Coming at you at the speed of 32 kbps!

When we launched Saavn Music for Android, users on slower networks, especially users in India, reported streaming issues. In order to make the majority of Saavn mobile listeners happy, we rolled out a rapid fix: variable bitrates. With our original variable bitrate feature, Saavn Music automatically detected the speed of your network and selected an appropriate audio sampling rate to deliver your music (128 kbps for a high-speed network, and 16 kbps for a low-speed one).

Many of you told us that the quality of the downsampled rate was too low. You asked for higher quality and control over your bitrates, and now, Saavn is giving it to you.

We‘ve already flipped the switch so that the default downsampled bitrate is 32 kbps instead of 16 kbps – so you’ll see a significant improvement in quality on low-speed networks, without a sacrifice in streaming ability!

We’ll also be expanding the variable bitrate feature in the next release of Saavn Music, which rolls out this month. Here’s what you’ll see in the newest version of the Android app:

• Option to turn off network autodetect/bitrate autoselect
• Choice of four bitrates (128, 56, 32, or 16 kbps)
• Higher quality (32 kbps) default audio for slow networks

If you’re on a 2G (or EDGE) network, or on a busy 3G network, we recommend you keep auto-detect on. To all the users who wrote in and helped us make a better product, thank you. Keep it coming, and we’ll do the same!

Recently I was browsing through youtube, a favorite hobby of mine, hoping to find some interesting videos – some how, don’t ask me how I entered the following search term, “Sridevi Fight Scenes.” So apparently in her hay-day Sri D. was a fighter. She threw down with worst villains imaginable. Here is a compilation of my favorites,

I think this proves it, Sri D was a very versatile actress. All Hail Mighty Sridevi! Protector of Women Everywhere!

And when she wasn’t out fighting evil doers she was seducing us with her charm in some jazzy Bollywood numbers, search Sridevi on www.saavn.com and see what you find!

Salaam, namaste! You may have noticed we’ve gone missing for a while, and that’s a good thing. We’ve rolled out some major product enhancements on Saavn.com and launched a partnership with Google.

But the really big news is…Saavn for Android is here! Saavn Music, our first native mobile app for Android, went live this month, and we are ecstatic about it – especially because it was built 100% in-house by the team here at Saavn (and because several of us are Android users ourselves).

Of course, the Saavn app is free in the Android Market™. And for paying nothing…you get everything! The Saavn app includes the full functionality of Saavn.com in just three simple tabs: Play, Browse, and Search.

The Saavn app for Android allows you to stream the hundreds of thousands of tracks in Saavn’s catalog (streaming perfectly over EDGE networks). Within the app, you can build, edit, and save playlists; sign into your Saavn.com account and access your existing playlists; browse the latest albums, weekly top 15, and featured playlists; or hit the “Kuch Bhi” (“Surprise Me”) button to start listening with a single click.

Saavn Music isn’t just the best app for Bollywood and South Asian music – it’s the best Search-and-Play music app, period and full stop. Download Saavn Music (free) from the Android Market™ and let us know what you think. Scan the code below using your barcode scanner or search for “Saavn” in the Market to get started.

And watch this space for news on the major improvements to Saavn coming in the next few weeks and months.

You can find anything you’re looking for on Saavn, from 1932′s “Kya Karan Hai Ab Rone Ka” to this week’s hot single, “Tere Mast Mast Do Nain.” Search for your favorite music by song, album, actor, singer, film director, music director, or year (1960 was a good one)!

There’s so much to love about Saavn.com! You can edit and save your own playlists to listen to later or share with your friends. Or, you can check out Saavn’s Weekly Top 15 to browse the latest hits. We update the site every day, so the newest albums are always available! You can also check out Saavn’s themed featured playlists based on holidays, classic favorites, music moods, song themes, singers, and even the occasional random Bollywood bakwaas!

It’s easy to share your latest finds and favorite playlists with your Facebook friends and Twitter followers with Saavn’s built-in Facebook and Twitter Connect features. You can also listen to Saavn.com on the go on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. Watch this space for tutorial videos on some of our favorite features. And coming soon…Saavn for Android!