Winamp, the first dominant music playback software for Windows, is still chugging along years after Nullsoft's purchase by AOL. Today, the company revealed a major new (free) feature for Winamp, in partnership with Orb, that lets anyone with a mobile phone or connected handheld access the music collection stored on their PC at home.
First, users install Winamp and Winamp Remote -- remote access software for Winamp that was already available before this announcement. Then, users point their mobile browser to winamp.orb.com to access the songs in their Winamp library at home. The service supports multiple mobile music playback apps: "3GP,
RealPlayer, Windows Media Player, or Flash," although no DRM-ed music is supported.
My first questions about the service were about sound quality and user interface. Here's what an AOL/Winamp representative had to say about those aspects of the new service (sound quality is a bit of an X factor, but the interface sounds like it gives you decent access to your music):
Listening Post: From what I understand, Orb adjusts its bandwidth based on what is available, but can you give me an idea of what sort of format and bit rate will be coming through on the mobile phone end for the average user?
AOL Winamp spokesperson: The bandwidth and format of the stream are based on the device the consumer is connecting with, so the experience is optimized based on the individual user. The user can also decide to "fix" the bit rate at a certain rate, which can be useful if they are going through an area where the quality of their cell phone coverage varies.
LP: How will users choose what they're listening to (do you set up one or more playlists to stream to your mobile phone, or can you browse the library)?
AOL Winamp: The user can play all supported files from their home music library on to their phone. To make managing their library more user-friendly, Winamp Remote offers a number of options.
1. You can define any number of playlists of your favorite songs.
2. You can rate your songs, which will automatically create a list of favorites.
3. You can browse your entire library in a number of ways.
