A wireless technology specifically geared towards exchanging data over short distances, Bluetooth is a staple hardware feature for many Apple products, such as those in the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Mac lineups. Bluetooth is also incorporated in many Apple peripherals, such as the Magic Keyboard, and Magic Mouse.
Up until recently, no one complained about the way iPhones sounded through my cars’ Bluetooth speakerphones, but after switching to an iPhone 6 Plus and a Toyota Prius, friends and family told me that ambient noise has been increasing to distracting levels during our phone calls. If it wasn’t for those complaints, I would never have thought to test an alternative such as TaoTronics’ TT-BR03 Bluetooth 4.0 Hands-Free Car Kit ($30, currently $25 on Amazon). Most cars these days include Bluetooth speakerphone and music streaming support, but this inexpensive accessory is here for cars that don’t — and for cars exhibiting weird audio-related bugs with iPhones. Judging from its 4.8/5-Star Amazon reviews across over 130 customers, plenty of people still need solutions like this for one of these reasons.
TT-BR03 combines a wired noise-cancelling microphone and three-button remote control with a car charger, using Bluetooth 4.0 and a 3.5mm audio plug to route your iPhone’s audio into a car’s speakers. If your car doesn’t have a 3.5mm aux-in port, you’re out of luck, because TT-BR03 doesn’t have a built-in speaker. But if you do have an aux port, it provides a very competent speakerphone and music streaming experience at a very low price.
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport says that anonymously tracking smartphones through airport security has enabled it to cut the average waiting time by a third.
The system, developed by Danish company Blip Systems, scans both WiFi and Bluetooth connections to look for MAC addresses of mobile devices passing through security. Counting the number of devices in each queue enables the system to estimate the length of the queue. The queue length is displayed to passengers in minutes, so they can choose which queue to join, and also used to help the airport allocate the right number of security personnel.
Blip says that it anonymizes this data, and only uses device counts. You might think iOS 8 users don’t have to take the company’s word for it since Apple introduced MAC address spoofing when scanning for networks, but the protection offered by this was last year shown to be rather limited.
The same system is used in a number of other airports around the world, but this is the first time it’s been used in the USA.
Via The Verge
Just ahead of the finalized Apple Watch’s presentation at Apple’s March 9th “Spring Forward” event, sources with hands-on Apple Watch experience have revealed a collection of new details about the device’s features to 9to5Mac. Our sources have offered new information on the Watch’s real-world battery life, health and fitness features, apps, and experiences using Apple’s next-generation touchscreen hardware…
One thing I love about 9to5Mac readers is how engaged they are in the comments. My review of the ClamCase Pro iPad keyboard case last month led to a lively discussion about the relative merits of that vs the Brydge keyboard, so I decided to give that a try for a retrospective shoot-out.
The Brydge Air is a slightly different beast to the ClamCase, being just a keyboard and not a full case. It still hinges shut in a laptop-like clamshell fashion, but there’s no rear protection on this one. That, as we’ll see, has both pros and cons …
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South by Southwest (SXSW) just launched its official mobile app ahead of the festival and alongside it announced plans for the world’s largest deployment of iBeacons to offer mobile app features triggered by the Bluetooth beacons. In total, more than 1000+ beacons will be deployed to pull it all off. SXSW thinks the features will “fundamentally change attendee’s experiences” by letting mobile app users network and navigate the event.
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In an interview with the UK’s Telegraph newspaper, Tim Cook said that while people might see limited reasons to want an Apple Watch today, they will soon find lots of other uses for it. The interview took place during a London stop in Cook’s international tour.
This will be just like the iPhone: people wanted it and bought for a particular reason, perhaps for browsing, but then found out that they loved it for all sorts of other reasons.
One of those reasons, he said, would be to replace your car keyfob …
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These days, it seems like there is an endless variety of headphones to choose from. With new models popping up on a weekly basis, it’s hard to sort through the crowd to find the ones that fit you best. When it comes to active noise cancellation this elite selection thins out a bit, but there are only a handful that fall into the same category as A-Audio’s Icon over-ear headphones.
From a functionality perspective, these headphones give you everything but the kitchen sink. They can be used wirelessly via Bluetooth with active noise cancellation, in passive (wired) mode, and even feature dual sound profiles. Along with that, they include a wide variety of accessories that offer more than enough for any situation…
Paper by FiftyThree, the popular illustrating app for iPad, is making a significant change to its app price today. While Paper for iPad has been free to download and use since its debut, the app has also had tools for drawing and illustrating available for unlocking through in-app purchases as well.
Starting today, FiftyThree is making the all tools offered in Paper free for everyone to use. FiftyThree is now including the Draw, Sketch, Outline, Write, and Color tools for every Paper user. Previously, the essential tools were $3.99 to unlock as a package while individual tools could be have for $0.99 each.
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AirPlay isn’t dead as a wireless speaker standard, but it’s not exactly healthy: many models have been discontinued, and new releases have all but stopped. Having previously gone all-in with AirPlay, Danish designer speaker maker Libratone is now rolling out updated versions of its circular Loop, tube-shaped Zipp, and triangular Live systems that augment AirPlay rather than ditching it. The new Libratone Loop ($500) modestly tweaks the prior version to add Bluetooth 4.0 support — a feature that radically increases Loop’s compatibility. Though its high price tag will continue to keep this model out of reach for most consumers, long-awaited and substantial discounts on the prior-generation models (Loop here, Zipp here, Live here) may bolster their appeal.
Having tested the new Loop, my personal feelings are mixed: I applaud Libratone for consistently releasing speakers that look distinctive, working both as design objects and audio systems, but the MSRPs remain somewhat hard to justify given the sonic performance…
Apple has made yet another key hire from the fashion industry: Chester Chipperfield, the Vice President of Digital and Interactive Design at Burberry. Chipperfield was “responsible for User Experience and Digital Design for all channels” and was “highly involved in digital retail initiatives” at Burberry, according to his LinkedIn profile. He confirmed the move to Apple on his profile as well as on Twitter…
Although Apple has said that the Apple Watch will need to be charged nightly, the company has not disclosed any details on how long the wearable’s battery will last. For the first time, people with knowledge of the Apple Watch’s development have provided us with the specific performance targets Apple wants to achieve for the Apple Watch battery, but the actual numbers may fall short of those targets.
According to our sources, Apple opted to use a relatively powerful processor and high-quality screen for the Apple Watch, both of which contribute to significant power drain. Running a stripped-down version of iOS codenamed SkiHill, the Apple S1 chip inside the Apple Watch is surprisingly close in performance to the version of Apple’s A5 processor found inside the current-generation iPod touch, while the Retina-class color display is capable of updating at a fluid 60 frames per second.
Apple initially wanted the Apple Watch battery to provide roughly one full day of usage, mixing a comparatively small amount of active use with a larger amount of passive use. As of 2014, Apple wanted the Watch to provide roughly 2.5 to 4 hours of active application use versus 19 hours of combined active/passive use, 3 days of pure standby time, or 4 days if left in a sleeping mode. Sources, however, say that Apple will only likely achieve approximately 2-3 days in either the standby or low-power modes…
I wasn’t a fan of Harman Kardon’s Soho headphones when they debuted a year ago, but the reason was unusual: they were seriously uncomfortable. Soho was a much smaller, wired version of Harman’s gigantic Bluetooth wireless headphone BT, notably using relatively tiny 30mm speakers instead of the 40mm drivers found in BT and many rivals, including Beats’ Solo 2 and Solo 2 Wireless. Something was off during Solo’s design or manufacturing process, because its steel headband felt like a vise on my head, an issue I hadn’t previously encountered while testing hundreds of other headphones.
Believe it or not, I’m glad that Harman didn’t give up on Soho, because the latest version Soho Wireless ($250) actually fixes most of its predecessor’s flaws. It’s a sharp-looking headset, and though it continues to use anemic 30mm audio drivers, Soho Wireless is markedly smaller and more comfortable than before. As the name suggests, it’s now capable of operating in a fully wireless mode using Bluetooth 3.0, with a usable range well in excess of the standard’s 33-foot minimum. And Harman has upgraded the design and materials a little, apart from including a simpler soft carrying case rather than a larger, heavier box.
The two biggest changes in Soho Wireless’s design are tweaks to the headband and the on-ear drivers. Although the new headband could still benefit from padding under its leather wrapping, Harman has thankfully revised the shape to feel natural rather than vise-like on your head–a critical improvement that makes Soho Wireless actually wearable.
The speakers are now behind cushioned leather rather than fabric, which lets this version of Soho surpass the luxury of Bowers & Wilkins’ P3 rather than just matching it. If anything, Soho Wireless is gentle on the ears even after you properly adjust the pull-down arms, which permits a little ambient noise to leak in—you don’t get the ear seal of Beats’ Solo 2, but there isn’t obvious audio leaking out at regular volumes, either.
Harman has also made a couple of changes to Soho’s cabling and controls. On Soho Wireless, the included 3.5mm audio cable is purely optional—slim, fabric-jacketed, and lacking an in-line remote control. The only integrated button is found underneath the right earcup, doubling as a power and Bluetooth pairing control. A similarly-sized box with a USB icon hides a micro-USB port, connectable to an included fabric USB cable to recharge Soho Wireless’s 400mAh battery, for which Harman’s web site, packaging, and manual oddly provide no estimate of run time. When asked, a Harman representative noted that Soho Wireless offers 9 hours of playback after 2 hours of recharging, which isn’t bad at all, but falls a bit short of the 12 hours promised by Beats’ Solo 2 Wireless.
Track controls are hidden on the outside of the right earcup. To change, pause, or play tracks, you now tap or swipe your finger against the flat leather surface using gestures helpfully indicated inside Soho Wireless’s box. When the gestures work, they work, but all it takes is a slight miss of the hidden touch surface and you’ll find yourself re-tapping or re-swiping. Once again, this feature is better than having no integrated controls, but less than ideal.
Sonically, Soho Wireless is a middle-of-the-road performer for its price. As the 30mm drivers inside are atypically small, there are points during listening when they seem to be straining to reproduce the frequency range–notably the bass–of larger headphones such as Solo 2. Head to head, they’re pretty close to Solo 2, roughly mimicking the Beats model’s so-so highs, fine midrange and good mid-bass, but the lowest notes aren’t as punchy or obvious.
We preferred Soho Wireless’s sound in wired mode, as a hint of buzz can be heard in the headphones when they’re operating wirelessly, but the difference isn’t profound. Additionally, a microphone is hidden underneath the right earcup, delivering only OK sound quality relative to the iPhones’ built-in mic system when you need to make phone calls.
The key thing that will make Soho Wireless a viable alternative to somewhat comparable alternatives from Beats, Bowers & Wilkins and others is the aesthetic it delivers for $250. Harman’s choice of chrome and leather is luxurious and mature, giving users the choice between Beats’ more expensive, all-plastic design or something that looks and feels executive-class at a lower price. On the other hand, you’ll compromise somewhat on audio quality, which may or may not be important to you. Soho Wireless is a big step in the right direction for Harman, but definitely not the last stage in the evolution of its wireless headphones.
Read more of my reviews here, as well as our premium headphone guide, and some of my personal top headphone picks.
The Bluetooth SIG Board of Directors today announced the appointment of new officers including current board member Joakim Linde, a Sr. Wireless Architect at Apple, appointed as Secretary of the board. Linde joins other new officers appointed today including Toby Nixon of Microsoft as Chairman and Magnus Olsson of Ericsson AB as Vice-chairman.
Linde takes over Toby Nixon’s role as secretary as Nixon becomes Chairman of the board, while the previous Vice Chairman, James Rutledge of Lenovo, is no longer listed as a board member. The previous Chairman, Svein-Egil Nielsen of Nordic Semiconductor, is still listed as a board member following the new appointments.
“The Bluetooth SIG encourages its members to work together for the betterment of Bluetooth® wireless technology—a wireless solution uniquely poised to serve as the backbone of the Internet of Things (IoT),” said Mark Powell, executive director of the Bluetooth SIG. “Our Board of Directors and Associate members are volunteers who dedicate their time, thought leadership, and expertise to ensure Bluetooth remains the benchmark standard for wireless technology. We appreciate their guidance and look forward to working with Toby, Magnus, and Joakim in their new roles.”
While Linde has long been a member of the Bluetooth SIG board of directors, the new role gives Apple a higher strategic position among the team tasked with “guiding and promoting the Bluetooth wireless standard.” Linde has been a Senior Wireless Architect at Apple since 2010 and before that was the Director of Software at Nvidia.
If there’s one thing almost as certain as death and taxes, it’s the gastronomic over-indulgences during the holidays and the consequent new year diet needed to undo the damage. In my particular case, a temporary drop in my main form of regular exercise–cycling–didn’t help matters.
But if there’s anything that can provide that added incentive to lose the holiday pounds, it’s an excuse to involve some gadgets. Two new connected scales from Escali seemed tailor-made for the job, automatically logging both weight and calorie-intake to an iPhone app, so I decided to put them to the test …
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Apple 13.3″ MacBook Air (newest version) 1.4GHz/4GB/128GB: $850 or $800 w/ .edu (Reg. $999)
Valiant Hearts: The Great War is IGN’s free iOS game of the month ($4.99 value)
Brother Monochrome Laser Printer $55 shipped (orig. $120)
Small States: Bison Made crafts heirloom quality iPhone 6 wallets and other men’s accessories
A study by the University of Missouri demonstrated that separating people from their iPhones not only causes anxiety, but also reduces cognitive performance.
The study hooked up participants to a wireless blood pressure monitor and then asked them to solve word-search puzzles. Once base readings of blood pressure and puzzle-solving performance had been measured, the researchers claimed that the participant’s iPhones were causing Bluetooth interference with the wireless monitor, and the phones needed to be moved further away within the room. New blood pressure and puzzle-solving readings were then obtained to measure the effect of being separated from their phones …
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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the brand new 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.
Last Call Updates:
DJI Phantom 1.1.1 Quadcopter with GoPro Mount $379 shipped (Reg. $479)
Canon Wireless Photo All-in-One Inkjet Printer w/ AirPrint + Adobe Photoshop Elements 12 $98 shipped ($239 value)
Headphones:
Review: SmartThings offers an open and flexible home automation experience with a few caveats
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rS2Ka4TeZV4
It is the second day of the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, and we’re back on the show floor to discover the diamonds in the rough. Noke, the world’s first Bluetooth-enabled padlock, is one of those hidden gems. Noke replaces the nuisances of losing your keys or needing to remember random combinations with convenient unlocking over Bluetooth technology when your iPhone is within close range.
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Smart lock maker August announced its latest device today at CES 2015 simply dubbed ‘Connect’. The August Connect is an WiFi-connected device that plugs into a power outlet in your home to provide the Bluetooth-connected August Smart Lock with a constant Internet connection. August says its latest accessory enables several new features for owners of its smart lock product…
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There are a lot of audio mixers and DJ controllers on the market specifically for iPad and iPhone users, but so far most require you to run cables or dock your device in a rather large unit. The latest option that we got a chance to try during CES today is Braven’s new Fuse Bluetooth audio mixer, a lightweight wireless option that lets you connect two audio sources and your output all through Bluetooth:
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While some have been disappointed that Apple hasn’t yet incorporated wireless charging technology into its devices, charging pads are really almost as clunky as wires: you still have wires going to the pads, and you have to put your device in a specific place to charge them. What we really want is true wireless charging, where power is beamed directly to the device through the air.
Which is exactly what Energous has been demonstrating at CES with a system it calls WattUp, reports Engadget.
WattUp […] works using a mix of RF, Bluetooth and a lot of patent-pending technology. The transmitter is where most of the magic happens. It communicates with and locates compatible devices using low-energy Bluetooth. Once they’ve established contact with a device, they send out focused RF signals on the same bands as WiFi that are then absorbed and converted into DC power by a tiny chip embedded in the device. These transmitters can be built into household appliances, TVs, speakers and standalone “energy routers.”
What looks like an oversized Internet router beams power up to 20 feet, so have enough of these – or transmitters embedded into other devices around the home – and your portable devices are powered wherever they are. All that’s needed is for the receiving devices to have the necessary chip.
Energous used an iPad app to demonstrate switching power between devices, but the plan is to build intelligence into the system so that it beams power to devices automatically depending on how much charge they have left. Once your phone has enough power, it switches instead to powering your iPad. As you move around the home, power transmission is handed off to the next source in much the same way as your phone switches between different WiFi networks.
Energous wants to license the technology to manufacturers, and Apple would clearly make a very attractive target.
The clunkiness of charging pads is, I think, why Apple hasn’t yet adopted wireless charging. This, not pads, is the way charging should work, and sooner or later this – or some equivalent tech – is how our iDevices will be charged. I’m very much hoping for ‘sooner.’
9to5Mac’s CES 2015 coverage brought to you by:
How often is merely showing up with a working lightbulb enough to attract a crowd? At a dimly-lit event held tonight by the Bluetooth SIG ahead of the 2015 CES, Avi-on demonstrated such modest magic using an early implementation of Bluetooth mesh wireless connectivity.
The company’s upcoming Bluetooth light switches ($30-$35), light dimmers ($40), and lightbulbs ($20) will be the backbone of an upcoming home lighting system with General Electric branding, and promise to eliminate the need for in-wall light switch wiring.
From 9to5Toys.com:
As the new gear rolls in from our team on the show floor of CES 2015, consumer audio and electronics lifestyle company ION has a few announcements of its own. Makers of everything from Bluetooth speakers to headphones and DJ gear (among other things), ION Audio is introducing new hybrid light bulb speakers and a new Bluetooth turntable/audio interface…
The Sound Shine system consists of a pair of wireless LED light bulbs, that double as typical streaming speakers. The new product brings together the popularity of wireless Bluetooth audio and LED light bulbs to create a single unified experience. The pair of light bulb/speakers can be used in tandem for 2-channel stereo sound (if installed in light sockets within 30-feet of each other) or independently in different areas of your home or office. As for the light portion, this is your typical LED bulb with a 25,000 hour lifespan (“more than 20 years in normal use!”), that can be installed and powered in any normal light socket. ION says the bulbs are equalivalent to a soft white, traditional 60-watt light bulb.
Users can use the free iOS and Android smartphone/tablet apps to control the system in various ways: dim the lights, turn them on or off and control music playback all from the same hub. The Sound Shine system will begin shipping in March of this year with a suggested retail price of $129.99 (includes the pair). We are seeing an early listing on Amazon, but it is not yet available.
Not unlike its previous offerings, the new Air LP turntable offers vinyl enthusiasts a quick and easy way to digitize their collections. It also offers the ability to wirelessly stream vinyl directly from the needle to any standard Bluetooth speakers. While certainly possible previously with add-on analog to Bluetooth adapters and not likely an option for analog purists (simply because you are defeating the purpose running the audio over Bluetooth, in most cases), ION is offering a complete AD/DA solution in one singular unit that will certainly be helpful to some. The recent tear-jerker of an Apple ad shows one amazing way creative people can put this older tech to good use.
Using the included USB cable and EZ Vinyl/Tape Converter software, records (33 1/3, 45, and 78) can be transferred onto Mac or PC without the need for any working experience or advanced digital audio knowledge. There is also additional analog I/O available (1/8 inch input, RCA outs) for hooking up external gear (cassette, CD players, stereos) in order to take advantage of the built-in audio interface with other audio sources and destinations.
Air LP features a “sleek” black piano finish and is also expected to start shipping come March 2015. It will be available for $149 or $179.99 with a pair a Bluetooth speakers included.
Keep an eye on 9to5 all week long for all the best announcements from CES 2015.
9to5Mac’s CES 2015 coverage brought to you by:
Zagg, the company behind many of our favorite Bluetooth keyboards and cases, today announced its latest creation, the ZAGG Speaker Case for iPhone 6 with detachable Bluetooth speaker. Not only that, but the case also packs in an 1800mAh backup battery, which the company says will get you approximately “8 hours of additional talk time, and can be shared with a friend.”
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