If you enjoy internet radio, and are looking for an easy, distraction free way to bring your favorite radio programs to your Mac, CatPig Studios may have your idea answer with Radium for Mac ($24.99, Mac App Store Link) – a simple program that sits in your menu bar and plays your favorite radio, while you simple forget its even there.
Overview
I was immediately impressed with Radium’s simplicity – there isn’t much of an interface to speak of, which is nice, because that means it won’t get in your way. And what little interface it does have (mostly through preferences or a menu bar based content search) is professional, minimalist, and exceptionally easy to navigate. Radium makes it easier and more fun to listen to internet radio and online music. Here are a few of the pros and cons that I encountered in my review of Radium:
Pros
- Find and listen to internet radio stations; share your choice on Twitter; stream with AirPlay.
- Apple Remote support works great, leaves nothing to be desired.
- Set it and forget it – it doesn’t interrupt your work or get in your way.
Cons
- No automatic import from iTunes.
- $25 can seem like a lot of money at first.
Ease of Use
Radium has definitively nailed it in this category, nuff said. Radium might be one of the simplest programs I have ever used for the Mac, and was exceptionally easy to just dive right into, requiring no learning curve at all. Yet, at the same time, Radium does what it’s supposed to do: bring you the full internet radio and audio streaming experience in a simple and effective package.
Functionality
Radium, despite its simplicity, packs a plethora of features and functions, including importing a station from a URL, fully customizable quality, control, and sound options, including support for the Apple Remote, as well as the media buttons present on most Apple keyboards. It also features native support for Growl, integrates with Last.fm, and generally does far, far more than you initially expect.
It also includes full support for AirPlay, allows you to assign an use your own custom keyboard shortcuts, features a full selection of literally thousands of radio stations available from first launch, favorites (marking the stations you like the best), a full history of what you’ve listened to, a full equalizer, XM radio support, and so much more. For living in such a tiny and efficient package, Radium really packs a punch.
Conclusion
Radium just feels good to use, and like any good radio, it sits out of they way when not in use, and continues to remain unobtrusive when you’re listening to your choice of stations, making no demands on your eyes, or your attention. With it’s lovely little radio icon lurking in the menu bar, I always know that its there, watching over me and making sure I have great music to listen to.
Im extremely satisfied with Radium – it simplifies the experience of using internet radio, and does what it does so well that its one of the lucky apps that gets to keep its home in my sometimes crowded menu bar. It’s just a quick, fun, efficient, and easy to use app that does exactly what it should – and not a bit less.
Rating, Information, Wrapping It Up
Radium is developed by CatPig Studios, and is available in the Mac App Store for just $25. While $25 might seem like a lot at first glance, once you consider the effort that goes into developing quality software, and consider that for the money, you get an entire world of internet radio at your disposal, it seems more and more like a value. I consider it to be an excellent value for the money.
For its simple, elegant, and excellent way of bringing internet radio to your desktop, while remaining sufficiently feature-rich for even the most discerning of users, I award Radium a 5 out of 5. For more information on Radium. visit CatPig Studios on the web. You can download Radium ($25, Mac App Store Link) for $25 on the Mac App Store, and trust me – you won’t be sorry that you did.
