Bluetooth speakers so vast they demand their own carry handle may trade portability for punch, but when social distancing says you can't go further than the garden you might as well drag some music out there with you. Braven's BRV-XXL/2 is one such example of high-volume company for the COVID-19 pandemic, and it'll even be your drinking buddy too.
Bang & Olufsen has updated its Bluetooth portable speaker, boosting battery life and adding Alexa support to the new Beosound A1 2nd Gen. An update to the old Beoplay A1, the puck-shaped speaker now allows you to chat with Amazon's virtual assistant, albeit assuming your smartphone is nearby.
Sony has revealed its 2020 line-up of portable Bluetooth speakers, with the XB23, XB33, and XB43 getting new drivers, better waterproofing, and bigger sound. The trio of new models kick off at $100 but, while at first glance they may look similar to what we've seen before from Sony, there are in fact some significant changes.
Google's all-new Pixel Buds may be introducing the latest updates to Android Fast Pair, but the new Bluetooth features won't be limited to the company's fully wireless headphones alone. Announced alongside the release of the new Pixel Buds today, Fast Pair's upgrades help close the gap between Android's Bluetooth management and what Apple does with its AirPods - and without the special Bluetooth chip, either.
The folks at Proxy run a system that turns your iPhone into a secure wireless key to open doors with special digital locks. Now they've acquired the company Motiv, a company you might remember from their smart rings. They've decided to join forces to bring a more interesting future to the world, complete with a slightly more magical - and slightly more intuitive - digital means for opening doors and locks of all sorts.
Contact tracing is one of the key elements that could help reduce the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, both during lockdown but especially after it. Most contact tracing, however, is being done manually, relying on people's memories, travel records, and other pieces of data that slow down the process significantly. Governments are now looking towards technological alternatives and one of the newest and most promising solutions proposed in New Zealand is nothing more than a Bluetooth-enabled credit card-sized tracker.
Like the mythical hydra, the COVID-19 coronavirus has so many aspects to it, from the symptoms you need to take note of to the social distancing and hand hygiene you need to practice. One of the trickiest factors to consider is the people you come in contact with, which will be critical in trying to stop the virus from spreading further. Apple and Google have teamed up to help make contact-tracing easier but they now have to also assure users, governments, and privacy advocates that their tool won't be used to violate people's privacy in the name of flattening the curve.
The first major change in PlayStation controller history in what seems like forever was made for PlayStation 5. This device is called DualSense. It's the replacement for what's been called DualShock, a collection of controllers that's lasted several generations. This new controller "builds upon [the] success" of the DualShock 4.
The folks at Estimote created a set of devices and software that'll allow a business owner to keep track of their workers remotely. With a "contact tracing dashboard" and Bluetooth devices (worn by each employee), a business owner can keep track of the location and relative health of their workforce. Each wearable device scans for other wearable devices in the area and "registers close interactions."
Wireless audio accessories are no longer oddities that delivered fancy futuristic features at the price of sound quality. Thanks to a push in the mobile industry to do away with the venerable 3.5mm headphone jack, audio equipment makers and audio technology innovators have started taking Bluetooth audio more seriously, resulting in a new generation of speakers, headphones, and earphones that all eschew limiting cables. One of those big names in the market is Shure who is expanding its portfolio with a new AONIC brand that includes its first-ever wireless headphones.
Qualcomm has revealed its next-generation audio SoCs for truly wireless earbuds, and if you've been considering a set of AirPods Pro or similar, you may want to wait until later in the year. The Qualcomm QCC514x and QCC304x Bluetooth chipsets for earbuds promise features like integrated active noise cancelation, lower power requirements, and support for voice assistants like Alexa and the Google Assistant.
Apple has officially revealed the Beats Powerbeats, packaging the audio quality of last year's Powerbeats Pro into a more affordable, longer-lasting set of earbuds. Despite slicing $100 off the sticker, the promise is up to 15 hours of playback compared to the nine hours your Powerbeats Pro should last, plus arguably easier charging.