Winamp leaves beta for Android with Wi-Fi sync, no iOS plans
updated 01:45 pm EST, Tue November 30, 2010
Winamp for Android official with wireless sync
AOL today launched Winamp for Android with a pair of new features and commentary on why it has no iOS plans. The final release now adds Wi-Fi syncing and will update an Android phone's library from a Windows instance of Winamp. Listeners can also now tune into Shoutcast MP3 radio streams without needing a separate app.
The download needs Android 2.1 or later to work as well as the latest version of Winamp on the desktop. Android 2.2 owners can push the app directly to their phones from the web, and those with iTunes libraries can import their collections into Winamp for syncing.
In launching the mobile app, AOL said it didn't plan to release a version of Winamp for the iPhone as Apple had a virtual monopoly on media playback for iOS and created a "lot of inertia," according to AOL Music Jeff Bronikowski Instead, the developers hoped to make Winamp's desktop and mobile apps the equivalent to iTunes and the iPhone, which has so far been attempted by rivals like doubleTwist but hasn't yet caught on. AOL Entertainment senior VP Kelly Trainor explained to TechCrunch that Android's overtaking iPhone in market share meant it was targeting a larger pool of users.
"Now with the Android OS beating out iOS, it is a foregone conclusion that it will beat out iOS over time," Trainor said.
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