Covering last week's well-hyped launch of Windows Media 9, most of the press focused on how Microsoft is using the latest version of its media player to woo Hollywood. (Bill Gates, James Cameron, and LL Cool J together again!) But that coverage overlooked some of the product's technical enhancements--new features that should leave digital audio fans just as starry-eyed.
For starters, Media 9 improves on what, in my humble opinion, was already the best audio codec around. Before the latest enhancements, a 64-bit Windows Media Audio (WMA) file sounded just as good (to me, anyway) as a 128Kbps MP3 file. Now, sure, if you've got a 40GB hard disk to work with, you might not care much about saving space (though I still do). But if you're using a portable audio player (and presuming it, like my current favorite, Creative's Nomad MuVo, supports the format), WMA files let you double the amount of music you can carry around.
|