Concern Over Touching Shared Surfaces Will Help Push Near 30% Growth In Smart Home Voice Control
A global emphasis on working from home combined with advice to minimize COVID-19 transmission from shared surfaces even within a home, will help cement the benefits of smart home voice control for millions of consumers. Last year, 141 million voice control smart home device shipped worldwide and, despite the key China market being impacted during the first quarter of 2020, the value of voice control during the pandemic will ensure that this year, voice control device shipments will grow globally by close to 30% over 2019, states ABI Research.
Sony Announces New Truly Wireless WF-XB700 Earbuds and WH-CH710N Noise Canceling Headphones
Sony Electronics introduced two new wireless headphones – the WF-XB700 and WH-CH710N – offering two new options for any environment, and benefiting from the latest Bluetooth technology. One model is the true wireless WF-XB700 with Extra Bass ($130 USD), and the other is a circumaural headphone with noise cancelling, the WH-CH710N ($200 USD). Both new models have prices below current Sony products in the category, showing how determined the Japanese company is about maintaining and expanding market share.
Yamaha Launches Special Edition HS MP Series Powered Monitor Speakers
In the 15 years since Yamaha introduced the HS series of powered studio monitors, it has become a standard for nearfield applications in countless project and home studio environments, and above all in many editing suites and TV station control rooms across the globe. No other studio monitor from Yamaha ever received the cult still awarded to the NS10's, but the modern, and much more reliable white woofers are certainly evocative of the legend. Now, to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Yamaha Pro Audio, the company has launched the special edition HS MP (Matched Pair) models.
SPL Announces New Crescendo duo 2-Channel Microphone Preamplifier Featuring 120V Technology
SPL of Germany has announced the new Crescendo duo mic preamplifier that extends the company's 120V technology portfolio with a two-channel version of the original SPL Crescendo. The Crescendo duo offers an entry-level solution to SPL 120V technology microphone preamplifiers, and is perfectly suited for the most demanding stereo recordings but is also ideal for mono signals such as vocals. SPL describes as "the ultimate front end for all professional recording studios."
TIDAL Offers Personalized Welcome Mix Enhanced Experience for New Users
Global music streaming platform TIDAL unveiled an optimized experience for new subscribers. Immediately upon creating an account, members will be asked to identify their favorite artists across different genres for a personalized experience. Once setup is complete, the platform’s home screen will recommend content based on those selections, including a new “Welcome Mix” which features music from the selected artists and inspires new music discovery.
Line-up of WiSA Certified Home Audio Products Expanded with the Harman Kardon Citation Sub S
The Wireless Speaker and Audio Association (WiSA), comprised of over 60 leading consumer electronics brands, and founded by Summit Wireless Technologies, announced certification of the Harman Kardon Citation Sub S. This newly WiSA Certified compact subwoofer, part of the expanded Citation range introduced at CES 2020, is the second subwoofer in the line and the third Harman subwoofer overall to be WiSA Certified.
KRK Systems Invents Speaker Grilles Add-on Cross-Selling Concept
KRK Systems introduced a completely new and revolutionary concept for the speaker industry. While speaker grilles have long been used by manufacturers as a way to protect the drivers, the truth is many users remove them immediately mainly for aesthetic reasons. That's the reason some brands don't even bother including grilles in the first place. KRK probably hired a new marketing exec that looked at the brand's latest ROKIT G4 range of active monitors and thinks "what if we would sell optional add-on grilles"?
Genelec Announces 1235A Smart Active Main Studio Monitor
Genelec unveiled its new 1235A Smart Active Monitor, which fuses the sound and heritage of the iconic 1035 main studio monitor with high-performance 96 kHz processing and the ability to adapt to any space through its tight integration with Genelec’s GLM calibration software. The 1235A targets large music, film and post-production studios that demand high SPL and neutral, stable imaging that can be perfectly optimized for the room’s unique acoustic environment.
Jabra Launches Evolve2 Next-Generation Business Headsets with Hybrid ANC
Jabra announced its Evolve2 range, the next generation of Evolve, its best-selling UC headsets for improved productivity. The new range consists of the Evolve2 85, Evolve2 65 and Evolve2 40, all engineered to transform concentration, collaboration and flexibility in the workplace. By blocking out more noise and providing better voice clarity, the Evolve2 business headsets bring distributed teams together, giving people the power to work from anywhere while staying connected. The headsets work with all leading UC platforms and are pending certification for Microsoft Teams.
AVIXA Confirms InfoComm 2020 Cancellation and Strategy for Orlando 2021
The show management of InfoComm and the executive leadership of the Audiovisual and Integrated Experience Association (AVIXA) have confirmed that the InfoComm 2020 show, scheduled for June 13‑19 in Las Vegas, Nevada, is effectively and officially canceled. This is a decision that affects may companies and professionals all over the world, but clearly only surprises for the fact that it was announced when everyone had long assumed that traveling and attending large gatherings is something to look forward to do again... in 2021.