Las Vegas — Sharp is coming to International CES with its first Bluetooth speaker, first nearfield communications (NFC)-equipped Bluetooth soundbar, its first Bluetooth-equipped microsystem and first Bluetooth-equipped executive component system.
Sharp is also displaying its first Blu-ray/SACD player with WiSA-compliant wireless technology to stream soundtracks to WiSA-certified active speakers.
All products ship in the first half. Prices weren’t announced.
The NFC-equipped Bluetooth soundbar is the HT-SB602, which is designed to complement 60-inch and larger flat-panel TVs. The company offered a Bluetooth soundbar in 2013 without NFC. The 2.1-channel 310-watt soundbar comes with wireless subwoofer, Bluetooth, NFC for one-tap Bluetooth pairing, rear IR blaster to passthrough a TV remote’s commands to the TV, and wall-mount capability. It also features dual HDMI 1.4a inputs, optical input, HDMI 1.4a output with audio return channel, Dolby and DTS 5.1 decoders, and 3D Audio digital signal processing to widen the soundstage.
The company’s soundbar selection will shrink to two in 2014 from last year’s four.
The two Bluetooth-equipped tabletop shelf systems are the DK-KP85P microsystem and XL-HF202P executive component system. The former is a compact microsystem with top-mounted Lightning dock, Made for iPod/iPhone/iPad USB, playback of MP3/WMA files on USB sticks and USB hard drives, CD drive and AM/FM tuner. An iPad stand is supplied.
The XL-HF202P Bluetooth-equipped executive component system adds NFC, 100-watt output, subwoofer output, video output and speaker binding posts. It also features top-mounted Lightning dock, Made for iPod/iPhone/iPad USB, playback of MP3/WMA files on USB sticks and USB hard drives, CD drive and AM/FM tuner. An iPad stand is supplied.
The active Bluetooth speaker is the 2.1-channel GX-BT7 with NFC, dual subwoofers, and drivers that mechanically slide open when the system is turned on. It also features Made for iPod/iPhone/iPad USB and playback of MP3/WMA files on USB sticks and USB hard drives
The WiSA-certified SD-WH1000U Blu-ray/SACD player not only transmits multichannel sound wirelessly from Blu-ray and SACD discs, but it also transmits content from a connected set-top box, streaming media player, and game console via three HDMI inputs and two USB ports.
