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Sony’s ‘Music Unlimited’ iOS app adds offline playback & high-quality 320kbps AAC streams

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=CLC2u6lErGk

A nice update is landing any minute now for Sony’s Music Unlimited iOS app, which is continuing to improve thanks to some nice improvements coming with PS4 and PlayStation Plus. On top of some big discounts for PS Plus members, Sony announced today that iOS users will soon have the ability to download tracks for offline listening (something already available on Android devices):

Another improvement coming in version 1.3 of the  Music Unlimited app is “crystal clear 320kbps AAC high fidelity audio while streaming.”Users can access the feature by turning on “High Quality Audio HQ Streaming”.in the app’s settings. The new high-quality audio will not, unfortunately, be available for offline playback.

Similar to the Music Unlimited Android app, iOS users can now download individual albums and tracks, as well as any playlists they have created to their device and enjoy music even when a cellular or Wi-Fi connection isn’t available, or when they want to conserve battery life or curb data usage.

Sony hasn’t picked up a ton of traction with the service among smartphone users, but it will certainly attempt to attract more users as it adds new features and closer integrates it with its revamped PS Network arriving alongside PS4.

As for deals:

If you’re not a subscriber to the Music Unlimited service, this is a great time to jump aboard!  For a limited time, a 12 month Premium subscription to the Music Unlimited service is just $41.99 for PS Plus members – a discount of over 65 percent from the regular monthly price.  Those who don’t have a PS+ membership can also take advantage of a special rate of $59.99 for the 12 month Premium subscription.  More information about the offer can be found at PlayStation Blog.

Angry Birds Seasons, Opera Mini, Square in Canada, Music Unlimited, more

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Angry Birds Seasons version 2.3.0: Rovio updated its Seasons edition of Angry Birds with 30 new levels for Halloween and much more. The HD iPad version gets the same update.

BOO! The pigs are hiding in their spookiest location yet: a haunted house! The Angry Birds will have to brave ghosts and ghouls to get their eggs back — if they can survive the house first! Are your eyes playing tricks on you or did that painting just move?!

-Explore the scary secrets of the brand new haunted house!
-Try to survive 30 all new spooky levels!
-Shiver and shake to the ghostly new Halloween music!
-Use the brand new ghost bricks for fun trick shots!
-Say hello to Frankenswine and the other pigs, all dressed up for Halloween!

Square Register version 2.4: Square is officially rolling out its payment service internationally today with the Canadian launch and an updated Square Register iOS app. Full details in the company’s press release here.

– Square Register is now available in Canada!

Opera Mini version 7.0.5:

 – Integration with iOS Facebook framework (iOS 6+)
– Improved performance when saving large images
– Fixed freeze after sharing via email
– Fixed video playback on youtube.com (iPhone and iPod)
– Performance and stability fixes
– Added support for iOS 4.2.1
– Various iOS 6 related fixes

Music Unlimited version 1.2: The iOS app for Sony’s subscription music service gets a decent update today with the ability to “Create channels inspired by your favorite artists” and more:

· My Channels – Create channels inspired by your favorite artists.
· Playlist management – Create and edit playlists on your mobile device.
· Some features have been improved.

Lumify version 2.0: One of our favorite new social video apps gets a big update:
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Apps & updates: Pixelmator 2.1, Adobe Reader, Sony Music Unlimited, Evernote, more

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Pixelmator 2.1: We get a quick look today at some new features coming to Pixelmator 2.1 in a new video focusing on the Vintage Effect (via TheLoop). The upcoming app will also include Retina support and a ton of new features, some of which the developer has highlighted in a blog post.

Adobe Reader version 10.3: Adobe updated its free Reader iOS app today with a number of new features that are listed below:

• Add text to your PDFs with the Add Text tool

• Use forms that have Field Validation, Calculation, and Formatting

• Organize and manage your documents in Reader’s improved file organizer. Create folders, copy, move, rename, and delete files.

• Help us make Reader better by optionally sharing anonymous usage data with us

• Look up definitions with our new Dictionary Support (requires iOS 5 or later)

• Fixed several bugs and performance issues

Music Unlimited version 1.1: Sony’s Music Unlimited streaming app was also updated today, adding a number of enhancements including the ability to delete login information and fixes to several commonly reported issues.

Facebook Pages Manager version 1.2:  Included in version 1.2 of Facebook’s standalone Pages manager app is the ability to upload photos to your Page’s albums, view photos attached to messages, and the app is now available in a total of 11 languages.

PayPal Here version 1.2: While noting it is aware of an issue with the display of refunded transactions, PayPal updated its PayPal Here app for accepting credit card and PayPal payments on the iPhone. Improvements in the update include longer time allowed between login, multiuser support (setup on paypal.com), improved Star printer, AirPrint, HP ePrint support, and a number of other new features and fixes.

Evernote for Mac version 3.2: Evernote announced in a blog post that it is releasing an updated version of its Mac client today that includes Retina support for the new MacBook Pros, a new Activity Stream feature, faster sharing, and “more reliable sync.” The update is currently only available through the developer’s site, but Mac App Store users can follow these instructions to complete the update.

1Password version 3.9.6: 1Password’s Mac App Store app was updated with two important features including support for high-resolution MacBook Pro Retina displays and support for the Chrome Web Store 1Password extension.

Sony releases ‘Music Unlimited’ Spotify competitor as iOS app

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Looking to usurp rival competitors like Spotify and MOG, Sony today launched its Music Unlimited streaming service as an iOS app. We told you in January that it was coming, but today the free app officially hits the App Store with subscriptions starting at $3.99 a month for varying access to the service’s 15 million+ songs and playback features. There is also a 30-day free trial of the premium service.

Previously only available to Android users and Sony products such as PlayStation 3 and Blu-ray players, the service offers two paid subscriptions options, including: a $4 Basic plan that provides basic channels and access to your own library; and a $10 Premium account giving you access to on demand playback for Sony’s catalogue, offline listening. The more expensive packages also offers the ability to create playlists, and access charts, new releases, and premium channels. Unlike Spotify, which recently debuted its iPad app, the Music Unlimited app does not have an iPad-specific version.

The Sony Music Unlimited app is available in the New Zealand App Store now, and it should hit the United States and other supported markets soon. As of March, Sony offered the service in 14 countries including the U.S., Canada, Australia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Spain, United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. A full list of features for Basic and Premium subscribers is below:


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Sony looking to rival iTunes with Music Unlimited music service on iOS devices

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iTunes had long been the only kid in town as Apple-imposed rules of the game prohibited third-party storefronts of any kind on iOS devices. Bowing to government regulators, Apple last year relaxed its strict policy pertaining to third-party stores and enabled subscriptions. This paved the way for music apps from Spotify and Shazam that have recently become available on the iOS platform. Now, another major subscription-based music service is about to hit the App Store.

According to reports, consumer electronics giant Sony is bringing its Music Unlimited service to owners of Apple’s mobile devices. For either $4 or $10 a month, Music Unlimited subscribers will be able to stream music onto their iPads, iPhones and iPod touches sometime this quarter. The first tier gets you the ability to stream music from your own personal library and the other enables unlimited streaming from Sony’s catalog of 15 million songs. Similar to Spotify, you will be able to cache songs and playlists when offline.

Sony’s logic behind this move reflects Apple’s approach…


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