What can you do when no one’s got a phone to jam with you? Why, you can be a geeky one-man band, of course! Web developer Steffest (just one name, like Sting or Madonna) managed to do just that by strapping a couple of Android devices (possibly an Archos 5 and a HTC Desire), a couple of WinMo handhelds (looks like a HP iPAQ h1940 and a HTC Touch Diamond), and an iPod touch on top of a portable speaker. All this just for a forthcoming presentation on mobile cross development — Steffest had to painstakingly write the same audio program “in Java for Android, in C# for Windows Mobile and in Objective-C for iPhone.” Oh, and it doesn’t just end there — turns out this dude can also pluck tap away a good Neil Diamond classic on this five-way nerd-o-strummer. Get on board and check out the video after the break.

Continue reading Phone guitar: iPhone OS, Windows Mobile and Android got all night to set the world right (video)

Phone guitar: iPhone OS, Windows Mobile and Android got all night to set the world right (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 08 May 2010 04:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Whatever happened to that dreamy Line 6 / Apple tie-up? Who knows, right? While those two sort out their future behind the scenes, Paul Reed Smith Guitars is stepping up to take advantage of an obvious market opportunity. The newly announced Guitarbud is a simplistic accessory that allows axe slingers to jack their guitar into an iPhone or second-generation iPod touch, all while providing a headphone output in order to keep the noise making to yourself. We’re told that the device works with pretty much any recording-supported app (even Apple’s own Voice Memos), though PRS obviously recommends that you check out its JamApp guitar amp simulator / tuner / training tool. Best of all, it’s available today for £29.95 (or $29.95 here in the States), putting you just a few yard mowings away from securing your own personal aural sanctuary. Too bad the reviews from early adopters aren’t so promising…

PRS Guitarbud jacks your axe, ego into iPhone / iPod touch originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Mar 2010 04:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I received a guitar for Christmas when I was from my parents and then they sent me to lessons to learn to play the thing. That was all fine and good until I realized you had to practice a lot and I lost interest, plus I kept breaking the strings and losing picks. The one thing that most guitars have in common is strings. A concept guitar at Yanko Design has no strings and isn’t intended for playing Rock Band.

The concept is a MIDI instrument for digital musicians that can replicate the sound of any guitar setup. The pickups and frets on the guitar are digital inputs and the neck is touch sensitive. One thing that you lose with a guitar lacking strings is the feel of the strings vibrating.

The designer says that the concept uses piezo-electric actuators to emulate vibrations corresponding to the played note. That means in a nutshell that the guitar offers faux sting vibrations so you feel like you are playing with strings.

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