Your phone has a 100 million-times more computing power than the Apollo guidance computer that landed men on the moon! How many times have you heard that? In fact, that is probably a reasonably true statement, and perhaps even underestimates just how powerful today's phones are. But one thing hasn't changed much since 1969, or even since its invention in 1925 - the dynamic loudspeakers in the astronaut's helmet headsets.
I am an audio guy. All my life, I have been fascinated by the physics, physiology, and technology of audio. You might be surprised to know this, but my hearing is more important to me than my eyesight. But hearing is a privilege that not everyone shares.
If you are a certain age, you'll surely remember the Get Smart TV series, debuting in 1965 on NBC. You'll also remember how Maxwell Smart always insisted on using the Cone of Silence — plastic domes over him and the Chief that supposedly prevented anyone from overhearing their conversations. Now, 54 years later, in the age of Alexa, the Cone is back, new and improved. And you can build one yourself.
If you own an Astell&Kern portable high-resolution music player, you own membership in an exclusive club. A&K, after all, is the Ferrari of music players. Now, thanks to a firmware update, the V12 in your 812 Superfast just got another 100 horsepower.
You wake up and turn on your desktop speakers, then go for a run with earbuds, then listen to music on your drive to work. Terrific. But your music sounds different on each of the three playback systems, and none of them are particularly tuned to your liking. Sonarworks wants to fix that.
Samsung is showing two new soundbars at CES: HW-N950 and HW-N850. They both feature Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. Interestingly, the soundbars sport both Samsung and Harman Kardon logos.
You have the creative drive, you have the outgoing personality, you have the spikey haircut, you have a phone. If only you had the equipment, you could be a famous vlogger. Fear not. Shure can provide that.