May 04 2011

AppSpin: TuneIn Radio

Richard Glover dreams about a ‘new’ technological breakthrough.

“The player costs a couple of dollars, and runs for months on a single penlight battery. It’s small enough to slip into your pocket. A wide variety of content is constantly streamed via a wireless connection, with users able to change content by twiddling a small dial on the side of the receiver. Most amazing of all, the content is always up to date, as it is broadcast “live” in “real time” without any need for the users to refresh the content held in their player. Best of all, people are able to experience the same programs simultaneously, building a sense of community and shared debate.

More phenomenal still, the technology is interactive, with users able to themselves appear live through a process known as “talkback” or “phone-in” radio.

Wow! What an advance on dreary old moribund podcasting……. We could call it radio”

From “They’ve reinvented the wheel – and now (gasp) it’s got corners“.

Do you sometimes pull up at your destination, but remain sitting in the car waiting for an interesting interview on the radio to finish? To find out the answer to the quiz question? To hear the end of the news? To see if the Waratahs will finally score that try? To check the weather forecast?

I love podcasting, but as Glover says, sometimes only the radio will cut it.

TuneIn Radio gives your iPhone or iPad the ability to play live radio. It does not have an FM receiver – rather it picks up (via 3G or wifi) the live internet stream that most stations provide. You can search for stations from all over the world – Local ABC and Radio National and Grandstand are as far as I have looked.

A 3G connection provides more than adequate bandwidth –  but be careful if you have a very limited download allowance. The application allows you to pause the program you are listening to, and even rewind and replay the broadcast.

And you’ll be able to get out of the car without missing any action.

TuneIn Radio – Synsion Radio Technologies