Morpheus

Morpheus is an age-old P2P application and, with support for Gnutella, eDonkey, Bittorrent and many others, probably the most versatile you can find on the market

Morpheus (support has now been discontinued) once aimed to turn the P2P client into the ultimate multimedia application. The application window is divided into 4 tabs: search results, my files, podcasts and Morpheus Online. A pane on the left side allows you to create playlists or keep track of searches and videos. Morpheus also lets you sync all your downloaded files to import them automatically to iTunes. Oddly enough, the chat tool is hidden at the top of the interface, next to help and preferences.

Morpheus wants to be a multifaceted app, not just a simple P2P program. It includes an embedded browser, Morpheus Online, from which you can check out the internet or find new files to share while you're downloading. This is particularly useful when you're looking for new podcasts. By clicking on the podcast page button in the podcasts tab, you will be taken to Morpheus' own podcast library. While it's not as star-studded as the iTunes library, it's full of varied and original content.

Morpheus' podcast tab is wisely divided into podcast and episodes, so you can browse through what you've downloaded. However we were quite confused by the podcast downloading procedure, as the progress bar is hidden in the file window of the My Files tab.

Morpheus has also beefed up its security. You can now select your antivirus application to automatically scan downloaded files. The program also includes solid parental control. You can also add a password to make sure you control who has access to Morpheus. The application also introduces UDP technology to improve the performance of downloads and allow secure file sharing between 2 firewall protected PCs.

Morpheus comes with interesting enhancements, but not enough to get us overexcited. Add to that the many drawbacks we found in the application. The interface is way too clunky. The My Files tab has an additional file window at the bottom, which adds to the confusion on the interface. The one-click burning function is something we were eager to try out, but it was nowhere to be seen.

However hard Morpheus tries at integrating cool features like web browsing or podcasting, we figure the application should only be used for what it's good at i.e. P2P downloading. The program gives access to all the P2P networks, even Bittorrent, and the new version introduces safer and quicker transfer thanks to UDP technology. The other extra features in the application like the library structure or web browser feel a bit awkward, and therefore failed at turning the program into a true multimedia application.

Morpheus is a solid P2P application, but doesn't make the jump to multimedia super-app.

Changes

• New transfer system - faster downloads and ability to set priority.
• Firewall improvements - enhanced Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support.
• Skins update - changes reload without restart of application.
• Alerts indicating files that may not be authorized for download (note: database and accuracy incomplete - not fail proof)
• Various bug fixes - podcast functionality, general improvements, and much more.