Michael Berk

Michael Berk  |  Jan 18, 2012

Altec-Lansing showed us a very interesting new spin on their inAir concept at CES. The new device resembles the existing inAir 5000 AirPlay speaker - but the resemblance is only skin deep.

Michael Berk  |  Jan 18, 2012

We've talked a bit over the past year about CSR's apt-X Bluetooth audio profile; while we've been impressed with the performance of the receivers we've been able to listen to, and at CES we found apt-X in a wide variety of products, including Monster's new boombox, affordable DACs from Arcam and Cambridge Audio, NAD's iOS dock, and even Burmester's audiophile-only ultra-high-end 113 "super DAC."

Michael Berk  |  Jan 18, 2012

Wi-Fi, 3G, and LTE networks may have been overwhelmed during CES 2012 itself, but news of wireless and wireless standards for audio (and video) was everywhere, with high-end manufacturers and do-it-all mega-corporations alike looking to free their consumers from their plastic-sheathed copper bonds.

In keeping with the overall haziness of CES 2012, the buzz came in the form of a meme with a few almost-maybe-real devices attached rather than as a single wowza product debut. During last Monday's press extravaganza, pretty much every TV titan talked about integrating content across all of the screens in their customer's expanding gadget arsenals, and while there was certainly plenty of excitement around do-it-all wired connections like MHL, making everything converge seamlessly seems to require a wireless approach.

Michael Berk  |  Jan 18, 2012

Arcam were showing an interesting little collection of solidly-built digital audio solutions in their suite at the Venetian.

Michael Berk  |  Jan 17, 2012

We first got a look at speaker maker PSB's new headphone, the M4U 2, at the 2011 CEDIA show, and Brent Butterworth liked what he heard from an early version.

Michael Berk  |  Jan 12, 2012

It may not have involved OLED, but one of the biggest consumer electronics announcements of the month - Gibson Guitar Corporation's acquisition of a majority stake in Onkyo USA and a large chunk of Onkyo Corporation proper, with the establishment of a Hong Kong-based R&D-oriented joint venture - happened last week rather than at CES proper, but today the CEOs of Gibson and Onkyo, Henry Juszkiewicz and Munenori Otsuki took some time to clarify the finer points of the partnership, which left many observers' scratching their heads. Rather than holding a press conference in one of the maze-like structures in which most of us have been spending our time this week, Juszkiewicz and Otsuki invited a few reporters to meet them on the Gibson bus, a fully blinged-out luxury liner styled in the tradition of Nashville's golden age.

Michael Berk  |  Jan 10, 2012

Where some other Press Day events - namely Samsung's - were big production numbers, Panasonic's was low-key, almost to a fault. Strangely for a consumer show, a big chunk of time was spent by chairman Joseph M. Taylor and CTO Eisuke Tsuyuzaki B2B and industrial products like solar panels, avionics and green initiatives for institutions and industry (Ed Begley, a Vegas-area resident, told the crowd that they could "have a cool beverage and a warm shower, but you can be more efficient").

Michael Berk  |  Jan 10, 2012

Samsung opened their packed - and I mean packed, there must have been 1,500-plus people in the room - Press Day event with a bang.

Michael Berk  |  Dec 22, 2011

Through with music games? Gone as far as you can with Guitar Hero? (There's always someone willing to go further - but that's not for you). Time to dust off that axe that's taking up space in the closet, plug it into your computer, and learn to play for real, once and for all.

Plug it into your computer? Yep, you heard me right.

Michael Berk  |  Dec 16, 2011

BackStage is a fully interactive iPad and iPhone app that does so much more than inform you of concerts. BackStage serves three main functions for the user. The first is a concert calendar which informs you of concerts in your area based on data from your iTunes library and your current location.

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