Audio

Baseus might be best known for its Blade power banks - however, it has now announced that it now even supports electric vehicles (EVs) thanks to the latest upgrades in its accessory portfolio. The Nebula Series Green GaN EV Charger is to be joined by new peripherals such as the Eli Sport 1 Series Earbuds in the OEM's IFA 2023 showcase.

Panasonic has just announced the SoundSlayer GNW10 “wearable immersive gaming speaker system” that rests on one's shoulders to deliver surround sound for gaming. This is the second of its kind in Panasonic’s gaming speaker lineup, offering upgraded sound and wireless connectivity over the previous model. The GNW10 will be available from December 2023 for a yet-undetermined price.

Thanks to the latest firmware update, the extended LE Audio capabilities now available deliver improved audio recording on smartphones, as well as "rich and complex audio transmission" via Bluetooth to Auracast broadcast technology-capable Samsung TVs. Galaxy Book3 Ultra, Book3 Pro, Book3 Pro 360, and Book3 360 will also receive audio improvements.

Dolby’s newly announced Atmos FlexConnect technology promises to make its signature immersive audio experience accessible in any space using a flexible arrangement of wireless speakers and a FlexConnect-enabled TV. Dolby has partnered with TCL to debut the technology on its TVs starting 2024, and will showcase it at IFA 2023.

The flagship home theater ultra-short throw (UST) projector with Leica branding has finally become available in the US. The Cine 1 throws an image of up to 120 inches in size at up to 3,000 nits of brightness in XPR-upscaled 4K. It also packs 50W Dolby Atmos-enhanced speakers and has Google TV for its smart-home features.

Apple is expected to announce a bevy of new products at its event next week, including Airpods that can charge via USB-C. This rumor comes courtesy of Mark Gurman at Bloomberg.

TCL has unleashed the X955 as the new flagship of its QD-Mini LED 4K TV series. The device is touted as the first of its kind with 5,000 nits of brightness and over 5,000 full array local dimming (FALD) zones. The X955 comes with an "Ultra Slim Design" despite its wall-hogging size options, and boasts an up to 160W Onkyo-branded sound system.

Leaked marketing materials for CMF's first products have emerged online. Purportedly, the Nothing sub-brand plans to release a smartwatch next month, as well as a pair of orange earbuds and an accompanying GaN charger.

Realme has now made the vanilla iteration of its latest Buds Air series official. The TWS earbuds have their Pro siblings' "industry-leading" active noise cancellation as a marquee feature. They also boast large drivers for "Dynamic Bass Boost" audio over Bluetooth 5.3 - however, on closer inspection, the new Buds Air 5 lack the most premium features of the Pro models.

LG US has just augmented its UltraGear series of gaming monitors with new variants, two of which have 27-inch screens and one of which is 32 inches. Of those, the 27GR83Q-B has a 240Hz refresh rate, whereas the 27GR93Q-B and 32GR83Q-B are 144Hz. Nevertheless, all three are touted as "battlefield centerpieces" with AMD FreeSync Premium, 1ms latencies and offers of 30% off their RRPs with free fast shipping for a limited time.

The standalone Dolby Atmos soundbar does not come with dedicated surround speakers or a subwoofer, but thanks to Bose's TrueSpace technology, the compact Smart Soundbar 600 is supposed to provide an immersive audio experience.

Introduced in mid-2019, the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 is a headset that still rocks features ahead of its competitors, such as the 11-level active noise cancelling and the ability to pair with Bose smart soundbars. With a list price of US$379 (lower than the US$399 launch price), this piece of audio gear is now down to US$299.

AGM has unveiled its latest mobile phone as the M8 Flip, a device that, unlike most of the OEM's devices with its 'threefold' rugged attributes, is capable of folding along a hinge. It has the edge on the average traditional clamshells with what might be the loudest speaker of its class, integrated into a round cover display.

Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), Sony's arm that manages PlayStation, has acquired California-based headphone maker Audeze. With Audeze under its belt, SIE hopes to bring "Audeze’s expertise into the PlayStation ecosystem". Aside from announcing that Audeze will "operate independently", Sony has not revealed any other details, for instance the acquisition amount, regarding the deal.

Volkswagen has announced that the release of the ID.7 has begun in Europe, in the form of its Pro configuration to start off with. The variant is rated for up to ~386 miles of (WLTP) range and comes with an augmented reality (AR) head-up display and keyless entry as standard. The ID.7 Pro is also touted to come with a generous luggage volume and an "agile" turning circle.

Ozlo, a startup by three former Bose employees, has just announced the Sleepbuds, an updated version of Bose’ discontinued sleep-centric earphones, through a Kickstarter campaign. The device retains its old name and form factor, but adds significant new capabilities.

Sony has unveiled two new PlayStation-branded audio products, the Pulse Elite and Pulse Explore. The former is a headset with a retractable boom mic, and the latter is a pair of TWS earbuds. Both will support the company's new PlayStation Link audio technology.

Rode has announced its latest compact wireless mic system, the Wireless PRO, targeted at filmmakers broadcasters and content creators. It combines the best features from the Wireless GO II and ME systems while adding several more advanced ones.

OneOdio has made an addition to the growing list of alternatives to in-ear wireless audio with the new OpenRock S buds. The "open ear sports earphones" are backed to direct sound without leakage thanks to Open Air Conduction Technology, boosted with the "Patented TubeBass Technology" packed in with their large drivers. The OpenRock S are also rated for type-C charging and up to 60 hours of battery life.

Realme has set a date on which it will unleash the GT5 on the Android flagship smartphone market. They will be joined by a new addition to the Buds Air 5 series, slated to share their Pro siblings' "class-leading" active noise cancellation despite possibly starting for less. The new TWS earbuds are slated to become available in India as well as China soon.

Samsung has announced a second generation of its innovative The Freestyle projector, designed to throw a 1080p image of 30 to 100 inches in size anywhere in an automatic "Point and Play" manner. This new variant is shipped pre-loaded with a Hub full of gaming apps such as NVIDIA GeForce NOW, Amazon Luna, Twitch and Xbox Game Pass out of the box.

1MORE's flagship TWS accessories have fallen to a sub-US$100 price during the OEM's latest online sales event. The EVO earbuds are joined by the SonoFlow ANC headphones in this sale, and by the colorful ComfoBuds Mini. Most items on offer require a specific code for the maximum discount available.

Creative has announced a collaboration with XMEMS, a specialist in MEMS-based speakers, for its future TWS earphone lineup. The new tech could help Creative's products stand out from the competition in terms of sound quality, compactness and robustness.

Motorola's US website has unveiled its Summer 2023 sale, with up to US$500 off some of the OEM's latest smartphones. It also offers the chance to get a pair of Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II for free with every purchase of the Motorola Edge Plus (2023) for a limited time. The smartphone boasts a 165Hz display driven by flagship internals.

The 3.1.2-channel LG soundbar has a peak output of 380 watts and a decent price-performance ratio considering that Amazon has cut the original list price of the Dolby Atmos system in half and is now selling the S75Q for a discounted US$296.

Two leakers have shared the first video of the Bose QuietComfort, the cheaper alternative to the QuietComfort Ultra. The seemingly official promotional video showcases the design of Bose's new over-ear headphones and a few important features.

The stylish silver color variant of the wireless Sony WH-1000XM4 is back on sale with its largest discount ever, which arguably turns the previous generation of these sought-after noise-cancelling headphones into a better deal than the noticeably more expensive successor.

Jabra is now tipped to update its Elite series of TWS earbuds with new flagship and Active variants. They have reportedly leaked as the 10 and 8 Active respectively, and may launch as Made for iPhone- (MFi) and Hey Google-certified devices. The higher-end models might get the better ANC specs, while the Actives may be touted as the "world's toughest earbuds" thanks to advanced ingress-protection ratings.

Astell&Kern has launched is latest audiophile-grade TWS earphones targeted at discerning listeners. The new buds feature a built-in 32-bit DAC and Knowles balanced armature drivers.

Bose will soon launch the QuietComfort Ultra, a pair of high-end over-ear headphones that will marginally undercut the Apple AirPods Max. Reportedly launching next month, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra has now been pictured in a series of hands-on photos that reveal a few new details about the forthcoming headphones.

According to various reports, Bose is lining up the release of two new pairs of premium Bluetooth headphones and not just one, as was previously suggested. Launching next month, the Bose QuietComfort and QuietComfort Ultra will replace the current QuietComfort 45, with Bose offering more advanced technologies in the Ultra than the regular QuietComfort.

Various sources have revealed details about the QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds, Bose's next flagship pair of wireless earbuds. Reputedly, Bose has packed many of the features of the forthcoming QuietComfort Ultra headphones into the earbuds, despite their diminutive size. Pricing, a release date and various specifications have leaked too.

Carl Pei has launched a new Nothing sub-brand that he is calling CMF by Nothing. The letters stand for "Color, Material, and Finish" with the first products set to launch later this year.

Sony has announced the latest beta software for the PS5 gaming console. Among the raft of new system software features it is currently testing are support for SSDs up to 8TB and the expansion of its Tempest 3D audio tech to devices with Dolby Atmos compatible speakers.

The gaming brand RedMagic has announced that the TWS earbuds made to go with its top-end 8S Pro smartphone have just gone global. The Cyberbuds DAO boast some of the most cutting-edge specs available, conferred by their "flagship Qualcomm Bluetooth 5.3 chipset" and audio platform. They include potentially ultra-low latency and support for the aptX codec as well as LHDC 5.0.

POCO's latest TWS earbuds have launched as the brand's first-gen Pods, which, as the name suggests, entails a close resemblance to certain Apple accessories. They come in completely different colors, however, and are rated to "fast charge" their "30-hour" battery via USB type-C. The Pods make compromises on their noise-cancelling technology and driver size to retail at well under US$50 in their new market of India.

Sony's alleged quest to make wireless earbuds that match the PlayStation 5 (PS5) may have reached a pivotal stage, which would be their approval for sale by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The US regulator has also given their "USB Transceiver" (no prizes for guessing why that is a thing) a pass for launch alongside them.

The Huawei Mate 50 is now thought to have a successor that might look much the same from the front. From the rear, however, the Mate 60 might drop the stove-top camera hump of yesteryear for an updated alternative. It is also thought to have a feature that is growing increasing rare among smartphones these days.

Sony has pushed the biggest update yet to the WH-1000XM5 following the release of the smaller WF-1000XM5. Rolling out as firmware version 2.0.2, the new update brings several major changes to the WH-1000XM5, including head tracking for a more immersive listening experience.

The high-end system from Samsung's 2022 soundbar lineup sports a full-fledged 9.1.2-channel setup with a dedicated wireless subwoofer, and the HW-Q910B also supports the all-important Dolby Atmos audio format and comes with up-firing speakers that create an immersive audio experience.

Wanbo's latest projector is in fact a re-boot of an earlier model that was designed to be as compact as possible while still offering an "HD" throw and in-built speakers. The "New" version of the T2 purports to have taken a step up in terms of brightness compared to its forebear, as well as to "much smarter" AI-powered auto-focus (AF). The new miniature gadget is now priced at under US$200.

Sony has now launched the WF-1000XM5, its latest pair of high-end earbuds. Available to order now, early reviews suggest the WF-1000XM5 is a worthy replacement for the ageing WF-1000XM4.

The standalone 5.0 soundbar from JBL comes with Virtual Dolby Atmos support thanks to its MultiBeam technology, and the budget-friendly audio system also features two HDMI ports for 4K passthrough and four radiators that are supposed to make up for the missing dedicated subwoofer that some competing products have to offer.

Sony is on the cusp of introducing the WF-1000XM5, the long-awaited successor to the WF-1000XM4. Full specifications for the upcoming earbuds have now surfaced online, thanks to another retailer leak.

Thanks to a 40% drop, the JBL Charge 4 waterproof portable Bluetooth speaker in Squad Camo finish is now down to the lowest price it had on Amazon in the last 30 days. With a list price of US$149.95, this venerable piece of hardware now goes for US$89.95. Most other colors are available for US$10 more.

Lenovo's latest Legion-brand product event has introduced a new version of the Y9000X laptop to the Chinese market. It has become a lighter and slimmer PC, if anything, in this generation, yet still boasts gaming credentials such as RTX 4000-series graphics to drive a 3.2K 165Hz display. It also boasts 140W charging for a 99.9kWh battery.

More renders of the Sony WF-1000XM5 have been leaked by a well-known source along with the supposed prices of the earbuds for the US and Europe markets. The WF-1000XM5 truly wireless headphones are shown off in both black and silver, with the images including the cases in both open and closed states.

Sony is on the verge of releasing the WF-1000XM5, its next-generation replacement for the WF-1000XM4. Although the company will not launch the WF-1000XM5 until next week, a European retailer has already listed the earbuds on its website, confirming its launch price in the process.