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Engadget giveaway: win a Jamstik and SOL Republic speaker courtesy of Zivix!
There's a new generation of MIDI-connected interface tools to help your creative juices flow without being tethered to a computer or lugging around a full kit. The Jamstik smartguitar is a mobile instrument for the digital age, whether you're a seasoned guitar player or just looking to learn a few chords. It's a lightweight, 16-inch guitar interface that uses WiFi to connect to Macs, PCs and iOS 7+ devices. The Jamstik works with hundreds of apps including GarageBand and Ableton Live, letting you play guitar, synth, drums or anything else simply by plucking the strings. There's also a Kickstarter for the new Jamstik+, which adds Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity and a focus on musical education. What's more, for every 15 Jamstik+ devices that are backed, Zivix will give one to a non-profit educational organization, opening up the world of music to tomorrow's musicians. To help give you a taste, the company has given us two Jamstiks, along with a set of SOL Republic Deck Bluetooth speakers for a pair of lucky Engadget readers this week. Just head down to the Rafflecopter widget for up to three chances at winning. Winners: congratulations to Jeremiah N. of Moscow, ID. and Jeremy M. of Southington, CT!
Deck Bluetooth speaker by SOL Republic and Motorola offers 300-foot range, fits in a pocket
Remember that SOL Republic Bluetooth speaker that made a sneak appearance at Verizon's Droid event? Well, it's actually official now and the company wants to ensure its first foray into audio outside headphones is a success. Dubbed the Deck, the speaker is the result of a team-up between SOL and Motorola, with SOL providing its audio know-how and Motorola handling the wireless connectivity bit. The $200 speaker features a flat design that might fit into a pants pocket. Vertically positioned drivers and a side-facing port provide 360-degree sound, and an outdoor mode boosts the highs and cuts the lows if you need to fill open areas with sound. Additionally, deck boasts a usable range of 300 feet, a sprawling distance compared to the the usual 30-foot line-of-sight limit you'll encounter on devices like the Beats Pill and Jawbone Jambox. Its Heist setting lets up to five devices connect without needing to enable a pairing mode and, like the name suggests, any user can steal the speaker by hitting play on their device. Rounding things out, you can expect roughly 10 hours of battery life, water-resistance (via a sonically-transparent bag), speakerphone functionality and a 3.5mm input / output. Interested? It costs $200 and is up for pre-order today in yellow, blue, red and "gunmetal." Shipments are expected to begin before August is over. In the meantime, you can join us after the break for our initial impressions. %Gallery-195167%
