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Its crazy how many hardware features are not utilized to their full extent on new iPhone. FM radio and transmission, 802.11N networking. Are they waiting for iPhone OS 4.0 or "new" iPhone revision altogether before enabling these features...
 
@bagelche
I just added your station to my app's directory, but it should be one that can already play right in safari (and in the background) if you go to the stream link directly:

http://nyc01.egihosting.com:6232/listen.pls


Thanks, wooo, for adding it. I haven't plunked down for a convenient app yet, but I just might have to. :) I've never actually tried to listen to the station in mobile safari, thought it makes sense it would. Thanks for taking the time to offer that advice on the streaming url.

These Berkshire hills cause all sorts of spotty--there are plenty of times I have no cell service, but can pick up the station on FM and vice versa. AT&T claimed they were bringing 3G to the area by the end of FY09. we'll see how that goes, but it's for a different thread entirely.
 
While I think it would be nice to have FM, what I really want is Digital Radio (DAB+). DAB seems to be the future of radio broadcasts (in many countries if not universally) because of the pressure on the available spectrum.

Also, Apple could then leapfrog the competition and be the leader (once again) with new functionality and technology.

I realise that this might not be possible with the chips used in the current model (don't know enough about what they use etc) but it would certainly be only a small step to add in something appropriate.

Susan
Why DAB? Talk about going off in the wrong direction.
Very poor sound quality (MPEG-1 - 128 bit rate) when compared to analog FM signal. It's also being phased out for DAB+.

DAB+ is looking good since they based the codec compression off the MPEG-4 standard (AAC+), but adoption is slow (only 6 countries currently use it) and expensive to implement.

It's not used in the US mainly due to restrictions on the use of the L band frequencies. Those are reserved for the military here.
Canada even signed a deal with the US (FCC) to not allow the broadcast of DAB+ over the L band frequencies. So no Mode II or Mode IV broadcasting in Canada.
So even Canadians will not get the full DAB+ implementation if and when they decide to roll it out.

HD Radio on the other hand, offers better sound quality and building penetration since it utilizes the unused FM frequencies already in place.
Problem is it is only used in the US.

Given all of that, I don't really see Apple getting into the digital radio mess until a clear global standard emerges and is in wider use.
 
Maybe the FM radio guy or girl just isn't that in to programming iCal stuff.
Or the iCal guys and Gals don't have a something they could work on with out them all starting to trip over each other.

Remember programming cycles are people too.

As iPhone-programming folks they would be adaptable and dynamic, no? ;)
 
Oh please Apple just let FStream play in the background. Just let them incorporate an iTunes Store web link when a song comes up on the radio station. This would make me buy more iTunes albums for sure.
 
call me strange but i cant wait for this, i hate it that the only good radio station in the state happens to not be online to stream and i also hate gettin out my old 1998 sony stero just to listen to it when im not driving i really hope this is real.:)
 
I bet 2G iPhone users will be out of luck again, as we were with 3.0 software update: no tethering, Bluetooth P2P, stereo Bluetooth or MMS while hardware is definitely capable.

MMS doesn't work on the iPhone (2G) is due to the EDGE service. It's slow and inefficient.

Tethering has the same reason as MMS, slow and inefficient and causes severe battery drainage and uneccessary loads on the network.

As for bluetooth items, I don't think the chip supports it, not sure though, but I believe that was an early model of the chip that has some locks placed on it so they could be bought at a cheaper price.

This is a common tactic among chip manufacturing, they build the chips all the same in the beginning then send a few over to another location to install hardware locks on them to sell at a cheaper price. This keeps costs down by having a single manufacturing process, but allows them to sell multiple versions of a chip. This could be the case in the bluetooth chip.
 
remember...

it remembers to me when the rumors about bluetooth capacities in the 2G Touch could be possible, maybe that will happen again, don't you think??:)
 
I bet 2G iPhone users will be out of luck again, as we were with 3.0 software update: no tethering, Bluetooth P2P, stereo Bluetooth or MMS while hardware is definitely capable.

I hear you but technology moves along and it isn't always possible to make everything new work on older equipment. There are great prices on 3G and 3Gs so bite the bullet and upgrade.
 
It never ceases to amaze me how many hating whiners post here.
With that said I think that adding FM radio capabilities to the iPhone is a genius move. Not because Zune did it first but because aside from playing music with the iPod app the iPhone already has the ability to purchase music from the iTunes store and FM radio is still the number one place that music buyers discover new music.
Apple knows that very well, remember all the "new music tuesday" radio ads they used to air?

BTW you don't have to believe me, there have been at least 2 recent studies that support this.

Think of it like this:

You hear a song on the radio that you like, you press one button on your iPhone which takes you to that song in the iTunes store (if that station supports tagging), you press another button and it downloads into your iPhone.

If you were a company that sold music wouldn't you like to capitalize on these compulsive purchases?

I would.
 
Wow! I can't believe it. An FM radio. If words could only relay how I feel hearing about this news. Wait I'll give it a try -- meh.

Hahahaha, I think its good. Sometimes you just need to tune in to sumthn'. Kinda late though.
 
MMS doesn't work on the iPhone (2G) is due to the EDGE service. It's slow and inefficient.

Tethering has the same reason as MMS, slow and inefficient and causes severe battery drainage and uneccessary loads on the network.

Your logic fails. How come every other mobile phone manufacturer has managed to manufacture a phone with MMS far before there even was 3G networks. Same applies to tethering and EDGE or GPRS data. I believe it should be up to consumer to decide if its too slow to use or not. Regarding MMS it really doesn't matter since receiving MMS data is a background operation. I think the real explanation is within the piss poor AT&T.
 
Here's the deal. This is an interesting app, and it would be pretty impressive, but I see people talking about two different things.

#1. App uses hardware FM radio for terrestrial reception, in background
#2. App allows Internet radio to stream and play in background

Which will it be?

I'd like BOTH. If I get either/or, I will be disappointed.

Apple should have an single-interface, with an easy option to get BOTH and for the user to be able to toggle between streaming Internet and FM reception.

Streaming Internet will be able to get reception ANYWHERE there is bandwidth, get AM stations on the 'net, while sucking up battery life and possibly encountering net congestion.

FM will depend on good reception, location, and interference, but it will be the traditional FM radio most people are used to. Both could have access to program information and link to iTunes for song purchases (when available). Realtime "pause" would be great, but not essential.

We'll see how Apple rolls this. Should be good. I think its real. If Apple pulls this off, it could be a highly unique and impressive implementation, however much the concept seems dated or late-to-the-game. It certainly continues to screw over offerings from competitors.

~ CB
 
Why do people assume that one buys an iPod to avoid radio? Since when can we not like both? I would LOVE to listen to the radio on my touch or iPhone. I could listen to my favourite morning show while walking to work. Bring it on is all I can say!!!!!!!
 
Yay!

Cricket on my iPhone this summer!

Yah, like this is coming any time soon...
 
Its crazy how many hardware features are not utilized to their full extent on new iPhone. FM radio and transmission, 802.11N networking. Are they waiting for iPhone OS 4.0 or "new" iPhone revision altogether before enabling these features...

This hardware feature has been available even on the ipod shuffle since the first generation.
 
This would be a huge plus and a selling point for the next iPhone. I've been wanting FM (and AM) radio on my iPhone for a long time. Not streaming, but real radio, like in my car. I will upgrade my iPhone in and instant if the next version can receive AM/FM radio (real radio; not streaming).
 
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