Apple has dropped the price of its iTunes Plus songs that have no digital rights management (DRM) software protection and allow owners to move song files freely from one device to another.

Apple drops price of DRM-free iTunes | Tech news blog - CNET News.com

Strange eh?

Techdirt: Apple Sued For Cutting iPhone Price

From the New York Times:

Apple announced a price cut for its iPhone today, along with a new iPod that looks like the iPhone and a version of its iTunes store that downloads music directly to the player rather than a computer.

Apple Cuts iPhone Price and Revamps iPods - New York Times

If you've never tried on a pair of noise-canceling headphones, you're missing out.  Even if you don't see yourself listening to music in noisy places, they do an amazing job blocking out all of the roar and clamor of airplane cabins.  See the times review of several pairs below for more info:

Until you try them, you won't believe what a difference such headphones can make. As tiny microphones monitor the mind-numbing roar around you, circuitry in the device creates a sound wave 180 degrees out of phase with the original sounds. Presto: the roar of the engines is magically subtracted from the sound that would otherwise have ground away at your well-being for six hours.

Headphones to Shut Out the World - New York Times

From CNN Money:

…you'll have to find something else to listen to next Tuesday. That's the day dozens of online broadcasters go silent, in protest of a new levy the government and the music labels are about to impose.

Future Boy: Internet radio sites to protest new fees

From CBS News:

Apple Inc. says it has sold 100 million units of its iPod, with the Cupertino, Calif.-based company declaring the product is "the fastest-selling music player in history."Since the first iPod was sold in November 2001, the device has become a defining icon in the portable music world.

Apple sells 100 million iPods

If you're like me, and you like to listen to Podcasts, Audiobooks, or other spoken word content on the train, you should know what you're missing by using those cute little white ear buds that came with your iPod.

The problem is that spoken words can often be hard to decipher over the clamor of the train.  I used to cup my hand over one ear or play my iPod on full volume (that can't be a good thing for your ears), just so that I could hear the day's news or the exciting climax of an audiobook.

I'm hear to tell you that a decent pair of in-ear ear buds can help immensely.  They feel a little funny, because they have a soft rubbery attachment that sits inside of the outer part of your ear canal, but they do an excellent job of getting rid of outside noise- even the cacophony of the subway.  You can get a decent pair of these at Best Buy for around $40, and it is well worth it if you like to listen to your iPod in noisy places.

Some loony state senator wants to make it against the law to talk on your cell phone or listen to an iPod on the streets of New York City, in the name of public safety.

Loony!

Proposal Would Ban Talking, Walking - News

Some Hands-On Time With the iPhone - NYT

Apple has finally announced the release of the long-anticipated iPhone- an iPod/Cell Phone/PDA all combined into one sleek device.  The iPhone will be available in June.  The link above is to an article by David Pogue describing his first impressions on what will inevitably be a revolutionary device.  You're going to be hearing a lot more about the iPhone over the coming months and years, I guarantee it.

Apple patent could point to iPhone - Yahoo! News
A patent application filed by Apple has fueled speculation that the company is readying an iPhone device that would extend the life of the iPod and allow the company to branch off in a new direction.