Tough luck if you were subscribing to Virgin Digital music, as the company is shelving their US operations and giving users some free Napster content instead. If you're one of the affected, you can grab your free Napster player and three free months of Napster To Go service as a consolation prize.
Both Napster and Virgin used the PlaysForSure, a spec Microsoft may or may not continue to support in the future, thanks to its own competing Zune DRM. If we had to choose a service now, we'd probably go for Apple's iTunes, Rhapsody (with Sansa), or Microsoft' Zune, but only the latter two have subscription plans. – Jason Chen
Free Offer [Napster]
Virgin Shutters U.S. Music Subscription Service [Wired]

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video, Wireless
If Microsoft has its way, you won't be able to pick up a digital thermometer next year that's not powered by its widget-tastic SideShow middleware. Therefore, even though Dell dropped out of the portable audio game this past summer, rumors that the company is working with Redmond on a SideShow-enabled MP3 player do in fact seem fairly plausible. According to Cnet's Jasmine France, the buzz around Microsoft headquarters during the final week of December was focused on just such a device, which is said to sport media capabilities along with wireless connectivity. If these rumblings do end up panning out, Dell would have a somewhat unique product on its hands -- one which would differentiate itself from the iPods, Zunes, and Sansas of the world by offering access to the nearly limitless types of data and infoswag that the SideShow platform is capable of displaying. Again, deets here are about as slim as can be, so just keep this on...

You know, it isn't just the iPod that gets tricked out accessories and protective cases every fourteen seconds. Proporta just announced a bunch of cases for the Microsoft Zune, which is good news for all those Zune users out there. Three cases—aluminum, leather and silicone—all serve to protect your precious Zune from the bumps and bruises of being involved in The Social. The silicone case comes in at $20, while the other two, far fancier cases clock in at $35. Expect more case and accessory madness next week. We know how much you adore such things. (Apparently, these cases are so hot off the presses that all Proporta has is these incredibly zoomed in pictures. Very convenient.) – Nicholas Deleon
Microsoft Zune Cases [Proporta]

...destined to live a life, dark, damp, and full of pain. Thank you American Express, Blackberry, Casio, Don Julio, Fox Soccer Channel, Future Weapons, Genji, Intel, Logitech, Mio, Mitsubishi, Nokia, P.C. Richard & Son, Parrot, Pioneer, Playstation, Shure, Sprint and Zune. Thank you for giving us a reason to see the light of day and continue on our path of world domination.
Don't let the darkness take over your soul.

As we're gearing up to bring Apple MacWorld Keynote 2K7 to you live, we thought now's a good time to ponder what the odds are of new hardware being released. Our Frankenrumor brought you ideas from every corner of the internets, but here it is, in odds form.
First off, there's likely going to be very little hardware announced tomorrow. Reason? Apple flies European journos to London for a simulcast and cocktails whenever Steve Jobs farts, but this time there's nothing. Nada.
Here's what we think, with some wildly ridiculous items at the end.
iLife, iApps '07: 99.99%
Apple dumps its updated suite of apps on us every year at this time—so why should 07 be any different? We've already seen leaks on Amazon and various other sites. The only reason is if they're holding it back for a simultaneous Leopard release, which is unlikely, and leads us to...


OS X Leopard: 45%
From the developers releases Apple's been distributing, Leopar...

Those aren't Ikea blocks you're staring at. Those are speakers. I wonder what happens to the wine glasses when you pump some Def Leopard through them at eleven. They're about 2 feet per side, and less than 5 inches deep. And I they come in colors other than salmon, in sub, standard and "acoustic treatment models", the last of which I have no idea about. And they'll be out in March. Oh, did you know that these high end beauties are made by the same VAF that makes those gnarly Zune docks? According to Rolling Stone and a grip of audio geek mags, they know what they're doing.
Um, iPod dock, please. –Brian Lam
VAF Research[VAF]

We first saw these speakers from VAF, a company based downunder in Australia and since have seen it at many Zune launch partie and events. The Octavio1 speaker system which can hook up the Zune, TV, game console, or DVD player is now on sale at Amazon.com. Octavio1 speaker system also boasts an 8-inch bass [...]

Retailing at $499, the Octavio 1 is the most expensive Zune speaker system we've seen yet. At twice the price of the actual Zune unit, the Octavio 1 can hook up a Zune, TV, game console, or DVD player and combines an 8-inch bass driver, two 5.25-inch woofers and 2 fluid-damped fabric dome tweeters all in one.
True to Zune form, the speakers ship with three skins, which allow you to go black, white, and pink, or you can strip them all off for the "naked" leather look. Ships now from Amazon. – Jason Chen
Product Page [Amazon]

The Logitech X-240 may look similar to their pricier cousins, the Z10s, but the fact that they are 2.1 speakers and are made by Logitech are practically the only things they have in common. The X-240s ditch the fancy LCD and onboard playback controls for ease of use and a music player dock.
The main draw of this system will be the iPod and Zune docks, which can connect to the speaker's auxiliary input or just hold it for syncing. Availability's somewhere in April, and it's goign to go for about $50. Looks like a great deal for a cheap set up 2.1s to us. – Jason Chen
Product Page [Logitech via iLounge]

Filed under: Peripherals, Portable Audio

It seems that Logitech has exhausted its efforts on DAP-centric speaker docks (not really), as its latest creation is a 2.1 PC speaker system that just so happens to double as a docking station for your PDA, DAP, PMP, or other PC-connecting gizmo. Sporting an all black motif, the system features twin 5-watt stereo speakers, a 15-watt subwoofer, headphone jack, "convenient volume and power controls," and a stowaway device cradle that allows you to sync up your gadgetry with your PC while it recharges. The package also includes a standard 3.5-millimeter stereo cable, "cradle trays" for your iPod, iPod video, iPod nano, and Microsoft Zune, and when the dock becomes too much hassle for what it's worth, you can simply disconnect it without interfering with the speakers. Slated to hit retail outlets in the US in April, Europeans can look for these come May, and while we doubt audiophiles even read this far, you budget-minded folk should en...