Take a look with your humble narrator at this lovely little pair of earbuds in the super bright white, orange, red, and black box. They say this set, the AUDEO PFE 022 + Mic Earbuds, have perfect bass, a perfect fit, and “perfect protection for maximum sound quality even at the lowest volumes.” Inside the box there’s a load of little instruction books, the earbuds, and three sets of rubber covers (for the insides of your ears.) Take a listen with us to the smooth sounds of these earbuds, a pair of earbuds that finally, finally fit in my ears and sound great without giving my lobes and drums a ringing out. Preview: for what they are, they rock. See the Unboxing and Hands-On post also!
Sound Quality
Jam them into your ears, and you will hear everything you’d like. For bass, take the song “Black Smoke” by The Prodigy off their EP by the name of Lost Beats. As I write this review I’m in one of the most terrible places for sound quality on the whole, a window seat on a 757 airplane flight (from Orlando to Minneapolis, if you’d like to know,) and I’m still jamming out pretty hard. I can hear the THOOM of the bass, the knocking of the steel drums, the flip-flopping of the DJ’s ripped-up records, and yes, even the tiny beeps in the background.
Next up is the song “Honey” aka “Bonus Track – special ingredient” by Erykah Badu from the album New Amerykah Part One. In this track I’m able to hear a little bit more sharpness than I’d like – this wasn’t as noticeable on the Prodigy track since, well, that music is wacky sharp in the ears no matter what you do because that’s the idea with that type of music. Here where I’m expecting a softer end of each smack, there’s, again, a little more sharpness than I know I hear under ideal conditions. The bass is still superior to most buds I’ve tested.
Finally, an older track by the name of “Dope Hat” by everyone’s favorite 90′s weirdo Marylin Manson from his classic Portrait of an American Family. The buds perform very well with this stereo track, each bud clearly delivering the doinks and cracks and jams and even the back-and-forths (more than one of these made to make you dizzy when you’re listening to headphones)
*A back-and-forth is when the producer has taken an audio element and has moved it back and forth along the two speaker receptors where usually a single sound goes in one or both since moving sounds back and forth like this produces an uncomfortable barf-inducing effect. If you’ve got at least a high-middle quality set of earbuds like these, this effect sounds nice, reminding you that you’d be throwing up if you didn’t have as nice a set as these.
As each of these tracks is played, the fact that these are earbuds and not ear-covering headphones is quite apparent – why? Because, again, these buds are right now being tested in the heck-hole – about 10 feet away from a jet engine. That said, these are the NICEST pair of earbuds I’ve ever had the pleasure of being jammed in my ears. I can hear the jet, but I can ignore it and enjoy the music (or the movie, or whatever else I happen to be grabbing audio from here on this airplane.)
Mic
Works great, sounds clear. placed at exactly the right place along the cord that it’s at the mouth with both buds in the ears. Single button turns on/off reception, minimalistic approach allows you to know it’s there while a layman might not ever notice it. No complaints here.
Comfort and Feel
Feels good, man. This set of buds comes with three sets of rubbery plugs for what I at first thought were people who treated them harshly and needed replacements – nay! They are three different size sets of buds for different sized lobes. Well played, Audeo. Each set doesn’t have a gigantic amount of size difference from the next, but if you’ve got smaller holes in your ears, you shouldn’t have to worry, as all sizes will jam into smaller ears. If you’ve got problems often with earbuds because you’re just a gigantic person to begin with, probably just go ahead and steer clear of earbuds altogether – that’s my advice. These three sizes are for comfort more than they are to accommodate for large ranges in lobes.
I’ve got fickle ears, lobes and drums. Earbuds do not agree with me on a regular basis, and for the first few hundred years after earbuds were first thought up and sold commercially, I swore off of them because they gave me a major headache almost no matter what. Audeo proves here that the new age in comfort for haters like me has arrived. I brought these buds along on a weeklong trip here instead of a larger pair of headphones because I found them to be both comfortable and small enough to fit in my pocket – imagine that!
Wrap-Up
Good buds, man. The package is gorgeous and for the quality they promise, these are the buds to suggest to buds. Comfortable for headache havers, sound good next to a jet engine, and look and act well physically. Bottom line is that these are the buds I bring with me places. They’re no sound-canceling several-hundred-dollar headphones, but they don’t promise to be – great earbuds is what’s going on here.
We’ve heard about Cricket’s Muve Music in the past, and the idea is the same as other subscription-based music services before: you pay a certain amount per month, and you get an unlimited amount of songs to download. Of course, with that kind of deal, there’s always some form of protection involved, and with this new service from Cricket, it’s no different. However, unlike the other services, even the ones that are tied to a phone, it’s an extra charge per month. Not with Cricket’s Muve Music.
The idea behind the service is to provide the unlimited music downloads, all the while charging the owner for the wireless monthly charge, and nothing more. The result? $55 per month will get you unlimited talk, text, picture messages, data back-up, and unlimited web. Basically, unlimited everything that most people use on a day-to-day basis, but with an unlimited amount of music to download. Check out the full press release for more information.
Press Release
Cricket Debuts Muve Music Service at 2011 International CES
~ New Wireless Rate Plan with Unlimited Music Downloads Exclusively Designed for Mobile Phone ~
SAN DIEGO – January 3, 2011 – Cricket Communications Inc., a leading provider of innovative and value-driven wireless services and a wholly owned subsidiary of Leap Wireless International, Inc. (NASDAQ:LEAP), today announced it will debut Muve Music, its new wireless rate plan with unlimited music and the new Samsung SuedeTM (SCH-r710) mobile phone at the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show.
For the first time publicly people will be able to see and experience Muve Music from Cricket – first announced on December 20, 2010 – a new wireless rate plan with unlimited music which has been designed exclusively for the mobile phone and does not require the use of a computer. Muve Music, available on the Samsung Suede, will be on display at CES in a variety of places including:
CES Unveiled on Tuesday, Jan. 4 from 4 – 7 p.m. at Venetian Ballroom, The Venetian
Pepcom Digital Experience on Wednesday, Jan. 5 from 7 – 10 p.m. at Caesar’s Palace in the Octavius Ballroom.
Muve Music Lounge in the Cricket Buzz Suite from Thursday, Jan. 6 – Sunday, Jan. 9 in S210, South Hall, LVCC – regular show hours
Along the strip and around Las Vegas including nearby Cricket stores
Entertainment Matters
Cricket, along with Variety, is one of the main sponsors of Entertainment Matters, the new International CES® program developed to help entertainment professionals navigate the largest, most influential technology show in the world, through exhibits, conference programs and events critical to the Hollywood community.
Media Contacts: Cricket Communications, Inc. Greg Lund, Media Relations 858-882-9105 glund@cricketcommunications.com
Amy Wakeham, Investor Relations 858-882-9876 awakeham@leapwireless.com
Cricket Cricket Debuts Muve Music Service at 2011 International CES
Cricket and its Muve Music partners Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group, and Samsung will host a session “Muve Music From Cricket – The Business Model” on Friday, Jan. 7 at 4:00 p.m. in Room N250 of the Las Vegas Convention Center, located on the main concourse between the North and Central exhibit halls.
The Muve Music Experience
For just $55 per month, Muve Music customers will get the following features on Cricket’s nationwide 3G network:
Unlimited nationwide calling Unlimited nationwide text, picture & video messaging Unlimited global text messaging Unlimited 3G mobile Web Unlimited email Unlimited data back up Unlimited video
And for the first time anywhere in the U.S.
Unlimited full track downloads Unlimited ringtones Unlimited ringback tones
With Cricket’s Muve Music rate plan, there are no download fees and no monthly music subscriptions. Customers’ data plans will not be impacted by streaming music over the wireless network and customers won’t be required to use a credit card to purchase music. Unlimited Muve Music is included in the flat rate monthly wireless service plan.
Muve Music has a robust catalog of music content which includes the four major record labels: Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group, and EMI Music.
For more information about Muve Music visit www.muvemusic.com and for more information about all of Cricket’s products and services, including its dynamic device lineup, please visit www.mycricket.com.
About Cricket
Cricket is the pioneer of simple and affordable unlimited wireless services with no long-term commitments or credit checks required serving more than 5 million customers in 35 states and the District of Columbia. Cricket offers wireless voice and broadband Internet services over the latest technology, high-quality, all-digital 3G CDMA2000 1X and 1xEV-DO wireless network. Cricket’s nationwide wireless voice service plans include unlimited anytime minutes, unlimited U.S. long distance, unlimited
Cricket Cricket Debuts Muve Music Service at 2011 International CES
text and picture messaging, unlimited text to Mexico, unlimited Mobile Web, unlimited directory assistance, as well as a variety of calling features and feature-rich mobile applications such as popular games, ringtones and wallpapers. Cricket Broadband provides unlimited Internet access anywhere within Cricket’s coverage areas at speeds comparable to DSL. For more information on Cricket, visit www.mycricket.com. Cricket is offered by Leap Wireless International, Inc., headquartered in San Diego, Calif. For more information on Leap, visit www.leapwireless.com.
Bypass! As a cool group of hackers bypass PS3 security. Discover! What the Japanese already know in early 2011 with Sharp Galapagos Android tablets. Beware! As a virus by the name of Geinimi flies through your Android device via side-loaded apps. Giggle! As a hybrid DIY project iPhone/Android/Game Boy in a geeky mashup. And get TOTALLY PUMPED UP! At our full guide and demo of the totally leaked Android Honeycomb Music Player – everything you need to know to get it working for you! All this and MORE on SlashGear Morning Wrap-Up!
Take a peek! You know that new version of Android coming out soon, 3.0 Honeycomb? Well not only do lots of people have their hands on bits of it, they’re setting them free into the wild. Which piece will it be today? Why, a brand new music player of course. You can grab the download link below if you like, or continue to read some words about it as I type them out. I know which one I’d do if I didn’t already have it. It looks like the 3D photo gallery you’re used to and works like a charm.
Divided up into Artists, Albums, and Songs, with few options (but who needs em?) for playing the music, this player shouldn’t surprise to that much of an extent. On the other hand, is it a surprise you want or a really awesome working music player? Download the thang for yourself now! ALSO more screenshots coming soon!
Update: Won’t install on Android 2.3.
Update: Won’t install on Android 2.1.1 (although I suppose that’s a given) Anyone get it to install?
If you know anything about the history of video games, you know about one of the most maddeningly addictive action puzzle games of all time: Frogger. What you might not know is that this sort of game has been played by real people more than once – most recently just a couple of days ago in South Carolina by a man and his friends. He didn’t exactly get crunched, but he didn’t really make it all the way across, either, getting hit by a Lexus SUV on his way across. This should remind you of two relatively famous reenactments of similar nature: Seinfeld and the Prodigy. Their respective games (or terrible lapses in judgement) went way better (or funnier, at least.)
This man and his friends, according to Clemson police chief Jimmy Dixon, were “intrigued” by the idea that they might act out the game Frogger in real life. When his friend shouted “Go!” this man started his way across several lanes of traffic – getting quickly hit, but not killed. WYFF 4 local news reports the man to be in stable condition.
Now lets talk about the better situations. First of two is Seinfeld, in an episode where they’ve got an arcade cabinet containing the Frogger game that George would like to get across the street to a power outlet to try out. He decides for the most hilarious approach and dodges traffic:
The more hardcore of these two involves lots of voodoo magic. This is a music video of the Pendulum remix of the classic Prodigy song “Voodoo People” and features a ritualistic running of blindfolded people through a series of obstacles, including traffic. Make sure your sound is down to a reasonable level for this one:
Remember at Google I/O this year when Google showed off “something beyond Froyo” in the music realm? The demo included an all-new music player (boy, wouldn’t that be nice!), along with magical features that let you push web-purchased songs to your device, and allowed you to browse your PC’s music library from your phone as if it was on the device itself. Well, none of that showed up in Gingerbread, unfortunately, but the new music player itself has just leaked out. It’s super buggy, and of course doesn’t have any of those fancy wireless features we’re waiting on, but it could offer a bit of a glimpse into 3.0, at least as far as UI tweaks go.
The differences seem minimal but aesthetically pleasing, with blurred background images behind frosted glass widgets as far as the eye can see. One important thing to note is that there is a menu button on the top right, at least in some views, and we went back and watched Andy Rubin’s tablet time at D: there’s clearly the same menu button on each app. [Suspenseful strings begin to play]. It seems Google might be getting rid of its hardware buttons entirely, or at least making menu functionality a more obvious part of its relevant applications, instead of the “surprise!” button it currently represents. There are also points in the video where tapping the application’s icon in the top left takes you to the “home” of the app, and we also found similar icons on the top left of each application Andy demoed at D — and we’re guessing they have the same functionality. Check out a video after the break, or hit up the source link to grab the APK… if you dare.
If listening to music is something you like to do, but telling those around you (who ask) what you’re listening to isn’t, then the Playbutton could be the next MP3 player for you. Especially if you only want to listen to one album at a time, and show off to the world who you’re listening to. While most MP3 players are meant to let you have plenty of artists, or individual songs, ready to go at all times, the designer of the Playbutton believes that having one album, on an MP3 player as small as a button, may be the future of music.
At least, one part of the future of music. Designed by Nick Dangerfield and his cohorts at Playbutton, the aptly-named MP3 player is meant to not only let you listen to an album simply and easily, it’s also meant to show off who you’re listening to. In a world where pirating music is a real threat to the music industry, Playbutton wants to let those who buy their music show it off, so that everyone can see it.
Dangerfield is planning on having the Playbutton released by February of 2011, and it’s going to be up to the artists who release the MP3 players to pick the price. As Dangerfield puts it, “If you say to people, ‘It’s an MP3 player and it’s $25,’ they say it’s cheap. But if you say, ‘It’s an MP3 player and it’s already got a good record inside,’ they think it’s expensive.” Dangerfield confirmed that there will be 8 different “smaller” bands that are featured at the Playbutton’s launch. Artists like Germany-based Oval, and New York-based “indietronica” band Javelin.
As for the design, it’s as simple as it gets: an MP3 player that’s meant to look like a small bade, or button. Controlling the music is just as simple as the design. Three buttons on the back of the button: play/pause, skip back, and skip left. There’s no way to take the music off the badge, and there’s no way to put music onto it. You also can’t shuffle the music on the button, either.
Dr. Dre is one of the most known rap artists in the music world. The rapper and game maker Zynga has announced a new music deal what will see the new Dr. Dre single Kush streamed within the Mafia Wars online game. The new track comes from Dr. Dre’s new album Detox.
The video for Kush that will be streamed inside the game features Snoop Dog and Akon and will be free to stream and can be viewed right now. The album the single is from will land in early 2011. Mafia Wars also gets a bunch of Dre inspired goods.
Limited edition virtual goods can be won by players within a separate “Hustlin’ wit Dre” portion of the Mafia Wars game. The virtual goods will include things like headphones, a vintage car, and various weapons. Players will also be able to register to win autographed goods like headphones and a signed copy of the CD.
Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: a cell phone comes with an unlimited music subscription. Now, flip it on its head and say the cellular carrier was the one offering the all-you-can download audio buffet — built right into a totally unlimited data, text and voice monthly slate — and you’ve basically got the new $55 Muve Music plan from Cricket Wireless. Cricket doesn’t have the reach of the big four US carriers and may not even have coverage in your area, but that didn’t keep it from tempting Universal, Warner, Sony and EMI from signing over millions of songs. It’ll debut on the new Samsung Suede featurephone pictured at right, which comes with a “special” 4GB Sandisk encrypted flash memory card (et tu, slotRadio?) that will likely protect the music from prying pirate claws… at least for the weeks or months it takes the open-source community to rip it a new one.
The Suede will reportedly hold about 3,000 songs, which (barring antics) will be irrevocably tied to the phone and only play there, and disappear entirely if users stop paying for the Muve plan. PC Magazine got a brief hands-on with an early version, and says there’s a bit of irksome audio compression, but also some Zune-like social networking features, too. The service will debut at CES on January 6th, and spread to other devices and other markets over the course of 2011. PR after the break!
Take a trip on the root train with Nexus S, emulate your way back into the greatest system ever SEGA Dreamcast – on Android, see Google aspire for a musical future, and translate foreign text in real time with Word Lens for iPhoto! Then just incase you missed it last night, take a peek at this first look at the L1v2 Laser Pico Handheld Projector with none other than your humble narrator, and get your first taste of TRON: LEGACY with a full review by Philip! All this and MORE on SlashGear Morning Wrap-Up!
