Hasta La Gadget!

Soundmatters has announced the foxLv2 aptX, an entry level Bluetooth portable speaker device. This hi-fi unit features aptX Bluetooth technology, which allows users to enjoy CD-quality audio, and provides better syncing when used with video feeds, such as gaming or TV. The foxLv2 aptX is available now from various retailers, including Amazon and Best Buy, for $199.

Touted as a portable speaker “that audio purists love,” the foxLv2 aptX offers several features, including BassBattery, DomeForward, and Twoofers. Other features that don’t include corny names include an integrated noise-cancelling microphone and the ability to charge and play simultaneously. This comes from a device that measures in at 2.2-inches high x 1.4-inches deep x 5.6-inches wide.

The BassBattery feature transforms the battery into a woofer, which produces deep, smooth bass. The dual 1-inch Linear Magnetic Drive Twoofers, meanwhile, provide high-end range and clarity. Rounding it out is the DomeForward feature, which produces an “open and airy listening experience” via an acoustic grill and driver alignment.

The foxLv2 aptX has rechargeable batteries that provide up to 12 hours of playback time. Both an AC adapter and a USB cable can be used to charge the unit; the bundle includes four international charging adapters for use in the US, Japan, China, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Hong Kong, and the UK. If you don’t want Bluetooth, you can pick up a wired version for $149.

Soundmatters announces the foxLv2 aptX hi-fi portable Bluetooth speakers is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Microsoft has been busy streamlining SkyDrive to make the most of our time in the cloud, but it hasn’t yet cut out the middleman for audio playback; if a song wasn’t obtained through a channel like Xbox Music, it won’t play online in Microsoft’s universe. LiveSide has made some code discoveries suggesting the storage service could at least partly remedy the problem with a web-based music player. We don’t know much of how it would work, although the presence of interface elements hints that Microsoft is at least committed to development. The real dilemma is an absence of clues as to when (and if) playback will ever go live — and there’s nothing that would reveal whether or not SkyDrive is the heart of an upcoming option to upload personal tracks for Xbox Music streaming. If the music player mentions reflect more than just experimentation, however, the Redmond team may soon have a more direct answer to the likes of Amazon Cloud Player or Google Music.

Filed under: Storage, Internet, Microsoft

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Via: PCWorld

Source: Liveside.net

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I’ve seen some unusual gadgets over the years, but the iKazoo might be one of the most offbeat, yet intriguing devices I’ve seen in a while.

Designed by ogaco, the iKazoo is first and foremost a wireless controller which can be used for playing music with your iOS or Android device. It’s got a lip sensor, a full chromatic keyboard and even a flute built into it. But the device aspires to be much more than a virtual wind instrument, as it can not only detect touch and breath, but movement. This opens the controller up to other sorts of interactions, such as using it as a paintbrush, on-screen navigation or for controlling games.

When used for gaming, it can be used as a sort of joystick, or also as a unique control method for games that involve balancing objects, or spinning a wheel. Its makers envision a plethora of other uses ranging from a motion control for golf and tennis games to a personal fitness tracker to a voice recorder and even as a karaoke machine.

Inside the stick-like iKazoo is a sophisticated set of circuits including an Ardiuno compatible microcontroller, Bluetooth wireless networking, optical, shock and motion sensors, as well as a microphone, multitouch sensor, RGB LEDs and even a headphone jack. It sounds sort of like a Wii Remote on steroids.

While the promotional video for the iKazoo is a bit silly at times (gotta love the part with the guy looking through the microscope,) I can really see potential here. A wireless controller with so much functionality along with an Open Source development platform could be a dream for hackers and tinkerers, much like the Wii-mote and Kinect have been. At this point it appears that the iKazoo is in the prototype stages, but the company is already registering interest for preorders for the strange little gadget.

This week at the Los Angeles Auto Show the folks at Krell Industries have announced that they’re bringing on their high-end performance audio system knowhow to the auto industry for the very first time. They’ll be doing with first with the fabulous 2014 Acura RLX, and will indeed be replicating the home theater system power they’re known for in this vehicle by the time it rolls out inside 2013. With 30 years of knowhow under their belt, we’re pumped up to hear just how great this system aims to be.

With Krell, you know you’ve got super-accurate three-dimensional dynamic sound from top to bottom, in and out, no matter where you’re sitting. Inside a room with Krell across the board, you’ve got a beast of a system without a doubt. Here in the 2014 Acura RLX, you’ll have a completely original system tuned precisely for this vehicle alone.

“We’ve been in business for more than 30 years; we’re well known for making the highest-performance audio products for the home and we are excited to bring our sound quality to the automotive environment. Every aspect of the system’s design was dissected and optimized to achieve a system that is sonically breathtaking.” – Krell Industries President Bill McKiegan

The setup will include many of the same high-powered technologies here in the vehicle that Krell implements in their home audio packages. Starting this party is a set of high quality bipolar power transistors, this implementation resulting in an amplifier 1/3 less distorted than what Krell notes is “a leading competitor’s flagship luxury car amplifier.” This setup also works with both headroom as well as power enough to work with the road and any sort of environment – you’ll hear that album no matter what.

You’ll be working with Zylon mid bass drivers – six of them – made with the world’s strongest super fiber made specifically for speaker manufacturing. This material is made to hold still when the audio is off (instantly) and make all the right moves when the sound makes it so. Less vibration once the sound stops means a cleaner sound in the end – it’s just that simple.

The tweeters you’ve got in this system are made of lightweight magnesium cones created to enhance musical detail and extend high frequencies without making your eardrums bleed from harshness. To keep vibration at a minimum and strength at its maximum, all metal grilles are employed over each speaker.

To top it all off, there’s a carbon fiber composite subwoofer to provide many fine beats. With this beast you’ll have 100 Watts of low frequency sound with “substantial impact” and an extremely clear delivery. Jeff Conrad, Vice President and General Manager of Acura Sales has made it clear that they intend this system to “set the bar for performance audio in the automotive world.”

Krell teams with 2014 Acura RLX as home audio hits the automobile is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.