Player

Review: Full Player performs as a powerful multifunctional universal player

With a neat layout, nice viewing modes, and plenty of format support, Full Player is well on its way to being the only video player you need. It's customizable and robust enough to rival even the most popular media player downloads. Its design choices might get on your nerves, though. Give it a shot to see if it's worth replacing the other media players in your life.

This download works with MOV, MP4, FLV, and other common movie formats. It features a stylish menu bar that you can change to fit multiple designs. Though you might assume Full … Read more

Review: Tune out mRadio Player since that's about all you can do with it

We're all for Internet radio apps that make it easy to expose yourself to a world of music, but mRadio Player takes the "basic is better" concept too far in the wrong direction. This freeware radio player offers no controls beyond Play and Pause buttons, and you're limited to a preloaded list of stations: a whopping 18 in all and mostly European commercial jazz and classical stations. The free mRadio Player is suitable for Windows versions from XP to 8.

It was not without trepidation that we viewed mRadio Player's user interface, which takes rudimentary … Read more

Review: Amazon Cloud Player makes your music mobile without locking it down

Amazon Cloud Player allows you to take your music with you wherever you go, whether you download it to your device or not. Amazon's app rates high for a number of reasons, from the intuitive, quick-loading interface to the recognition that this is your music and you want to play it your way.

You have two options when loading Amazon Cloud Player for the first time--either log in to your Amazon Cloud Player account (where all of your purchased Amazon MP3s will be ready to play) or play music already on your iPad in your Music library. After you … Read more

Get a SanDisk Sansa Fuze 8GB MP3 player for $19.99

Is there still a place in the world for the lowly MP3 player? Absolutely there is. It's a great companion for the gym, the hiking trail, the 5K you're training for, and so on.

And for 20 bucks? How can you go wrong? Today only, and while supplies last, DealFisher has the refurbished SanDisk Sansa Fuze+ 8GB MP3 player for $19.99, shipped. I'm not sure I've ever seen this particular player priced this low.

Indeed, this is not the tiny Sansa Clip you often see selling in this price range, but rather the more robust (… Read more

Yahoo's at it again with gaming platform acquisition

Yahoo's at it again.

The online giant has made another acquisition only days after reaching a deal to buy Tumblr. This time around, Yahoo is expanding in the gaming arena with the purchase of PlayerScale.

PlayerScale develops software for cross-plaform gaming that allows publishers and aggregators to quickly scale titles across various platforms. Founded in 2011, the company has over 150 million users worldwide, and it's adding more than 400,000 new users every day.

PlayerScale CEO Jesper Jensen announced the merger Thursday on the company's Web site, saying PlayerScale won't be going anywhere and its … Read more

Get a full-size Electrohome CD/MP3 jukebox for $799.99 shipped

Pinball machine: check. Vintage Coke machine: check. Now all you need is a jukebox to finish off that awesome man-cave, basement rec room, or retro-themed loft.

Ah, but real old-fashioned jukeboxes limit you to a few dozen songs. I'd be more inclined to buy something that combines classic styling with modern technology.

Like this: for one week, Shoptronics.com has the Electrohome Kinsman Jukebox for $799.99 shipped when you apply coupon code JUKECNET at checkout. That's $200 off the regular price, and a CNET/Cheapskate exclusive.

The Kinsman looks like something from a '50s diner, but instead … Read more

Review: Play your music with Meson Player for Mac

Some users may want to play their music files with a program that has fewer bells and whistles than ones like iTunes. Meson Player for Mac is a basic, functional music player, but some laptop users may have trouble configuring the hot keys properly.

The download completed quickly and the program's installer automatically placed it in the applications folder. There were no dedicated user instructions or technical support readily available, but the program did have a basic display of its hot keys and the functions attached to each. The application, itself, has no menu beyond a simple drop-down along … Read more

Amazon rolls out Cloud Player app for PCs

Amazon quietly released a Cloud Player app for PCs as an extension of its music streaming service.

While PC users could already use the player through the Web, the new app, noted by Mashable on Monday, also allows for offline storage. We've contacted Amazon for more details and will update if we hear back.

The app automatically syncs your music library with any files on your computer that you haven't added to the cloud yet and exports your Amazon MP3s to iTunes and the Windows Media player.

You also can upload an unlimited number of Amazon songs, plus … Read more

Five-deal Friday: A big TV, a free Blu-ray ripper, and more!

Hang onto your wallets, cheeps, because I've got five -- count 'em, five -- deals lined up for your Friday.

Why the glut? Same as always: I found lots of really good items and couldn't decide which one to spotlight. Check 'em out:

1. One big TV. When it comes to bang for your TV buck, I think Vizio leads the pack. Especially when Vizio resellers serve up deals like this one: Dell Home has the Vizio E552VLE 55-inch smart LCD HDTV for $649.99 shipped (plus sales tax in some states). Although CNET had some nits to pick … Read more