Apple : Buying Guide: Spotify vs Rdio vs Deezer: battle of the streaming services

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• Buying Guide: Spotify vs Rdio vs Deezer: battle of the streaming services
• iPhone 5 users report 'purple halo' camera glitch
• Rumor: New iPad may go widescreen
• Report: Apple ditched Google maps over turn-by-turn directions
• Apple rumored to be ordering carbon fiber parts for new product

Buying Guide: Spotify vs Rdio vs Deezer: battle of the streaming services Posted: After the CD came the MP3, then the streaming subscription -- but where should you spend your £10 a month? For UK music lovers old favourite Spotify has recently been joined by the US-based Rdio and the France-based Deezer. Which offers best value for money? We tested out all three packages based on the higher £9.99 (USD $9.99, AUD $11.99) monthly subscription. Each service also provides a £4.99 (USD $4.99, AUD $6.99) plan that excludes mobile use. There are some variations with the Australian Dollar (AUD) pricing: Deezer is AUD $14.49 and $7.49 for each package and is not available in the US. Rdio is AUD $12.90 and AUD $8.90 for each package. Spotify is the only platform that provides a free level, with listening limits and advertising, though both Rdio and Deezer offer free trials you can use to test the water. Spotify vs Rdio vs Deezer: Apps and third-party support Spotify has always existed solely as a desktop client, though rumours from TechCrunch suggest the launch of a browser-based app is imminent. Perhaps this is due in part to the influence of Rdio and Deezer, which both run through a browser. Rdio also has a desktop app available, though it doesn't offer much more than the online version. All three services offer competent mobile apps for iOS, Android, Windows Phone and BlackBerry, though the Deezer app feels more rough around the edges than the other two. In addition, iPad-specific apps have been released for each of these services; Android tablet users have to make use with a one-size-fits all app, at least for the time being. In terms of mobile compatibility, all our contestants are on a level playing field, with Spotify just edging it for the most mature and classy client. Spotify is the oldest service here, and you'll find support for it baked into hardware like the Sonos speaker line-up and online platforms such as Tumblr. It also has an app eco-system of its own, though for us this doesn't really bring anything of particular use to the table. Spotify, Rdio and Deezer all support scrobbling to the popular listening history tool Last.fm. Spotify vs Deezer vs Rdio: Look, feel and ease of use Rdio has recently revamped its interface and it's a real thing of beauty, particularly if you like a minimal approach (and pale blue). Spotify's app feels somewhat dark and foreboding by comparison, and could take a leaf out of Rdio's use of spacing and album art. Again, Deezer has a few rough edges -- a phrase that keeps cropping up with this service -- and there's something vaguely 80s about its appearance. Still, it's not a complete eyesore. Moving around all three apps and controlling playback is smooth and straightforward. There's little to choose between them for ease of use, though Rdio would be our winner for the cleanest, most intuitive interface, the one that beginners will be able to pick up the quickest. Spotify vs Deezer vs Rdio: Catalogue and audio quality Assessing a catalogue of millions of tracks is difficult and more than a little subjective. All three services claim a catalogue of "more than 18m" tracks, though we found disparities, so it can't be the same 18 million songs. Artists such as Coldplay, Beyoncé and the Beach Boys are everywhere; digital hold-outs the Beatles and Oasis are nowhere. Where we did find gaps, it seems to be the smaller labels involved -- you'll be able to get a flavour of our music taste when we say Canadian rockers Arcade Fire and pop duo Sleigh Bells were on Deezer and Spotify but not Rdio, while Sufjan Stevens' latest LP is only on Spotify, and Pink Floyd (surprisingly) appear on Deezer but not the other two services. From our enquiries with press contacts, all of these services claim a maximum quality of 320kbps when streaming music. To our layman's ears, there isn't a great deal to choose between them, both streaming tracks and playing from the offline cache. If you have a serious music setup at home, you'll have to test Spotify, Rdio and Deezer in turn for differences in listening quality. Spotify vs Deezer vs Rdio: Playlists and sharing Smart playlists have yet to appear in streaming subscription land, but Spotify, Rdio and Deezer make it very straightforward to create and build playlists manually. Rdio and Deezer make it easier than Spotify to manage your 'collection' -- think iTunes Library vs the whole iTunes Store -- but Spotify was our favourite for managing a queue. If you prefer to add on songs, albums and playlists to the end of what you're currently listening to, in one long uninterrupted stream of music, Spotify does this a little better than the others. If you want to work on collaborative playlists, this is possible in each service. Spotify and Deezer give you more control over shared playlists, enabling you to choose specific users who can make changes. In Rdio, playlists are either private, public (can be edited by anyone), or accessible to everyone you are following. In terms of simple, non-collaborative sharing, this is again available on all three of these platforms, whether you want to use Facebook, Twitter or the service's built-in user-to-user sharing capabilities. Deezer and Spotify really push their friction-less Facebook sharing capabilities, though it is just about possible to keep your listening habits private if you tweak the relevant settings. Rdio vs Spotify vs Deezer: Offline syncing/local files Offline syncing is pretty essential for mobile use, and Spotify, Rdio and Deezer all have this functionality built into their mobile apps. It can also come in handy on the desktop, should your Internet go down or you want to use your bandwidth for another task -- Spotify's desktop client can cache files for offline use, and so can Deezer's web client, if you install the official browser extension. Rdio doesn't currently offer offline syncing on the web or in its desktop application. Both Spotify and Deezer let you import your own tracks into your collection, though the process is much easier with Spotify, which can monitor particular folders or libraries on your hard drive. Deezer uses a clumsy browser-based upload system -- it's not ideal, but it works. However, there's no ability to do this in Rdio, perhaps the biggest black mark against it. Its desktop app can scan and match what's in your iTunes or Windows Media Player library, but anything that isn't matched isn't available. Spotify vs Deezer vs Rdio: Verdict It's a close run race between Rdio and Spotify at this moment in time, though both services are introducing new features on a regular basis. In many ways we found Rdio to be the best-looking, easiest-to-use, most intuitive platform. It has a Collection feature to beat Spotify's, but there's one huge problem -- no local file support. That means the gaps in Rdio's catalogue (like Arcade Fire) can't be filled, so you'll still have to start up iTunes if you want to listen to something Rdio doesn't have. There's also no offline caching on the desktop, and for these reasons our £10 a month is staying with Spotify. Its desktop and mobile apps have improved in recent months, and it has matured into a stable and comprehensive service. If the rumours of a browser-based app are true, we'll love it even more. Deezer is a decent bronze medal winner -- in many ways it offers the best of Spotify and Rdio, but it was too fiddly and too unintuitive in too many areas. It has potential, but it's not up to the level of the other two yet.

iPhone 5 users report 'purple halo' camera glitch Posted: Following days of reports centred around misfiring Maps, scratched aluminium and leaking light, the iPhone 5's iSight camera is apparently next in line for a roasting. Users on the AnandTech forums are reporting that a purple halo, haze or flare is appearing on photos taken with the 8-megapixel snapper, when a bright light source (natural or unnatural) is just out of shot. According to multiple user submissions, the unwanted tint appears on screen when taking the shot, as well as on the subsequent photo itself. Not all iPhone 5 owners are experiencing the problem, while one user posted a video showing evidence of the issue when recording video as well as stills. Sapphire to blame? One view is that the issue is caused by the new sapphire crystal lens cover. However, CultOfMac points out that sapphire comes in a range of colours and thus the problem might be a result of light refracting through only the purple coloured lens covers. Mashable also examined the claims with its own tests, including the photo that accompanies this story, which seems to confirm beyond reasonable doubt that the problem does indeed exist. However, in certain circumstances it found the purple haze to be more evident in photos taken on the iPhone 4S than on the iPhone 5, so this may be a pre-existing issue. Apple is well aware of the problem, according to one forum user who called the company's tech support team. That individual was allegedly told that the issue was widespread and under investigation. TechRadar has reached out to Apple and will update this story should a response be forthcoming. Ups and downs Amid a litany of complaints that the aluminium coating can be chipped, scuffed and scratched too easily, Apple has also had to deal with accusations that the iPhone 5 leaks light from the top of the device. Add those alleged hardware flaws to the continued furore surrounding the Maps app, and one could be forgiven for thinking that a black cloud hangs over the launch of Apple's sixth-generation smartphone. Naturally, however, it's the most successful iPhone launch in the company's history with 5 million handsets sold during the first weekend. Go figure.

Rumor: New iPad may go widescreen Posted: After the iPhone 5 frenzy, the internet rumor mill has started churning out some iPad speculation. The new rumor going around the net is the upcoming iPad 4 will go widescreen, with a new aspect ratio of 16:9. The rumors come from Los Angeles industry analyst Paul Mueller with more information promised in the next few weeks. "I have talked to at least three people close to Apple who say that there are new iPad prototypes that have a 16:9 aspect ratio. They aren't talking about the upcoming iPad mini either," Mueller told the Examiner. The rumor may have a few things going for it. For some time now tech watchers have been hoping for a widescreen iPad. The iPhone 5 just bumped up its screen size to 4 inches. And the new Lightning connector allows Apple to play around with the dimensions more. Also, 16:9 is the most common aspect ratio for televisions and is the standard format for HDTV content and analog widescreen TVs. And this may just be the new Apple device that was leaked onto the Internet last week. Take rumor daily with grain of salt But the rumor has met with a few raised eyebrows while making its way around the net. The change would make the new device taller and narrower, making web browsing awkward when holding the imaginary iPad vertically. One reason the current iPad is so popular is because users can surf the net comfortably while holding it vertically or horizontally. It's true a 16:9 aspect ratio would make for a better TV viewing experience, but most users do not go to the iPad for television or movies that much. It would also create a lot of dead space when users weren't watching something. The current iPad has a screen that is just under 10 inches with an aspect ratio of 4:3. The move would make the iPad taller, and with all the rumors about the iPad mini flying around, this goes counter to what most analysts think Apple will do to a new iPad. Also, Mueller doesn't have the best track record, as his prediction last year about the Galaxy S II's launch date didn't come to fruition. But that is the chance you take when in the soothsaying business. Apple has yet to reply to TechRadar's questions on the issue as well. Without official word, it's best to take the news with a grain of salt and just be glad the rumor mill hasn't started speculating about the iPhone 6.

Report: Apple ditched Google maps over turn-by-turn directions Posted: Much has been made about Apple's decision to eschew Google's map app that had been a default feature of iOS until the release of iOS 6. Apple's replacement, Maps, has suffered its fair share of criticisms in the early going, and Google has since moved on to improving their maps for Android. The split between the two companies wasn't always meant to be though, according to sources close to the matter. In fact, the latest reports found the departure of Google maps from iOS came down to a dispute over the inclusion of just one feature. Voice-directed navigation One of the key differences between the versions of Google's map app is the exclusivity of voice-directed turn-by-turn navigation on Android devices. AllThingsD's sources claimed Apple wanted that feature included in an updated iOS version of the app, however Google wasn't about to give away one of its defining features for free. These same sources said a deal between the two companies could not be reached once Apple found out Google wanted more say in the development of the iOS app. Google also reportedly wanted to include Google Latitude, but Apple balked at the idea, purportedly shunning Google for wanting to gather so much user data. That's a deal-breaker Apple had been acquiring mapping companies before these negotiations with Google broke down, but only fast-tracked their own app once they realized a deal could not be reached. One source close to the discussions told AllThingsD other factors were involved in the decision, but the lack of voice-navigation was the breaking point. "There were a number of issues inflaming negotiations, but voice navigation was the biggest," the source said. "Ultimately, it was a deal-breaker." Navigating a compromise Despite Maps poor first impression, Apple still may have made out better than Google. The loss of all those iPhone users previously using Google's app could end up being just as big a disappointment for Google. It's estimated Google may have lost some 100 million users dependent on their maps with the upgrade to iOS 6. While Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt did say the company wasn't working on an iOS 6 version of their map app, he did seem open to the idea of working with Apple. "We want them to be our partner. We welcome that," Schmidt told investors earlier this week. Whether the two companies can come to an agreement at this point seems unlikely, but it's still not entirely out of the realm of possibility. TechRadar has reached out to both Google and Apple, and will update this story if and when they return requests for a comment.

Apple rumored to be ordering carbon fiber parts for new product Posted: If you thought the iPhone 5 launch would quiet the Apple rumors for at least a few weeks, think again as the latest out of Japan indicates the firm is placing hefty orders for carbon fiber parts. An anonymous source spoke to Japanese site Macotakara, claiming that Apple approached a production company in Japan back in mid-March to create new parts made out of the ultra-durable material. The source didn't speak to specifics of what kind of parts were ordered, but added that the order size was too large to just be a sample. This leads to speculation that a never-before-seen device made of the fibrous material may already be entering full production. Apple's gone carbon crazy Apple has long been interested in using carbon fiber in its products. Carbon fiber is as tough as metal but lightweight like plastic, making it an ideal fit for smartphone, tablet, and laptop casings. However, one stick in the mud concerning the use of carbon fiber is that the material is prone to cracking. Apple may have a solution for that issue, with a patent granted in 2010 titled Reinforced Device Housing (USPTO application 20100289390), which provided a method of using multiple carbon fiber layers to strengthen a case. Another patent titled Carbon Composite Mold Design (USPTO application 8257075) was filed in 2009 and granted earlier this month. That patent covers methods to use carbon fiber to "form outer housings for a laptop computer or other similar device." In April of 2011, Apple also hired carbon fiber expert Kevin Kenney, who formerly pioneered carbon fiber frames as the CEO of Kestrel Bicycles, a manufacturer that pioneered carbon fiber bike frames. Carbon Apple core While the validity of these new rumors can't be completely ascertained, it can't be written off either given Apple's ongoing interest in carbon fiber construction. Last year, TechRadar put on its thinking caps as to what Apple's numerous patents could have in store for us, including new super light MacBook and iPad designs using carbon fiber frames. A carbon fiber MacBook Air or iPad casing could reduce the heft of the already lightweight devices, giving Apple a significant edge as competitors catch up in device portability. If the rumors are true and parts are already in the production stages, then it might not be too long before we get our hands on Apple's first carbon fiber product.

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