TechCrunch
Apple Patents ‘Silent Disco' Tech For Distributed Raves And Shared Private DJ Sets
The silent disco is a recent trend that sees people using headphones to come together and enjoy a concert quietly while in a shared space, and a new Apple patent appears to want to capitalize on this somewhat off-beat trend to promote a new kind of music sharing. The patent, published today by the USPTO and spotted by AppleInsider, describes a method for a group of users to share tunes and groove along together silently and even remotely, at the whim of a distant DJ.
This is definitely one of the more bizarre patents Apple has applied for, and seems quite a bit outside their comfort zone in terms of something we’ll actually see in a shipping product, but on the other hand it’s a way to drive music sales and downloads, which has seen Apple try some of its more unusual product launches including Ping, iTunes Match and the upcoming iTunes Radio. The so-called “coordinated music experience” described in Apple’s patent would use ad hoc, Bluetooth, cellular or Wi-Fi networking to connect multiple people, with one acting as the DJ.
Others in the listening party could hear the same song as the DJ, or could hear tracks matched up based on tempo, genre or other factors of similarity, drawn from their own library in cases where not everyone has access to the same tracks. Other features include sharing of avatars and other user information for a social network type experience, a display of the beats-per-minute currently being used by tracks in the group, and rotating DJs among group members, Turntable.fm style.
Again, this is a pretty out-there patent that isn’t likely to make its way to shipping products anytime in the immediate future. But it’s a good example of Apple’s thought process around iTunes and digital media; the emphasis is on ideas and inventions that help to promote music discovery, which in turn helps to promote music sales via the iTunes Store. This particular invention may have been the product of a time when the ‘Silent Disco’ phenomenon was especially present in the collective consciousness, but that doesn’t mean a shared listening experience won’t someday make its way to Apple devices.
After 4M Downloads On iOS, Photo Remixing App Repix Lands On Android With Samsung S Pen Support
After garnering 4 million downloads on iOS in five months, Finnish mobile app developer Sumoing has released a version of its photo “remixing” app Repix for Android. Refreshingly, however, this isn’t just a straight up port. The app boasts support for Samsung’s S Pen, which ships with Korean device maker’s line of Note ‘phablets’ and tablets, enabling users to paint on their photos using a good old-fashioned stylus. That’s something that iPhone and iPad users can only dream of (well, out of the box, anyway).
Similar to the version iOS, Repix on Android offers a range of basic photo editing features, such as cropping an image or adjusting saturation, color balance and temperature. However, the app’s raison d’être is its suite of brushes that let you “remix” photos by painting various effects over the original image to turn even crappy-looking photos into something palatable. We live in a post-Instagram age after all.
The Android version of Repix includes a selection of 30 brushes, ranging from animated, light, grunge, color boosting and artistic styles, according to the company. In addition, there are a number of filters and frames, and the aforementioned editing tools. Another neat trick of the app is that editing is lossless, meaning that any edits, painting or filters can be rolled back, thanks to what Sumoing is calling its real-time “Rebeca” processing engine.
Finally, as well as support for Samsung’s S Pen, Repix for Android also has built-in support for Samsung Galaxy S 4 Air View technology, so that users can see the size of each brush by hovering their finger over the photo, thus getting a quick preview before they begin fondling their soon-to-be masterpiece.
Repix’s business model is a classic freemium play. The app is free, and in addition to a selection of built-in brushes, more brush styles are available via in-app purchasing.
Regarding the app’s seemingly impressive download metrics on iOS, as we reported back in late March, a week after launch Repix had seen 1.5 million downloads. Now tallying 4 million, growth, while still impressive, has tailed off significantly — the pros and cons of a successful launch and the associated PR.
However, I’m also told that of those 4 million downloads, 24% are “active” users, while the iOS app has seen 25 million images edited. And, crucially, Repix has thus far achieved a 5% conversion rate in terms of in-app purchases.
Samsung Exec Confirms Galaxy Gear Smartwatch Aimed At Younger, Hip Buyers Coming Sept. 4
Samsung’s Galaxy Gear smartwatch is poised to be the next big news in wearable tech, and it’s also rapidly becoming one of the worst kept secrets of the tech world. Today, Samsung Executive Vice President of Mobile Lee Young-hee told The Korea Times that the Galaxy Gear would indeed be unveiled in Berlin on Sept. 4 two days ahead of the IFA conference opening, and that the new smartwatch would be powered by Android, and would not feature Samsung’s fledgling flexible display tech.
The Galaxy Gear will be a device to “enhance” and “enrich” the smart phone experience, according to Lee, which makes sense given the recent reports that it would be more of an accessory device than something that stands separate from a smartphone and is capable of making its own calls.
Lee also characterized the Galaxy Gear as a “wearable concept device,” saying that Samsung has been working on the smartwatch category for a long time now, and noting that is aimed primarily at “young trendsetters” in the interview with the Korea Times. All of which combines to make it sound like Samsung is designing this not only as something that’s aimed at early adopters, but also as something of a fashion accessory.
Earlier, GigaOM reported that the Galaxy Gear would have a 2.5-inch display, with 320 x 320 resolution, and a dual core processor. It’s designed to pair up to devices with Bluetooth 4.0, and will likely require an app provided through the Samsung dedicated app marketplace in order to work, making it likely an accessory exclusive to Samsung’s own smartphones.
The September 4 event will also definitely see the introduction of the new Galaxy Note 3, which will reveal what’s next for the phablet category Samsung basically pioneered with the original Note. Some new rumors suggest the Galaxy Note 3 will shoot 4K video, and be powered by a Snapdragon 800 processor with a 2.3GHz clock speed, with a 5.7-inch display and 3GB of RAM.
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