Sirius XM iPhone App Lacks Howard Stern, MLB, NFL and NASCAR

The Sirius XM iPhone app requires a $3/month subscription, but it's missing a few notable channels. From the company: "Some select programming, including MLB® Play-by-Play, NFL Play-by-Play, SIRIUS NASCAR® Radio, and Howard Stern, will not be available on the iPhone and iPod touch. Listeners will continue to be able to access that programming through the platforms they are currently offered on." We can understand removing any semblance of premium content from the service, but ending a sentence in a preposition is unforgivable. [iPhone Savior and Modified Logic]

Sirius XM iPhone App Available Tomorrow

Starting tomorrow, subscribers to Sirius XM radio will be able to download the application on their iPhones for free. More »

The First Fuzzy Shot of the Sirius iPhone App

The Sirius XM iPhone app hasn't arrived as quickly as predicted, but according to CEO Mel Karmazin's PowerPoint presentation, it's at least in the final stages of planning. More »

Sirius XM Radio To Finally Stream on iPhone This Spring

Ok, for reals this time. According to AP, the troubled satellite radio provider will finally push out their XM radio app for the iPhone / iPod Touch sometime this Spring. [Yahoo]

StarPlayr Sirius Satellite Radio iPhone App Canceled

The StarPlayr Sirius satellite radio iPhone app we detailed back in January, the one whose release was imminent at the time, has been canceled. More »

Sirius XM Gets Bailed Out By Owners of QVC, Avoids Bankruptcy Scare

Liberty Media (proud owners of Starz, QVC and a 48% chunk of DirecTV) made a last-minute deal with Sirius XM, whose impending bankruptcy would have been the second biggest Chapter-11 filing this year. More »

Sirius XM Is Going Bankrupt

I hope you have an umbrella because dead satellites are going to rain on our heads: Satellite radio Frankenstein XM Sirius is preparing "a possible bankruptcy filing." All that for bankrupcty? [NYT - Thanks Ponies!]

Sirius Satellite Radio iPhone App Could Come Within a Week

Sources close to Orbitcast have revealed that Sirus is finally submitting their uSirius StarPlayr to the App Store this weekend. Once accepted, subscribers will be able to enjoy Sirius XM on their iPhone. More »

The Complete New XM Sirius Channel Listing (Sorry XM Fans)

The spawn of the XM Sirius fusion emerges tomorrow, and Orbitcast has picked up the complete channel listing for XM subscribers that goes into effect in less than 24 hours. It's fairly grim for some diehard XM fans—a lot of rock stations have been erased (bye bye punk channel) or are being replaced by Sirius pseudo-equivalents. Hit the jump for the full list, but it might not be pretty. Makes those new la carte XM plans sound pretty good, right? More »

Sirius Coming Out With New Satellite Radio Boombox

For those of you aspiring to be the next Satellite Radio Raheem, here's a few newly leaked photos of the upcoming Sirius SUB-X2 Boombox. Much like the current SUB-X1, the new music player will sport a front-panel headphone jack, auxiliary input for other MP3 players, and a universal docking system. I wonder if that docking system will support XM radios as well, now that they're married and all. Prices and more detailed specs have yet to be announced, though it shouldn't cost you too much more than its last iteration. More »

New Sirius/XM Plans Include a la Carte Options

We've already heard about the $4 Best of Sirius and Best of XM expansion plans, but how else is the satellite radio merger changing subscription options? XM customers will now be able to subscribe to limited plans known as Mostly Music and Mostly Talk. Each offers a selection of channels for $10. Also, on new Sirius hardware, a $7/mo plan can get you 50 non-premium a la carte channels with additional channels purchasable for 50 cents a month. As you can see, this merger has done nothing to simplify subscription plans in satellite radio. [Sirius A La Carte via Zatz Not Funny]

XM's XMp3 Player: Latest DOA Attempt At a Satellite iPod

Having seen—and tested—the earlier evolutions of satellite radio receiver, from dashboard model to in-home unit to hip-connected recorder/player, I've felt like I'm judging contestants in the Special Olympics: The radio service is fine, but the gadgets aren't really expected to measure up to other contenders in the same field. XM's latest, the XMp3, is impressive in that it records five channels at once and records your most popular stations automatically. But it needs this functionality to make up for the fact that it depends on spotty satellite reception for content. More »

Best of Sirius/XM Launching October 6th

To XM customers who've been jealous of Howard Stern content and Sirius customers who've always wanted to tune in to Oprah & Friends (a remarkably high crossover demographic we're sure), the newly wedded Sirius/XM has revealed their cross-content "best of" packages available for $4 a month. From what we can tell, subscribing to either offer looks to provide you with the most popular entertainment and sports channels that the other guy's got. For a potentially incomplete list of channels in each package, read on. Otherwise, continue mainlining Apple news fix. More »

CEO: Fully Merged Sirius XM Devices To Hit Shelves In Q1 2009

When Sirius and XM finished their merger dance it was said that they would be able to offer interoperable radios—that is units that work with the full lineups of both XM and Sirus—within a year of the merger. Then they told the FCC they'd have devices within nine months. Now Mel Karmazin, CEO of the new merged company, has said that we can expect merged receivers "a number of months" before that deadline, likely in the first quarter of 2009. This is both good and bad news for the consumers. It's good because they'll get the full benefits of the merged systems, but it's bad because to get those benefits they'll have to purchase another receiver. Karmazin also said that "a la carte" radios—those that would offer a full lineup of either XM or Sirius and individual channels from the other service—will be here for the holidays, but we'd hold off.[OrbitCast]

Sirius and XM Officially Married, Now Sirus XM Radio

With the FCC's approval, Sirius and XM had a shotgun wedding over the weekend, and is now officially Sirius XM Radio, with over 18.5 million subscribers (technically XM is a subsidiary of Sirius, making it the wife, I guess). Let the promised savings and awesomeness begin. [InfoWeek]

XM-Sirius Merger Nears Approval, Comes Down To One Commissioner's Vote

And here she is. After FCC commissioner Johnathan Adelstein withdrew his support today, the vote is now deadlocked and awaiting the yea or nay from Deborah Taylor Tate, a Republican who is expected to approve the merger so all of this can finally be over and done with (something tells me a large batch of high-end satellite radio gear is now being priority-overnighted to Taylor's office to make sure everything is greased appropriately). If you're a subscriber, not a whole lot will change once the deal is finalized and the two merge parts of their programming, but you'll need new gear to take full advantage of any new subscriptions once the merger is wrapped up. [WSJ via CrunchGear].

uSirius Streams Sirius Satellite Radio to Your iPhone

Similar to iRadio, uSirius lets people stream Sirius Satellite Radio to their iPhones over Wi-Fi or EDGE (and shortly, 3G). Reader Brandon says that anyone can try this out for free for three days before registering, and that it works great over both connection types. Our own Benny Goldman went nuts when he saw this, so you Sirius fans should go equally nuts when you load this on your phones. But in a, you know, less hairy way. Grab it on Installer.app. [Thanks Brandon!]

Dealzmodo: Free Sirius Radio With Purchase of Lamborghini

For most of us, the deciding factor against getting satellite radio are those pesky subscription costs. Now Sirius has just signed a deal with Automobili Lamborghini to offer the car customers free lifetime service of Sirius. One word of caution: The deal starts with the 2009 Murciélago. So make sure you don't buy a 2008 Lamborghini only to find yourself jacked with huge, unexpected fees. [Edmunds] Thanks Frank!

FCC Chairman Backs Sirius/XM Merger

It's not official yet, but FCC Chairman Kevin Martin (one of five relevant votes) has decided to allow the merge between Sirius and XM satellite radio providers. However, there are a few caveats that the companies would need to accept—but it's all good news for the consumer. More »

Sirius Starmate 5 Coming With XM Support?

Sirius' update to its Starmate line, the Starmate 5, is currently in front of the FCC for testing, and it looks like it might have a little trick up its sleeve. The gadget includes the standard abilities to pause, rewind, and replay up to 44 minutes of live radio, a memo feature to store up to 30 favorite artists or songs and a wide-angle 5 line display, but it also might just have the ability to play XM radio stations as well. More »

XM/Sirius Merger: What Happens to My Current Radio?

The XM/Sirius merger is all but rubber-stamped. Obvious question: Will this new hybrid with cheaper, shinier programming come in on my current gear? Yes and no. If you keep your old radio, XM customers will keep getting their XM stuff with the added goodness of Sirius programming, and while Sirius people will get their same batch, plus the fresh crunch of XM content. You'll need a new best-of-both-worlds radio that's still in development to take advantage of one of the two a la carte packages that'll be offered, however. It'll hit the market after the merger's got its last i's dotted and t's crossed. [Image via Flickr] More »

Hype Sheet: Sirius Plays the Bones, Yells "Domino!"

The Pitch A cleverly conceived journey through the history of sonic media (though, regrettably, the creators don't include the phonograph cylinder). Cassettes, 8-track cartridges and CDs are lined up like so many dominoes, all tumbling with a mighty clack. The surprise comes toward the end, when a crashing jukebox sets off an iPod chain reaction. All those perfect things fan out before a seemingly mammoth Sirius Stiletto 2, which the narrator touts as revolutionary: "Everything else falls short." So is Sirius's revamped portable player really about to give the iPod a run for its money? Or are the headphoned masses (Howard Stern aficionados excluded) not yet ready to pay monthly subscription fees? More »

Afternoon News: XM-Sirius Merger Gets Serious, Gas Pumps Lie, and Mice Now Fearless

• XM and Sirius shareholders approve merger, next stop: the FCC. [AP] More »

Sonos Launches ZoneBridge Plus Napster and Best Buy Music Stores

In a raft of announcements, Sonos today confirmed the existence of the $99 ZoneBridge 100, and launched two more PC-free music-store options on the system, including Napster and Best Buy's new Digital Music Store. More »

An analyst at Cowen & Company is pegging the chances of the XM/Sirius merger netting government approval at "70 percent plus," with a saucy number cruncher at Citigroup putting the odds at 69 percent. Regardless, it's a sexier picture for pro-merger folks than it was several months ago. [Orbitcast]

Wall Street, Analysts Beginning to Bet on XM/Sirius Merger

The long-lobbied-for XM/Sirius merger is starting to pick up some optimistic vibes from Wall Street and analysts, who are beginning to think it might just happen. In fact, one analyst group, Cowen & Co., not only says that the odds are the "best ever," they're wagering on FCC approval before Dec. 4, possibly as early as next month. Of course, analysts' words are far from gospel, but the mood toward the merger seems much sunnier than it did months ago, so keep your ears open. [Orbitcast]

Box Converts XM-Ready Cars to Sirius-Ready Temples of Howard Stern

The honkin' GM Sirius box, which replaces the XM box currently found in most XM-enabled GM cars 2003 and newer. This new Sirius box is compatible with about 8 million cars on the road. There are boxes from Directed that do the same for Hondas, Toyotas and Lexus autos, too. More »

Hands-On Altec Lansing's SR4021 Stacking Sirius Speaker Dock

Today, Altec Lansing was at the Sirius line show in New York, showing off a new attractive creation. It's a speaker dock, the $149 SR4021, that fits all dockable Sirius radios, including the Stiletto, Sportster (shown), Starmate and Stratus lines. Its mandatory subwoofer contains most of the audio electronics; you can hide it somewhere or leave it on the floor, but if you think it's sexy—and you just might think it's sexy—Altec designed it to stack with the speaker dock itself, as shown in the gallery. More »

Polk miDock Portfolio Dock Hooks Up With All Stilettos

In the midst of all this guff about the Sirius Satellite Radio-receiving Stiletto 10, 100 and the new Stiletto 2, speakermeister Polk Audio decided to announce its miDock portfolio, a speaker dock especially made for the portable receivers. It runs on either AC power or AA batteries, and the company says it folds flat, making it easy to carry on the road. Like most docks of this ilk, it'll charge up that Stiletto, and has a remote control, too. It'll be available in October for $129.99. [Polk Audio]

Sirius Stiletto 2 vs Original Sirius Stiletto

How much smaller is the new Stiletto 2 from Sirius? See for yourself, because I just shot it alongside its predecessor. Notice that the older unit has the chunky extended battery. That's because it takes the extended battery on the old Stiletto to get the same battery life that the new one gets right out of the box: 4 hours of live satellite radio, 10 hours of Sirius Internet Radio over Wi-Fi and 20 hours playback of stored content. More »

Sirius Stiletto 2 is Officially Official

Hinted not so long ago, the Sirius Stiletto 2 is the official sequel to Sirius' first portable player, the Stiletto. As with the new Sportster, the Stiletto's feature set has remained basically unchanged, keeping the Wi-Fi and SD MP3 playback of the original, while now supporting up to 100 hours of program recording. The big difference here is that the Stiletto 2 looks much skinnier, like, one whole ass cheek was lopped off, skinnier. As for other details, like battery life and actual size (not just my eyeball measuring tape), we don't yet know. The Stiletto 2 will be available this fall for $349. Full feature list after the jump. More »

Sirius Sportster 5 Goes Color

With Sirius' new Sportster 5 their dockable line has finally gone color. Featuring both a color display and a customizable backlighting to match your dash, the new Sportster is sure to offer hours of heated discussions over the merits of various schools of color design. Other than that, upgrades seem scant. The unit will offer 16 more minutes of recording (now you can record up to an hour of Sirius broadcast) but otherwise the same FM transmission and other (Fill in Special Feature)™ stay intact. Look for the Sportster 5 debuting this fall at $169.99. Hit the jump for the feature list in full. More »