Slacker Radio Offline Caching Arrives on Android

Slacker-Android-wireless-music-station-caching-offline

Dave got the update back at CES that Slacker would soon be offering wireless caching for its Android, Blackberry, and iPhone apps. For Android and Blackberry device owners, that day is here. The good folks at Slacker confirmed the news for us when the updates dropped tonight, and I headed straight over to the Android app market to update my mobile Slacker software.

As I write this, six stations are caching wirelessly on my Android phone for any-time playback. While I still have my dedicated Slacker hardware (good for saving songs via my premium subscription), I have to admit that my phone is with me more often than the little music player. Sample use case? I’ve started plugging my phone into my car speakers for Slacker tunes on the road. The mobile connection sometimes causes a station to stutter, but the offline function will now help me avoid that problem altogether.

Other tidbits from the latest Slacker update:

  • The caching feature requires a Radio Plus subscription ($4.99/mo or $47.88/yr)
  • Users without Radio Plus can access a free 14-day trial of the caching function
  • The Slacker app can be set for manual or automatic station refreshes
  • Cached stations are stored directly on Android smartphones or on a memory card in Blackberry devices

UPDATE: I tried the app out on a cross-country flight yesterday and was sadly disappointed. It crashed. A lot. And instead of just quitting the app and re-starting, I had to power down and then power up the phone to get my cached stations to play again. Very frustrating. After multiple restarts, I did manage to get the app working for one long stretch. When it worked, it was fantastic.

15 thoughts on “Slacker Radio Offline Caching Arrives on Android”

  1. As someone who also owns a physical Slacker device, I’m kind of bummed that offline caching requires a paid subscription. =(

    I wouldn’t mind a one-time fee through a paid app (akin to purchasing new hardware), but I don’t find the subscription appealing at all.

  2. I upgraded to the annual Slacker subscription a couple weeks back. The unlimited song skips and ad-freeness was worth it. This is just gravy. Well, gravy once it hits the iPhone. My XM sub is up mid-March. Thinking I’ll let it lapse in favor of car Slacker.

    PS The prior version of the Blackberry client enabled caching. What’s new for them is wireless caching and scheduling. Android is all new as far as caching goes. Hope Apple green lights a similar iPhone client whenever Slacker is ready. (webOS isn’t worth the time.)

  3. From a business perspective, there’s not enough deployed handsets or users to continue investing dev resources in my opinion. They got the 1.0 client, but I’d stop there until Palm and webOS’s future is more certain.

  4. I don’t think I’ve yet heard a real ad from Slacker through my G1 or from streaming through my Squeezebox Radio. I’ve heard the “You’re listening to Slacker” bumpers, but that’s about it.

    Did the prior version of the Blackberry client require a Radio Plus subscription for offline caching too? Paying a monthly subscription for wireless caching makes even less sense to me (unless they have some revenue sharing deal with the carriers).

  5. James, on the iPhone I hear them. Some just Slacker adverts or tips, but some others as well. Graphical banners, too. I can deal, but I love the unlimited skips as I have a real short attention span.

    Regarding Blackberry, I believe the USB sync did not require a subscription. I checked in with Slacker earlier today to see if that’s the case and what happens to those who “upgrade.” Will post what I learn…

  6. Giving it as shot on the Droid. Anyone know how large the cache is? 2 hours? They say you can cache up to 25 stations!

  7. The BlackBerry tethered caching was free before. You can still get version 2.0 to use that. I wonder when they will discontinue it.

    I would be willing to pay for the damn service if it also did on demand playing of songs like Rhapsody and Napster. Not sure why they can’t offer that as well….

  8. Cacheing on the internal memory of the droid sucks! You cannot hold many stations if you have alot of apps. Blackeberry saves to memory card which is awesome!!

  9. I’ve cached my stations, but I cant seem to figure out were to find them offline. I’m still trying to figure out my andriod… Help?

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