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Korg made a feature-rich set of DJ headphones that block out the club
NAMM doesn't start for a few days, but Korg has begun to announce new gear in advance of the show. Today, the company revealed a set of active noise cancelling (ANC) headphones designed for DJs. More specifically, Korg says the new NC-Q1 can offer distortion-free ANC even in "extremely loud environments." Obviously, a club or other performance venue fits that description.
YouTube flip-flops on Steven Crowder hate-speech decision
Following a considerable amount of public shaming, YouTube announced today that it will no longer allow controversial conservative commentator Steven Crowder to monetize videos on his channel. The decision comes after the company declined to pull a series of videos published by the YouTuber in which he used homophobic and bigoted language to address Vox writer Carlos Maza.
TiVo’s rumored voice-controlled DVR pops up at Amazon, Best Buy
We've been looking forward to a voice-controlled TiVo for a few months thanks to a leak about a new peanut-style Bluetooth remote and trademark for new products with the "Vox" name appended. Now it appears that both the TiVo Bolt Vox and TIVo Mini Vox will soon be available for purchase. Originally posted on Twitter by Dave Zatz, the Bolt Vox was seen on Amazon (it has since disappeared) and the Mini Vox is still showing up on Best Buy's Magnolia page.
Google is reportedly building a Snapchat-style news system
Snapchat's Discover mode is a way for brands to create visual stories for consumption by its 158 million reported daily users. According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, Google is developing a very similar branded-media content feature, nicknamed "Stamp." Sources say that publishers including Vox Media, CNN, Mic, the Washington Post and Time are planning to participate. Google might announce the service as early as next week, say the sources.
TiVo's voice-controlled Bluetooth remote has a Netflix button
The TiVo peanut-style remote has only changed slightly over the years, but ZatzNotFunny points out that a new revision is close to release. Labeled S6V, this Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) connected remote popped up in FCC filings, while a clearer image appeared in an earlier leak along with a trademark for TiVo Bolt Vox and TiVo Mini Vox. TiVo will hardly be the first company to put a microphone inside its remote, as the Apple TV control is built around Siri and even Comcast has a version already available. The manual included in the filing describes a two-button pairing process with the TiVo and back buttons, for the company's first Bluetooth unit since the TiVo Slide keyboard-equipped remote.
Facebook will court 'millennials' with its original videos
Facebook's dreams of pushing original video shows may be delayed, but that's doing little to stop its ever-growing ambitions. Reuters sources claim that Facebook has landed deals with a slew of "millennial-focused" internet media companies, including BuzzFeed, Vox Media, ATTN and The Dodo operator Group Nine Media. The material would include both short clips under 10 minutes (owned by the individual providers) and longer videos over 20 minutes (owned by Facebook), and they'd naturally have ad breaks. You'd initially find the videos exclusively on Facebook's website and apps, but they'd eventually migrate to other sites.
Intel and Lady Gaga team up to 'Hack Harassment'
Hack Harassment is exactly what it sounds like -- a tech-driven initiative to curb online harassment and find solutions to issues with hate speech and threats on the web. The program, which Intel teased during its CES conference this week, is spearheaded by Intel, Vox Media, Re/code and Lady Gaga's Born This Way Foundation. Hack Harassment's first move will be a series of hackathons, held both online and in-person, with the goal of advancing anti-harassment technology.
Jabra's Revo, Revo Wireless and Vox headphones get priced, now shipping
Jabra's fresh batch of stereo headphones were first trotted out at CES, and now they've just been graced with price tags and are up for grabs. The Revo Wireless over-ear headphone rings up at $249, while the wired flavor will set folks back $199. Jabra's in-ear Vox hardware hits wallets with a little less force thanks to a $99 asking price. If you're in need a refresher, the gear was designed with durability in mind, sports Dolby Digital Plus tech and works with its manufacturer's Sound App for iOS and Android, which promises souped-up audio quality. Pining for a set of the cans? You'll have to head over to Amazon or Dell's online storefront to pick one up.
Jabra readies Revo and Revo Wireless over-ear headphones, Vox in-ears
Jabra has been venturing further and further into headphones after years of focusing on headsets and speakerphones. CES 2013 is a perfect mirror of that shift: all three products it's launching at the show are geared towards music lovers rather than plain old conference calling. The Revo and Bluetooth-based Revo Wireless (above) both integrate Dolby Digital Plus audio processing and, along with a companion app for Android and iOS, may eke out more detail than usual from compressed songs. These and the in-ear Vox (after the break) are also designed to take a fair amount of abuse, Jabra says. The audio firm is mum on prices, but its new earpieces should grace ears sometime in the second quarter of the year. Follow all the latest CES 2013 news at our event hub.
Vox jams guitar amps into Audio-Technica headphones, dubs them Amphones (ears-on)
Guitarists and Bassists have many tools at their disposal for practicing fresh news licks without disturbing others around them. One of our favorites is Vox's AmPlug -- a guitar amp-modeling dongle that plugs into your instrument's 1/4-inch jack, allowing you to connect headphones and an MP3 player to practice privately. Building on the idea, Vox worked with Audio-Technica to simply embed the AmPlug in a new line of headphones, dubbing them Amphones. The company quietly put the cans up on its site recently, and it's now officially ready to shout out loud about them. Guitarists can choose from AC-30 (British crunch), Lead (hi-gain) and Twin (clean) variants, and bassists can snag the Bass version, which is based on Vox's AC100. Just like the AmPlug, each Amphone features volume dials -- sadly, these don't go to 11 -- for setting gain, volume and tone, along with a fourth for a built-in effect (compression for the Bass and reverb with the AC30, for example). A duo of triple AAs power the cans and, as you'd expect, the 'phones have a 3.5mm jack for hooking in external sources as well as a 1/4 adapter to plug into your axe. These Vox-styled units will be available in the US sometime in October for $100 a pop (double the cost of an AmPlug). Hungering for more already? We were able to give a pre-production version of the AC30 model a brief run, and you'll find our initial impressions after the break.
New fuel cell keeps on going even once the fuel's dried up
Vanadium oxide seems to be the go-to guy in power storage right now. A new solid-oxide fuel cell -- developed at Harvard's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences -- that can also store energy like a battery, also uses the stuff. In the new cell, by adding a VOx layer it allows the SOFC to both generate and store power. Example applications would be situations where a lightweight power source is required, with the potential to provide reserve juice should the main fuel source run out. The team who developed the cell usually work with platinum-based SOFCs, but they can't store a charge for much more than 15 seconds. By adding the VOx, this proof of concept extended that by 14 times, with the potential for more lifespan with further development. Especially handy if you're always running out of sugar.
Kobo Vox gets Google Play injection for fuller tablet feel
When we first reviewed the Vox, our immediate inclination was to root and sideload applications on to the 7-incher, taking it into unsanctioned territory. Much to our surprise, those efforts fell mainly flat, resigning our app indulgences to the officially and sparsely supported Get Jar store. Skip to now, and it appears Kobo's keen to shore up that glaring flaw, enabling access to Google Play and a handful of GApps (like Gmail, YouTube and Maps) via a software update. Users will have to connect to the internet to download the newly available perks, but after that you should see the tab putting on its big boy shorts and taking on a more well-rounded tablet functionality. Have one to call your own? Then let us know how you fare in the comments below.
Kobo Vox review
Kobo has long been happy to position itself as the underdog in the e-reader race, a spin that's based on more than a few grains of truth. After all, what else should this small Canadian company call itself after years of going head to head with giants like Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Sony? In spite of its perceived disadvantages, though, it's remained competitive with products like the eReader Touch Edition, a device that matched the Nook and Kindle feature-for-feature. Now, the company is attempting to pull off a similar feat with the Vox, its first entry in the tablet space -- and a clear shot across the bow at a couple low-cost slates from Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Can the e-reader David pull off an upset against a couple of Goliaths this go 'round, or have the company's limited resources finally gotten the better of it? Watch the battle unfold before your eyes, after the break.%Gallery-141285%
Kobo partners with Rdio to pre-load app on Vox tablet
Amazon and Barnes & Noble aren't the only companies touting some high-profile apps for their Android-based tablets. Kobo has now also announced a partnership with Rdio, which will see the latter company's app (and access to a catalog of more than 12 million tracks) come pre-loaded on the new Kobo Vox tablet. Of course, the Rdio app is already available for other Android devices, but this is certainly at least a small boon for Kobo, which doesn't offer Android Market access on the Vox tablet.
Kobo quietly launches Vox Android tablet with 7-inch display, Gingerbread, $200 price tag
Canadian retailer Future Shop gave us an accidental sneak peek at the tablet last month, but now Kobo is making Vox official, complete with a 7-inch 1024 x 600 resolution AFFS+ display with multi-touch, a 7-hour battery and 8 gigs of internal memory with support for up to 32GB of SD storage. The $200 tablet is running Android 2.3 Gingerbread, and is powered by an 800 MHz processor and 512MB of RAM. There's also a built-in speaker and 3.5mm headphone jack, 802.11 b/g/n WiFi and a variety of pre-loaded apps (naturally you'll have access to Android Market as well). Vox is listed as in-stock on Kobo's online store, though you'll have to wait until October 28th for yours to ship. It'll also be available at Best Buy and Fry's Electronics stores in the U.S., and Best Buy, Future Shop and Indigo in Canada. Jump past the break for the PR from Kobo. [Thanks, Mankie]
Kobo's Vox Android tablet appears online briefly, gets Canadian release date and pricing
A day after another little-known e-reader manufacturer announced a tablet, a new Android slate from Kobo made a brief online appearance on Future Shop's site, only to be quickly taken down. According to the Canadian retailer, the FCC-approved tablet will offer up a 7-inch display with a 1024 x 600 resolution, WiFi, a speaker (perhaps the reason behind the Vox name) and 8GB of storage. The tablet is apparently set for an October 17th release in that country, priced at $250 Canadian. [Thanks, Carolyn and Bart]
Kobo Vox eReader Tablet hits the FCC, shrouded in bookish mystery
What's this mystery e-reader? It's the Kobo Vox, and it just made its debut on the FCC's site. Is it a reworked version of the relatively recently released Touch Edition? Is it a brand new reader from the company? The device is listed as being an "eReader Tablet," so perhaps it's something more akin to Barnes & Noble's Nook Color or the Kindle tablet reportedly in the works from Amazon. And will Kobo's recent appearance at f8 play into the equation? It's hard to say, but there are a few things worth noting here. First, if the above rough image is to be believed, the device is touchscreen, as with the company's current product. The design, however, looks a lot more like the latest version of the Nook than the new Kobo. A side shot reveals what appears to be a microUSB slot (no shocker there) and a headphone jack, something missing on both the latest Kobo and Nook (though both the latest Kindle and the Nook Color rock one), while a "multimedia headset" was used in the testing. Also listed among the testing materials is a microSD card, so there seems a pretty good chance that this thing has expandable memory -- again, not a surprise, nor is the fact that the reader is listed as being WiFi-enabled.
VOX TV-R HDD Media Player / Recorder gets reviewed
Never heard of VOX (outside of the guitar amplification company)? Fret not, as the critics over at TechwareLabs are about to introduce you two in fine fashion. The TV-R HDD Media Player / Recorder was recently reviewed over at the site, and outside of having a full-fledged media PC handling your PVR duties, this one was seen as the next best thing. The unit can be grabbed for well under two bills with 120GB of storage built right in, and aside from being able to capture TV shows, it can also act as a local multimedia player for those who like to run things through their entertainment center. We would've loved to see an Ethernet port or WiFi module added in for good measure, but if you're down with keeping it local, this one doesn't seem like a half bad option for the coin. Tap the read link to decide for yourself.
Guitar Hero gets branded up
Activision has announced a whole slew of brands will be supporting the upcoming Guitar Hero: World Tour, from amps right on down to guitar strings. It's nothing new to us, considering the company did the same thing for previous Guitar Hero games, but the list for World Tour is kind of massive. It goes: Ampeg Audio-Technica EMG Pickups Ernie Ball Evans Drumheads Guitar Center Krank Amplification Mackie Marshall Orange County Drum & Percussion Pork Pie Percussion Regal Tip Sabian cymbals Vox Zildjian drumsticks Of course, with Rock Band tapping Fender for their guitar needs, and Gibson suing everyone on the planet, we wonder why Activision hasn't found another suitable Guitar manufacturer to feature in their game. May we suggest Ibanez? They make some nice guitars!%Gallery-23491%[Via Joystiq]
Movie Gadget Friday: Sunshine
Ariel Waldman contributes Movie Gadget Friday, where she highlights the lovable and lame gadgets from the world of cinema.Last month on Movie Gadget Friday we reviewed the rough and rugged modified gadgets of the post-apocalyptic era in The Road Warrior. Shifting from stick shifts to spaceships, this week examines the pre-apocalyptic adventure of a team of astronauts tasked with re-igniting the sun by delivering a massive payload in Sunshine. Based in 2057, this near-futuristic film has heavy influence from 2001: A Space Odyssey and 2010: The Year We Make Contact. With relatively unexplained artificial gravity, inner-spaceship scooters and gold leaf heat-deflecting spacesuits, many of the gadgets and technology are taken for granted in this 2007 release. 3D Projection CubeStructured as a small room on board Icarus II, the 3D projection deck serves as a way to boost astronauts' spirits and calculate routes. Translucent walls with embedded light-emitting cells make up the entire cube of a room, allowing for an interactive 3-dimensional experience without the need for external projectors. It's unseen yet as to if this experience requires the use of optical tracking cameras for a gestural user interface. Specific cells have the ability to toggle on or off depending on the specific need of the projection. While this gadget realistically blows away any CAVE we've seen (guesstimating these visuals to be upwards of 100 million pixels), the tactile-keyboard-loving-geek in us is still unrealistically holding out for a touchable hologram to toy with. More after the break.
