Strategy in TECH...
The next phase of the TV wars has begun in earnest now in the wake of Sharp’s (and Toshiba’s) CE Week Day 1 roll-out of 4K Ultra HD television. In a presentation full of bluster and gusto, Sharp threw down the gauntlet with its 70-inch, top of the line Aquos UHDTV selling for a cool $8,000.
Learn more about this flagship set below – and see what Sharp’s VP told us about which retailers will participate in the rapidly approaching roll-out for this new technology.
CE Week kicked off last week with a Research Summit where the Consumer Electronics Association’s (CEA) market research experts presented the latest market data, along with their assessment of its meaning – and their prognostications for the future. In past years, this was a presentation that was included as part of the Line Show – now it has been split off as a separate day-long event including not only raw data, but various discussion panels as well.
The Wireless Speaker and Audio Association (WiSA) announced on Tuesday that it has signed up several new members and a couple caught our eye – Gibson Guitar Corp. (now Gibson Brands) and Onkyo Corporation. Also joining the organization are loudspeaker manufacturer Dali and Australian distributor Amber Technology who markets a line of speakers called Accent Digital.
Several years ago, while driving home from my job at a leading industry electronics manufacturer, I was – as usual – listening to my favorite New York Metro-area network news radio station. Since the commute took an hour or more (depending on New Jersey traffic), I got to listen to a lot of news. Sometimes, I was only half listening, as traffic concerns – or boredom – draws my attention away from the news.
But I snapped to rapt attention that day when I heard one of the show’s co-anchors promote an upcoming segment (“after the break”) on the latest technology news. Little did I realize that I was about to have my sensibilities shocked – not by the news – but by the anchors’ reaction to their own story.
In a move that technology blogger Gizmodo says marks the official death of 3D, it has learned that sports network ESPN will cease all 3D productions by the end of this year. ESPN 3D, which started in 2010 on largely a test basis, never really got off the ground – and as Gizmodo wryly noted, “won’t be broadcast in any dimension soon.”
Sharp Corp. announced today that it will release a new updated model of its Cocorobo home cleaning robot with a very important added feature: smarts. Sharp has added the ability for this new model to adjust the amount of suction on an as-needed basis – dramatically improving battery performance for longer operation on a single charge.
3M Touch Systems, Inc. announced today a new 46-inch 3M Multi-Touch Display C4667PW – a high-performance multi-touch display with the ability to track up to 60 simultaneous touch points. Designed with multi-user environments in mind, 3M says the C4667PW is optimal for collaborative environments where two or more people need to work both independently and as a group.
AudioSource, Inc., a maker of an eclectic mix of unique solutions-oriented products, announced today a new item that is a combination Bluetooth speaker/hands-free speakerphone it calls Sound pOp. Spelled with a curious capital “O”, the sound pOp ties in with the growing popularity of devices that facilitate users streaming their favorite music from their smartphone.
Originally founded in 2010, the HDBaseT Alliance – a group of companies supporting a whole-house connectivity solution widely viewed as an alternative to HDMI – announced today that it has doubled in size in less than a year and now boasts over 60 member companies. We reported on the addition of Pioneer and Onkyo at this past Consumer Electronics Show, and the organization continues to add new members.
Wall Street analysts are getting increasingly concerned about the ability of Apple, Inc. to sustain its historic run of innovation. Some are suggesting the company’s best days may in fact be behind it. Exacerbating the growing drumbeat of discontent…it has been eight months – since October 2012 – when Apple last announced new products. And even they were more iterative than innovative. Clearly feeling the pressure, over the last couple of months Apple CEO Tim Cook has told anyone who was willing to listen to hang on, great things are coming.
