Apple May Awaken iPhone Radio App
Oct 14, 2009 - By Jared Newman
Fun fact: Your iPhone or iPod Touch’s hardware is perfectly capable of playing FM radio, only Apple hasn’t activated it yet. Speaking to a tipster, 9 to 5 Mac says that’ll change soon, as Apple is working on an in-house radio app. Just like the existing iPod music player, this app would be one of the lucky few that can run in the background, so you could jam on local stations while playing games or surfing the Web. And why don’t ‘we have this functionality right now? Reportedly, Apple is working on integrating the iTunes Store, so when you hear a good song, you can purchase it on the spot. It’s not clear whether radio will stand alone or become part of the existing iPod app.
Other features that could wind up in the app, though the source didn’t say so specifically, include Shazam tagging technology for radio stations that don’t tag songs on their end, and a live pause feature similar to the one seen on the iPod Nano. 9 to 5 Mac believes this brings the iPod Touch in line with Microsoft’s ZuneHD, but of course we’re talking traditional frequency bands instead of HD radio, so Microsoft still wins on that front. Sorry Apple fanboys. [via 9 to 5 Mac]