Month: July 1971
what do your headphones reveal about your music choices
Again a different short article i thought was fascinating on the business of earpiece’s, what would you do if i didn’t post this ehh? you’d have to check out the original article, the chances you found it could be slim, so think yourself fortunate that i have shared this wonderful piece with you.
Nowadays, it seems everybody strolling on the streets listening to tunes on their earphones, what music? We don’t know. We think we realize. Would the punk rocker at the back of that coach secretly rocking to Britney Spears? Or may be the tracksuit-bottomed, highlight-headed teenager awaiting her friends, actually moshing out with Black Flag? The pinstripe power outfit on the train could possibly be a huge Public Enemy enthusiast or the local ASBO might be a jazz fan with a soft spot for Coltrane’s sax playing.
Those that don’t dress in any music-themed gear style can linger safely undistinguished to the world at large as music consumers. Or can they? Listed here are two brands and what they say about you:
Skullcandy are a brand new-ish brand (founded 2003) and aimed squarely in the postpunk/goth/emo/whatever crowd. The evidence is now in the name along with the kid-friendly Stencilled graphitti skull emblem. Manufactured to go together with bullet belts, Atticus shirts and skinny fit jeans, (the last vestiges of genuine subculture now comfortably distant and changed by mere consumption of image and merchandise in one. Punk’s preliminary image, i.e, the flaunting of poverty continues to be overtaken by a age group primed to consume ready-ripped jeans and spraypaint-effect t shirts, I, uh, mean whatever, guy). Skullcandy earphones presented in a range of bright colours, as well like a stark black and white for maximum demand. Given the gain in value, it seems vastly unlikely a consumer would purchase these headsets unless the time to build an announcement by the music itself. This being (even if these are an eighty year old woman) is way more likely to be paying attention to My Chemical Romance than they may be Mozart.
Sennheiser headsets, distinctive by their smaller, expert design tend to be more the domain of the audiophile, the melody nut as well as the gadget freak. This person, though they may be attired in comparable way to the Skullcandy child, is far more probable to be listening to Charles Mingus, a vintage Delta Blues or folk piece, appreciating it the way one may a exceptional wine, in addition to all subtle cultural nuances therein. This person is serious about music, and his/her derision for bands of the time may be equally important. Imagine a lecture at any 2nd on the genius of Belgian techno or a quantity of incomprehensible Japanese arse-band (NOTE: arse-music is not a real style…yet)
So, the peripherals we use in the 21st century say as much about us as our record collections might. Even when we do not want them to? That definitely seems to be the case, anyway. Next: Why are we iPod customers so bloody smug?
Iron-Man earpiece and smartwatch unveiled
This week we get closer to the Iron Man dream with Intel’s ‘Jarvis’ technology, enjoy extended music streaming from Spotify, learn of Samsung’s 2014 plans and report the announcement of two new exciting gadgets.
CUTTING EDGE: Intel Releases Their Smart Earpiece ‘Jarvis’
Well you Iron Man fans will be happy as Intel has just introduced ‘Jarvis’, their smart earpiece designed to rival Apple’s Siri and Google Now.
Jarvis performs commands that can be carried out by your phone, it can even make suggestions and interrupt you with relevant information you might want to know.
What might be slightly disheartening to you die-hard Iron Man fans though is that Jarvis actually speaks with a female voice not that of Paul Bettany…Still, Intel provided a live demonstration of the product at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
On request, it recommended a restaurant, arranged a call to make a reservation and even re-scheduled calendar events. Of course, digital assistants are nothing new; Siri in particular has been with us for some time now.
However, Intel CEO Brian Krzanich believes the competition cannot yet match the conversational and hands-free elements of Jarvis. It is always-listening and can seamlessly integrate with your calendar, interrupting politely with the information you need.
APPLE: Spotify Introduces Free ‘Shuffle-play’ Feature for iOS
The music streaming service Spotify has recently unveiled an update for its iOS app that allows users to play an artist’s whole music catalogue without a paid subscription.
The limitation is that this can only be done through shuffle mode but now all user and Spotify created playlists can be listened to as well.
Advertisements will still play every now and then, which is to be expected but on iPad, users can listen to any song at any time, without the ‘shuffle-play’ limitation.
It had previously been the case that Spotify users must pay a subscription to stream music on their mobile devices as per the company’s licensing agreements with music labels.
However, recent pressure from the ever-growing US service Pandora and Apple’s iTunes Radio has caused the Swedish company to make changes as it struggles to maintain market share.
It would be a shame to see Spotify fall behind its rivals; it offers a fairly comprehensive music catalogue and its iOS apps for both iPhone and iPad are slick and intuitive. This recent change is a definitely a step in the right direction.
ANDROID: Samsung Unveils its Plans for 2014
In an interview with Bloomberg News, Samsung has outlined its plans for various Android devices to be released this year.
The biggest revelation is that the Galaxy S5 may come out as soon as April, potentially with new iris-scanning technology in response to Apple’s fingerprint reader on the iPhone 5S.
Samsung’s Galaxy S range has long been considered their flagship so it’s good to see they might be pushing some technological boundaries here.
Samsung’s mobile executive Vice President Lee Young-Hee also revealed that the Galaxy Gear smartwatch is set for a makeover, improving on the somewhat bulky design of the original and increasing its functionality.
Finally, the Note 4 might emerge in the second half of 2014 with a three-sided display to allow for multiple viewing angles.
That could really be something to see, excuse the pun… Lee went on to say that significant improvements will be made to their flagship Galaxy S5 after a somewhat lacklustre consumer response to its predecessor.
As a result, Samsung will be “going back to basics” focusing on hardware, screen and the overall feel of the phone. It has been rumoured that we may see an overhaul of Samsung’s user interface as well.
Previous iterations of its Android based ‘Touchwiz’ UI have not always been well-received so it would be good to see some improvement. This hasn’t been confirmed yet so fingers crossed for now.
GADGETS: ‘Pebble Steel’ High-end Smartwatch Announced
If you cast your minds back you might remember us writing about the ‘Pebble’ smartwatch, arguably one of the better wearable tech pieces of last year.
Well now they have stepped into the high-end market with the introduction of the ‘Pebble Steel’. It will be available in both a brushed stainless steel and matte black finish with the choice of a matching or leather strap.
The Steel also uses Corning gorilla glass to protect its face, which should make it quite durable. If this wasn’t enough, it even gets a brand new Pebble app-store with six main categories: daily, fitness, remotes, tools and utilities, notifications and games.
The addition of a dedicated app-store means developers no longer need to rely on the iOS notification centre to relay information so can create a smoother user experience.
If you have the original Pebble, don’t worry you won’t be missing out as a firmware update is due to allow you use of the new app store as well.
However, if you don’t yet have a smartwatch, the Steel retails for $249 over at getpebble.com with pre-orders shipping globally from January 28th.
GAMING: SteelSeries Unveil the ‘Stratus’ Bluetooth Gaming Controller
Gaming peripheral creator SteelSeries has recently unveiled its new Bluetooth gaming controller the ‘Stratus’.
The new product is MFI-certified, which means it has been signed off to work with all Apple devices.
It differs from the competition by acting as a standalone controller and uses Apple’s ‘extended’ control layout featuring: a directional pad, four action buttons, four shoulder buttons and dual analog sticks.
The Stratus has a built-in battery providing around ten hours of game time from a full charge and can be topped-up by USB charging in just two hours.
Up to four Stratus controllers can be connected to a single iOS device at once, with LED lights showing which controller is which.
This rather exciting new device can be purchased in a not quite so thrilling choice of black or white colours and is available for pre-order from the company’s website.
It costs just under £85 and is set to ship on March 2nd.
Bluetooth Superiority In Plantronics Discovery Headsets
You’ve probably stumbled upon this looking for information about radio accessory’s, hopefully this will help you answer some of those questions, if not please click on one of the relevant links within the article
The market offers many different bluetooth devices and because of that, it can be difficult to decide which one to buy. This short guide is intended to help you through this decision process so that you get the headset that is best for you. A Bluetooth headset is an important item which has many benefits. Used when driving a car it makes using your phone legal; used in the street it does not reveal your phone which can make you a target; it places a distance between your phone and your head so eliminating the health concerns of mobile phone usage; and it can make a fashion statement. Plantronics (NYSE: PLT) is the world’s leading designer and marketer of headset products for a wide variety of communications devices. In fact, the first words spoken from the moon were through a Plantronics headset in 1969. Besides space exploration, Plantronics headsets have been deployed in many Fortune 500 corporations. Plantronics offers mobile headsets, computer audio headset products and wired and wireless headsets and systems for office and contact center use.
If you’re a gadget junkie, you’ll immediately fall in love with high-technology bluetooth earpieces, especially if you happen to be a busy bee who barely has time to spare – perhaps, not even to hold your mobile phone to your ear. Definitely, you’ll appreciate these headsets which may be small in size but are superb in performance you’ll wonder where all that power’s coming from. Not that it’s exactly a mystery, but if you want to know more about why these thingamajigs are such a hit, read on.
What’s responsible for the extremely clear sound you’ll enjoy with a high-technology bluetooth gizmo such as the Plantronics Discovery headset is its dual mic, noise-canceling feature. That’s why no matter how noisy your surroundings are, these headsets are fully capable of allowing you a comfortable conversation.
You won’t believe that even in windy conditions, the sound quality is impeccable. This is made possible by advanced technology that works to block the wind or divert it to another direction while the filtering the noise.
The technology itself that maximizes sound quality in these headsets is noteworthy, but understanding the gadgets’ power can also bring to mind those specialized ear gel tips which allow for a snug fit. Very little sound is able to leak and most of it goes right into your ear while other auditory distractions are automatically eliminated.
All you have to do is turn on your mobile phone’s bluetooth feature and you’ll be able to enjoy the gadget’s superb capabilities. But wait, there’s more. You can even have two mobile phones connected to your earpiece which means that you can enjoy your business and your personal phone without adjusting the settings. That’s because these things are equipped with multi-point technology that allows them to stay connected to multiple devices. This simply means power, freedom and convenience all in one single powerful gadget.
These earpieces may be small, but they can go a long way. This is because the case of the headset is its charger which makes it even more convenient. Battery levels are displayed on a tiny LCD screen where you can detect connected or disconnected bluetooth devices.
Indeed, if you simply appreciate technology that allows you to be more comfortable, Plantronics earpieces will be a must. For exceptional technology, you can expect to pay a little premium, but this is not something to hesitate spending on as the benefits will more than worth it.
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