Radio apps add versatility to iPhone for staying on top of the news
By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette
Thursday, Jan. 27, 2011, 2 p.m. — The most versatile and most-used electronic device I own isn’t my PC, but my iPhone. The iPhone and its countless applications give the handheld device the power of a laptop computer with even greater versatility. It’s popularity — and success — is why every major phone manufacturer is also producing look-alike devices.
One of my iPhone’s neatest features is the ability to listen to streaming audio via the Internet (or WifFi or EDGE network, depending on your location and available services). The iPhone can connect you to music sources around the world and of every genre. The number of streaming audio apps for the iPhone are numerous, but below you’ll find my favorite apps, and why they are.
SHOUTCAST RADIO. The SHOUTcast Radio app connects your iPhone to the SHOUTcast network of servers and radio stations, both real and Internet-only. SHOUTcast streams audio in a variety of formats that can be streamed online through your computer, or via your iPhone via the SHOUTcast appl.
Why SHOUTcast? For starters, our local hometown radio station, WBRT, is available on SHOUTcast. You won’t find a radio station more focused on our community, with news and information when you need it. By use of the SHOUTcast app, you don’t even need to be near your radio to tune in WBRT.
For more information, visit their website, http://www.shoutcast.com/.
iHEARTRADIO. The iHeartRadio app for the iPhone was developed by Clear Channel Radio to aggregate its radio stations, brands and content. Clear Channel owns and operates many of the top radio stations in the Louisville area, and the app gives you a direct connection to your favorite content (in my case, I can listen to Rush Limbaugh’s radio show every day without being near an actual radio).
As with SHOUTcast, iHeartRadio is available as an application that can function with your desktop or laptop computer as well as apps for the iPhone and a host of other mobile devices.
For more information, visit their website, http://www.iheartradio.com/.
RADIO NOAA. For those of you won don’t own one, a weather radio that tunes broadcasts from the National Weather Service is a must-have for every household during storm season. Unfortunately, my weather radio doesn’t travel with me when I’m in the car or out of the house, and I don’t have access to the weather broadcasts that can be of vital importance. The iPhone app changes that.
Radio NOAA allows you to monitor in real time any one of 200 different NOAA weather radio stations, including those that cover Kentucky (KIH43 covers Central Kentucky). The app allows you to record the audio you receive via the app, which you can use to review forecast information, a watch or warning that’s been issued. The app is free, and is one that I plan on keeping in my portable arsenal of weather tools.
For more information on NOAA weather radio, visit http://www.weather.net/nwr/.
The iPhone (and similar devices) are wonderful tools to keep you connected with family and friends, and excellent ways to keep vital information handy. Put your mobile device to work for you!
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