Previous Next Latest

Gadget Envy: Pandora.com on Your Cellphone

11/8/07, 6:32 pm EST

What It Is: Pandora, the intelligent custom radio station service, on your cell phone. Pandora uses real human musicologists to pick out common patterns in music (pitch, instrumentation, rhythm, bpm, etc), then inputs those findings into the Music Genome Project, a technology that helps pick related tracks. Users pick a song and Pandora creates a personalized radio station based on your picks. Rate the songs you like with a thumbs up or thumbs down, and Pandora’s personalized picks get even more precise. Now Pandora will work on certain phones anywhere you get an AT&T signal (it’s also available on Sprint cell phones, too), so it’s finally available to you in locations other than some dark and dingy office or apartment where your computer resides.

Who It’s For: Picky, snobby, and savvy music aficionados who get around.

What We Like: Unlike the majority of “custom” radio stations you find at various online music stores and services, Pandora is actually smart and gets music selection right. So it stands out on the Web, but in the mobile space, it’s a seriously towering winner. It syncs up seamlessly with your desktop account, meaning you can customize, create, or listen to up to 100 stations on either your home computer or your cell phone.

Our Only Gripe: It doesn’t work on all AT&T phones, yet. Here’s the list of compatible phones: Samsung SYNC, a717, and a737; Motorola VF3xx and RAZR 2, LG trax, CU400 and CU405. Pandora Mobile works with any Sprint phone running a Power Vision Pack.

Price/Where to Get It:
Click on the music icon in your phone’s main menu and go to “music apps.” You get a free trial for five days, after which time the service costs $8.99 per month.


Previous Next Latest

Comments

Savvy | 11/8/2007, 6:52 pm EST

I love Pandora. It does “get it right” and is totally free.

open up the box | 11/8/2007, 8:09 pm EST

Unlike the story, this pandora lets out mostly good things.

bizzle | 11/9/2007, 11:43 am EST

I like Pandora too; however, it does get a bit TOO narrow for my tastes, causing me to constantly make new stations.

Ah well, it’s free! But I wouldn’t pay to use it on my cell phone …

Choo Choo Caboose | 11/12/2007, 4:41 pm EST

If your Pandora stations are playing music that is too similar, simply add a few more disparate artists and/or songs to seed the station.

Solves most problems!

Or you can use the quickmix feature.

Dude | 12/20/2007, 5:59 pm EST

iphone sux, pandora ftw!

MLuczak | 3/7/2008, 1:31 am EST

One might think that by purchasing one of AT&Ts top of the line BlackBerry 8310 Curve phones with Streaming Audio capability that Pandora might be available.
I guess that due to their “behind the times” broadband capabilities, or lack thereof, we should just “understand”.
Pandora offers a wonderful program at home.

Desertech | 3/7/2008, 1:36 am EST

Come on AT&T. You are supposed to be a “leader” in handheld innovations. Where are you? We want Pandora on our cell phones. Can you not provide enough bandwidth? Whats your deal?
Hello SPRINT!!

chuck | 5/25/2008, 8:25 pm EST

I just found out the hard way that pandora will not play on my at&t cell My contract is up soon. So it’s pandora or else—

Matt | 8/24/2008, 8:29 pm EST

Sprint, cingular and any other cellphone provider sucks if it is not VERIZON PERIOD SHUT UP DON’T WANT TO HEAR IT VERIZON IS TOP DOG BEEN WITH THEM FOR 12 YEARS TRIED CINGUALR TRIED SPRINT BACK TO VERIZON WITHIN A MONTH LATER.

Jay Cruz | 11/17/2008, 5:31 am EST

Matt, get a clue, get a clue about the topic at hand! We are not comparing cell phone carriers! We are discussing who can carry Pandora Radio! geeze. Anyway I am on T-Mobile right now and I am ready to upgrade, but I dont like the new G1. I want a sleek HTC phone like the Touch HD and it appears that Sprint was the one taking the leap forward on these phones.

I love Pandora and if what they say is true about Pandora streaming easily on Sprint I just might be sold to Sprint.

Post A Comment

Caution: Off-topic comments will be deleted

Name:

Comments:



Advertisement

Advertisement