FM radio could soon be coming to your iPhone and iPod Touch. According to a tip received by the folks at 9to5Mac, Apple is working on an in-house Radio iPhone app for iPhones and iPod Touch. This iPhone app will be able to run in the background; similar to iPod app and also incorporate other functionalities available on the iPod Nano FM radio feature that includes the ability to pause live programming.
Apple is also trying to integrate it with iTunes Store for purchases. This would mean that FM radio listeners shall be able to purchase songs that they are listening to at a push of a button. This is made possible with the help of a similar feature called Song tagging that is already available on iPod Nanos. Considering that the FM radio station supports song tagging, if a listener happens to like a song he is listening to, at a push of a button, he shall be shown all information surrounding the song from the iTunes Mobile Store. One more click and you could purchase the song. While it is still not clear, it is speculated that the new radio.app could be incorporated into the iPod.app before release.
It is interesting that Apple has finally decided to enable the FM radio feature on the iPhone months after its release. As we had already reported back in April, the new Broadcom chip BCM4329 that is embedded in the second and third generations of iPod Touch as well as in iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G have all along offered the ability to receive FM signals. With the release of this new Radio iPhone app, the period of dormancy may finally come to an end. This release is also significant from the perspective of iPod Touch's competition with ZuneHD; FM radio was one of the features that the latter always had which Apple's product line didn't.
Are you excited about the impending launch of FM radio on your iPhone or are you happy with the radio iPhone apps that are available on the App Store? Please do tell us in the comments.
Note: image courtesy 9to5Mac is a mockup and not the screenshot of the actual iPhone app.
[via 9to5Mac]
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YES!!!!
apple will probably just release this app only on the next new iphone, buy if they actually do its customers a favor and give it to all capable iphones, then i'll actually be happy =)
I would like to have FM running in the background.. Anyways we have FM through different apps.. i prefer AOL radio app.. i would love to have FM
FM radio would just be excellent on the iphone, and the one button click to go to itunes store would be perfect,
WhY not HD Radio
I listen to NPR over my iPhone every day, using up limited AT&T bandwidth for something that is available over FM broadcast. I can't imagine why they didn't enable this ages ago.
because they, until now, couldn't find a way to profit off of letting you listen to FM.
Certainly would be a big yes from me.
I just went iPhone from a Nokia that had a Radio, which aside from enjoying when on the bus was also good for receiving my GPS instructions while on my motorbike. I need an FM radio and this would be great. Would even be the first app I would pay for!
Sounds good to me!! Would definitely use it.
Im amazed that if the iphone has had this capability all along that no-one from the jailbreaking community have created there own app to activate the chip.
I listen to wunderradio app everyday. Terrific application, check out review to see how good this is – http://short.to/o7io.
However the one thing that is annoying about it is that as its an application you cant do anything else on the iphone while it is playing. If you want to write a message or play a game, the application turns off. Hopefully now the iphone will become even more multifunctional. what next? To the moon!!!!
@alexgrant.. You need backgrounder mate
I see no value in fm radio. I get plenty of music on the iPod and other apps. What I would like is am capability so I can listen to my local sports teams and local news stations
Sure!!!
Alex ,
never heard about "Backgrounder"?
It's a Cydia's app and I most use it with Wunderradio and works great!
Cheers
JUST HURRY UP AND RELEASE THE APP ITS ALMOST BEEN A YEAR NOW!!!