Apple Music arrives on Android as a beta

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In a few short months, Apple Music has picked up millions of followers, and it has managed to do this whilst remaining exclusive to iOS. Now that changes. Today Apple's music app makes the jump to Android.

Currently in beta, Apple Music for Android is a free download, and includes a three-month free trial of the service. After this, should you want to continue using it, you'll have to cough up $9.99 per month. For the most part, this is a direct port of the iOS version of the app, but as it is in beta there are some notable differences.

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Pandora makes music discovery even easier

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Music services are an ever increasing market, with new ones popping up all the time. There are a few that have distanced themselves from the pack, though. One of those is Pandora which takes a song and analyzes it in an effort to create a station with similar music. You can argue if this works, but it does in most cases, at least based in my experience,

Now Tim Westergren's little hobby is launch an enhanced discover service in an effort to make it even easier to find music.

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Inateck BH1001 Wireless Sport Headset [Review]

Inateck BH1001

Bluetooth headsets with Sport in the title usually feature a plastic band which goes around the back of your neck. This not only makes you look a bit strange it can also be uncomfortable.

Inateck's headset does away with this and just has a thin wire between the two earpieces. There's a control unit on the right-hand side to allow you to adjust the volume, accept calls, pair with your phone, etc, and this also houses the built-in mic.

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Yahoo brings Jimmy Kimmel Live concerts to its platform

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Music has always been a part of late night television, regardless if it's the shows own group or a special guest performing live. To catch most of these acts you need to watch live or on demand and obviously need a TV. But now you can catch some of it right on your computer.

Yahoo is announcing the addition of concerts on Jimmy Kimmel Live and it kicks off tonight. If you tune into the site you can watch Duran Duran beginning at 11:35pm CT. The band just released its 14th studio album titled "Paper Gods".

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Logitech announces affordable z533 Multimedia Speakers

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Bluetooth speakers are very convenient; they are typically lightweight and portable. Even though some wireless speakers sound great, you are usually better off with a wired connection when possible. For instance, if you want to connect speakers to your desktop or laptop, and they will never leave your desk, Bluetooth is a bad choice -- go wired, bro!

Today, Logitech announces a wired-only 2.1 speaker system that looks great, and is remarkably affordable. The z533 Multimedia Speakers will look beautiful on your desk. Will you buy them?

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Pandora buys Ticketfly, plans to bring artists to the fans

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Regardless of what genre of music you like, concerts are a fun way of enjoying the sound first hand. Studio albums are great, but there's something to be said for the live experience. Pandora seems to agree and wants to begin making this connection between fans and artists.

The streaming service has announced the acquisition of Ticketfly, which is one of the leading ticket sellers online. It claims to have booked "over 16 million tickets to more than 90,000 events".

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Rock Jaw Alfa Genus V2 -- quality earphones at an affordable price [Review]

Rock Jaw Alfa

When you buy earphones you usually have to choose between audio quality and how much you want to spend. British company Rock Jaw Audio, however, is on a mission to provide a strong listening experience at an affordable price.

There's a definite grey theme here, supplied in an attractive grey box, the earpieces themselves are aluminium with a smart grey finish, they come with a selection of rubber ear tips so you can get a good fit. There's also a clip for the cable and a soft carrying pouch. They have an in-line microphone for making phone calls and the earpieces have 8mm dynamic drivers. The jack plug is gold-plated, it's a 90 degree design though so may be awkward connecting to some devices. They have a 1.2 metre long cord, which is fine for listening to a smartphone in your pocket but a bit limiting for other situations.

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Spotify for Chromecast is music to your ears

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Music streaming services seem to be a dime a dozen these days, with plenty of choices and new ones cropping up all the time. But how do you pipe that sound through your home entertainment system? There are a number of options, but the latest is Spotify for Chromecast.

The streaming service is arriving on Google's tiny HDMI dongle, which was just recently updated. Spotify claims this was highly requested and now users can have it.

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Amazon scores Universal Music for your listening pleasure

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Amazon Prime added music streaming to sweeten the service, going with the free two day shipping, video streaming and more. The problem in doing this is inevitably the record labels who can be a hassle to negotiate with.

Now the online retailer is announcing one more big addition to its music streaming service. The company has managed to sign Universal Music Group to bring customers a greater variety of choice in playing their tunes.

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Such desperation, Apple

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Look what email greeted when I rolled out of bed and in front of the computer this AM (Pacific Time). Apple Music wants my business. That's not happening. After signing up for the three-month trial, which ends September 30, I returned to using Chromebook Pixel LS and Nexus 6. The streaming service supports neither device, so, yes, I turned off autorenewal.

This brief post is a reminder to you to do likewise, if having signed up you're not planning to keep the service. Apple Music turns on autorenew by default, so if you want out, don't wait. Opt out now. On the other hand, if you enjoy the service, do nothing and listen. You're covered.

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The day the music didn't die -- Earbits is now supported by You42

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In June of 2014 music streaming service Earbits closed down. It seemed a shame, but the big players in the game like Spotify and Rdio are hard to compete with. However, Earbits had a niche, allowing new artists to be heard and discovered by record labels. The shutdown lasted only three days and the company emerged again.

While we knew it had found financial backing, details were not made available. Now finally, after more than a year, we learn that it was acquired by You42.

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Spotify gets a new About screen with more features

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Music streaming sevices need to differentiate in order to stand out and hold market share. Features, as well as the song offerings, matter. Spotify is in a tight race with opposition from Google, Rdio, Apple and others. That means innovation is key.

The service has updated its "About" screen, bringing new features for its customers. Included are biographies with full screen browsing, global rankings based on monthly listeners, letting customers know where people are discovering the most popular artists, and even which city the artist is most popular in.

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Tidal goes back in time as it starts to sell CDs

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Music streaming service Tidal seems to be going back to the old school ways, as well as morphing into an e-commerce site as it has now started selling physical music formats (i.e. CDs).

Prince is selling his new album, HITNRUN PHASE ONE, exclusively on Tidal, both in physical format copies and through downloads on the site.

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Could Bitcoin-powered micro-payments help reduce piracy and ensure artists get paid?

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The likes of Adam Ant and Billy Bragg are among the names backing the Free At What Cost? project. Launched by British composer Hélène Muddiman, the idea behind the campaign is to ensure that artists and content creators get a fair deal by charging for online views and listens.

The basic idea is to protect content against free viewing in an extension of the idea of simple DRM. While the logistics are still to be fully detailed, one of the proposals is to use a Bitcoin-like payment system to enables people to pay artists directly for access to their content.

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Rdio gets new speakers and better Smart TV experience

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Whole house audio has come into vogue and systems abound, if you care to pay the price. But none will work without content, and that's where services like Rdio come into the picture. The streaming music sevice has turned into a thriving ecosystem that competes with the other big players in the market.

Now it gets a little more capable as the company announces new whole-home audio compatibility and enhancements to Smart TVs.

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