music

Beyond showing its slick new cell phones at CTIA, Kyocera also demonstrated its new Bluetooth Music Gateway. This nifty device receives music from any stereo Bluetooth phone or device and then transfers the tunes to your home stereo via a standard RCA cable. You can see it here with the Kyocera E5000 music phone. Though not the first such device on the market, it still caught our eye due to its compact design and simple, easy-to-use functionality. It's also reasonably priced at $79.99. Look for a full review from CNET in the next couple weeks.

The company also … Read more

Last night at Pepcom in Orlando, Nokia demoed Real's recently-released version of Rhapsody for the N800 Internet Tablet. Or at least that was the plan: as I'm not actually at CTIA, I can't confirm that the demo ever really happened. What is certain, however, is that N800 owners who also subscribe to Rhapsody will now have direct access to the music service on their tablets (as long as there is a Wi-Fi connection available at the time). Users can search the entire Rhapsody catalog, browse their libraries, listen to playlists and Channels, and read editorial commentary--pretty much … Read more

In addition to unveiling its new UpStage phone Sprint announced today that it would lower over-the-air downloads from the Sprint Music Store from $2.50 per track to just $0.99. The new price will apply to all songs from the store and will go into effect in early April, the same time the UpStage formally hits stores (Sprint did not announce an official day). And yes, that wireless download includes a simultaneous download to your PC. The price drop is more than welcome, and we think it's no coincidence that it puts the carrier's music store on … Read more

Sprint kicked off CTIA 2007 today by unveiling the Samsung UpStage, the first U.S. version of the cell phone with the split personality, the Samsung Ultra Music. In an event designed to, ahem, upstage the competition, Sprint said the UpStage (aka the Samsung SPH-M620) would go on sale for $149 with a two-year contract, scheduled for the first week of April. The UpStage features a unique and innovative dual-sided design that successfully integrates a cell phone and an MP3 player into one device. It has its quirks to be sure but on the whole it's a sleek, satisfying … Read more

Leave it to the Museum of Modern Art's store to sell a product like this. The "Music Mug" might look like something you'd drink out of, but please don't. It's actually a speaker for portable music players, which the MoMA Store touts as "a new interpretation as the desktop coffee cup." Plug the cord into the headphone jack, drop your iPod, Zen, Zune, or what-have-you into the ceramic cup, and it'll play. Unfortunately, it doesn't charge it in the process. It's $42.

Cute, I guess. Um, next?

(Via Apartment Therapy)… Read more

Don't tell Boss Hogg, but Waylon Jennings has gone platinum again. His song "Theme from the Dukes of Hazzard (Good Ol' Boys)," is the first country music ringtone to reach the 1 million mark, according to Country Music Television. Jennings' song went platinum in the "Master Ringtone" category, meaning it uses the original recording as opposed to a synthesized version.

Setting the General Lee aside for a moment, this just shows how far ringtones have come. A few years ago, you were the bell of the ball if you had a mangled version of Beethoven … Read more

Readers of this space likely know our stand on Hello Kitty (or "Kitty Hell," as we call it), so there's no need to go over that again. So suffice it to say that we cringed at the thought and sight of this karaoke system from said feline.

The latest evil incarnation comes with two microphones, speakers, an LCD screen and a CD player that even has a shuffle button, according to Gadgetizer. And it closes up into a compact case so it can be carried anywhere. Oh joy.

We have just one question: How can Hello Kitty … Read more

Sure, the Internet is abuzz with news about the "YouTube killer" that several major media companies just announced yesterday, but let's not forget that other supposed YouTube killer, Joost. The broadband video start-up from the founders of Skype and Kazaa, which announced a major content partnership with Viacom last month, has a new deal that's sure to excite the party animal and nightclubbing crowd.

Joost, which is still in private beta, announced Friday that it's partnering with dance music hub Ministry of Sound's broadband video division, Ministry of Sound TV (MoSTV). When Joost launches … Read more

If the furniture industry wised up, it would start designing a slew of lines with embedded media technologies. The combination of smaller devices and wireless connections could make entertainment options as common as choices of color and upholstery. And like any other quality product, aesthetics don't have to be sacrificed in the process.

The "Music Sofa" by designer Giongkun Wuqiongkun (conventional spelling) proves this point. The piece is beautifully done and fully functional with a built-in CD player and wireless speakers that can stream MP3 audio from an audio system within range, according to Yanko Design. And … Read more