Apple and Emmis Interactive have announced a licensing agreement allowing Emmis to market its custom Storefront technology to other radio stations and media companies. Used exclusively to date by Emmis radio stations, the Storefront technology allows stations to build storefronts with a look and feel consistent with their product, while enabling listeners to easily find and purchase songs they hear on the air through the iTunes Store. Since its launch?

Recently updated to provide video-out compatibility with the late 2007 iPod lineup, DLO's TransDock Deluxe ($130) otherwise takes a detour in the evolution of the family. Unlike the $100 TransDock, this Deluxe version omits the new styling and flexible gooseneck mount in favor of last year's antenna-focused design and older twin pipe mounting system. But it adds a steering wheel-ready RF remote control to the package, as well as AV cables that need?

As the most impressively overhauled addition to the TransDock family, DLO's 2008 version of TransDock ($100) has finally received the gooseneck feature that we've been waiting for years to see as a part of this in-car FM transmitter, charger, and mounting system. With streamlined body styling and open sides, the new TransDock includes an optional stabilizer for the iPod touch, as well as a pop-out circular rear pad to fit various iPod models. In addition?

Based upon a considerably earlier version of the TransDock/TransPod, DLO's new TransDock Classic ($80) is a rounded iPod car mount with an FM transmitter, line-out audio port, and car charger built in. The biggest addition to TransDock Classic is IntelliTune, a feature that enables the unit to find clear FM stations to broadcast on; manual tuning buttons are still available. TransDock Classic otherwise preserves past family features, such as twin?

Substantially redesigned from its predecessor, the 2008 version of TransDock Micro is an all-in-one FM transmitter and charging cable with several interesting features. The FM transmitter is found in a car charger mounted bulb that is flexible for positioning on your choice of angles. A silver dial on the front surrounds a blue-on-black LCD screen, together letting you tune stations and activate Intellitune, a clear station finder. DLO's thin, integrated?

Google has released a new beta version of its Reader application designed for the iPhone and other mobile devices with advanced browsers. According to the official Google Reader Blog, the new version is designed to offer many of the same features as the desktop version, while allowing users to read, share, star, and toggle unread status all from a single view, and without needing to reload the page. To access the new beta version of Google Reader?

Apple today announced that CEO Steve Jobs will kick off this year?s Worldwide Developer Conference in San Francisco with a keynote address beginning at 10:00 a.m. on June 9. Interestingly, the official press release also refers to the iPhone and iPod touch?s software as ?OS X iPhone?,? the first time the software has been referred to in this way. The WWDC event will feature the first ever iPhone track for mobile developers,?

HBO and Apple have announced that programming from HBO is now available on the iTunes Store, and as reported yesterday, select shows sell for more than the standard $1.99 per episode. ?We?re very excited to make these legendary HBO programs available on the iTunes Store,? said Henry McGee, president of HBO Video. ?Whether catching up on ?Sex and the City? in anticipation of its upcoming movie release or reliving?

Vaja has introduced its new iVolution Stripes leather case for iPhone. The iVolution Stripes shares its basic design with the iVolution Top, offering a flip-down protective front flap, open access to all buttons and controls, and an optional rear clip. Unique to the iVolution Stripes is a customizable five-stripe color scheme, which allows the user ?more than one million possible color combinations.? The color of the far left and far right?

As one of the more significant speaker design advances we've seen in recent years, Gear4's new DUO (£150/approx. $290) is a two-piece audio system that becomes bigger or smaller depending on your needs. The metal and plastic front piece is a portable, rechargeable battery-powered portable audio system with a fold-out dock in front and a fold-out stand in back, while the considerably larger plastic subwoofer sits on a desk waiting for you to attach?

Apple will soon announce a deal with HBO to sell the premium cable network?s programming on the iTunes Store, according to a new report. Citing HBO employees involved in executing the agreement, Portfolio.com says the new offerings could be announced in the next few weeks. Although the details of the agreement are unknown, it appears as though Apple has agreed to a separate pricing structure for HBO content, with both higher pricing for HBO?

A drop-down menu of devices on AT&T?s customer website shows a new ?iPhone Black? model alongside a listing for the current iPhone. The menu is visible from the Phone/Device selection screen in the Online Account Management area of the carrier?s website. While no device with that name has been announced, the appearance of the listing does lend credence to prior reports that the next-generation iPhone would be available?

A Telecom Italia Mobile (TIM) executive has claimed that a 3G-capable version of the iPhone will be on sale in Italy in June, according to an Electronics Weekly report. Speaking to EW?s David Manners, Luigi Licciardi, executive vice president of technology and operations with TIM, said, ?We will be selling an iPhone with 3G capability next month.? In the same report, Manners describes a conversation he had with a Vodafone spokesperson, who?

The first-generation iPhone is now listed as ?Currently Unavailable? on Apple?s Online Store in both the United States and the United Kingdom. This news comes after a week which saw the introduction of more than 20 international iPhone carriers which will offer the iPhone later this year, and comes amidst iPhone sellouts at UK iPhone carrier O2 and retailer Carphone Warehouse stores. The stores, which have been sold out of 8GB iPhones?

Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel), Bharti Airtel, Globe Telecom, and SingTel subsidiary Optus have announced they have reached deals with Apple to offer the iPhone in their respective markets later in 2008. SingTel will offer the phone in Singapore, Bharti Airtel in India, Globe Telecom in the Philippines, and Optus in Australia. The announcement of Bharti in India and Optus in Australia also makes these the second and third confirmed non-exclusive?

When myvu first announced and showed Crystal 701 ($300), its deluxe 640x480 wearable video display system for iPods, we were somewhat concerned: while the company had used unusually smooth curves and aggressive size reduction techniques to fit high-tech components in a small goggle-esque shell, a combination of black and yellow coloration made it hard for us to imagine anyone wearing the system. So we were really relieved when our review unit arrived?

If you haven?t yet started on your submission for the Design the Next iPhone, Win the Next iPhone Contest, there?s still plenty of time to get your entry in?simply submit a brand-new artistic rendition (minimum 1600px wide) of what you think the next iPhone should look like. iLounge?s editors will pick six top concepts from the pool of valid entries, three of which will receive Apple?s next-generation iPhone (!!), while three?

Based upon the company's earlier Solo Plus for iPod, myvu's new Shades 301 iPod Edition ($200) makes dramatic cosmetic changes to the prior wearable video display in an effort to make them more visually interesting and wearable. Shades 301 is a modular system with numerous cables -- a magnetic two-piece cable manager for its neck cabling, two connected Ultimate Ears earbuds for sound isolation in your left and right ears, a detachable Dock Connector?

Ever since Apple?s first-generation iPhone unexpectedly began to disappear from Apple and its partners? store shelves, and supposed images of a next-generation device started to appear, discussion of the iPhone 2 has dominated the news. Unfortunately, many different reports, rumors, and proclamations are now floating around, so it?s hard for fans to keep everything straight. Today, to make things easier on our readers, we?ve?

Designed to offer around half an iPhone stock battery worth of additional power while on the road, Kensington's new Mini Battery Pack and Charger for iPhone and iPod ($50) comes with a Dock Connector-equipped battery pack, a clear plastic Dock Connector cover, and a retractable USB charging cable. You plug the cable into the battery and your computer's USB port to recharge the battery, which promises to add 3 hours of iPhone talk time, or roughly?

We've seriously enjoyed several of the many iPod clock radios that we've previously reviewed, but when the iPhone came out, there was a problem: put your iPhone anywhere near most of them and the speakers will be filled with chirping, with cell phone data activity sometimes causing even turned-off units to pipe up. For the last year, the only solution was to disable all of the iPhone's wireless features by turning on Airplane Mode. iHome's new iP99?

This week's Ask iLounge topics: About iPod battery life and charging, Using Apple FM Radio remote on older iPod models, Scan and Fix dialog using iPod on Windows Vista, Preserving iTunes metadata when reinstalling Windows, Importing multiple tracks into iTunes, About iTunes and ID3 tags

Apple is offering a $45 credit to Canadian iPod owners as part of a class-action settlement. The credit is available to Canadian residents who own a first-, second-, or third-generation iPod purchased before June 24, 2004. The settlement is a result of a suit by two iPod owners angry over the battery life of their devices, which they claim dropped to three hours (from Apple?s claim of eight) after just one year of use. As many as 80,000 Canadians?

First, watch this: Then, read this: Parkour. Then, if you?re still intrigued, watch this: The controls could be a real issue. And it?s possible that the gameplay, like so many other ?total first-person? experiences, ultimately won?t work in the end, despite how impressive it looks right now. But as a real demonstration of what the PS3 and Xbox 360 hardware can do, EA and DICE?s Mirror?s Edge is now one of?

NBC has begun offering full-length streaming episodes of popular shows ?The Office? and ?30 Rock? to the iPhone and iPod touch in Quicktime format from NBC.com. The move is unusual in that the network has yet to reach an agreement with Apple to resume selling its TV programming on the iTunes Store in the US, following its removal last December. To view the episodes, visit NBC.com on an iPhone or iPod touch and click ?Full?

A new Apple patent filing published this week outlines a ?3D remote control system? that would include Wii remote-like sensing capabilities and could possibly be used as a new type of controller for Apple TV-based games. The application, originally filed in November of 2006, describes ?a remote control having a relative motion sensor, wherein the relative motion sensor outputs data indicative of a change in a position of the remote?

Citing a source within Swisscom, a new report (Translated link) from French-language Le Martin Online indicates the company has reached an agreement with Apple to offer the iPhone in Switzerland later this summer. With over five million subscribers, Swisscom is the country?s largest mobile carrier; a prior report indicated there are already over 34,000 active iPhones operating in Switzerland. ...

Following the brief appearance of ?Free AT&T Wi-Fi for iPhone? pages at some AT&T Wi-Fi hotspots, the US iPhone carrier has officially listed Wi-Fi access as being included with iPhone rate plans. The company?s iPhone web site now states ?Plans start at $59.99 and include Visual Voicemail, Unlimited Data (email and web), 200 SMS text messages and access to AT&T?s more than 17,000 Wi-Fi hotspots, including?

Gear4 will launch its new DUO iPod 2.1 Speaker System tomorrow in the United Kingdom. A novel design by iPod speaker standards, DUO is a home stereo system that splits into two pieces: a table-mounted bass unit and a detachable front panel with retractable iPod dock that can serve as a standalone portable speaker system. The system provides the user with uninterrupted music when docking or undocking. When docked, the drivers housed in the satellite?

Following NBC Universal?s abrupt removal from the iTunes Store, which followed a breakdown in discussions between the television network and Apple regarding pricing and piracy, competitors Microsoft and SanDisk have been working to develop anti-piracy technology to remedy one of the network?s concerns. Both companies are selling NBC video content at prices similar to Apple?s pricing for the iTunes Store. According to a New York Times?

Following NBC Universal?s abrupt removal from the iTunes Store, which followed a breakdown in discussions between the television network and Apple regarding pricing and piracy, competitors Microsoft and SanDisk have been working to develop anti-piracy technology to remedy one of the network?s concerns. Both companies are selling NBC video content at prices similar to Apple?s pricing for the iTunes Store. According to a New York Times?

We think of it as a spiritual sequel to Belkin's classic Auto Kit for iPod: Kensington's new LiquidAUX for iPhone and iPod ($80) combines an iPhone- and iPod-compatible car charger and interference-free audio cables with a wireless steering wheel-mounted remote control. You can pop the remote out of the rubber and Velcro mount to reorient it properly for your vehicle, or infrequently replace its battery; the charger has an integrated audio-out cable?

América Móvil, the largest mobile network operator in Latin America with more than 150 million subscribers, has said it will sell the iPhone across the region later this year, according to a Reuters report. Subsidiaries of Móvil include Telcel in Mexico, Claro in Brazil, Chile, and other nations, Comcel Colombia in Columbia, and Potra in Ecuador. This news follows a string of international iPhone announcements, which have Vodafone offering the?

Atech Flash Technology has introduced the iCarta+ Stereo Dock for iPod with Bath Tissue Holder, a revised version of its 2006 iCarta system. Unlike the prior model, which relied on a power supply and power cable that might not have been convenient in some bathrooms, iCarta+ features a built-in rechargeable battery which provides up to 8 hours of playtime. Like its predecessor, the iCarta+ also offers users a choice of inputs, including a USB port?

France Telecom, the parent company of French iPhone carrier Orange, is in talks with Apple to sell the handset in other countries. France Telecom CFO Gervais Pellissier said the company is negotiations regarding ?more than just two countries? when asked whether the company was hoping to secure iPhone deals for Spain and Poland. ?It?s in discussion...we?ll see what the results are,? he said. Pellissier also said?

This week?s featured photo is from our iPods Around the World gallery, and shows an iPod classic enjoying the beaches of Palawan, Philippines. To share your photos and to be considered for our Photo of the Week, you simply need to submit your own photo to one of our galleries. So get out there, take some pictures with your iPod or iPhone, and maybe your submission will be our next Photo of the Week! ...

Apple has posted the fifth beta version of its iPhone Software Development Kit (SDK). According to Apple?s notes, the new release ?fixes bugs and adds support for the latest iPhone OS.? The updated SDK, which is available as a free download for registered iPhone developers from the iPhone Dev Center, is a 1.08GB download, and is listed as build 9M2173a, beta 5. Complete release notes are available here. ...

BodyGuardz maker NLU Products has launched a new customer appreciation program called Advantage. The program, which will be open to all customers, will offer free lifetime replacements, a 30-day money back guarantee, special offers, and a referral program. ?We are dedicated to ensuring that every device our customers own, and even those that they purchase in the future, is properly protected,? said Kirk Feller, President of NLU Products. ?Our?

We aren't commonly excited these days by the exterior designs of iPod speaker systems, but we are extremely enthusiastic about the look and feel of Boston Acoustics' new Horizon Duo-i ($200), an upper-end iPod dual-alarm clock radio with significant speaker power, a very clean on-screen interface, and cool styling. You choose from dark gray ("midnight") or white ("mist") versions, each with soft touch rubber bodies and cool metal grilles that make?

Given JBL?s storied history of breathtaking industrial design, we were not initially taken by the look of On Stage 200ID ($150), the second official ?Works with iPhone? speaker on the market, and the most affordable. As noted in our iDesign feature on JBL, On Stage?s iconic, inspirational donut shape has given way to something different?a 14? long, 4? deep and 2.5? tall dock that looks like someone cut?

Apple plans to begin selling the upcoming 3G iPhone in some European countries by or before August, according to a New York Times report. Citing a person close to the situation, the article starts with an August target date for the release, then states that Apple wants to start selling the 3G version of the iPhone in Europe before August, when many Europeans take their summer holidays. The use of both ?by? and ?before? in the?

H2O Audio has introduced its new iSH2 Waterproof Headset for the second-generation iPod shuffle. The iSH2 is the first integrated waterproof headset and case for the 2nd-gen shuffle, and was developed with the assistance of world record holder and Olympic multi-medalist swimmer, Natalie Coughlin. The case works up to 10 feet underwater, is designed to be worn on any swim goggles or with the included sportband, and offers full control of the shuffle?s?

As previously noted, Italian cellular provider Telecom Italia Mobile (TIM) has confirmed in a press release that it will offer the iPhone in Italy later this year?a significant announcement given that TIM will become the first non-exclusive iPhone country carrier, as Vodafone will also offer the iPhone in Italy by the end of the year. The press release reads simply, ?Telecom Italia announced today it has signed a deal with Apple to bring?

Vodafone, the world?s largest mobile-phone company, has announced that it?s signed an agreement with Apple to sell the iPhone in 10 of its markets starting later in 2008. Vodafone will offer the phone in Australia, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Greece, Italy, India, Portugal, New Zealand, South Africa, and Turkey. In a separate announcement, Telecom Italia also said it will sell the iPhone in Italy by the end of the year, making it the first?

The company?s name is Harman International, and by the standards of most iPod accessory companies, the latter word is truly fitting: no matter where we?ve traveled in the world, its JBL and Harman Kardon speaker brands are found in stores, and amongst the most prominent wherever they?re sold. And amazingly, the designs of JBL?s iPod speakers?repeatedly referenced by iLounge?s editors as some of the very best available,?

Apple is offering its AppleCare Protection Plan for the Apple TV. The $50 protection plan extends the set-top box?s one-year hardware warranty to two years, and also similarly extends telephone technical support. According to Apple, the plan also extends coverage to iTunes, an AirPort Express or AirPort Extreme Base Station, and Time Capsule. The AppleCare Protection Plan for Apple TV is available now to all Apple TV owners who purchased their?

Kensington has introduced its new Mini Battery Pack and Charger for iPhone and iPod. The Mini is a small, Dock-connecting accessory that can power and charge an iPhone or iPod, offering extended play times of up to 30 hours for music, six hours for video, and three hours of talk time. The small black body of the Mini houses a high-capacity, rechargeable lithium-ion polymer battery pack and a LED battery meter. The device also includes a retractable?

The latest beta version of iPhone Software Version 2.0 includes a new handwriting recognition interface for the Chinese language. According to reports, build 5A258f of the 2.0 software adds several new Chinese input methods to the international keyboard settings menu, including handwriting recognition. ?Unfortunately, handwriting recognition is only available in Chinese (Traditional and Simplified) and doesn?t support English,? said?

T-Mobile has said it will soon be offering the 3G iPhone, according to Austrian newspaper Der Standard. T-Mobile reportedly made the announcement at a press conference in Vienna, saying that the phone would soon be available and adding that Austria will be a test market for the new handset, making it one of the first countries to receive the new phone. Pricing for the 3G iPhone is said to be more ?flexible? than current offerings. Although?

The Associated Press and more than 100 of its member newspapers have launched the Mobile News Network, a new web-based news portal for the iPhone, iPod touch, and other mobile devices. The portal offers local news from participating member newspapers and national and international news from AP, as well as sports and entertainment coverage, all organized by ZIP code. Announced in April, the service now has 107 newspapers participating, up from 18 at?