Just like Spotify and Grooveshark, songs can be cached for offline playback. It’s hard to decide which one to subscribe to – as all offer access to so many songs. But more likely than not, you’ve already taken a liking to one prior to reading this. And there, you’ve made your playlists and populated your music library through your personal account.

So why would you jump services if all offer the same features? You wouldn’t. And that’s why survival and growth completely depends on future device compatibility. As long as Rdio, Spotify, Grooveshark, and many others continue to support the latest firmware and devices – they’ll be able to retain there subscribers.

[via MobileBurn]

Rhapsody allows customers to find and discover millions of new music tracks, not to mention unlimited music streaming to your Android phone or tablet. They are touting the new tablet layout as more touchable, more engaging, and now with loads of content and new paths to music discovery. With large tiles for easy discovery users can find and enjoy music with ease. This new UI apparently works on Android 3.0 Honeycomb and above tablets, and only for 9″ or larger screens. We’ve yet to try it on a 7″ slate but have a feeling it just might work anyways.

That isn’t all either. The latest update is available right now in the Android Market and they’ve even updated a few fixes for the Kindle Fire — so apparently they support smaller screens in some fashion at least. Other updates include fixes to adding tracks to playlists in bulk, enhanced audio focus at song startup, fixed some sign in screen issues and now supports all Samsung device on Android 2.3.4 Gingerbread.

If Google Music isn’t your cup of tea or you’d like access to millions of artists and music give Rhapsody a try today. Get the new updated app from the link below and enjoy.

Market Link

This was by far my biggest complaint when Google Music first officially launched and they added Music to the Android Market. Being able to now upload and download one by one, or all of my music from their cloud services is what was needed to make this complete. Between this, Adele, and all the George Carlin one could ask for all from Google Music I’m now completely safe to toss this old iPod of mine in the trash.

So now when you purchase a new song on your Android phone or tablet, you can easily get on your computer or laptop and download the entire file right to your PC. That music will still be accessible and remain in the cloud. Available from the wide array of supported devices for access from anywhere. Make sure to upload your entire library to Google Music’s cloud services. Then if you happen to have a computer crash you can easily download the entire library to your new system. Thanks Google!

For all the details, new information, or help guides head over to the official Google Music support page. That will answer any remaining questions you may have. Now enjoy that music and go buy some Indie Rock!

[via +Android]

You’ll find a few tunes by Drake including “Take Care (ft. Rihanna)”, “Make Me Proud (ft. Nicki Minaj)”, and “Fancy”. And for those Maroon 5 fans out there, “Moves Like Jagger” and “How” are now available. Mary J. Blige has a freebie too, so definitely head on over to download it just incase prices go back up.

The Free Song of the Day seems to be a way Google plans on promoting bands not as well known as they should be, so don’t just brush over it without giving them a quick listen. You’d be surprised by how much talent goes unnoticed. And finally, don’t forget about the giant pack of free songs that were previously released.

[via NetbookNews]

The details aren’t quite in English but you can get all the information from the Samsung press release. Just like the larger models this 3.65″ display rocking media player has almost all the functions of a smartphone, only it can’t make calls. They do offer Bluetooth and WiFi calling though so that is a plus. We have Android 2.3 Gingerbread as the OS and a single-core 1.0 GHz Hummingbird processor.

Basically this is the original Samsung Galaxy S smartphone without the phone internals and a different screen size — all geared for music and content consumption. This media player also offers a 3 megapixel rear camera, 1.3 VGA front, and 8 or 16GB models available to purchase. Samsung eventually brought their larger versions to the US and they are available now (see our review below) so most likely this smaller sibling should make its way here too. The Galaxy Player 3.6 is currently on sale in South Korea for around $175 USD.

[via Sammy Hub]

The “theme engine” is the root of that customization support, meaning “every drawable (images, backgrounds, etc), all text views, and each seek bars can be themed.” The native theme resembles Google’s own app.

However, unlike Google’s version, this new app supports play/pause control by flipping the phone face down on the table, as well as shaking it to perform custom actions (such as randomizing playback). Both flipping and shaking are supported while the Music app is running in the background, too. There are new homescreen widgets, fully integrated search, social sharing and more.

The app – which will be renamed before release – is expected to drop in a the next few weeks. It will be included as part of a future CM9 build, but will also be released via the Android Market.

With the Disco 2 we don’t have weird and large volume nobs and difficult navigation. Instead everything is neatly and easily accessed right from the top of the device. This makes the speaker dead simple to operate and extremely user intuitive. No more bright lights and LEDs and instead we have bright colors for any living room decor. Check out our quick hands-on video and even our previous full review over at SlashGear.

The SuperTooth Disco 2 will connect to any Android device over a Bluetooth connection and will make streaming audio with Google Music, Spotify, or anything else easy while keeping things sounding great. The Disco 2 offers AC power as well as a built-in rechargeable battery for those portable moments of audio bliss. We should be seeing the SuperTooth Disco 2 hit the shelves within the next month or so and will be offered for only $99 for those interested. We’ll be sure to snatch one up for review so stay tuned if music is your thing.

This is actually a pretty great added bonus for Xperia owners and I can imagine a few people are happy to hear the news. Sadly there is a small catch and this isn’t available for everyone. This deal or freebie actually only applies to France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the UK and Australia. We could see more added later but for now that is all we get. Hopefully Sony will open this up for all their users.

The image above shows the dates and more information but basically if you purchase or own an Xperia device from November 1st to January 31st 2012 you are eligible for this deal. We aren’t sure if this has been available since the first of November or if Sony is just offering this to a wider audience of buyers. Sony’s Music Unlimited is a great service and getting 90 days free will give many a first hand look at what their missing — although things like Spotify are a great alternative too. Head down to Sony Ericsson to get started if this applies to you and your Xperia.

[via Phandroid]

If you want to learn more you can view our Sonos Controller hands-on video with a few pictures and details on how everything works. The app received an update back in July with SD support and additional languages but today’s update gives us a bunch of new awesome features.

We now have extended support for Spotify with more features like checking your inbox and more. They’ve added full Slacker Radio integration, support for Android 2.2 and above tablets (including the Kindle Fire). We’ve been hoping for a tablet specific application with neat controls and options that will take advantage of the larger screen space but that hasn’t happened yet. We also have alarm and AAC+ codec support with the latest version of Sonos Controller.

All the details are available along with the latest version in the Android Market. Give it a try or update today by clicking here.

In the image above you can clearly see on the far left that “Music” is now an option on the market homepage. We have full and complete access to the entire Google Music library as Google’s intended. I have more devices than I’d like to count here and only one has the new Music tab, the rest still don’t. It appears that no Market update is needed. I have the same and latest official v3.3.11 from Google on multiple devices. The new Google Music appears to be completely server side and no update to a newer Android Market version will be needed.

Usually we’ve have some sort of APK that you could download with the new Market and enjoy the changes but it appears that this is completely on Google’s servers and will be rolled out to devices over the next few days as they mentioned during the event. So sorry, you’ll just have to wait until your device(s) have access. I only get it on one of mine so we’ll see when the rest finally get access.

Apparently Google will be pushing this over the next few days, they didn’t want to give everyone access at the same time because it would be a flurry of purchases and downloads and most likely cause some serious slowdown or lag. For now you can access that part of the market by being directed through the Google + app to buy and enjoy music offered by Google. Otherwise you’ll sadly have to wait until your device receives the option in the market. Don’t worry as it should arrive any day now. — Thanks Simms

First of all, Artists receive a 70/30 split with Google for all of their music revenue, and there are no extra setup or upload fees. Bands can set their own prices for tracks or albums, and connect songs to YouTube videos to quickly and easily bring viewers into their musical fold. The Artist pages allow each artist or band to set up their own profile in Google Music, with features songs, videos and the like. The Google+ sharing tools that regular users get can also be used by bands themselves. There’s no bottom limit for pricing, so artists can give away as much music as they want. Revenue is sent back to artists via Google Wallet.

To get a quick overview of the Music Hub from some of the first indie bands to use it, check out the video below:

Unfortunately, the Google Music service is only available in the US right now, and that extends to artist as well. Since Google is constantly updating the system with new features and artists (not to mention record labels), expect that to change soon, at least as fast as Google can negotiate with the various labels and recording companies in other countries. Google Music is available now via the official website, and updated versions of the Android Market and Google Music should be rolling out to most Android phones soon.

The Google “These Go to Eleven” event has just announced the new Google Music and that it will be completely free offering Android users 25,000 songs worth of free cloud storage for all their music. For all of the details as they become available feel free to check out that link above.

Not only that but all of this music will be full high quality 320 kbps music, beating Apple’s 256 offering. We are still digging through all the details but thought the above numbers regarding well over 200 million android devices was worth a quick post. The Android Army is going strong and is showing NO signs of slowing down. Enjoy the ride guys!

The Spar Zephyr looks very similar in both the size and shape to the popular Jawbone JAMBOX we reviewed at SlashGear. Also coming in a bit smaller than the recently reviewed Philips Fidelio Android dock but don’t let that fool you because Spar is claiming both “stunning acoustics” and “class-leading battery life”.

Basically rock out to all the music your heart desires and if you need to charge your Android phone, Galaxy Player, or even that iPod then all you need is a simple USB cord and the Spar Zephyr does the rest. The idea is actually quite excellent and I look forward to testing the sound quality, battery life, and the charging capabilities. The Zephyr 550 linked to above comes with the largest internal battery at 3,000 mAh, enough to play music for up to 30 hours of playback. Sadly that will only charge a portable device twice if your lucky. So while this sounds great, you wont be getting multiple charges here but the option to do so is quite convenient.

You can pre-order today starting at $99 at the source link below. The Zephyr should ship mid-December and hit retail locations come early next year. We’ll be sure and snag one for review if possible and bring you all the details. Enjoy the neat video provided below.

[via Spar]

Looking at the provided screenshots the store might not be fully functional yet but most likely it will be soon, or even launch on Wednesday to go along with the Google event. A few things worth nothing is the Free Song of the Day screenshots. It appears they’ll be taking a similar approach as Amazon has done with Apps for Music in hopes to boost action. This could also be an amazing way for new artists to be seen by the millions and millions of Android phone users. We are also seeing a recommended artist list as well as similar artists. So far I really like what we’ve just seen.

Earlier we heard a few reports that Google was struggling to get all record labels on board, just as iTunes did during the early stages and that it will launch without all four major record labels. Sony and Warner being two big ones missing. Glancing over the screenshots Google might have actually secured deals with all four. Giving the Google Music store an even better position to succeed. Looking at the screenshots we see plenty of Shakira who is signed to Sony (among others), and even Green Day who is signed with Reprise, a subsidiary of Warner Music. Maybe these deals are still being worked out, and the possibility of those song not being available from Sony or Warner is still possible until a deal is made. We won’t know until Google Music is officially launched. Stay tuned on Wednesday for full details.

[via Androinica]

8tracks is built on a simple principle: collections of eight songs each, chosen for their commonality along a theme or style. The playlists transition from one to another for uninterrupted listening. The idea is t0 recreate the experience of home-made mixtapes or burned CDs – or, for those of you who didn’t grow up watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, actual 8-tracks. Collections are tagged by style and artist, and you can “like” certain artists, songs, mixes or DJs to let the service learn your preferences Pandora-style.

Each Mix is created by a DJ, some of whom are surprisingly well-known. Celebrity DJs include Rolling Stone, Pitchfork and Spin. If you like a particular song, you can tag it for easy recollection to buy it in iTunes the Amazon MP3 store later. So far the user reviews are positive (with the odd exception that the app crashes when you hit the3 settings button on some phones), so why not give it a spin?

According to SoundHound’s figures, the app handled over 4 million searches each day. The company has recorded over 1,000 hits per second showing impressive user engagement. In the two years since the app has been on Android and iOS it has a user base of 50 million people globally. These stats make SoundHound the most used mobile music search and discovery app in the world according to the company.

The company points the apps unique features as the reason for its success. Since the company added live lyrics to the app, it has recorded 25 to 35 million hits per day for the 30 days ending October 20. Peak traffic was over 2 million hits per hour. Usage has grown by a factor of ten since it launched in 2010.

Google is reportedly now close to opening is own music store again. Android chief Andy Rubin has said at the AsiaD conference, “I think we are close.” Rubin also noted that the music store would be more than just a place selling 99 cent music tracks. He noted it “would have Google in it.” He didn’t elaborate on exactly what that means.

As AllThingsD points out, so far reports have claimed that only EMI is close to a deal with Google. Google will need all the major music publishers on board to really make a go of a music store. If Rubin says close he is either optimistic or other labels have signed on that we don’t know about. Rubin was also surprisingly candid about why the negotiations broke down last spring with record labels. According to Rubin, the problem is that the media industry saw Google as a search company and couldn’t figure out what Google was up to.

[via AllThingsD]

Before we go any further, if you don’t know what Spotify is, you should check out the full guide on Spotify your humble narrator wrote for SlashGear back when it was first released here in the states. After that, you should check out our review of the Spotify Premium app that you’ll only be able to run if you’ve got the Premium service hooked up. Right after the USA launch we also gave a whole handful of invites away as well as reviewing that app, that’s how super pumped we were.

And that’s only the USA launch, not even a few months ago! Back on the 28th of May, 2009, our man in England mister Chris Davies made a video demo of the Spotify Android app as it existed in its first state. It was already pretty super neato back then. Now the combined collection of premium users all over the world is at 2 million. Are you one of them?

That is a low price for Klipsch headphones that can sell for much more than that. The headphones are listed as coming soon and the inline remote will allow the answering and ending of calls. The mic will also be mutable and support redial function. The headphones have to be paired with the Klipsch Control app to allow customizing of functions.

The remote also allows control of the volume, play/pause of tracks, skipping tracks, and it supports voice search and commands. The headphones are in-ear style and come with multiple tips and a carry case. Drivers are 8.5mm and have a frequency response of 10Hz-19KHz. They also offer noise isolation. You can pre-order directly from Klipsch, but there is no hint on when the product will ship.

[via Klipsch]

For those that aren’t familiar with these types of services. Soundhound is the app you’ll need when you hear that cool new song on the radio, the tune to a commercial or in a movie preview, or even that catchy song at the bar and you have no clue who sings it or what the name of the song is. Soundhound will listen for you and find all the details you could ever possibly need on the song. What makes this even better is you can hum or try and sing the song yourself and it still manages to get it right.

What makes SoundHound Infinity so great is you can tag unlimited songs as often as you’d like with no limit. What makes Soundhound better than the rest is all the options once you find the track you were looking for. You can hear other top hits, listen to a preview, share your find, look up lyrics, even buy the song directly from the app with Amazon MP3. I like the YouTube feature as you can quickly check out the music video, or even read the lyrics to the song.

I’m sure you all know plenty about Shazam and Soundhound but I figured I’d give a little recap. I personally love and use SoundHound every few days and highly recommend it. Get it while its hot TODAY over on the Amazon App Store for only $1.99 while the deal lasts, otherwise you’ll be paying the full $4.99 soon. Enjoy!

[via Amazon App Store]