Slashdot Mirror
Apple, Motorola Plan An iTunes-Friendly Phone
PabloJones writes "Apple and Motorola have come together to create a new mp3-enabled cell phone, according to this Reuters article. It says that the device will be capable of storing about 12 songs, and will be fully integrated with iTunes. Perhaps this is a beginning of a new relationship between the two companies, after the PowerPC problems between the two in recent years."
It sounds like a great idea, I have to say I have been wating for such a cellphone for a while. I do have a few potential issues though. Battery life and size. While the Palm Cell phones were cool, they would eat a battery in about an hour and were about as sleek as carrying a forty pound rock.
I thought that the whole reason Apple was winning because they weren't selling 12-song devices.
12 songs? like an... album? what do they got in their, a hamster? it can't possibly be that hard to find somewhere to stuff a couple more MP3s in a cell phone. why so stingy?
It Is the Nature of Information to Transgress Artificial Boundaries
I don't know why this couldn't be the iPhone. Co-branding is in Apple's past.
Then again, one could read that this announcement came from Motorola's web site as an indication that it won't be the last deal with a phone manufacturer. Maybe the iPhone is just further down the road.
Apple has done this before.
The Quicktake 200 Camera was a Fuji DS7 camera - they were no different. The Apple Quicktake however used a better JPEG compression technology (read as quicktime) - that was especially developed for the Quicktake. Apple also created it's own system level camera reading and editting software.
I think this could represent a possible new hardware direction and unlike many have suggested I think this DOES possibly mean an Iphone from Apple could be in the works. Except this time, unlike the iPod that is Windows and Mac; the iPhone will be for Macs ONLY, the Moto version will be for everyone else.
Semi unrelated - a smaller footprint of iTunes would also be easier to emulate - possibly giving Linux a better shot at a quality iTunes solution.
Yell & scream & rant & rave... it's no use... you need a shaaaave ~ Bugs Bunny
...from their failure to license the Mac technology. This time around, their going to license their iPod technology to every Tom, Dick and Harry and establish it as an industry standard.
Good for them!
The multi-million dollar cell-phone ringer market just SHIT ITS PANTS.
*squirt* *plop*
If people can pop some songs onto their phone, why pay a dollar or two for a 10 second clip that sounds like it was recorded on an 8-trak?
hehe. Fuck'em.
until I can get ALL the functionality of both devices in one package.
With only 12 songs, I'd still need my iPod for real music needs. Will the phones have headphone jacks? I sure don't want to listen to music from a single crappy phone speaker.
While this is a step in the right direction, it's not enough.
When I can fully replace my iPod, cell phone, and PDA with one device, i'll buy.
First of all, the 48mb seems a little odd to me. I guess it's a 64mb device, with 16 used for the phone's OS/address book/ringtones/etc. But more importantly, why not make it hold 74 minutes of music. One full CD. I think that would be ideal for tiny storage. That would be 74mb, and if you include the 16 for the phone's other requirements you get 90 megs. That means that using 96 mb of memory on the phone, you could hold the OS and such, and 80 minutes of audio. Seems fantastic to me.
That said, I have three other comments. First, how 'bout bluetooth so you can use your Bluetooth headset to listen to music? Second, will the memory be expandable? That would be great. Third, can you use your files (MP3, AAC, etc) as ringtones? Those would be three nice things.
It will be interesting to see how all this pans out.
Comment forecast: Bits of genius surrounded by a sea of mediocrity.
Press Release from Motorola
Yes, I understand that might be considered karma whoring, but at least it's informative. Enjoy.
-s4xton
My name is Aaron Landry, and I approve this message.
Now how freakin' cool would it be, when you put a freind on hold to take another call, poop, etc. It would play the music (in a somewhat reduced qaulity) like companies do when they put you on hold. just remember to properly liscense it.
The hell with an iTunes Moto phone - I want an Apple mobile phone. It's time for Apple to shake up the mobile device market again with a leap to something that competes with the Treo 600, with fancy HW and a UI so simple it's legal to use while driving. C'mon, Jobs - you've reinvented a better Walkman, now let's see you reinvent a better PC on top of that!
--
make install -not war
songs on the phones, what's the point in buying an iPod?
Quite sensible really, if they want to continue with the iPod, which I'm sure they do.
they still do.
Go to iphone.org
So...do you suppose the phone will be available in colors other than white?
The Nokia 6230 (and the forthcoming 6260) are somewhat more impressive, using interchangeable MMCs to store up to and above 128Mb of data. And I don't think iTunes compatibility is a great reason to endure such lousy storage capacity.
The iTunes MUSIC STORE uses AAC encoded music (an open standard) with Apple's proprietary FairPlay DRM.
The iTunes APPLICATION, which is usuable with our without the iTunes Music Store, supports MP3, AAC, AAC+Fairplay, WAV, Audible audiobooks, Apple Lossless Compression (ALC), possibly more I can't remember. It can rip to MP3, AAC, or ALC.
They're not exactly the hottest name in cellphones right now.
I just see another device that doesn't need to be combined with a phone. I just want my phone to make calls and maybe sync contacts with my computer. Phone battery life barely lasts long enough for some days, even without all the fancy gadgets. Putting two good things together doesn't always make a better product. It's like the one Simpsons where Homer is eating out of a can and it says, "Gum and Nuts: Together at Last."
Um, my phone barely makes it through the day on its extended life battery. How the heck is it going to last all day if I use it as my music source as well?
I might be alone, but I really prefer a Sidekick (or Blackberry, I spose...) for my net, email and PDA functions and my cell for phone calls and little else. Other than the occasional game of Jeopardy, I rarely use my cell for much besides a mobile phone.
"The pie shall be cut in half and each man shall receive.....death. I'll eat the pie."
Apple mobile phone? I want one!
Just take the contents of the iPod mini, throw in the circuitry of a mobile phone, and put it into a regular iPod case. Make the phone only work with headphones/headset. Now you've bundled a phone in the same space as an iPod.
The iPhonePod would support iSync, which mean that the calendar and address book are automatically sync'ed along with music when it's docked.
Subsequent models can possibly add better input-level functionality to this device for full PDA-level replacement, but I'd take this now. I have my Palm Pilot. I have my cell phone. And I want to get an iPod. But I want just one device.
I can only dream...
OK, fine, running PalmOS. But please do it!! Of course, we all know Apple won't, because Jobs doesn't think Apple can rule the phone/pda market. The thing is, we all know that if Apple spent twenty minutes thinking about it, they could come up with a device that blows away what's out there. Treos are cool, but such things try to do too much and do it all in a mediocre manner. Apple could easily combine the simplicity of their interfaces with the tools required.
Here's one message I wish cell phone manufacturers would get .... there is no necessary reason a cell phone must look like a phone. It doesn't have to be cradled in my neck in a way that distracts me from driving AND screws up my spine. Make a headset essential and build a device that has a more practical shape for what it does. Then build different shaped devices for different needs (and then maybe I can finally get my dream emate-2)!
The poster of the story got it a bit wrong. It's not a dozen songs, it is dozenS of songs. So think more like a couple of albums worth, not one album worth of songs.
Remember that most songs will probably be full 128 kbit iTunes Music Store AAC files. Judging from the songs I've bought from the iTMS each song will take up around 3.5 MB so a dozen will take 42 MB. That adds up pretty quick. You could fit about 36 songs onto a 128 MB flash card, which sounds reasonable for a flash-based cell phone/MP3 player.
Sapere aude!
A 12-song player is not all that exciting. However, if they make it so you can download songs to it over the phone, then it becomes a lot more interesting. Keep your collection on your home computer with your always-on broadband connection, and grab songs 12 at a time for playback on the phone.
It's funny to see so many people griping about the 12 song capacity of the phone. Lets not forget all the cries of "why the hell would anyone want to buy an iPod when you can get something so much cheaper?" Then the iPod Mini came out and instead of griping about it competing against the product from another company, they cried "but who will buy this? Why not spend $50 more and get a full size iPod that holds so much more music?"
C'mon people. Have faith in Apple. They seem to know what they're doing (finally...we'll just forget about the Cube...). When your son or daughter (who probably helped put the iPod Mini on the 25 year (slight exaggeration) waiting list is at the wireless store comparing phones, are they going to be looking at the phones that have no ring-tone options, crappy ring-tone options, or the cool new phone that plays music from iTunes (considering they probably already own an iPod and iPod Mini).
I see a lot of "12 song only" complaints but I bet three months after release, this will be a wildly popular phone.
"He uses statistics as a drunken man uses lampposts...for support rather than illumination." - Andrew Lang
Welcome to Slashdot, Cynical haven.
Remember, Slashdotters panned the iPod when it was introduced. They're doing exactly the same thing here. I really get a kick out of reading some of these braindead posts.
Battery life!
OGG!
What? Only 12 songs?!
It's not a Newton!
Apple is dying!
I won't buy it until it has X feature
AAC sucks, X format r0x0rs yo!
Okay okay, so some people are posting positive comments, but they seem to get lost in the pointless hand waving from the haters. Thanks everybody - In a years time, this phone will be a success and you'll STILL be bitching about not having OGG support on X device.
What exactly are people supposed to use this for? 12 songs is 48 minutes. You're not going to connect it to your car and listen to it on the way to work. You're not going to hold the phone up to your ear for minutes at a time just so you can listen to some nice music (that is the same every time). It's way overkill for fancy ring tones. The speaker sucks, compared to the iPod earphones; it's designed for phone quality, not CD quality. Ever been confused whether you were listening to hold music on the phone or your car stereo? Me neither.
Two years ago, Chris Galvin was at the healm of Motorola, now it is Ed Zander. To say that the difference is night and day would still be an understatement. Ed Zander actually works for a living. The market knows this, and so does Apple.
"To those who are overly cautious, everything is impossible. "
(finally...we'll just forget about the Cube...)
I bought a Cube (500mhz) the day they came out (waited five months, but oh well.)
It still sits on my wife's desk, working faithfully and silently, handling her little business and the house bills, along with her mail, browsing and Office stuff. It's 802.11b, and has never had a touch of trouble.
It still gets compliments and "what the heck is that?" comments, and still will get $550-$600 on ebay.
Nothing wrong with the Cube at all...people just wanted a better, more flexible desktop, satisfied with the G5 I'm typing on.
Cubes rocked!
"The pie shall be cut in half and each man shall receive.....death. I'll eat the pie."
MP3 player with iTunes support
Browser that supports WAP, HTML, Frames, Flash, Shockwave, Tabbed Browsing, and thumb-guestures
8 MegaPixel camera with 6x optical zoom that takes SLR lenses
Calander and contacts that syncs with microsoft exchange
2.2" display with 65K colors and 480x640 resolution
802.11g and bluetooth (that works) with kismet
12 cell LiIon battery with 14 day standby and 6 hour talk time
media player capable of playing MOV, MPG2,4, AVI (divx and xvid), RM, DVD,
HDTV that syncs with your tivo, direct-tv, XP-MCE, or mythPC (sorry MyHTPC and freevo, not enough room in ROM)
Direct TV connection with 400 channels
Cheap custom ringtones that dont suck (no more paying 99 cents for a 50 cent ringtone)
Vibrate, Pulsate, Ultra-Vibrate, and Orgasmobrate (for her pleasure)
authentic TOS trek sound for when the clam shell flips open
Walkie-Talkie function that be used without speakphone
SDIO card for memory expansion
4G 1MB/s internet connection
RSS feeds on your "desktop"
9 button thats not pre-programmed to 911
full QWERTY thumbboard with touchpad
VNC, TightVNC, and Terminal Services
Vi, Emacs, Notepad, and that thing macs use
Powerpoint support with included VGA dongle for presentations
SMS, MMS, EMS, and PMS
synchronization support for pop3, imap4, and active-sync
drivers for linux (source included)
dual boot mode with windows CE and linux (2.7)
included sample cowboy neal ringtones
j2me, perl, and C# support
graphing calculator
Included USB cable makes phone act as USB flash drive on any PC (w2k+)
GPS with included geocaches
ability to turn reciever into promiscuious mode with ethercap
SSH (1,2) and Telnet clients that work!
1GHz Transmeta processor
Via Eden 600 MHz backup processor
dual blue cold cathodes with case window
Support for CD-R / RW, DVD-R-RW+R+RW-RAM, MMC, SD, CF, PCMCIA, and 5.25" (double density)
Did I miss anything...
Oh yeah, Phone. Maybe next revision, until then you can hook it up to your vonage box.
Ok, so I was only joking on a few of those things, but seriously some of these features need to be considered. I want an open platform phone that allows me to put RSS feeds on my "desktop" and can SSH and VNC into boxen (sp?)
Im dreaming ofa big bndwdth, That can resist the
Anyone notice that the iPod mini is about the same size as a cellphone.. and if it can store 4Gb of music and smaller hard drives available/round the corner, there's no reason why we won't have a phone that can stores gigs of music. (and remember, the phone circuitry +RF is not really *that* space consuming.)
"When the only tool you own is a hammer, every problem begins to resemble a nail." - Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)
Why does no one mention the possibility that this implies the ability to download songs from the iTMS directly to the phone.
A cell phone has the internet connection that the iPod lacks. The two can not be compared. Small capacity, yes, but I can download a song I want to hear RIGHT NOW.
Having the iTMS in my pocket is a groundbreaking concept. Considering the number of songs they've sold from PCs, imagine how many songs they would sell if the store was in your pocket all the time!
There were some rumors that Apple would sue Motorola for breach of contract once Apple fully migrated to the IBM processor; I don't think that's happened 100% yet, but Apple's pretty close. The suit would've been based on the grounds that Moto didn't give Apple the year warning they were required to that they were going to end their desktop PPC chip, which necessitated Apple scrambling to find a replacement--originally, IBM didn't have a lot of interest in supplying Apple, and only bolted on the AltiVec co-processor at a later date.
I strongly suspect that this relationship is related to terms to arise out of an out of court settlement between Moto and Apple--it's clearly no longer in Apple's interest to sue Moto, so this was worth something to Moto (if the suit had any merit; but it sounded like it may well have.)
I don't know if it's better for Apple or for Moto to play iTMS music on Moto phones; but it does mean that QT is there instead of WMA, which is indeed worth something to Apple. My hunch is that Apple was awarded this privilege for free, and in return they'd drop the suit.
--
$tar -xvf
Seeing as the E398 Motorola phone already supports removable flash card (seen ones that can hold 96 mb at least), I doubt that the proposed phone w/iTunes support will be limited to only 12 songs. At the standard 5 mb a song this is 20 songs. And in a year I'm sure that the flash-industry will figure out a way to cram more memory into the size-format.
You mean like...the macintosh? :-)
Yeah, I had to use google to find the Terminal app in OS X.
Couldn't you just have used the OS X find command? Isn't Google a bit of overkill for this?
SteveM
As a current developer of cell phone applications, I would kill for the amount of storage to store 12 songs, and the memory to play them. I think most computer people would be suprised by the hardware restrictions of even current generation cellular phones. I consider myself lucky if the phone I choose to use has more than 64 Kb for each application and > 256Kb of heap memory.
One more thing... you forgot Pony.
If Jesus wants me it knows where to find me.
I favor a new labelling system for cell phones. It would have antenna gain, standby time, and talk time clearly visible on all phone displays, kinda like EPA fuel economy for cars. That way, people would be able to make their selection with more information about how the phone performs. Since cell phones are becoming essential pieces of our infrastructure, it's important that people make decisions that reflect what a cell phone is for: Making and receiving calls. In an emergency, I'd trade my camera, Java games, and web browser for a 5Db gain antenna that can get me a clear call to 911.
I'm in the hole of the broadband donut.