The folks who made up the tiny audience for Microsoft’s much-mocked Zune had one clear advantage over their iPod-loving rivals: When they wanted to share tunes with each other, they could do so wirelessly, rather than resort to the unhygienic practice of earbud-sharing. A new iOS app aims to fill that gap.
PairShare, a new offering from its namesake development company in Northern California, launched in the App Store last week. The app lets users stream music via Bluetooth from one iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to another. The app is being pitched at joggers, bikers, and other folks who exercise together.
Users can create a playlist to share with others. The app conducts an auto-scan for other PairShare users, and commences playing once a connection is made. Friends on the receiving end of the streaming experience can view the album art, song titles, albums, and artists in the playlist. One limitation: the app can’t stream DRM-protected songs.
The PairShare app is free, but only allows you to share a few songs at a time by default; you’ll need to spend $3 on an in-app purchase to upgrade that to unlimited. The app’s compatible with the iPhone 3GS or iPhone 4; second, third, or fourth-generation iPod touches; or any model of iPad. The device must be running iOS 4.1 or later.