NerdGrind - How-to Computer Help - Tutorials - Tech and Gadget News » iTunes

Starbucks iPhone App Allows Customers to Buy Food and Drinks

Nerd Grind — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 19:00:49 +0000

Starbucks has released in app for the iPhone, so now besides getting free wi-fi from AT&T hotspots, you can now buy your coffee and songs from Apple iTunes at the same time.

Now available in the App Store, myStarbucks, and Starbucks Card Mobile let users find their nearest Starbucks and manage their Starbucks Card. If you live near one of 16 stores in the Seattle or San Francisco Bay Area, you can even pay for your purchases with the Starbucks Card Mobile app via barcode.

Some may argue that their are apps that already help you find a store location, and check your card balance, but some of those are pay-for apps, while Starbucks app is free, and offers a lot of functionality. For instance, rather than just finding a store with the built-in GPS or wi-fi locator, you can use the Starbucks app to search for stores that have a drive-thru, by operating hours to be sure they are open when you get there, and you can even invite friends to join you at that Starbucks.

Another cool feature is the ability to customize and save drink configurations, which you simply show to the barista.

The app was developed by Small Society. Great app!

iPhone 2.2 Firmware Update Now Available – Includes Google Street View and More

Nerd Grind — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 14:04:47 +0000

The latest iPhone firmware update is here and available for download. If you need any convincing before you snap it up, the update includes a Google Street View application and the ability to download Podcasts straight to the iPhone.

On the Street View front, all the bells and whistles are here. The public transit and walking directions are all in place.

Additionally, there were some bug fixes, Safari enhancements and the ability to toggle auto-text correction. The Podcast downloads have been reported to work flawlessly, as well. Get ye to the iTunes store and make your iPhone a little bit better.

Here are some post-update photos to get you excited, as if you needed anything more:

Ten Free Downloads with Zune Pass Subscription

Nerd Grind — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 16:01:54 +0000

Microsoft’s Zune Pass subscription just got better. For $15 per month, you have access to all the songs in the Zune Marketplace but now you also get to keep 10 songs as well. That means for the price of a CD, you get to "rent" all the songs you want per month PLUS keep 10 of your favorite songs. Sounds like a bargain to me.

Why pay 99 cents per song in iTunes when you can have access to a plethora of songs for $15 bucks a month? I really think they have iTunes beat.

I personally hate iTunes, but have already vested so much money in buying seasons of Lost which I can’t watch on the go anymore because I got rid of the iPhone for the Blackberry Bold. I may be switching to Zune Marketplace today.

Sony and Apple Cooperate to Bring DRM-Free Music to iTunes – Says Rumor

Nerd Grind — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:08:54 +0000

Rumors have been swirling around the Internet that Sony is going to be joining EMI to bring DRM-free music to Apple’s iTunes Plus service. The service is a higher-MP3-quality DRM-free option that exists within the Apple iTunes store. Thus far EMI is the only major label involved with the service, so the addition of Sony would be a major incentive for other labels to jump onboard. Still, this is currently just a rumor so stay tuned.

Thecus Announces their N3200 Pro NAS Will Feature an AMD Geode CPU

Nerd Grind — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 13:28:24 +0000

Thecus Technology has reworked their their N3200 and announced their N3200 Pro. The brand new NAS will now feature an AMD Geode CPU. The device has features aplenty, including three SATA drive bays for up to 3TB of storage, optional Raid 5 striping and an LCD display. The unit will also offer photo, iTunes and DLNA-compatible server options as well as browser-based management. The N3200 Pro will also offer a service called the "Web Surveillance Server," which will allow uses to take regularly scheduled photographs just by plugging in a USB webcam.

The company has yet to release any pricing or availability but the previous N3200 model costs $339.

Walmart Lowers Prices for Songs – Adds Firefox Support

Nerd Grind — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 14:14:12 +0000

Walmart is lowering some of the prices on its MP3 music store. Currently, most of the tracks cost 94 cents, but soon the "Top 25" songs will begin to be sold for 74 cents. Maybe this is an attempt to be more competitive for the upcoming holiday season.

Other changes to the store is that the store finally works with firefox instead of just IE7. Unfortunately, I’m still stuck using the incredibly and increasingly bloated Apple iTunes. Maybe now I can kick the hideous iTunes habit and still save a pretty penny or two. I’m in!

Firemail offers free landscape emailer for iPhone

Nerd Grind — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 12:05:04 +0000

If you would prefer to write your iPhone emails in landscape mode, you are in luck. Firemail has just released an app for the "little phone that could" that does just that. The best part is, wait for it, wait for it. It’s free. Free! As in, zilch dinero. TouchType released a similar application last month but theirs is a buck. Something tells me their program has just been made obsolete. Sorry guys. If a competitor of McDonald’s created a "free menu" to combat their popular dollar menu, which one would you choose? It’s not like any of it tastes that good anyways.

The program is out now. Head on over to the iTunes store to check it out. Also, pick up a McChicken sandwich while you are at it.

iTune 8.0.1 Released with Bug Fixes

Nerd Grind — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 18:43:32 +0000

Apple has released iTune 8.0.1, which fixes a lot of bugs, includes those involving High Definition TV (HDTV) episodes, Genius playback, iTunes visualizer, and accessibility. The new version also improves performance. Other fixes and improvements are:

Maintains Seamless playback of the current song when creating a new Genius playlist.
Improves syncing spoken menus to iPod nano.
Addresses the issue of deleting HD TV episodes when downloading.
Improves checking for updates from the App Store
Improves accessibility with VoiceOver.
Addresses problems syncing Genius results to iPod.

Click here to download iTune 8.0.1 directly, or go to Apple.com.

Apple Threatens to Shut Down iTunes Over Royalties

Nerd Grind — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:45:31 +0000

Apple has said it will shut down iTunes if song royalties increase. The Copyright Royalties Board (CRB) will meet today to decide on a request by major music labels to increase song royalties form 9 to 15 cents per song.

In the recently released testimony by Apple vice president Eddy Cue to the Board at the Library of Congress in April 2007, Mr. Cue tersely stated:

"If iTS (iTunes Store) were forced to absorb any increase in the mechanical royalty rates, the result would be to significantly increase the likelihood of the store operating at a financial loss – which is no alternative at all. Apple has repeatedly made clear that it is in this business to make money, and would most likely not continue to operate iTunes if it were no longer possible to do so profitably."

The Recording Industry Association of America, who works closely with the NMPA cited that digital sales rose 46% last year to $1.2 billion. Apple already pays approximately 70 percent of its track revenue to music labels. If royalties increase from 9 to 15 cents per track, it would be a 66 percent royalty increase.

CNET’s Greg Sandoval commented on the document’s curiously timed appearance on the eve of the rate increase decision, stating:

"When it comes down to mass appeal, Apple holds all the cards. If word gets out that music publishers are trying to stick it to consumers, and Apple is fighting to keep prices down on their behalf, well, there’s liable to be public backlash against the labels. If this thing follows the normal course, there would be calls for boycotts, protests and so on."

Apple current controls 85 percent of the online music market and is set to sell 2.4 billion tracks this year, according to Piper Jaffray.

If the royalty rate increase goes forward, the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) could face a steep decline in music sales if iTunes shuts down, and a resugence in illegal music sharing like back in the days of Napster.

How To Back Up Your iTunes Library – Video

Nerd Grind — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 23:05:31 +0000

After all the hard work you’ve done to build up your iTunes music library, you certainly won’t want to see it all disappear just because of an accident or hardware failure. Here’s a video on how to backup your iTunes library.

NerdGrind - How-to Computer Help - Tutorials - Tech and Gadget News » iTunes

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