AirPods are a massive market for Apple, but firmware updates may be ruining their noise-cancellation feature. Apple’s firmware update 2C54 is the most commonly cited firmware with issues. Many anecdotal reports began popping up on the internet sh…
Category archives: Gear And Software
Bose Shutting Down All Retail Stores in North America, Europe, Japan & Australia
Bose will close all of its retail stores in North America, Europe, Japan, and Australia. Online sales played a significant part in Bose making the decision. The company says its headphones, speakers, and other products are usually purchased online. As …
Spotify Accidentally Leaks Details on Its Home Thing Smart Speaker
A leak may have revealed Spotify’s upcoming foray into smart home speakers. New set up images for something called Spotify Home Thing have appeared online. Spotify released its first hardware product in May 2019, dubbed the Car Thing. Spotify sta…
Gibson Unveils Its ‘Slash Collection’ – Starting With 4 Electric, 2 Acoustic Guitars
Gibson has teamed up with Slash to produce the Slash Collection – four electric and two acoustic guitars. The Slash Collection will be unveiled at the Gibson experience during Winter NAMM this week. Gibson says Slash worked closely with the company to …
Amazon Responds to Sonos Litigation Threat: ‘We Were the First Out With a Connected, Voice-Enabled Speaker’
Earlier this week, Sonos filed a massive lawsuit against Google for stealing its IP. Alongside that salvo, they also warned of a pending lawsuit against Amazon. Sounds pretty serious, though frankly, Amazon doesn’t seem too concerned. For start…
If You Hate Bluetooth Audio, Things Are About to Get Better
Let’s face it – Bluetooth audio sucks; it’s unreliable, static-y, and doesn’t offer multi-stream listening. That’s all about to change with the newest Bluetooth audio standard. The Bluetooth wireless standard is celebrating its …
Apple Expands Free AirPods Engraving to Include Small Selection of Emoji
Apple has expanded its AirPods engraving options to include a selection of emoji. Could this slow personalization roll-out help boost sales beyond analyst expectations? AirPods buyers can add any text engraving to their purchase, free of charge. Now th…
Pioneer DJ Corp Name Changes to ‘AlphaTheta,’ But Still Creates Confusion
Pioneer DJ is changing its name to AlphaTheta. The name change is designed to reduce confusion, but DJ brands will retain the current branding. Here’s why. AlphaTheta announced the news at the beginning of the new year. “Pioneer DJ Corporat…
Sonos Trade-Up Program Bricks Old Speakers, Creating Landfill Waste
The Sonos Trade-Up program launched this year for speaker loyalists. It offers discounts on new products for trading in your old speakers. But what happens to the old speakers? Sonos sells the program to participants saying “sustainability is non…
Sonos Moves Some Manufacturing Out of China, Adds $50 to Amp and Port Prices
Spotify is moving some of its production lines from China to Malaysia. The result is a $50 price hike for the Sonos Amp and Sonos Port devices. Sonos says its decision to move production is about diversifying its production lines. The company says tari…