Children are drawn to the iPad like flies to honey, but children are also notoriously bad at taking care of their toys. And if the thought of a young’n bashing away at your tablet’s display with a pen leaves you anxious, Griffin’s got you covered with a glowing stylus that lets them draw in mid-air. More »
It wouldn’t be a CES without accessory mavens Griffin launching a small armada of products. This year, the company is launching a revised version of the StudioConnect that’s compatible with Apple’s Lightning connector. It’ll go on sale in the Spring, and 4th Generation iPad and iPad Mini owners will have to stump up $150. It’s also pushing out MicConnect (similar to MIDIConnect), an XLR-to-3.5mm connector that lets you hook studio-level microphones into mobile devices and can even supply phantom power. While it’s not due to make it onto store shelves until June, it will only cost $40, which might soften the blow for impatient musos everywhere.
Filed under: Peripherals
iPad users no longer have to lament the crappy speakers, and lightweight form factor, of their tablet when enjoying videos or music sans headphones. Belkin is promising to turn the iPad into a portable home theater with an add-on set of boosted speakers, or at least that’s what one assumes from a product called the Thunderstorm Handheld Home Theater. More »
Dubbed a Handheld Home Theater by its creators, The Belkin Thunderstorm is an iPad speaker case that aims at producing a great sound, while integrating with the iPad as closely as possible. The idea is that an external speaker (a la Jambox) may produce a reasonable sound and it is great at home, but it is typically not so awesome to transport and move around.
With the Belkin Thunderstorm, the speaker is always there, and its form factor is more friendly for carrying in a bag or wherever your iPad is. The speaker also comes with an application that allows the user to control many properties of the sound being outputted, which is nice because you can make it vary quite a bit to match your content (live music, movies, TV…) or your preferences (audio perception does change with age). (more…)
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Apple’s Rumored Pandora-equivalent Radio Service Predicted For 2013 Announcement, The Bose SoundDock III will be compatible with Lightning connector iOS devices,
At CES 2012, Belkin outed its WeMo line of home automation products with the Home Control Switch and Motion Sensor with a Baby Monitor tacked on in October. This year in Las Vegas, the company adds a Light Switch to the family. When paired with an iOS device, WiFi router and your home’s existing wiring, the Light Switch can be used to control lights from anywhere — including scheduling — via the WeMo app. Additionally, Belkin has announced that Android compatibility will be available with the device launches this summer or shortly thereafter. Ice Cream Sandwich the minimum OS requirement and beta testing is set to begin next month for Samsung Galaxy S III users.
After breaking into the PC market last year, it was only a matter of time before Vizio released its first Windows 8 tablet. The company just announced the Vizio Tablet PC, an 11.6-inch slate running full Windows (i.e., none of this RT business). What’s interesting is the combination of specs here: on the one hand, it packs a dual-core, 1GHz AMD Z60 chip, making it among the first Windows 8 tablets with an AMD processor inside. At the same time, it rocks a 1080p display — not the sort of resolution you’d expect to find on a low-power tablet with a Z-series or Intel Atom CPU. Also, like the rest of Vizio’s PCs, this has a Microsoft Signature software install, with zero bloatware. Otherwise, the specs are pretty standard: 2GB of RAM, 64GB of solid-state storage, a 2-megapixel front camera and micro-HDMI / micro-USB ports. Vizio hasn’t announced pricing or exact availability just yet, but we hope to get hands-on with this thing very, very soon.
Filed under: Tablets
When Vizio entered the PC market last year, we weren’t gushing about its computers, per se, but we found ourselves rooting for the company anyway: for all it got wrong (flaky trackpads, poor battery life), it did a lot of things right. We had to respect Vizio for giving most of its PCs 1080p screens and installing a clean, bloatware-free version of Windows. Not to mention, Vizio kept the price relatively low, the same way it did when it was trying to break into the TV space. Now, the company is completely refreshing its lineup for 2013, leaving only one model from 2012 (that would be its 15-inch mainstream notebook). Starting now, all of its all-ones and Thin + Light laptops will come standard with touchscreens and quad-core processors, including some from AMD (a first for Vizio).
What’s curious is that although Vizio is taking the opportunity to replace most of its PCs, it hasn’t actually made any changes to the industrial design. That means, for better or worse, that these new models will probably be quite similar to the PCs we tested just a few months ago. Same metal chassis but also, the same flat keyboard. What they do promise is faster performance, along with improved audio. Both the 14- and 15-inch Thin + Light Touch are available with either a Core i7 CPU or AMD’s top-of-the-line A10 chip. Likewise, the 24-inch all-in-one is now the All-in-One Touch, and it too will be available with AMD and Intel processors. The 27-inch model, however, will be Intel-only.
As ever, these machines will have that clean, Microsoft Signature install, and almost all will have 1080p screens, save for the 14-inch Thin + Light, which has 1,600 x 900 resolution. No word on pricing, though Vizio says they’ll go on sale in mid-February. We’ll be back soon enough with hands-on shots but for now, check out some press photos after the break.
Continue reading Vizio refreshes its PC lineup: all new models have touchscreens, quad-core CPUs
Fulton Innovation comes to CES each year armed with the latest tricks in the field of wireless charging, and this year is no exception. Starting things out with a bang, the purveyor of all things Qi will be on-hand to demonstrate its newest feat: the ability to charge your Qi-compatible phone… on the back of a tablet. Indeed, your 7- to 10-inch slate may someday be able to double as its own wireless charging mat, allowing you to feed battery from your tablet to your smartphone just by holding the two devices back-to-back.
Additionally, Fulton promises to show off a multi-device charging platform capable of powering up two devices simultaneously. Even better, this surface can recognize and adapt to the needs of each particular product — in other words, tablets and smartphones can charge together on the same pad, each device receiving the proper amount of juice. Check out the video and press release past the break to see a few ideas Fulton is bringing to the table this week, and fortunately we’ll get to take a closer look at all of them soon.
Continue reading Fulton Innovation to demo tablet that doubles as wireless charging mat at CES
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile
Samsung might be a name one thinks of when it comes to smartphones or displays, but this does not mean that the company only manufactures those and if you’re in the market for a new of speakers, or maybe a sound system for your home theater setup, Samsung has taken the wraps off several new audio products that could be worth checking out. These products range from soundbars to portable speakers to an entire home theater setup, so depending on your needs, Samsung might have something for you. (more…)
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: iHome iDL100G Stereo FM Clock Radio Features Triple Charging Docks, Griffin’s WoodTones Audio Accessories Receive New Styles, Colors And Functionality In 2013,
Now that Bluetooth speakers are all the rage, iLuv is looking to add to its lineup of said offerings just before the official start of CES. First, the Mo’Beats HD wireless unit features SRS WOW tech and a 3.5mm aux jack for wired streaming. The gadget also touts a space that will cradle that handset or slate while The Black Keys are blasting. Next, the Bluetooth-wielding MobiCup is designed to get cozy in that beach chair this summer with 360-degree speakers, built-in microphone, top-mounted controls and splash-resistant buttons to keep things dry (to a certain extent, of course). Last but not least, the MobiOut (pictured above) is also splash-resistant and sports a built-in mic, but this unit boasts Jump-start tech that will offer a quick charge in a pinch and deeper bass tones alongside high-fidelity sound. The MobiCup is priced at $59.99 and the MobiOut at $129.99, however there’s no pricing info on the Mo’Beats HD just yet. While the former two speakers will arrive later this month, the latter is scheduled for May. For a look at the entire lot in order of mention, consult the gallery below.
Continue reading iLuv outs Bluetooth speaker trio: Mo’Beats HD, MobiCup and MobiOut
Filed under: Portable Audio/Video
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