Bluetooth Meets Boombox

By Joseph Palenchar On Mar 14 2013 - 2:51pm

New York — Remember when boomboxes had an AM/FM tuner and CD player, or tuner and dual cassette mechanisms?

 The latest boomboxes strip out those “technologies” and replace them with stereo Bluetooth, turning cellphones and tablets into music sources for boomboxes.

 

Grace Unveils Galaxy-Dedicated Docking Speaker

By Joseph Palenchar On Nov 13 2012 - 5:43pm

San Diego — Grace Digital has begun offering a docking speaker designed specifically for select Samsung Galaxy smartphones, which have taken a commanding share of the smartphone market.

Onkyo Docking Station Adds AirPlay To AVRs

Joseph Palenchar On Sep 20 2012 - 3:59pm

Upper Saddle River, N.J. — Onkyo plans October shipments of its $199-suggested DS-A5 iPod/iPhone/iPad docking station that adds wireless AirPlay capability to Onkyo A/V receivers (AVRs) and to other audio products.

The DS-A5’s 30-pin connector captures audio stored on docked Apple devices excluding the new iPhone 5 and new Nano and iPod Touch, all with the new nine-pin Lightning connector. The docking station captures stored audio from the docked devices in digital PCM form.

Nyne Readies Portable And Home Audio Docking Speakers

By Joseph Palenchar On Jun 18 2012 - 4:01am

NEW YORK — Nyne Multimedia of Oxnard, Calif., will go to the Consumer Electronics Association’s (CEA) Line Show event with final pricing and ship dates for 10 of 11 planned portable and home audio products, all designed to reproduce music from smartphones and tablets.

Two docking alarm clocks are the $159-suggested N-19 with AM/FM and iPod/iPad-charging dock on top. The $79-suggested N-9 features iPod/iPhone dock on top and FM. They ship in July.

Docking-Speaker Market Adjusts To New OS Realities

By Joseph Palenchar On Jan 10 2012 - 6:01am

LAS VEGAS — A maturing iPod/iPhone-docking speaker market is prompting suppliers here at International CES to shift gears to accelerate sales.

Many docking-speaker suppliers are adding Apple’s wireless AirPlay technology to spur repeat and step-up sales, and others are adding stereo Bluetooth and MicroUSB charging ports to tabletop speakers to expand the total addressable market to owners of Android, BlackBerry and Windows smartphones.

iPod-Docking Systems Dominate Sales Of Home Stereo Systems

By Joseph Palenchar On Dec 3 2007 - 8:00am

Speaker systems that dock with MP3 players in general and iPods in particular are outselling traditional shelf systems by ever-widening margins as portable MP3 players become a key source of music content for the home, suppliers and analysts said.

Stillwater Expands Its Docking-Speaker Lineup

By Joseph Palenchar On Dec 21 2009 - 8:00am

Stillwater Designs, known for its Kicker-brand aftermarket autosound products, is expanding its presence in Kicker-branded iPod- and Zune-docking speaker systems with four new models, including its first two docking clock radios.

In 2008, the company launched its first iPod/iPhone-docking speaker system and first Zune-docking speaker system to expand its small home audio presence. Those 40-watt models, since upgraded, remain in the line at a suggested $249 each.

Apps, iPad Speakers Due As Docking Market Gains

By Joseph Palenchar On Jun 22 2010 - 2:38pm

NEW YORK — New iPod/iPhonedocking speakers systems coming to market include a growing number of models at higher price points ranging from $179 to $499. More also sport free downloadable iPhone/iPod Touch apps to add speaker-system features, and one will be the first solar-powered iPod speaker.

Here’s what you’ll find:

Edifier: The China-based audio supplier will enter the U.S. market for the first time with five products, two of them iPod-docking speakers systems. The other three will be PC multimedia speakers.

Altec Lansing: AC-Only Docking Speakers Gain

By Joseph Palenchar On Jul 6 2010 - 7:18pm

MILFORD, PA. — Altec Lansing plans to expand its selection of AC-only docking- speaker systems, in part because growth in AC-only systems is exceeding growth in AC/DC models.

Retailer interest in doing business with fewer brands is also driving Altec Lansing to diversify its docking-speaker portfolio, the company said.

Sometime after a year from now, AC models will comprise the majority of the company’s docking-speaker SKUs.

Docking Speakers Get iPad Capability, Projectors

By Joseph Palenchar On Nov 22 2010 - 6:01am

NEW YORK — With retail-level dollar sales of iPoddocking speakers rising this year despite a weak economy, suppliers aren’t scaling back their focus on the market.

In fact, new suppliers have entered the market, including Bang & Olufsen, startup WowWee and Optoma, the latter two with the industry’s first models that incorporate pico projectors to display iPod-stored video on a wall or screen.

For its part, Tivoli Audio launched its first standalone dock for connection to audio and AV systems.