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- Quick specs
- Price: Free
- Operating system: Windows XP, Windows 2000
- Date added: March 12, 2007
- Total Downloads: 91,772
- Downloads last week: 357
- See full specifications
A newer version of Songbird is available.
(Download doesn't provide access to previous versions of this program.)
- CNET editors' rating: stars
- Average user rating: stars out of 121 votes
See all user reviews
CNET editors' review
Reviewed by: CNET Staff
If Firefox and iTunes hooked up, their hatchling could very well be Songbird. Although it's in beta and plenty buggy, it's also a very fun app that's part music player, part Web browser, and all about music discovery, management, and playback.
During installation, it'll ask if you want to load your iTunes music directory or another media directory, or perform the task later. Processing 5,000 songs took about 3 minutes, not a bad pace. It then asks you which of the pre-installed Songbird extensions you want to load. Most of these, like the iPod and USB device manager, only make the app stronger.
The left sidebar provides quick links to bookmarks, downloads, your music library in an iTunes-style interface, and several music discovery Web sites to get your started. When you're looking at any Web site with MP3s available for download, Songbird will open a new window at the bottom main browsing pane. Double-click on a song to play it, while links on the right let you purchase the track from Amazon, iTunes, eMusic, and Amie St. They also tell you the format of the track--MP3 or AAC, for example, and provide a blog link for more info.
Songbird has a growing library of extensions, and support is slowly growing for those written originally for Firefox. Many of the improvements from the last version make for a dramatic change, but Songbird is definitely a beta: caveat emptor. Still, it could really take flight for the music-loving, Web-surfing fanatic in all of us.
Watch the CNET video review of Songbird:
Publisher's description
From Pioneers of the Inevitable :Note: Beta or prerelease software is not intended for inexperienced users, as the software may contain bugs or may potentially damage your system. We strongly recommend that users exercise caution and save all mission-critical data before installing or using this software.
Songbird is a media browser and Web player built from Firefox, VLC Player, and SQLite. Songbird is open source and supports user contributed, cross-platform extensions. The latest 0.2.5 update adds a host of new features to the application and Songbird Web site, including command-line handling, support for USB mass-storage devices, a filterable Web library, and a new tools menu.
What's new in this version:
The latest 0.2.5 update adds a host of new features to the application and Songbird Web site, including command-line handling, support for USB mass-storage devices, a filterable Web library, and a new tools menu.
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User reviews of Songbird 0.2.5
- Average user rating: 3.7 stars out of 121 votes
- My rating: 0 stars Write review
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Showing 5 of 13 user reviewsSee all 13 user reviews
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0 out of 1 people found this review helpful
Version: Songbird 0.2.5
Pros: -It is a fine blend of Firefox and MediaPlyer with a built-in FirefoxSearch box.You can search and see most of the mediasites and also it gathers automatically songs from some of the sites and play for us.In BlueBird&Cardinal Skins(they call "Feathers") it is a beauty.It has lot of features even at this Beta stage:go to songbirdnest.com and play the 'screencast'.As told in the screencast, it will become a 'standalone media player'.It has also got one "CheezyVideoWindow" to play videos.;eventhough not functions well.
Cons: At the time of download it was a 12.11MB file,but on installation it consumed more than 56.7MB of disk-space.It increases as and when you add an extension or a media file,but it is ok considering the output. It has to accommodate more online/screaming sites from all over the world(now it plays online music from a limited number of sites only).The 'CheezyVideoWindow' appears and disappears without any user control and buffering is also not done properly, the video-play stops in the middle and rolls back even-in high-speed broadband.Replay facility is also to be provided.I think these can be fixed by its Developers(it is an open source free with support from Mozilla Firefox) in coming versions.(Anyway, greetings to all those involved in this venture.)
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Version: Songbird 0.2.5
Pros: It's like a Firefox/Winamp/Windows media player/iTunes mix up. I don't know what influenced the idea, but it was brilliant. It will even use external codecs like CCCP (www[DOT]cccp-project[DOT]net) and Klite. Excelent for beta software. It's on all my PC's for web music.
Cons: It's missing a few features, like the video said, CD ripping functionality, etc.
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6 out of 6 people found this review helpful
Version: Songbird 0.2.5
"Regardless of Beta Flaws, EXCELLENT!!!"
Pros: This player is practically an open source version if iTunes, except better. The plugins are nice, and have lots of potential. There is a lot to the beta as is. Being able to go to a website and play whatever media is on there is a major advantage. The feathers are great if you want a better looking media player. The music player looks great with the cardinal feather. Overall, I believe this will kill iTunes. The plugins will ultimately make this media player compatible with everything. I have officially switched to Songbird!
Cons: Since it is in beta, there are some flaws. The smart playlists can be glitchy. If you set a rating at at least some number, it will later apear as artist instead of rating. The player will at rare times rename a song. Another disadvantage is the time it takes for a search on a song. But I have a large collection of songs, so that may be why. The main disadvantage is that this is a beta, so if you are going to use it, expect some frustrations.
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3 out of 6 people found this review helpful
Version: Songbird 0.2.5
"It's a beta so it's a bit buggy, but..."
Pros: ...it's definitely the way to go as a combo media file library, download finder, streaming radio browser. Integrates with firefox well (you can add extensions just as you can with that browser), searches pretty fast [online, h/drive(s)and external devices], links with some paid for download sites well (if others follow those already here it's going to take some beating). You can add web results to a library just as you can the files on your drives. It searches websites/blogs for music files for you to listen to, a good way of finding new stuff to download.
Cons: There are a few functions that I can't get to work, like how it has options like burn to CD/copy to device, yet, maybe that's coming soon or is a bug that needs fixing. But it's a beta, it's a work in progress and I don't need songbird to do these functions as I have plenty of alternatives.
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Version: Songbird 0.2.5
"Difficult to subscribe to podcasts"
Pros: The program has a lot of links to websites which can be used to download free songs as well as to online music shops; you can download add-ons which enhance its usefulness.
Cons: Downloading podcasts is not as easy as in iTunes.
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