TWICE News

• Epoq Launches Wi-Fi Pocket Radio Line
  
  By Joseph Palenchar, April 30, 2009
  Boca Raton

  , Fla.

  – The portable, pocket-size six-transistor AM radio of the early 1960s has evolved into a Wi-Fi-equipped Internet radio.

  
  
• Half of Car Buyers Want iPod Link
  
  By Amy Gilroy, April 29, 2009
  Southfield, Mich.a — Almost half of consumers preparing to buy a car want to connect an iPod to their vehicle.
  
• Mother’s Day CE Spending To Fall 37%: Report
  
  By Alan Wolf, April 29, 2009
  Los Angeles — Moms will be receiving fewer and less-expensive consumer electronics for Mother’s Day, according to a new report by industry research firm IBISWorld.
  
• OnStar Generates More Than $1B: iSuppli
  
  By Amy Gilroy, April 29, 2009
  El Segundo, Calif. — While General Motors faces possible bankruptcy, its OnStar service is quite healthy, raking in $1 billion in business annually and creating a platform that saves the company millions in other ways, said iSuppli.
  
• SlotRadio Debuts 1,000-Song Cards
  
  By Joseph Palenchar, April 29, 2009
  Milipitas, Calif. — The first four 1,000-song SlotRadio music cards became available through SanDisk Web site www.slotradio.org and will be available soon in RadioShack stores nationwide.
  
• CEA: Web-Enabled TVs Garner Attention
  
  By Steve Smith, April 29, 2009
  Arlington, Va. — Demand for Internet-enabled televisions is growing rapidly, according to a new study by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA).
  
• AVAD Partners With B&K Components
  
  By TWICE Staff, April 29, 2009
  Van Nuys, Calif. — AVAD, the custom home electronics distributor, has signed a distribution agreement with B&K Components to offer the manufacturer’s multi-room and high-end audio components and home-theater components.
  
• Advanced Auto Parts Carrying Car Wi-Fi
  
  By Amy Gilroy, April 29, 2009
  San Francisco — Autonet mobile is now selling its Wi-Fi hotspot for the car through more than 3,300 Advance Auto Parts.
  
• Runco Ships ’09 LCD, PDP Flat-Panel Lines
  
  By Greg Tarr, April 29, 2009
  Beaverton, Ore. — Planar’s Runco International said Tuesday it is now shipping the majority of its 2009 flat-panel displays, and is sticking with its strategy of delivering both plasma and LCD models tailored to the custom-installation channel.
  
• Audit: PMA ’09 Traffic Was Down 23.7%
  
  By Greg Tarr, April 29, 2009
  Jackson, Mich. — The economic downturn and bad weather took its toll on last month’s Photo Marketing Association PMA 2009 International Convention and Trade Show.
  
• Amimon Ships Gen-2 WHDI Chipset
  
  By Greg Tarr, April 29, 2009
  Santa Clara, Calif. — Wireless HD solutions developer Amimon said Tuesday it is now shipping its second-generation receiver and transmitter chipset.
  
• iPhone App Prints Photos Without PC
  
  By TWICE Staff, April 29, 2009
  Bangalore, India — A new iPhone application is now available that allows users to print photos directly from their iPhone or iPod Touch to a printer, without the PC as a middleman.
  
• Amazon Buys e-Book App Maker
  
  By Amy Gilroy, April 28, 2009
  Seattle — Amazon has acquired iPhone e-book application maker Lexcycle, citing the need for continued innovation in the e-book reader market.
  
• Triad Readies Its Broadest Product Launch
  
  By Joseph Palenchar, April 28, 2009
  Portland, Ore. — Triad said its first new subwoofer line in eight years represents the broadest product launch in the company’s 27-year history and marks the introduction of the company’s first DSP-equipped subs.
  
• Digital Group Audio Eyes Expanded Distribution
  
  By Joseph Palenchar, April 28, 2009
  Carlsbad, Calif. — CE startup Digital Group Audio (DGA) plans to take a portable iPhone/iPod Touch speaker system to brick-and-mortar stores following an online launch earlier this year.
  
• Office Depot’s Q1 Sales, Earnings Sink
  
  By Alan Wolf, April 28, 2009
  Boca Raton, Fla. — Soft demand by consumers and small businesses, and a $120 million pretax charge for an ongoing company overhaul, sent Office Depot’s sales and earnings sharply lower for the fiscal first quarter, ended March 28.
  
• Pioneer Restructuring Involves Honda Stake
  
  By Steve Smith, April 28, 2009
  Tokyo — Honda Motor Company is buying a stake in Pioneer Corp. as part of the CE maker’s reorganization plan, which also involves agreements with Sharp Corporation and Mitsubishi Electric, corporate consolidation and layoffs.
  
• Plasma Panel Shipments See Q1 Declines
  
  By Greg Tarr, April 28, 2009
  Austin, Texas — Plasma panel shipments declined 22 percent in the first quarter of 2009 from the same period a year ago, and 28 percent from the previous quarter, according to DisplaySearch
  
• GE Demos 500GB Disc Technology
  
  By Lisa Johnston, April 28, 2009
  Niskayuna, N.Y. — GE announced yesterday its scientists had discovered a way to fit 500GB on a single DVD-sized disc.
  
• Epson Unveils ’09 HD Ensemble Home Cinema System Trio
  
  By Greg Tarr, April 28, 2009
  Long Beach, Calif. — Continuing its home-theater development partnership with Atlantic Technologies, Epson America today unveiled three Ensemble HD Home Cinema Systems for the A/V specialty, CE installation channels.