I’m using Napster, but it is no longer the illegal music-sharing service of years ago (see “All the Rave“, a book about the original Napster’s rise and fall).  Napster is now a provider of subscription music, and they also sell MP3s. Up to now they have competed with Rhapsody in the music subscription business, which is mainly targeted at MP3 Players other than iPods and Zunes.

After being purchased by Best Buy in September of last year, Napster has now come up with a pricing strategy which puts them in competition with iTunes. First they dropped their monthly subscription from $12.95 to $5 per month - this is the “regular membership”, and not “Napster To Go” which still costs the same. Then they sweetened the deal by allowing subscribers to download 5 songs per month for free. These free songs are in the MP3 format which most MP3 Players support. iTunes gives you one free song download per week, but you don’t get to choose the song, and it is in the Apple AAC format.

So basically you are paying $5 for 5 songs, which is more or less what most online music stores charge. Additionally you can stream music from a large music catalog of around 7 million songs. You can add downloaded songs to your Sony Walkman NWZ-E438FBLK 8GB MP3 Player, which also supports DRM-free AAC format songs from the iTunes Music Store.

This is probably not news for people who visit the Apple iTunes Music store. Since April this year Apple has changed the pricing of their music tracks. It used to be that every music track in the iTunes store cost 99 cents. Instead, there is now a variable pricing structure. So when you connect to iTunes with your 16GB iPod Touch you’ll find that the prices of single tracks are 69 cents, 99 cents or $1.29. The way this is supposed to work is that the more popular singles cost more, and the less popular ones cost less. This is something the record industry had been pressurizing Apple to do for a long time now. (in “Apple to launch ‘variable-pricing’ for iTunes” ZDNet.com blogged: “Apple has finally caved to the pressures of the recording industry“)

This is not the first time that the pricing of songs in the iTunes Music store has changed. About two years ago, when Apple started offering some DRM-free music, it was priced at $1.29 per track, and the tracks with DRM stayed at 99 cents. This lasted until Amazon launched its online music store, with a much larger DRM-free catalog and singles for 99 cents. Apple then lowered the price of these DRM-Free tracks to 99c. (see “What iTunes Variable Pricing Means to You” from blogs.eweek.com)

The variable pricing structure is actually backfiring, as the more expensive tracks are selling less, and the increased price is not making up for it. (see “iTunes Revenue Drops on Tiered Pricing” on MP3newsire.net) This was predicted, but the Recording Industry still wanted it. (see “Music Industry Folks Worried About iTunes Variable Pricing” on TechDirt.com)

A month ago I blogged about extended batteries for the iPhone (see “Longer battery life, continued“) , and mentioned the Power Slider by Incase. It is similar to the Mophie Juice Pack for iPhone, except that it is a full case for the iPhone 3G as well as an external battery.

I’ve been using the Incase Power Slider with my iPhone for several weeks now, and I am quite impressed. In the evening after having the iPhone on all day, making one or two calls, checking email and browsing the internet (as much as I can do during my lunch break), the battery of my iPhone is still at 100 percent. The Incase Power Slider is usually down to about 60 percent, or if it has been a particularly heavy usage day (for me anyway), down to about 20 percent, at which point it stops charging the iPhone’s battery.

The remaining battery charge of the Power slider is determined by a button at the lower back, which when pressed, lights up a line of 5 small LED lights which indicate the battery’s charge; 1 light means about 20 percent, 5 lights mean 100 percent, etc.

The iPhone can be synchronized with iTunes while still in the case, but the supplied USB cable (which is rather short) has to be used, and the button on the back of the case pressed for 3 seconds for “sync mode” prior to syncing.

Normally I remove the Power Slider before syncing, and leave it ready for recharging it overnight. It definitely works better when started with a full charge.

Physically, the slider consists of two parts. The iPhone slides into the bottom piece, which contains the battery and a connector. Then the top piece slides over the iPhone, so it looks like it is in a case with an extended lower end. SlashGear.com’s review of the Incase Power Slider has some pictures of what it looks like.

The Power Slider does add some extra weight to the iPhone, and my only gripe is that it leaves the screen unprotected, but then the majority of iPhone cases don’t protect the screen either.

In my previous blog posting, “No Shuffle for me“, I may have given the impression that I dislike the iPod Nano. This is not true, as I had a Nano before getting an iPhone, and I still have a Nano as a great sidekick to the iPhone. This is especially so during my daily commute. I’ve thought of using the iPhone, but since I drive to work, I need an MP3 Player with tactile controls – it would be very dangerous to have to glance at the screen every time I wanted to pause playback or select another track.

The iPod Nano is perfect for listening in the car. First I had an 8GB second generation iPod Nano. Its only fault was that sometimes when I turned it on for the first time it froze. That was just a minor annoyance, nothing that a reset couldn’t fix. I also never quite figured out how to duplicate it. Sometimes it would happen, other times it wouldn’t – which made it difficult to take it in for exchange.

When the third generation iPod Nano was released, I bought one for a loved one, but my second gen was still working fine, with the occasional hiccup.

But when the fourth generation 16GB iPod Nano was released, it didn’t take long for me to yield to temptation. It does have some cool features, including a built-in accelerometer, so the screen orientation changes just like the iPhone and the iPod Touch. The scroll wheel just felt a bit slippery until I got used to it.

After reading about problems being reported with the new iPod shuffle, I remembered the one and only time I had considered buying an iPod Shuffle. It was a little over three years ago, and I was looking at buying my first MP3 Player. The first generation iPod Shuffle was in my price range, and I had heard too many bad things about the first generation iPod Nano to even consider it.

The main problem with the Shuffle was that it had no display. All the competing MP3 Players had displays,  but the Shuffle didn’t. The larger iPods and MP3 Players were not only out of my price range at the time, but I was looking for a small device I could easily carry in my pocket.

Then I saw a 1GB SanDisk Sansa m240 on sale. It ran on 1 AAA battery, and needed no additional software to drag music files to it. In MSC mode Windows saw it as an external hard drive. Although not as cool or flashy as the iPod Nano, it had more features, including an FM radio and voice recording.

Ironically, the SanDisk Sansa m200 series are still around, they were just that easy to use.

If Apple makes good on the features they are promising in iPhone OS 3, then it is going to be difficult to keep my iPhone Jailbroken.

If you haven’t heard of the new features, here is a quick rundown:
(Some information from CNET’s “iPhone OS 3.0: What you need to know“, other information from 148apps’ “iPhone OS 3.0 Announcement Wrap-Up“.)

MMS (multimedia) messages – finally the iPhone supports the feature which is available on most camera phones.
Copy and Paste Text – This has probably been one of the most requested features for the iPhone. The lack of copy and paste was one of the main reasons the iPhone could not replace my handheld.There are a couple of Jailbroken Apps which offer this functionality now.
Systemwide Search - This will let users search for specific e-mail messages, applications, contacts, and any other data from within those applications in one place. I have this functionality at present with the Jailbroken App “Searcher”

Other enhancements include:
In application purchases – Applications will be able to charge for additional levels or features,
Networking between iPhones with Bluetooth.
Notes created with the built-in Note application can now be synchronized back to computer
Stereo Bluetooth – for 3G iPhone and second generation iPod Touch and later.
Built-in Voice Memo application, to replace all those third party applications.

The “Official” Apple video of the Presentation is here.

After an initial blase reaction to the news that Apple is going to release version 3.0 of their iPhone firmware, I realized there could be a lot more to this.

According this article in to Ars Technica, “Apple has just sent out invitations to a special media event on March 17. The invite-only event is geared towards the new iPhone SDK, Apple says, and will give the media a “sneak peek” at the iPhone OS 3.0 software.”

Looking back, the 2.0 firmware introduced the App Store. It also really messed the ability to run unofficial apps on a “Jailbroken” iPhone. It preceded the release of the 3G iPhone.

What is Apple up to? Are they trying to counter the threat from non-Apple App stores like Cydia? Version 3.0 of their firmware could very well do this, as the firmware would need to be hacked before the App stores which require “Jailbroken” iPhones could continue.

This could also be preparation for the next iPhone - the 3G third generation iPhone. That is only a guess at what they will call third iPhone, but it will be interesting to see what it is called. Also, will it be slimmer than the previous version? I’m not the only one speculating.

See this news announcement from 148Apps.com that gives the possible sequence of events from the new iPhone SDK to the next iPhone.

The Kensington Mini Battery Pack and Charger mentioned in my previous blog posting is just one of many iPhone battery extender solutions.

Also from Kensington is the Kensington Battery Pack and Charger for iPhone and iPod. This battery pack can charge the iPhone and iPhone 3G, iPod Classics from 4th to 6th generation, and the iPod Nano 3rd generation. It also comes with a mini USB cable to charge other devices too.

Another charger that clips into the bottom of the iPhone is the “Cygnett GroovePower Now Battery Pack for iPods and iPhone“.

There are a number of variations of these chargers. The main advantage with them is that they can be used with an existing case. The disadvantage is that while is use they make the iPhone a bit unwieldy.

Then there is the Mophie Juice Pack for iPhone. When the iPhone is connected to the Juice Pack, the iPhone sits slightly elevated, allowing the microphone and speaker ports to be used. The only problem is the iPhone sheathed in the Juice Pack  will not fit into any of the existing iPhone cases.

That is where the Power Slider by Incase comes in. The Power Slider is both a battery extender and a case from Incase. It does increase the size and weight of the iPhone, but is one complete unit. Here is a review with pictures from Engadget.

Love it or hate it,  iTunes is the software application most people use to manage their music and video collections when they have an iPod or iPhone. It also is pretty much a must have for Apple App store applications, Ring tones, and a number of other iPod management functions. A book like “iPod and iTunes Digital Field Guide” could help you get the most out of iTunes.

I use iTunes almost exclusively to manage my iPhone and a few iPods, even though I know there are alternatives. That said, it is not perfect, and grows more bloated with each release.

There are alternatives though, some free, and some not.

Donald Bell of CNET wrote an article on “Best iPod-compatible iTunes alternatives” , covering the free ones. Wikipedia also has a “Comparison of iPod managers“, which also covers non-free ones.

Here is a sampling of the ones I’ve used, not necessarily with an iPod/iPhone:

Media Monkey – A powerful program, not as easy to use as iTunes. I currently use it to manage some of my non-iPod MP3 Players. The only other problem is that when you least expect it, a feature (like ripping a CD to MP3) is only available in the registered (Shareware) version.

SharePod – An interesting program, meant to be run from an iPod itself when the iPod is connected to a Windows PC as an external USB drive. I used it some time ago on an iPod Mini.

Winamp – This one has been around for years. I’ve never used it with an MP3 Player, but have used it to play MP3s and listen to SHOUTCast stations on a PC.

The Sony PlayStation Portable, as most of you may know, is a handheld gaming console with two 333 MHz MIPS32 R4000-based Processors, a Graphics Processing Unit with 2 MB onboard Video RAM running at 166 MHz. Main RAM is 32 MB, with 4 MB embedded DRAM.

Quite impressive specs, unfortunately a bit hobbled (depending where loyalties lie, this could also be called crippled) by reliance on optical disks, called “Universal Media Discs”, on which games, video (movies) and firmware updates are distributed. These are slower than the game cartridges used in the  Nintendo DS Lite, the Sony PSP’s main competitor.

Since this is about the latest iteration of the Sony PSP, I won’t go into the pros and cons of the Nintendo DS Lite versus the Sony PSP. I have played both handheld gaming consoles, and they each have  their good points.

The latest version of the Sony PlayStation Portable is called the PSP 3000. It adds built-in Skype with onboard microphone, and an improved screen which had several issues (see this article at CNET.COM).

The previous version, the PSP 2000, otherwise known as the PSP Slim, was 33% lighter and 19% thinner than the original PSP. The redesign also doubles the onboard RAM from 32 MB to 64 MB.