StarPlayr – Sirius for Mac

Posted in Applications | 1 comment

I’m all about consolidating as many components into as few devices as possible. But sometimes additional hardware is unavoidable. This is how I felt about my beloved Sirius Satellite Radio. Commercial-free channels like Chill, Alt Nation, and (yes) Big 80s mean I’ve been willing to add a Sirius receiver to my spartan set of HTPC hardware to get the amazing programming into my Mini.

But that’s no longer necessary. StarPlayr is an amazing program that essentially makes my Mini a virtual Sirius receiver. StarPlayr taps into Sirius’s online streams and allows a complete Mac-based software solution to my clutter concerns. The program itself is full of great features: pause, record, live track information…it’s frankly stunning when you realize the functionality that comes with this free program.

StarPlayr only works if you have a valid Sirius account. I pay them an additional $2.99 a month for the higher 128k bitrate streams, but StarPlayr works with the free lower quality version, too.

It’s also worth noting this is available for download at Apple.com and has been featured as a Staff Favorite, so I have to imagine Sirius is cool with this program. But this is one of those amazing programs that’s difficult to believe is actually okay.

You’ll have to excuse me now…I’m off to Ebay with my old receiver.

3/2009 UPDATE: StarPlayr’s dev has abandoned all of their projects.

I’d suggest Pulsar from Rogue Amoeba. They are still in business.