Both are great pieces of software that work on Mac os x and Windows, they allow you to access files from one computer to another. Simplify Media's applications allow you to share your music collection and photo collection to another computer and Orb allows you to share the same, plus any other file or document on your computer. I like Orb especially because of the ability to share music, photos, and videos to a PS3 or Xbox 360, but the application doesn't seem as secure as Simplify Music or Simplify Photo do. Also both of them are available in the Apple App Store, but they are not free. I have had experience with Orb and I will most likely never pay for the software. I like the idea of sharing any file you want over the internet, but the application and Orb's server just isn't stable. I would recommend that you keep an eye on it though. I mean problems can be fixed and who knows, maybe soon they will get better and downloaded onto everyones computers. But right now I would stick with Simplify Media. I can't fully back it up because I have not bought the iPhone app, but from the many reviews I've read it seems better off than Orb. The interface looks more stable, but from personal reviews it has a problem with large libraries. Why would you pay for something that wont work for everybody. I know I wont be getting it anytime soon because I have many gigabytes of music I'd love to stream. Also Simplify has three iPhone apps (but only 2 different types). Two are Simplify Music (Original) and Simplify Music 2. What really gets me mad is that users have to pay eight dollars for the updated version, when they could have given it as an update to the original. So six dollars (Simplify Music Original) plus the updated version (eight dollars), and that doesn't even include the third app that cost four dollars to stream your photos. So all that for some application that may not work well with large libraries. I would definitely be mad at the company if I had paid for the original and then pay even more for the update.
But just because things are bad now doesn't mean that won't get better. I think that these apps are worth checking into, and I am surely going to keep my eye on them. I would love if Simplify Media had a free or lite version of their app so it could be tested, like Orb does. I tried Orb on my friends iPhone and it was slow loading media and skipped a few songs, giving me different errors. Now what is interesting is that Orb is suppose to work via your Orb server (www.mycast.orb.com) with any computer, phone or internet device for free. But they are making you pay to use it on the iPhone, one to access files (music, photos, documents) from your computer and the other Orb Live allows you to stream video feeds to your iPhone. If you do go to the website (without using the app), you get a horrible interface that is very slow to load. It doesn't separate multiple songs, so if you chose an album to play it would put all of the songs together. Making one 32 minute or however long song. If they just simply updated their mobile interface, it would be more enticing to users.
Offering a nice clean interface for free would get them more attention then making people pay for it. But again I would continue to see how they grow and watch out for other competing apps (maybe even free) that will try to get noticed. Thanks for reading and here are links to the websites and iPhone apps.
Orb:
Computer Application iPhone app:
Orb Live,
Orb Live Free,
Orb MediaSimplify Media:
Computer ApplicationiPhone App:
Simplify Music,
Simplify Music 2,
Simplify Photo
