San
Francisco – Pure Audio will launch its first U.S. products in August with the
shipment of three Wi-Fi-equipped-tabletop Internet radios.
The
trio will be followed in the fall by a three-piece microsystem with Internet
radio and PC audio streaming. Pure is a U.K.-based supplier of tabletop
Internet radios and digital radios. The radios can also stream unprotected
music from networked PCs.
The
products are targeted for sale initially through e-tailers and the company’s
, said Charles Bellfield, GM of Pure
North America. The company’s tabletop products are already available in Europe,
Australia and Asia. The company is entering the Canadian, U.S. and Mexican
markets this year.
All
products are built from components designed with Pure’s intellectual property,
Bellfield said. All are equipped with RDS-equipped FM tuner, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g,
and ability to connect to Pure’s server to stream 15,842 stations and thousands
of podcasts in the U.S. Users can select stations by country, language, genre,
station name and signal quality. Users can program stations into presets, plus
they can program in an unlimited number of favorites via the radio’s controls
or from a PC browser. Favorites selected by PC are automatically synced to the
radio over the Internet.
All
models also access rebroadcast programs on demand, Bellfield said, and all can
be upgraded in the future to add new functions, access subscription-based music
services, and add e-commerce functions. Upgrades are downloaded via Wi-Fi from
the Internet or via a mini USB connection to a PC. A mini USB connection is
used for plugging in an Ethernet dongle to connect to a wired Ethernet network.
Other features common to all include clock-radio functions, 3.5mm aux input and
stereo headphone output.
The
trio due in August includes the Siesta Flow stereo clock radio at a suggested
$139. It has touch-sensitive controls, auto-dimming display, four quick-set
alarms, sleep and snooze timers, 4.6-watt RMS output and 16 presets. A standard
USB port can charge cellphones and power up USB accessories planned by Pure,
including a fan and a reading light.
The
Evoke Flow at a suggested $229 is a mono tabletop radio available with separate
optional $49.95 stereo speaker. It features a retro design with integrated
carry handle, touch-sensitive controls, OLED display, 40 presets and 7-watt RMS
output. An optional $59.95 in-chassis ChargePak lithium-ion battery delivers
10-hour battery life for portability.
The
Oasis Flow, a mono model ruggedized for outdoor use at a suggested $249, has a
lithium-ion battery with 15-hour battery life. It also features weatherproof
cast-aluminum chassis, Gore-Tex speaker, OLED display, optional remote, 40
presets, 10 watts of output and optional add-on stereo speaker.
Sometime
in the fall, the company plans to ship the top-line three-piece Sirocco 550
Flow microsystem at a suggested $449. The microsystem features CD, FM,
iPod/iPhone dock on top, two-way speakers and touch-sensitive controls. It’s
certified as Made for iPod and Works with iPhone. Other features include
MP3/WMA CD playback, 40 presets, 3.5mm aux input, headphone output and remote.,
A
fifth model, the elliptical-shaped Sensia, was originally due this year but has
been pushed back to next year so the company can focus on further speeding up
the processor and expand its Internet content partnerships, such as social
networking sites and photo-sharing services. The $349-suggested device features
FM, stereo speakers, 5.7-inch color touchscreen, and optional rechargeable
battery.
Pure
is owned by Imagination Technologies, a developer of radio broadcast
technologies, reduced instruction set processors for handheld devices, and
multimedia graphics technologies for handheld devices.
