GigaOM » Apple

Quick tip: Reclaim space in a pinch on iOS devices

Alex Layne — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:00:17 +0000

I should have bought the 32 GB iPhone, I thought to myself as I tried to update GarageBand on my iPhone. I don’t have enough space to download the update, the dialog box tells me.

For those of us that tend to fill our phones to the brim with apps and media, this is a familiar scenario. However, there’s a neat trick to make it easier to temporarily reclaim space on your iOS device. In short, simply delete music on your device until you have enough room, and then resync (wirelessly, of course) with iTunes when you don’t need the extra space anymore. All of the music you deleted will be right back where it was.

Deleting music is easy. In the Music app, you swipe across the title of an artist/song/album, then hit the delete button that appears. By deleting all the albums by Modest Mouse on my phone, I was able to save about 600 MB of space, which was enough to download the GarageBand update. A quick resync later, and my music was back.

If you have any more tips on saving space in iOS, tell us about them in the comments.

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ITunes Match international rollout premature; refunds being issued

Darrell Etherington — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 13:54:36 +0000

If it seemed on late Wednesday like Apple’s rollout of iTunes Match to basically every international market where the iTunes music store is available was too good to be true, that’s because it was; Apple is telling customers on Thursday that beyond Brazil and the U.S., Match “will not function.”

The link that leads to iTunes Match in international stores still functions, surprisingly, allowing you to view the relevant sign-up page without issue, as you can see in the screenshot below. But signing up still doesn’t actually provide access to the service.

But even if you followed that link and signed up early like I did, Apple has you covered: The company is reportedly issuing refunds to customers who attempted to get in early. According to reports on Twitter, contacting iTunes Support about an ability to use the service results in a reversal of charges. It’s not clear whether charges will be reimbursed without first contacting Apple directly.

ITunes Match allows users to scan and match their entire music library in order to access it from anywhere on Apple’s servers. It launched in the U.S. to mixed reviews, and it was recently introduced in Brazil, too, alongside the launch of the iTunes Store there. While Apple doesn’t appear quite ready to launch it internationally, it is clearly headed in that direction, since it already has different pricing in place for the service’s annual subscription fees, specific to each market.

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iTunes Match rolling out internationally (and maybe accidentally)

Darrell Etherington — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 00:11:03 +0000

Apple is apparently in the process of setting up iTunes Match (its music library matching and cloud storage service) for international customers. According to reports, users can now access the iTunes Match sign-up page from this direct link. As of this writing, it was working here in Canada, where Match costs $27.99 per year.

I managed to sign up for iTunes Match using the link, too, though iTunes prompted me to log out and log back in because something had gone wrong. Upon logging back in and trying the link again, the purchase link was replaced with an “Add this computer” option, but that led to the same error message. Nevertheless, I received email confirmation that my iTunes Match subscription had indeed gone through, and others are reporting receiving the same.

Still, attempts to get the service actually matching and uploading my library haven’t yet been successful, which leads me to believe Apple didn’t yet intend to reveal this to the public. The Match sign-up page is also reported to be live in the U.K., Spain and New Zealand, and other international iTunes stores. Pricing varies by location. If you’ve had any luck signing up or have found the link works for you, let us know in the comments.

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TuneUp could improve your iTunes Match experience

Darrell Etherington — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 20:43:08 +0000

An app that just arrived on the Mac App Store on Thursday could help improve your initial iTunes Match experience, thanks to a host of features it includes for cleaning up your iTunes library. A clean collection with plenty of accurate metadata is probably easier for Apple’s Match servers to handle.

TuneUp is actually a suite of tools, including Clean, Cover Art, DeDuper and Tuniverse. The first three will be of particular interest to people with huge, unwieldy iTunes libraries dreading the iTunes Match scan and upload process. Here’s a quick look at what they do:

Clean. Fixes mislabeled tracks and fills in missing song info, using “acoustic fingerprint technology” that actually uses the track itself as the basis for filling in track information, which it retrieves from the same Gracenote MusicID database that iTunes itself uses when you rip tracks into iTunes from CDs.
Cover Art. Scans your library and finds all cover art, including multiple choices for each, in a convenient tool that lets you approve each selection individually or save them all at once. Great if you’ve got a lot of obscure music that isn’t available on Apple’s own iTunes Store, and want to have cover art show up in iTunes Match uploaded tracks.
DeDuper. If you own a lot of “Best Of” albums or compilations, or you’ve had a bad transfer of an existing library from one Mac to another, you may have a lot of duplicate tracks. This third tool included in TuneUp Goes through and finds duplicates, then presents you with a convenient list of potential duplicates so that you can review each and make sure a rare live bootleg isn’t deleted by accident. Also, TuneUp’s DeDuper uses “acoustic fingerprinting,” just like the Clean feature, so it goes deeper than just surface information like track and artist name.

The final component of TuneUp, called Tuniverse, is an intelligent sidebar that displays upcoming concert information, bios, tweets, YouTube videos and other content related to the artist you’re currently listening to, as well as providing sharing options for Facebook.

TuneUp has been around for a while, but it has celebrated its Mac App Store availability with a sale of 20 percent off the regular sticker price for a lifetime subscription. That makes the whole bundle just $39.99 for a version you can install on multiple Macs, instead of the standard price of $49.95 for a one-computer license. Plus, it’s a timely arrival for a tool that could clear up some confusion as you move your library to the cloud.

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A few of our favorite things: Headphones and headsets

Darrell Etherington — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 21:32:41 +0000

This holiday season, we’ll be running a series of weekly features called “A few of our favorite things,” where we round up some gift suggestions based on the gear that has passed through our offices either for review purposes or through personal purchases. We’ll tell you what we think is the best gear out there, for a variety of product categories and budgets.

For our inaugural edition of “A few of our favorite things,” we’ll be looking at an essential product for iPhone, iPad and Mac owners alike: headphones. Mostly, we’ll be talking about stereo headsets that also feature mics and remote controls which work with late-model Macs and iOS devices.

Best all-around stereo headset: Bowers & Wilkins C5. These in-ear beauties are great at sound isolation, audio fidelity and comfort, and they look great, too. Durable cord construction will mean you shouldn’t have to worry too much if you get snagged on a fence or other outcropping, and the unique looped excess cable design at the earbuds keeps them firmly in place, unlike a lot of other in-ears we’ve tested. The only real downside is their price: at $179.99, they’re not cheap.

Best stereo headset under $100: Marshall Minor FX Earphones. These are a fraction of the price of the C5 at $64.95, and still manage to exude a lot of style. They sound good, too, but the EarClick tech isn’t quite as good as the C5 in terms of making sure they stay put inside your ear canal. Plus, they’re gold, and frankly, we’re a little more partial to silver.

Best over-ear stereo headset: SteelSeries Siberia Neckband Headset. These are also relatively inexpensive, retailing for $79.99 direct from the SteelSeries website. SteelSeries normally makes headsets for gamers, and these live up to that tradition, providing strong bass response and immersive, rich sound that you may find surprising for the price. That, and the unique design of the Siberia which moves the band to behind your neck instead of on top of your head, preventing bad hair days and working perfectly with winter hats, makes these our favorite this year.

Best gaming headphones: Turtle Beach Ear Force PX5. If you’re gaming on a Mac, you’re probably in a relatively small minority, but the Turtle Beach Ear Force PX 5 is a great pair of headphones for you. They accept optical in (which all Macs have), do true Dolby 7.1 surround sound, and are wireless. All those features will cost you, though, as these ring in at $249.95. Budget gamers should look at the SteelSeries Siberia.

Best stereo headset for workouts: Sennheiser Adidas PMX 680i. Sennheiser actually makes multiple varieties of activewear headsets for the iPhone and iPod touch with integrated remotes, but the PMX 680i ($69.95) is the best in our opinion. They won’t break down no matter how much you sweat, nor will moisture interfere with audio. The neckband keeps them firmly in place without being uncomfortable while jogging or even doing jumping jacks, and the neon yellow accents make them very night-visible.

That’s our list, but feel free to argue our picks or chime in with your own suggestions in the comments.

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Apple launches iTunes Match in the U.S.

Darrell Etherington — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 18:26:53 +0000

You no longer have to be a developer to access iTunes Match, the subscription music service from Apple that scans your entire iTunes library and makes it available for download on any of your iOS or Mac devices. You can sign up by downloading iTunes 10.5.1, so long as you’re in the U.S.

iTunes Match is a $25 per year subscription service, through which Apple matches tracks in its extensive iTunes Store catalog to ones in your own personal library, regardless of their original source, and makes available 256 Kbps AAC DRM-free tracks for download on any device associated with your Apple ID. If Apple can’t match a track from your library, it’ll upload your original file instead, making sure that everything is available to all devices. Apple initially said it would deliver iTunes Match by the end of October, and obviously missed that timeline by a couple of weeks.

To sign up for iTunes Match, all you need to do is install iTunes 10.5.1, which is available now through Apple.com, and then click on the iTunes Match link on the iTunes Store main page. To sign up, you’ll need an Apple ID and an active payment method on your account to pay the initial $24.99 fee for the first year of service. Be aware that the initial scan and upload of your library could take up to a few hours depending on how many tracks you have.

Also note that as of this writing, iTunes Match has temporarily suspended new sign ups and is advising users to “check back in an hour,” due to overwhelming demand. Note also that your iOS devices will need to be running iOS 5 or later to use the service, and there’s a 10 device and 25,000 song limit.

How is the service working for you so far, if you managed to get in, and who’s planning to sign up, once Apple opens up registration again?

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Shuffler.fm brings blog-based music discovery to iPad

Darrell Etherington — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 17:07:57 +0000

Shuffler.fm finally released its free, official iPad app for public consumption in the App Store on Tuesday, after talking about its plans for an Apple tablet version first in August. The music discovery tool pulls its content from music blogs, combining them in a Flipboard-style experience specifically aimed at helping you build your listening library.

Unlike other social music discovery tools, Shuffler.fm isn’t basing its findings on your existing tastes, as Last.fm or Pandora do. Instead, it aggregates and organizes content from popular online music blogs, like Pitchfork, TheMusic.FM, Stereogum and many more. Content is then organized by genre-based channels, which also help populate a playlist of tracks you can play back from the bottom of the iPad interface while you read about the very songs you’re listening to.

The idea behind Shuffler.fm is great, since it provides an alternative to algorithm-based recommendations in services like Pandora that often provide quite a narrow view of a user’s listening habits. By using curated blog-posted content, Shuffler.fm allows users to be much more broad in their approach to music discovery while also providing the advantages of some kind of editorial filter to prevent information overload.

Shuffler.fm’s iPad app design is simple, even more so than its web-based version. But through its simplicity it does a good job of getting out of the way of the music while at the same time presenting it in a visually attractive way. The presence of the blog-fueled radio playback interface, with its bookmarking (with a free Shuffler.fm account) and sharing options (email, Facebook and Twitter), also helps ensure that you agree with what you are reading about tracks and that you can share them with friends if you come across something you think they should hear.

That sharing element could become even more integrated in the future, as Shuffler.fm co-founder Tim Heineke told me that there are plans in the works “to connect [Shuffler.fm] more to your current social network of sharing,” but that there’s nothing definitive he can share at this point.

The only thing I’m not crazy about in Shuffler.fm is that to read full articles about the tracks in question, the app uses an in-app browser to direct you to the website of origin. I’ve been spoiled by nicely formatted reading views from apps like Flipboard (for some articles, though not all) and Instapaper. But at least Shuffler.fm is directing some traffic back to the websites that supply its content, which in the end is better than my selfish desire to read things in a slightly more easy-to-digest format.

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GarageBand comes to the iPhone and iPod touch

Darrell Etherington — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 18:23:59 +0000

Apple has introduced an update for the iOS version of GarageBand that makes it compatible with iPhones and iPod touches, too. The now universal app is available as a free update for owners of the iPad version, or it’s $4.99 if you’re buying it for the first time.

The iPhone version is pretty much the same as its iPad cousin, with the same multitouch and smart instruments, eight tracks of editing layers and audio export capabilities. But Apple has taken the opportunity to refine the product with some new tools and features, too.

Smart instruments gain custom chord support, so that you can make your own to strum. This allows seasoned musical pros to get off the beaten path and produce some pleasant and more unique sounds, and amateurs like me to do terrible things that no one should be forced to listen to. You can also change time signatures to 3/4 and 6/8, change the key of your currently active song and export to iTunes as AAC or AIFF format. There’s also an Arpeggiator (tones in a chord played in rapid succession, not all at once) option for the Smart Keyboard.

All the new tools seem designed to provide more fun for the experienced set, while maintaining the low barrier for entry that makes GarageBand such a generally appealing app to begin with.

My initial unskilled hands-on reveals a product that doesn’t lose much appeal compared to the iPad version, though the smaller screen might feel a little more cramped to some. Apple does a good job of simplifying control interfaces, however, to avoid making the on-screen space feel claustrophobic.

If you’ve been left out of the iOS GarageBand party before now because you didn’t own an iPad, now’s the time to add your voice to the chorus, even if you can’t carry a tune or even keep time to save your life. Note that you’ll need a device at least capable of running iOS 5 to use the app, even though the software requirements actually only need iOS 4.3 or higher.

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November has arrived, but iTunes Match has not

Darrell Etherington — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 16:01:52 +0000

Apple announced at its iPhone 4S event that iTunes Match would launch by “late October,” but that self-imposed deadline has come and gone, and consumers have yet to gain access to the service. ITunes Match provides iTunes users the ability to access their entire library in the cloud for a yearly subscription fee, and it’s been in testing with developers since August.

Even developers are running into problems accessing the service, however, since the version of the iTunes 10.5.1 beta that makes it possible to scan and upload your library is now expired, reports Dan Moren on Twitter. Apple, which wipes the library of prerelease Match users on occasion, did so most recently last Thursday, so some developers could be stuck without any service at all. Apple has made the trial period not part of the actual paid subscription that developers sign up for, however (time starts when the service actually launches), so it’s not like they’re being financially inconvenienced.

This isn’t the first time Apple’s missed an announced launch date, but it is rare that Apple will come out and say publicly that a product will ship at a certain time and then miss that window. More often, the company keeps product plans and release time lines extremely vague until it can guarantee a release.

The recent wiping of the developer Match libraries and the lapse of the beta expiry both point to a fairly imminent release, however, and I would expect Apple to either speak up soon about a revised time line or just launch the product itself. From what I’ve seen of Match (and it’s been a while now), the service looks fairly close to being ready for public use.

We contacted Apple for comment on the delay and will report back if and when we hear more.

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iTunes in the Cloud goes international

Darrell Etherington — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 15:04:40 +0000

One part of Apple’s iCloud service that went live originally back in June is “iTunes in the Cloud.” This lets you automatically or manually download new books, apps or songs purchased with your iTunes account on one device to any other device on which that account is signed in. Originally, music wasn’t included in the mix for users outside the U.S. Now it is.

Depending on where you live, you should now be able to see Music listed in the Store section of your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch’s Settings.app under “Automatic Downloads.” Also, you can find a “Purchased” tab in the iTunes Store on iOS devices, with a list of all the tracks you’ve bought through iTunes with your ID. Each of these can then be downloaded to your device by tapping the cloud icon next to the album or track name.

So far, MacRumors is reporting that users in the U.K. and Canada are seeing these features go live. I can personally vouch for them now being available to Canadian users. Any other international readers care to weigh in on “iTunes in the Cloud” availability in your neck of the woods?

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