Case maker Incipio buys Skullcandy

Incipio is adding more to its stable of audio offerings by buying Skullcandy, the makers of flashy, youth-oriented headphones. According to Android Police, the terms of the acquisition offer US$5.75 for any shares of Skullcandy. This is then worth a combined $177 million in cash, making up a 59 percent premium over the brand’s current market value (including cash holdings and investments). Astro Gaming, Skullcandy’s gaming-specific brand of headphones and headsets are also part of the deal. More than anything, Incipio is getting the wide retail reach of Skullcandy, which develops everything from high-end Bluetooth noise-cancelling headphones to sweat-proof sport headsets to colorful and affordable earbuds.

The other recent acquisitions of Incipio include high-end speaker manufacturer Braven, accessory maker Incase, and beachwear company Tavik. If Incipio maintains its hands-off approach with its other purchases, you probably won’t notice any difference with Skullcandy.

CES 2016: Creative outs its smartest Bluetooth speaker

Creative has a lot of different kinds of speakers out on the market but they claim this newest one is the smartest yet. The iRoar, which won the CES Innovation Award for 2016, comes with a customizable open platform that lets users personalize the speaker as well as create apps and features to expand on it. It has software add-ons and expandable hardware platform. If developers want to create an app for it, they can do so.

In the hardware side, it comes with the company’s multi-core floating point SB-Axx1 processor, which is what Creative uses for their sound cards. It has dual two-inch drivers for high- and midrange frequencies and a 2.75-inch woofer with dual passive radiators on the side for lows. It has an amp for left and right channels and one for bass. Connectivity options are plenty on the iRoar, including a 3.5mm analog line-in, microUSB audio input, microSD card slot, USB female 1.5A port for charging, and TOSlink Optical input. It also supports NFC and codecs such as aptX, aptX low-latency, AAC, and SBC for wireless streaming. It’s already available on Creative’s site for US$369.99 (around $520). Other add-ons include the iRoar Mic (US$79.99 or roughly $110) and iRoar Rock subwoofer (US$149.99 or roughly $210).

Source: Creative + Android Community

CES 2016: Bang & Olufsen introduce all-in-one soundbar

What does it mean for a soundbar to be an all-in-one device? Well, it won’t just be able to boost the audio from your TV. In the case of high-end audio maker Bang & Olufsen, its new BeoSound 35 supports music streaming services like Spotify and Deezer so you can already get your music going from there. It also supports Google Cast, Bluetooth connectivity, and AirPlay. Access to it is easy because you can use any B&O remote to control it or even use the BeoMusic app. And, of course, it works with the company’s other audio gear. It promises to beam audio 180 degrees, which is said to be enough to fill a room.

The unit has its own OLED display with on-board touch controls. And it steps a bit away from the usually boxy soundbars with a more pentagonal shape. It has the loud speaker at the center and its tweeters on the ends. Plus, it’s made with an aluminum outer shell to make it look even more striking (and it helps heat management, too). You can opt to wall-mount this or place it on a stand. Of course, this comes with a steep price tag at US$2785 or almost $4,000 when it sells starting April.

Source: Engadget

CES 2016: Samsung outs soundbar packed with Dolby Atmos

Samsung is bringing the cinema experience to your home with its first soundbar equipped with Dolby “overhead surround” system. The HW-K950 will give you the cinema experience as it throw noises to you overhead, giving you the illusion that a helicopter is indeed flying over you, among other things.

With Dolby Atmos, you usually need a lot speakers but Samsung pares that down with this unit. The HW-K950 itself is 2.1-inches high and has three forward-facing and two upwards-facing drivers. This pairs wirelessly with a subwoofer and rear speakers to give you that full 5.1.4-channel audio. Samsung also revamped its Wireless Audio 360 Series (R1, R3, and R5) with new colors and patterns.

Source: SlashGear