Audio

LG has announced that its latest truly wireless (or TWS) earbuds are now available to buy in the United States. These Tone Free devices are tuned by Meridian Audio and have a unique UVnano charging case. It also adds up to 21 hours' worth of playback to the LG earbuds.

Audio-Technica has packed its Las Vegas showcase with high-tech new products. They include 3 pairs of TWS earbuds, the flagship of which are the QuietPoint ATH-ANC300TW with hybrid noise cancellation. There are also headphones directed at audiophiles, finished with premium materials such as striped ebony.

Samsung subsidiary Harman Kardon has taken the wraps off what it hopes will be able to take on Apple’s AirPods and headphones like the Apple-owned Beats Solo Pro among others. Each of the three new models, in total, also feature Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa support.

Amazfit has launched a series of products in a category new to this brand: personal work-out equipment. It consists of the SMART GYM HUB, a 43-inch vertical screen with AI and a ToF sensor that can deliver fitness classes right in the home. This device can also integrate with the new Home Studio or AirRun treadmills.

A new study of those who use voice-activated searches have found that 64% of this group set the assistant in question off by mistake during December 2019. An accidental press of a hardware button was found to be the culprit in 49% of these cases. In others, an AI "mishearing" a user's speech resulted in these mishaps.

Amazfit has announced that it's ready for the TWS earbud market in 2020. To this end, it has revealed 2 new products in this category: the PowerBuds and ZenBuds. The former are sports-focused, whereas the latter have been designed by their OEM to help relieve stress and improve sleep quality.

The Wearbuds are well known as the first true-wireless (TWS) earbuds that come with an innovative wrist-band into which they can slot and use to charge, rather than a case that has to be carried around. Now, their maker Aipower has unveiled an updated version of the same at CES 2020.

The Panasonic SC-HTB01 is a soundbar developed in partnership with Square Enix to suit gaming-related audio content. It has 3 appropriately-themed audio presets: RPG, FPS and Voice. They can inform the device's dual frontal speakers and sub-woofers, which are rated for a total 80 watts (W) of power.

The B250i is Acer's latest projector. It uses LEDs to throw a FHD image at a brightness of 1000 ANSI lumens. The OEM has also outfitted it with 5W speakers, passive radiators and in-house TrueHarmony and Waves Maxx Audio technology.

Klipsch has taken the wraps off its first pair of wireless over-ear noise-cancelling headphones. The segment is a popular one that is currently dominated by Sony with its WH-1000XM3 and Bose with its Quiet Comfort 35 II model.

LG's upcoming line of soundbars will be unveiled at CES 2020. However, the OEM has offered some details on these new products ahead of this event. They have been developed with Meridian Audio, while also supporting Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and an AI Room Calibration feature to optimize sound based on their surroundings.

OPPO has launched its Reno3 series. It consists of 2 phones, both of which have 12GB RAM SKUs and 1 of which is a Pro version. This device is now officially the first to rock the Snapdragon 765G processor, a vital boast as this chipset represents the debut of mid-range 5G in Qualcomm SoCs.

If a hands-free speaker with the ability to deliver the kind of charging to match is all you want for the holidays, it seems Xiaomi (nearly) has you covered. It has just certified a device called the Mi Wireless Charger Bluetooth Speaker. It appears to be an audio product with a built-in induction coil for smartphones and other gadgets.

MIUI is Xiaomi's custom skin for Android, and incorporates a default audio app called MiSound. This may be handy; however, it has historically lacked an equalizer (or EQ) to adjust music playback to taste or genre. However, developers familiar with this OS' latest version claim to have found one in a new update.

The wearables brand Amazfit is increasingly well-known for its smartwatches. However, it intends to break into new categories of wearable in 2020. They will include the company's first pair of earphones, as well as another teased as a "futuristic" new option for fitness enthusiasts.

Samsung’s rumored Apple Airpods Pro competitor looks like it is nearing release. Regulatory filings for the new headphones have hit the FCC and reveal, among other things, that they will pick up larger batteries.

YouTube has developed a panel of controls that come into effect when it is being used on a smart TV or Chromecast-enabled device. Now, it may have also added voice commands and new remote-style buttons in this menu. They have been reported as existing in a server-side update thus far.

GoPro has released a new product that is compatible with its pre-existing mounts. However, it is not an action-cam: it is instead a mini LED floodlight intended to be used with one of them, the HERO8 Black. It can also clip onto this device, although it needs a 2nd accessory to do so.

Have you been undecided about which pair of wireless noise-cancelling headphones to buy this Christmas? While the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 and the Sony WH-1000XM3 are currently some of the most options on the market, it appears that Sony has another top-tier pair of WH-1000XM headphones in the works. The WH-1000XM4 are expected to arrive at CES 2020, although we would not rule out a June 2020 release date yet, either.

JBL has launched the Reflect Eternal headphones via Indiegogo. The OEM claims that they are capable of self-charging, so that it may never run out of battery life or be dependent on a cable for play-time. This is conferred by Powerfoyle technology, which is found in the device's headband.

Aipower is a start-up that had great success in its crowdfunding endeavors for its Wearbuds product. This is a type of fitness band that also houses a pair of truly wireless (or TWS) earbuds. They will be on show at CES 2020, along with some new products, a smartwatch included.

OnePlus may launch the 8-series of phones in 2020. A new leak suggests that the OEM is covering nearly every base possible with at least 1 of its variants. They include the Snapdragon 865, wireless charging, an IP rating, the Sony IMX686, Warp Charge 30T, LPDDR5 memory and an IR blaster.

Realme will debut the X2 in a new market, India, tomorrow (December 17, 2019). It will be joined on stage by the brand's first fully-wireless (or TWS) audio accessories. According to official teasers, they look like AirPods, although they come in more colors.

A promotional poster showing a number of new and new-ish devices made by OPPO has just leaked. It suggests that its upcoming 5G device will launch alongside the OEM's first-ever truly-wireless (or TWS) earbuds. This material also shows the Reno3's full series in all its color options, as well as 2 heretofore-unknown new phones.

Tronsmart has announced the Element T6 Max, a new speaker that, despite being wireless and intended as a portable accessory, has a striking 60 watts (W) of total sound output power. The OEM claims this is due at least in part to its new SoundPulse technology.

OPPO's Inno Day 2019 event was mostly dominated by upcoming products such as its AR headset. However, it also teased new wearables that may launch soon as well. They are a new pair of truly wireless (TWS) earbuds, as well as a square-faced smartwatch.

New renders of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite have revealed that the smartphone apparently sports a headphone jack. It also appears to have a central punch-hole front-facing camera and a square housing for the rear-facing camera setup. The Note 10 Lite, which may also be known as the Galaxy A81 in some markets, is expected to come with 6 GB RAM and an Exynos 9810 SoC.

Intel has released its latest Next-Unit Computing- (NUC) form-factor PCs. They are powered by 10th-generation Core processors, and have i3, i5 and i7 variants. This applies to the kits and the mini PCs in this series, which also have Thunderbolt 3, Wi-Fi 6 and 4 USB 3.1 ports, 1 of which is type C.

Microsoft has announced it has delayed its recently unveiled Surface Earbuds. Originally set to ship this holiday season, the Surface Earbuds have now been delayed into Spring 2020, roughly another quarter away.

Dripp Audio is a new company that has put its interestingly-named true-wireless earbuds on Indiegogo. The "Dropps" are described as the cheapest products in their category to have Qualcomm aptX and cVc noise-cancelling tech. They also have Bluetooth 5.0 and IP5X ingress protection, and start at US$39.

The information guide for Huawei’s Sound X smart speaker has leaked online ahead of the device’s expected launch. The Sound X offers an interesting collection of hardware specifications that includes two 60 W subwoofers and a 1.5 GHz quad-core processor. But will consumers be willing to place a hefty listening device from a controversial manufacturer in their homes?

Lenovo has launched the Smart Display 7, which, like its predecessors, is a smart speaker with an in-built touchscreen. This new version has its display above its speakers this time, although they are still 10-watt (W) drivers. It also has Google Assistant, Wi-Fi 802.11ac and an ambient color sensor.

The Galaxy A51 will probably be one of Samsung's new phones for 2020. It has attracted its first 360-degree set of renders (from OnLeaks), which incorporate rumors and theories about the phone such as that it will have quad rear cameras. The phone is also now depicted as having a punch-hole camera in its display.

Home theaters brought in a total of US$7.7 billion last year. However, this market value is thought to be capable of growing by up to $5.7 billion more over the next 6 years. The sound bar sector may grow at the greatest rate over this period.

Xiaomi also promised details on a fifth generation of its smart TVs during the Mi CC9 Pro debut. The OEM made good on this - less expectedly, it introduced 2 new variants of the same during the event. The Mi TV 5 Pro is the one that gets the leaked 4K QLED panel, as well as some other impressive specs.

House of Marley's Exodus is a pair of premium over-ear headphones with 50-millimeter (mm) drivers and a sustainable provenance. Their latest refresh has active noise cancellation (ANC). They are also rated for a 28-hour battery life with this feature on, and up to 80 hours without.

Google introduced a new kind of Recorder app with the Pixel 4 series. It is not merely capable of capturing audio, but of transcribing it in real time and making the resulting text searchable with the help of AI. A Mountain View representative has confirmed that it is coming to older phones of the same line soon.

Orbita, a company that makes a personal assistant-like AI platform focused on healthcare, has published the results of a study that shows this is what the US adults recruited to it want from their voice-controlled searches. It apparently concludes that 7.5% of this group has used services such as Alexa for this purpose, whereas over 50% would like to.

Google and SiriusXM have partnered in order to enable streaming of the latter on smart speakers from the former. In addition, the content provider's subscribers will be able to activate and control their channels by asking the Assistant on their phones to do so. This update will start rolling out shortly in the US and Canada.

Do not install iOS 13.2. If you have a HomePod and have installed iOS 13.2, DO NOT RESET YOUR HOMEPOD. Multiple users are reporting that iOS 13.2, released yesterday, bricked their HomePod smart speakers. Apple has since pulled the update.

Apple unveiled its new AirPods Pro wireless earbuds earlier today. The buds feature a new design and active noise cancellation. However, the $249 price tag is significantly higher ($90) than the current AirPods'. AirPods Pro will be available for purchase starting October 30th.

NVIDIA now stocks the new Pro and non-Pro variants of the SHIELD TV on its official site. As projected, the latter is a 4K streaming stick with HDR 10. Both new Android 9.0 devices support Dolby Audio, can access GeForce NOW and have Google Assistant built in.

A firmware update pushed out to Google Home and Google Home Mini smart speakers earlier this month has been bricking devices, leaving them completely unresponsive. Google has acknowledged the problem and promised a resolution in the near future. Unfortunately, the tech giant is apparently not replacing out-of-warranty devices.

1More is the ODM responsible for Xiaomi's audio wearables. However, it also releases these products under its own brand. The latest of these are truly wireless earbuds with active noise cancellation (ANC).

Apple’s wholly-owned subsidiary Beats has launched an all-new Beats Solo Pro range. Effectively the Beats Solo 4, the all-new design also brings improved audio performance as well as active noise cancelling to the Solo line for the first time.

Google unveiled its second-generation Pixel Buds at its 2019 'Made By' event. They are truly wireless products that, as the OEM claims, have been designed to be as compact and streamlined as possible. Nevertheless, they are rated for 5 hours of battery life, or 24 hours from their charging case.

Skullcandy has released Vert, a new set of Bluetooth wireless earbuds. Unlike most products in this category, however, they are not of the typical "neckbud" form-factor. Instead, the buds are linked to a dial-like clip-on module, which may fit in better with pursuits needing heavy gloves or helmets.

Turtle Beach has released the Atlas Edge, a new USB adapter for any conventional wired headset. It is intended to enhance any headset connected to it with an in-house panel of software called Control Studio. This suite is designed to convert audio through the Atlas Edge into a "full panoramic 3D audio experience".