LATEST ADDITIONS

Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 11, 2006
Aural Acoustics is a speaker company with roots and attitude from the old days of hi-fi before anyone ever thought of pairing speakers with a TV - but the new company has a decidely modern, music-and-home-theater sensibility. They debuted their first speaker (the Model B) at the 2005 Home Electronic Show in New York City to great reviews. This year, the company used a hotel room in the Alexis Park during the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) to unveil the new Model P50. Although the low-key venue was less well attended than either of the two main convention centers, almost everyone who braved the long shuttle bus lines and made the trek to the Aural Acoustics room were extremely impressed with what they heard.
Steve Guttenberg  |  Jan 11, 2006
Body and soul.

I don't think I've ever before referred to a speaker as "sexy," but Sonus faber's new Domus line is definitely hot stuff. Yeah baby, the Domus Series' enticing curves—sheathed in supple black leatherette, poised on spiked feet—will get audiophiles all hot and bothered. That's because they make for pretty sexy sound, too.

Mark Fleischmann  |  Jan 11, 2006
Following are a few postcards from the now-concluded 2006 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. This is not a weighty wrapup or even a best-of-show story, just a few things that caught our fancy.
Mark Fleischmann  |  Jan 10, 2006  |  First Published: Jan 11, 2006
Gear from the Net that demands respect.

Outlaw Audio and Aperion Audio both pursue the decidedly nonmainstream business model of selling quality surround gear directly to consumers over the Internet. Back when I worked for an Internet startup—don't fall asleep now, or I'll poke you with a stick—my now dead-as-a-doornail company caught a lot of flak for facilitating Internet sales of audio equipment. Isn't it unwise to buy something you haven't heard?

Geoffrey Morrison  |  Jan 10, 2006  |  First Published: Jan 11, 2006
Dipping into the black (level).

Despite my lauding of projectors, it seems like the only question people ask me about TVs is, "What's the best plasma?" I usually respond, as you would imagine, with a detailed description of the strengths and weaknesses of several brands, what that means to the viewer, and a cost/performance analysis. All the while, I'm trying to ignore the bored and distracted look on my questioner's face. "Yeah, but who's the best?" he'll ask. "The Patriots," I reply. At this point, the average questioner's face scrunches up to resemble the average raisin. In an effort to finish the conversation so that I can be left alone to eat my burrito in peace (mmm, Chipotle), I tell them: "Panasonic for black level; Pioneer for processing." There, I said it. There are plenty of companies that make great-looking plasmas, but these guys are the leaders. They shine with regard to their respective specialties but don't screw up the rest of the display. What I love about this business, though, is that nothing is stagnant—everything advances. Just last month, I reviewed a Panasonic plasma that went a long way in improving the company's major processing shortcomings. While its black level was still good, its scaling improved for a much better-looking image overall. So, it's Pioneer's turn. Their processing, on all levels, has been good in the past. Their black levels, on the other hand, have left much to be desired. I was told that Pioneer's past few models have improved black levels. We'll see.

 |  Jan 08, 2006

Sirius S50 satellite radio/MP3 player in Directed Electronics Executive Dock

Mike Mettler  |  Jan 08, 2006

Pioneer's AVIC-Z1 car navigation system features a 30-gigabyte hard drive and a touchscreen user interface.

Mike Mettler  |  Jan 08, 2006

Kicker CompVX Series car subwoofers

Ken C. Pohlmann  |  Jan 08, 2006

Samsung YP-Z5 flash-memory MP3 player

You will be surprised to hear that there weren't any new MP3 players at CES. Just kidding - checking to make sure you were paying attention. There were a few players on display - like maybe ten zillion. And they were all pretty desirable, naturally with the higher-priced models sporting the highest capacities.

Ken C. Pohlmann  |  Jan 08, 2006

The Garmin nuvi 350 is an MP3 player and GPS navigation system all rolled into one.

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