCemote and Mrmr (iTunes link), and both of those are a lot of fun with a good amount of potential. One stood out for me, though, and TouchOSC has officially become part of my home studio setup.

TouchOSC provides an array of control screens consisting of faders, rotary controls, buttons, toggles, XY pads, multi-faders/toggles and LEDs in various configurations. It communicates wirelessly with software and hardware which can receive and send the OSC protocol. I thought I'd offer a quick rundown of the steps I used to get from TouchOSC to Logic. I'm sure the same methods can be applied to other software, with a little variation.

An overview of the controller configurations in TouchOSC can be found in the gallery below. Read on for the lowdown.

Gallery: TouchOSC

Continue reading TouchOSC and Logic: look mom, no cables!

TouchOSC and Logic: look mom, no cables! originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)TouchOSC and Logic: look mom, no cables! originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>iphonelogiclogic proLogicPromidiosctouchoscBrett TerpstraThu, 13 Nov 2008 18:17:00 ESTUse Rock Band drum controller with GarageBandhttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/29/use-rock-band-drum-controller-with-garageband/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/29/use-rock-band-drum-controller-with-garageband/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/29/use-rock-band-drum-controller-with-garageband/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Here's a fun tip from Mac | Life that describes how to use the Rock Band drum controller with GarageBand.

In fact, they describe two set-ups; one cheap and one less so. The cheap setup requires GarageBand, the Rock Band USB drum kit and either the GamePad Companion, JunXion (trial) or the Xbox 360 Controller Driver if you've got the Xbox kit.

The pricier rig requires a paid version of JunXion ($95). After some simple configuration, you'll have a fully functional electronic drum kit with virtually no lag. Very cool indeed.

If you set this up, let us know how it goes.

Use Rock Band drum controller with GarageBand originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Use Rock Band drum controller with GarageBand originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>garagebandhow-tomusicrock bandRockBandDave CaoloWed, 29 Oct 2008 12:00:00 ESTFission 1.6 makes iPhone ringtones even easierhttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/28/fission-1-6-makes-iphone-ringtones-even-easier/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/28/fission-1-6-makes-iphone-ringtones-even-easier/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/28/fission-1-6-makes-iphone-ringtones-even-easier/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Rogue Amoeba has released version 1.6 of the nifty lossless audio editor Fission with a handy new feature: built-in iPhone ringtone saving. Fission has always been a great application for making relatively simple edits to audio files: cropping, trimming, cutting and pasting, etc. Now it makes turning MP3, AAC, AIFF, Apple Lossless, or WAV files into iPhone ringtones a one-step process. Once you save a file as a ringtone it will automatically be passed to iTunes for syncing to your iPhone.

Of course you can do it the old-fashioned way with GarageBand, but if your audio file just needs simple editing the Fission method will likely be easier and faster. In addition to the ringtone saving (and various bug fixes), version 1.6 allows you to insert periods of silence into a file and exactly set the location of the playhead.

Fission 1.6 is a free upgrade to registered owners; it's $32 for new users and a demo is available.

[via Macworld]

Fission 1.6 makes iPhone ringtones even easier originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 28 Oct 2008 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Fission 1.6 makes iPhone ringtones even easier originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 28 Oct 2008 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>fissioniPhone ringtonesIphoneRingtonesrogue amoebaRogueAmoebaMat LuTue, 28 Oct 2008 09:00:00 ESTiPhone headphone mic works with new laptops (and previous MBPs?)http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/15/iphone-headphone-mic-works-with-new-laptops/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/15/iphone-headphone-mic-works-with-new-laptops/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/15/iphone-headphone-mic-works-with-new-laptops/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

As our old friend Nik tipped us yesterday and Macworld's Jason Snell reported in his two-hour rundown of the MacBook Pro and MacBook updates, there's a stealth feature with these machines that is sure to please iPhone owners: the $29 US Apple Stereo Headset, included with the iPhone, works as a microphone on the MB/MBP unibody models.

While this might not be a top-line selling point for the laptops, it's actually a very nice added feature for users of VoIP software (Skype, Gizmo) or iChat audio conferencing. Trimming your laptop bag by skipping the USB headset (or the Bluetooth headset, for that matter) will save wear and tear on your back; not having to buy another device to do sound input for your laptop will save wear and tear on your wallet.

Update: One commenter notes that these headphones also work for sound input on the previous MacBook Pro ("MacBookPro4,1"); if anyone else can confirm, please chime in. Another asks if the clicker button works to control iTunes playback; per the Macworld article, it does indeed.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in.

iPhone headphone mic works with new laptops (and previous MBPs?) originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 15 Oct 2008 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)iPhone headphone mic works with new laptops (and previous MBPs?) originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 15 Oct 2008 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>headphonesiphonemacbookmacbook proMacbookPromicMichael RoseWed, 15 Oct 2008 09:40:00 ESTTUAW Review: WunderRadio http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/07/tuaw-review-wunderradio/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/07/tuaw-review-wunderradio/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/10/07/tuaw-review-wunderradio/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

WunderRadioThe geniuses at Weather Underground have done it again! Now they've capitalized on their insight into weather radio to bring the iPhone world WunderRadio. Available in the App Store (click opens iTunes) for US$5.99, WunderRadio provides NOAA Weather streams based on your current location.

But there's a lot more to WunderRadio than NOAA Weather. Weather Underground has joined with RadioTime.com to provide thousands of radio streams from around the world. Once again, based on your current location, WunderRadio provides a listing of nearby stations to provide you with local AM, FM, and Internet radio streams.

Enthusiasts of live police, fire, and EMS scanners get a bonus in the form of scanner feeds from ScanAmerica.us. With all of this content, who needs iTunes? Of course, the app has to do a good job of capturing the audio stream on the iPhone.

"The initial impetus behind this application was to provide iPhone users with instant access to local weather radio streams," said Alan Steremberg, President of Weather Underground. "During development, we decided to extend the scope of radio stations offered by working with RadioTime - the result is an easy to use portal to over 60,000 of the best talk, music and sports radio stations around the globe."

Read on for a quick review of WunderRadio.

Continue reading TUAW Review: WunderRadio

TUAW Review: WunderRadio originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 07 Oct 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)TUAW Review: WunderRadio originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 07 Oct 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>breaking newsBreakingNewsiphoneradioreviewsoftwarestreaming audioStreamingAudioSteven SandeTue, 07 Oct 2008 08:00:00 ESTNew iPhone products from Griffin Technologyhttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/17/new-iphone-products-from-griffin-technology/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/17/new-iphone-products-from-griffin-technology/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/17/new-iphone-products-from-griffin-technology/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Those inventive dudes at Griffin Technology have come up with two new products for iPhones.

Griffin Technology AirCurveThe AirCurve for iPhone and iPhone 3G is a really cool idea -- an amplifier that uses no power adapters or batteries. Instead, it amplifies the sound from the iPhone's speaker using a coiled waveguide (think of an old-fashioned cheerleader megaphone wrapped around into a helix, and you've got the concept). The AirCurve is made of translucent polycarbonate so you can see the curving waveguide. There's a pass-through slot so you can charge and sync your iPhone. The AirCurve is much less expensive than powered alternatives, selling for $19.99.

ClarifiThe other new product, Clarifi for iPhone 3G is an attractive iPhone 3G case with a difference. It has a built-in lens that slides into place for taking close-ups. While the normal iPhone 3G can focus up to about 18 inches away from the subject, the Clarifi's lens can bring you in as close as 4 to 6 inches. The suggested price is $34.99. By the way, it's not as cheesy as the telephoto lens for iPhone we covered last month.

Both products will be available in October from the Griffin Technology website and retailers.

New iPhone products from Griffin Technology originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)New iPhone products from Griffin Technology originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>amplifierbreakingnewscaseiphonelensSteven SandeWed, 17 Sep 2008 16:30:00 ESTRumor: new visualizer in iTunes 8 to be Robert Hodgin's Magnetospherehttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/05/rumor-new-visualizer-in-itunes-8-to-be-robert-hodgins-magnetos/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/05/rumor-new-visualizer-in-itunes-8-to-be-robert-hodgins-magnetos/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/05/rumor-new-visualizer-in-itunes-8-to-be-robert-hodgins-magnetos/#commentsFiled under: , , ,



On the heels of our earlier post about new features in iTunes 8 comes this post from video producer and designer Allan White, speculating that the new visualizer in iTunes might be Processing artist Robert Hodgin's amazing Magnetosphere, which was available up until a few months ago from The Barbarian Group (aka Robert's design company) as an iTunes plugin.

As Allan points out, there are two very strong pieces of evidence for this: 1) Allan emailed Robert, who told him Magnetosphere had been sold to a "third party", and 2) a twitter from Digg founder (and amateur Apple rumor mill) Kevin Rose on Sept. 2nd describing the new visualizer as "planet like objects wrapping around each other w/stars/light streams". As you can see in the image above, this sounds like a pretty apt description of Magnetosphere, which visualizes sound as particle explosions like supernovas. The Barbarian Group website's page for Magnetosphere says that "We've had a ton of interest in it, and we've got some exciting plans, but it's gonna take us a couple months to make it all happen."

Of course, nothing is confirmed, but it all points in the right direction. Personally, I'd love to see Magnetosphere on every iTunes user's screen, and not just because Robert is an amazing artist and also always gracious and helpful when I email him because my Processing particle system animations don't look as cool as his. The world just needs stuff this cool-looking everywhere.

(Thanks to Poopie for noticing that I'd accidentally added an "s" to "Hodgin"!)

[via Create Digital Music]

Rumor: new visualizer in iTunes 8 to be Robert Hodgin's Magnetosphere originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Rumor: new visualizer in iTunes 8 to be Robert Hodgin's Magnetosphere originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>itunes8processingvisualizerJoshua EllisFri, 05 Sep 2008 07:00:00 ESTCreate Digital Music rounds up iTouch / iPhone music appshttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/03/create-digital-music-rounds-up-itouch-iphone-music-apps/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/03/create-digital-music-rounds-up-itouch-iphone-music-apps/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/03/create-digital-music-rounds-up-itouch-iphone-music-apps/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,



The lovely and talented Peter Kirn over at Create Digital Music has posted a round up of music apps for the iPod / iTouch platform. The list includes tools for using your iPhone as a MIDI/OSC controller, making random weird digital art, visualizing your music and, er, listening to Snow Patrol's next album, amongst other apps. Peter's a thoughtful critic and his evaluations are pretty detailed and thorough.

If you're an aspiring iPhone musician / DJ/ sound designer, this is definitely a good place to start finding useful apps.

Create Digital Music rounds up iTouch / iPhone music apps originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 03 Sep 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Create Digital Music rounds up iTouch / iPhone music apps originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 03 Sep 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>audiodjiphoneipod-touchmidimusicsoundvisualizerJoshua EllisWed, 03 Sep 2008 10:00:00 ESTTapeDeck updated to 1.1, adds YouTube exporthttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/08/15/tapedeck-updated-to-1-1-adds-youtube-export/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/08/15/tapedeck-updated-to-1-1-adds-youtube-export/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/08/15/tapedeck-updated-to-1-1-adds-youtube-export/#commentsFiled under: ,

tape deck appMore audio news on the Mac today: the undeniably cute, surprisingly functional TapeDeck recording app (yes, it looks exactly like a cassette deck, and works pretty much the same way) has been updated to version 1.1. The headline features in this version are improved export capability (to most QuickTime-supported audio formats, including MP3 and AIFF), the option to record high-quality at 320kbps, and built-in YouTube exporting, complete with a charming tape-playing video.

TapeDeck's simplicity, and the very easy (possibly too easy) YouTube export, are bound to have plenty of Mac users releasing their quick & dirty audio recordings to the world in short order. TapeDeck (Universal Binary) is $25 and a demo is available at the tapedeckapp.com site.

Video of the YouTube export in action after the jump.

Continue reading TapeDeck updated to 1.1, adds YouTube export

TapeDeck updated to 1.1, adds YouTube export originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 15 Aug 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)TapeDeck updated to 1.1, adds YouTube export originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 15 Aug 2008 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>audioquicktimetapedeckyoutubeMichael RoseFri, 15 Aug 2008 12:00:00 ESTAmbrosia releases WireTap Anywhere audio capture toolhttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/08/15/ambrosia-releases-wiretap-anywhere-audio-capture-tool/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/08/15/ambrosia-releases-wiretap-anywhere-audio-capture-tool/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/08/15/ambrosia-releases-wiretap-anywhere-audio-capture-tool/#commentsFiled under: , ,


In the Mac audio software market, Ambrosia's WireTap Studio made a splash last year when it launched, offering lossless capture and audio editing with a fresh interface (and competing with incumbent heavyweight Audio Hijack Pro from Rogue Amoeba). Although it aimed at being an end-to-end solution for basic podcasting and audio production needs, the limitations of the built-in editor meant that high-end and pro users still needed to export from WTS to complete a project elsewhere. Since most pros end up in another editing environment anyway, why not have the underlying capture engine from WTS available to any recording application, and turn your Mac into a virtual patch bay?

That's the concept behind Ambrosia's new pro-level (and pro-priced at $129US) capture tool, WireTap Anywhere. Rather than the two-channel recording options of WTS, with the WireTap Anywhere preference pane you can route and mix multiple audio sources and deliver them to the recording application of your choice. Want Skype, iTunes and QuickTime sources all to end up in Peak or GarageBand? WTA has your back. You can check out several demo movies at Ambrosia's site or download the 13MB demo.

I've experimented with several combinations of recording software and application audio capture tools (Soundflower, Übercaster, Call Recorder, Audacity and AHP among them) and I've yet to find the perfect setup that allows me to combine live audio chat from Skype with music or sound effects played in QuickTime or iTunes, all audible to the remote call participants while being recorded cleanly and latency-free on my end; Übercaster comes awfully close, but the current 1.5.5 version still has issues with Skype dropouts. I'm looking forward to giving WTA a test run to see if it can meet the challenge.

Ambrosia releases WireTap Anywhere audio capture tool originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 15 Aug 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Ambrosia releases WireTap Anywhere audio capture tool originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 15 Aug 2008 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>ambrosiaaudiowiretap anywhereWiretapAnywhereMichael RoseFri, 15 Aug 2008 10:00:00 ESTPlay FLAC in iTunes with less messhttp://www.tuaw.com/2008/08/13/play-flac-in-itunes-with-less-mess/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/08/13/play-flac-in-itunes-with-less-mess/http://www.tuaw.com/2008/08/13/play-flac-in-itunes-with-less-mess/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Since switching to the Mac full-time last year, my only remaining complaint has been the abysmal (and finicky) FLAC support in iTunes. FLAC, or Free Lossless Audio Codec, is an open source lossless compression format that offers a nice compromise betweeen storing the uncompressed music file -- which is very large -- and converting the file to a lossy format like MP3 or AAC. Apple has its own lossless format, Apple Lossless, and Apple Lossless is great -- but I have lots and lots of live performances archived in FLAC and haven't wanted to spend the time converting all those files so that I can play everything in iTunes. About 6 months ago, I pretty much gave up and started just ripping CDs in Apple Lossless and using Max to convert favorite albums or performances.

Reader Mitchell wrote in and told us about Fluke, which aims to be an easier way to play FLAC files in iTunes. I've used other XiphQT based solutions, but none have worked as well as Fluke. Install Fluke and then open up a FLAC file with it (or drag your FLAC files to the icon) and it automatically runs a script that tricks iTunes into adding a FLAC file to the library. For the most part, tagging and even album art will be converted -- though I did have to add track numbers to some of the files I tested. It isn't as seamless as an actual FLAC player, like Cog, but it is certainly more hassle-free than some of the other script-based solutions I've used in the past.

Fluke is free and available for download here.

Thanks Mitchell!

Play FLAC in iTunes with less mess originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 13 Aug 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)Play FLAC in iTunes with less mess originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 13 Aug 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>apple losslessAppleLosslessflacflukeitunesChristina WarrenWed, 13 Aug 2008 17:00:00 EST