Napster's Portable Music Player

MacRumors · Oct 20, 2003, 02:10 AM

KnoxNews provides a preview of Samsung's Napster-branded portable music player (photo in article) that will be co-marketed with Napster's upcoming music service. Napster 2.0 will be launching officially on October 29th and Samsung's new Napster player will be priced comparably to the iPod at $399 for a 20GB model.

The article details that the Samsung player will be roughly the same dimensions and weight as the iPod, and also provide line-in audio, a limited FM-transmitter, 10 hour battery life, and integration with Napster 2.0 jukebox software.

Early limitations noted by the reviewer include limited functionality of the FM transmitter, more complicated controls than the iPod, bugs with transferring songs and playback.

Napster is considered by some to be Apple's biggest competition in the music download arena.

edesignuk · 02:17 AM

http://mas.scripps.com/KNS/2003/10/1...techtest_e.jpg

Hmmm...it's ok...but looks a little cluttered. Yup, I'll keep hold of my iPod thanku

arn · Oct 20, 2003, 02:19 AM

yeah... doesn't look quite like the iPod killer as it could be considering the lead time between the iPod's introduction and this device.

The line-in is nice... but the iPod seems a much more appealing device -- even without the audio recording. And the iPod is comparably priced.

I think the Dell DJ may be more competitive. It's still unclear who Dell is partnering with for their Dell Music Store.

arn

LFrascogna · Oct 20, 2003, 02:20 AM

Bring 'em on. That thing looks like everything else in the pc world. Why can't they do something other than black and gray. There are a whole lot of good unemployed product designers. C'mon, if you are going to attempt to bring in something to the iPod's house, you better be able to beat it off the shelf on looks alone. Average user cares about looks and storage, not recording, broadcasting, and what not.

LimeLite · Oct 20, 2003, 02:24 AM

Can it be used as an external hard drive? A bootable one, none the less? And does it store calender and contact info? And does it have connectors that lend itself to special peripherals? (like a card reader) Whenever anyone says the iPod is over priced, I say yes, if all it did was play Mp3's, it would be. But it does much more, and can be used for backup and storage. Without all the features I just mentioned, this Samsung-Napster creation is quite overpriced.

davester · Oct 20, 2003, 02:26 AM

It looks like a radio-equipped breathalyser.

csimmons · Oct 20, 2003, 02:30 AM

Am i the only one here who seems to think that Napster will not do as well as many people seem to think?

the Napster "name" is strong, sure, but it's a name recognized for (illegal) file swapping, not purchased music, whereas iTMS is widely recognized for legal downloads that work. As soon as people see that they can't download stuff from Napster for free anymore, they'll think twice about it.

Napster better be as simple to use, if not simpler, as iTMS, or they will have a very rough time (BuyMusic.com, anyone?). I've already heard from many of my PC-hugging colleagues who have iTMS for Windows and LOVE IT. Ease of use is a much bigger factor than brand recognition, and iTMS has that nailed.

theipodgod16 · 02:35 AM

what so many of these "analysts" dont seem to realize is that the only similarity between the New Napster and Napster circa 1999 is the name. There is nothing remotely similar except the name. And yet they think that just because roxio bought the name up, it will be sucessful. I swear, these "analysts" are spewing the most illogical garbage i have heard all week.

BTW, once people realize that under the $10 per month subscription mode, it will cost them $1 per song to transfer to that ipod ripoff up there, i do not think that people will be flocking to the store

edit: sorry csimmons, u must have posted just before i did, but hey, nice to know im not the only person who feels this way.

Sayhey · Oct 20, 2003, 02:45 AM

I think it's great. Great that they are trying a strategy that is in the same price range as the iPod. My worry was they would undercut the price by a lot and along with a lot of FUD from Microsoft they would have a big effect on the market. The first part of that scenario at least won't come true.

crap freakboy · Oct 20, 2003, 02:55 AM

-quote from article-
"It can tune into and record FM radio stations. And, with an included antenna, it can transmit FM signals, allowing its music to be picked up by any nearby radio, such as a car stereo. "

and thats a feature that wont be allowed in the UK considering the iTrip is banned here due to some victorian radio licencing law from 1856. Overall doesnt look like an iPod killer to me, though the line in is nice. Hope the extra features give Apple a 'rocket up the backside' to add a line in and a decent remote. Thats the only thing I really dislike about the iPod at the moment, that damn minimal design remote with its silly little clip...stops mid rant.

mproud · 03:11 AM

The rating system is useless. I always get confused on how to rate this kind of article.

Yes, any positive news from a competitor may spell bad news for Apple, iTunes, and the iPod.

How on earth can you either say "negative" or "positive"? It can certainly be both, and often times, a post on MacRumors will contain information from two different sources!

Napster creates a portable device - bad for iPod, good for competition.

It has bugs. Bad for Napster and consumers - good for iPod.Maybe good... maybe not...

Positive? Negative? It's really quite ridiculous.

reyesmac · 03:22 AM

If it doesnt say Apple all over it and is as compatible with the Mac as the iPod, why would any Mac user buy this thing? And why would a PC user buy it if it costs the same as Apples iPod?

Anywho I hope one of these new gadgets gives Apple a run for their money. Apple will have the iPod around for a long time to come but if nobody competes with them they will be super slow at making the thing better every year.

All they did this year is include a different adapter on the bottom to allow other companies to build devices for it. Apple just sits back and will eventually incorporate the popular hacks/devices into new iPods. They could have saved us a year by just adding the stuff people have been asking to be on the iPod since day one. The sooner other companies add better features to their players the faster Apple will have to add new ones to the iPod, which is always a good thing for the customer.

shangodee · Oct 20, 2003, 03:20 AM

This is prcisely what we need -- something in the same price range with a similar feature set to the iPod to keep Apple innovating. I know plenty of people who will buy this product just for the line-in so they can drop their MD recorders. Maybe the next iPod revision will finally bring similar functionality (and no, the memo / note taker iPod add-on is not comparable).

MDA · Oct 20, 2003, 03:23 AM

Given the tone of this review I see no reason to be concerned about Napster's player as a serious threat to the iPod. While it may offer a couple of more features, the reviewer seems more impressed with the iPod.

MDA

jholzner · Oct 20, 2003, 03:29 AM

I was really hoping that all those rumors about apple buying Roxio were true...to elimate the competition in this area. Turns out that they were false. Lets hope people see that the iPod/iTunes solution is a better one.

shadowfax · Oct 20, 2003, 03:31 AM

it's not such a bad design overall, though the interface looks pretty crummy. it needs an explicit play/pause button, if you ask me. is that on the sides or something, or what?

Stike · Oct 20, 2003, 03:37 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by crap freakboy
-quote from article-
"It can tune into and record FM radio stations. And, with an included antenna, it can transmit FM signals, allowing its music to be picked up by any nearby radio, such as a car stereo. "

and thats a feature that wont be allowed in the UK considering the iTrip is banned here due to some victorian radio licencing law from 1856.

This feature will also be banned in Germany, since those broadcasting abilities are supposed to interrupt/disturb some machines´operations. Here we go. Next.

Gymnut · Oct 20, 2003, 05:13 AM

Wouldn't mind seeing Apple drop the price of the 10GB ipod to $199.99. That'll give any mp3 out on the market a run for its money.

Belly-laughs · Oct 20, 2003, 06:15 AM

This thing´s just tacky. It re-defines the word.

Kermit · Oct 20, 2003, 07:09 AM

Pardon my french, but it looks f***ing horrible.

eddyg · Oct 20, 2003, 07:28 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Stike
This feature will also be banned in Germany, since those broadcasting abilities are supposed to interrupt/disturb some machines´operations. Here we go. Next.

It will probably also be banned on aircraft at all times unless you want the control surfaces bouncing along to the latest rap songs

macphoria · Oct 20, 2003, 07:32 AM

They should market this device at lower price. That would make it more competitive.

Stella · Oct 20, 2003, 07:34 AM

This player only relies on the napster name.

At the same cost as the iPod, and this device looking very ugly, sorry, the Napster device isn't going to sell to the majority, only to the Napster faithful.

The mp3 (wma, aac etc) market is getting very full, just how many devices can be in the market at one time? I hope Apple can reduce the prices because as the competition becomes even more cutthroat, prices are going to come down. iPod will look very expensive, yes, they have done well so far, but they can't rely on past history to ensure continued #1 position.

It won't do Apple any good with a market like the Mac / PC suitation where they hold a small percentage of sales in both Music Store and digital music devices. Remember, iTunes can only be used with iPod. It won't do them any good, they need a large market share especially for the muc store (otherwise their ability to keep getting new music will be reduced.)

Quote:

Originally posted by Kermit
Pardon my french, but it looks f***ing horrible.

macMaestro · Oct 20, 2003, 07:36 AM

I totally agree. Who on Earth would buy a thing that ugly???

Oh, yeah. The same people who buy Dell.

telos · Oct 20, 2003, 07:47 AM

we all agree the iPod looks great and does what it does magnificently. but the napster line-in option is one big plus on its side. you can directly record sounds from any source! whether a mic, vinyl, MD....

if apple sticks a line/mic-in jack in the iPod and keep it competitively priced - it's guaranteed to remain the indisputably best mp3 player (etc..) in the consumer market.

Oct 20, 2003, 02:14 AM	#2
edesignuk Demi-God (Moderator emeritus) Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Great(?) Britain	http://mas.scripps.com/KNS/2003/10/1...techtest_e.jpg Hmmm...it's ok...but looks a little cluttered. Yup, I'll keep hold of my iPod thanku __________________ Search before you post: MRoogle **Better BBC Search** Last edited by arn : Oct 20, 2003 at 02:17 AM.

Oct 20, 2003, 02:20 AM	#4
LFrascogna macrumors member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Chicago, IL	What Bring 'em on. That thing looks like everything else in the pc world. Why can't they do something other than black and gray. There are a whole lot of good unemployed product designers. C'mon, if you are going to attempt to bring in something to the iPod's house, you better be able to beat it off the shelf on looks alone. Average user cares about looks and storage, not recording, broadcasting, and what not.

Oct 20, 2003, 02:26 AM	#6
davester macrumors member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Perth, Australia	lol! It looks like a radio-equipped breathalyser. __________________ Live the life less ordinary.

Oct 20, 2003, 02:30 AM	#7
csimmons macrumors regular Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Stuttgart, Germany	Napster - puhleez... Am i the only one here who seems to think that Napster will not do as well as many people seem to think? the Napster "name" is strong, sure, but it's a name recognized for (illegal) file swapping, not purchased music, whereas iTMS is widely recognized for legal downloads that work. As soon as people see that they can't download stuff from Napster for free anymore, they'll think twice about it. Napster better be as simple to use, if not simpler, as iTMS, or they will have a very rough time (BuyMusic.com, anyone?). I've already heard from many of my PC-hugging colleagues who have iTMS for Windows and LOVE IT. Ease of use is a much bigger factor than brand recognition, and iTMS has that nailed.

Oct 20, 2003, 02:31 AM	#8
theipodgod16 macrumors 6502 Join Date: Aug 2003	what so many of these "analysts" dont seem to realize is that the only similarity between the New Napster and Napster circa 1999 is the name. There is nothing remotely similar except the name. And yet they think that just because roxio bought the name up, it will be sucessful. I swear, these "analysts" are spewing the most illogical garbage i have heard all week. BTW, once people realize that under the $10 per month subscription mode, it will cost them $1 per song to transfer to that ipod ripoff up there, i do not think that people will be flocking to the store edit: sorry csimmons, u must have posted just before i did, but hey, nice to know im not the only person who feels this way. Last edited by theipodgod16 : Oct 20, 2003 at 02:35 AM.

Oct 20, 2003, 02:10 AM	#1
MacRumors macrumors bot Join Date: Apr 2001	Napster's Portable Music Player KnoxNews provides a preview of Samsung's Napster-branded portable music player (photo in article) that will be co-marketed with Napster's upcoming music service. Napster 2.0 will be launching officially on October 29th and Samsung's new Napster player will be priced comparably to the iPod at $399 for a 20GB model. The article details that the Samsung player will be roughly the same dimensions and weight as the iPod, and also provide line-in audio, a limited FM-transmitter, 10 hour battery life, and integration with Napster 2.0 jukebox software. Early limitations noted by the reviewer include limited functionality of the FM transmitter, more complicated controls than the iPod, bugs with transferring songs and playback. Napster is considered by some to be Apple's biggest competition in the music download arena.

Oct 20, 2003, 02:19 AM	#3
arn macrumors god Join Date: Apr 2001	yeah... doesn't look quite like the iPod killer as it could be considering the lead time between the iPod's introduction and this device. The line-in is nice... but the iPod seems a much more appealing device -- even without the audio recording. And the iPod is comparably priced. I think the Dell DJ may be more competitive. It's still unclear who Dell is partnering with for their Dell Music Store. arn

Oct 20, 2003, 02:24 AM	#5
LimeLite macrumors 6502a Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Los Angeles, Ca	Can it be used as an external hard drive? A bootable one, none the less? And does it store calender and contact info? And does it have connectors that lend itself to special peripherals? (like a card reader) Whenever anyone says the iPod is over priced, I say yes, if all it did was play Mp3's, it would be. But it does much more, and can be used for backup and storage. Without all the features I just mentioned, this Samsung-Napster creation is quite overpriced.

Oct 20, 2003, 02:45 AM	#9
Sayhey macrumors 68000 Join Date: May 2003 Location: San Francisco	I think it's great. Great that they are trying a strategy that is in the same price range as the iPod. My worry was they would undercut the price by a lot and along with a lot of FUD from Microsoft they would have a big effect on the market. The first part of that scenario at least won't come true.

Oct 20, 2003, 02:55 AM	#10
crap freakboy macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: nar in Gainsborough, me duck	-quote from article- "It can tune into and record FM radio stations. And, with an included antenna, it can transmit FM signals, allowing its music to be picked up by any nearby radio, such as a car stereo. " and thats a feature that wont be allowed in the UK considering the iTrip is banned here due to some victorian radio licencing law from 1856. Overall doesnt look like an iPod killer to me, though the line in is nice. Hope the extra features give Apple a 'rocket up the backside' to add a line in and a decent remote. Thats the only thing I really dislike about the iPod at the moment, that damn minimal design remote with its silly little clip...stops mid rant.

Oct 20, 2003, 03:07 AM	#11
mproud macrumors regular Join Date: Mar 2003	Positive or Negative? Pointless, really. The rating system is useless. I always get confused on how to rate this kind of article. Yes, any positive news from a competitor may spell bad news for Apple, iTunes, and the iPod. How on earth can you either say "negative" or "positive"? It can certainly be both, and often times, a post on MacRumors will contain information from two different sources! Napster creates a portable device - bad for iPod, good for competition. It has bugs. Bad for Napster and consumers - good for iPod.Maybe good... maybe not... Positive? Negative? It's really quite ridiculous. Last edited by mproud : Oct 20, 2003 at 03:11 AM.

Oct 20, 2003, 03:20 AM	#12
reyesmac macrumors 6502 Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Central Texas	Same price as the iPod?! Are they serious? If it doesnt say Apple all over it and is as compatible with the Mac as the iPod, why would any Mac user buy this thing? And why would a PC user buy it if it costs the same as Apples iPod? Anywho I hope one of these new gadgets gives Apple a run for their money. Apple will have the iPod around for a long time to come but if nobody competes with them they will be super slow at making the thing better every year. All they did this year is include a different adapter on the bottom to allow other companies to build devices for it. Apple just sits back and will eventually incorporate the popular hacks/devices into new iPods. They could have saved us a year by just adding the stuff people have been asking to be on the iPod since day one. The sooner other companies add better features to their players the faster Apple will have to add new ones to the iPod, which is always a good thing for the customer. Last edited by reyesmac : Oct 20, 2003 at 03:22 AM.

Oct 20, 2003, 03:20 AM	#13
shangodee macrumors newbie Join Date: Jun 2003	Good This is prcisely what we need -- something in the same price range with a similar feature set to the iPod to keep Apple innovating. I know plenty of people who will buy this product just for the line-in so they can drop their MD recorders. Maybe the next iPod revision will finally bring similar functionality (and no, the memo / note taker iPod add-on is not comparable).

Oct 20, 2003, 03:23 AM	#14
MDA macrumors newbie Join Date: Nov 2002	Given the tone of this review I see no reason to be concerned about Napster's player as a serious threat to the iPod. While it may offer a couple of more features, the reviewer seems more impressed with the iPod. MDA

Oct 20, 2003, 03:29 AM	#15
jholzner macrumors 65816 Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Champaign, IL	I was really hoping that all those rumors about apple buying Roxio were true...to elimate the competition in this area. Turns out that they were false. Lets hope people see that the iPod/iTunes solution is a better one. __________________ "Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life." -Terry Pratchett. http://homepage.mac.com/jholzner

Oct 20, 2003, 03:31 AM	#16
shadowfax macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Houston, TX	it's not such a bad design overall, though the interface looks pretty crummy. it needs an explicit play/pause button, if you ask me. is that on the sides or something, or what? __________________ iMac 3.06 GHz \| 4GB RAM \| 500 GB ::: Unibody MacBook 2.4 GHz \| 4GB RAM\| 250GB 80 GB Video iPod ::: 16 GB iPhone 3G

Oct 20, 2003, 05:13 AM	#18
Gymnut macrumors 68000 Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Hawaii	Wouldn't mind seeing Apple drop the price of the 10GB ipod to $199.99. That'll give any mp3 out on the market a run for its money.

Oct 20, 2003, 06:15 AM	#19
Belly-laughs macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jun 2003	Korean chic This thing´s just tacky. It re-defines the word.

Oct 20, 2003, 07:09 AM	#20
Kermit macrumors member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Sweden, Scandinavia	Pardon my french, but it looks f***ing horrible. __________________ Switcher to be. Folding 24/7 for Team Mac Rumors.

Oct 20, 2003, 07:32 AM	#22
macphoria macrumors 6502a Join Date: Nov 2002	They should market this device at lower price. That would make it more competitive.

Oct 20, 2003, 07:36 AM	#24
macMaestro macrumors regular Join Date: Sep 2003	I totally agree. Who on Earth would buy a thing that ugly??? Oh, yeah. The same people who buy Dell.

Oct 20, 2003, 07:47 AM	#25
telos macrumors newbie Join Date: Oct 2003	we all agree the iPod looks great and does what it does magnificently. but the napster line-in option is one big plus on its side. you can directly record sounds from any source! whether a mic, vinyl, MD.... if apple sticks a line/mic-in jack in the iPod and keep it competitively priced - it's guaranteed to remain the indisputably best mp3 player (etc..) in the consumer market.

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