Audio News for August 10, 2012 - Audiophile Audition

Denon Portable Audio with Internet; How Consumer Electronics Makers Are Doing; New Website Offers Consumers Impartial Resource for Home Automation; Report on Global Consumer Electronics Shows U.S. to Reach $1,210 Billion by 2017

Published on August 7, 2012

Denon Portable Audio with Internet â€" Denon is already shipping in the U.S. their new Cocoon Home one-piece docking speaker, part of a trio of docking speakers expanding the brand into the fast-growing portable audio/headphones market. The Cocoon Home has a biamplified speaker system, four drivers of 25 watts each, DSP, and nine bands of digital EQ. It is a retractable iPod/iPhone/iPad dock, with AirPlay, DLNA, Internet radio and curved styling. While the Cocoon is biamped with 100 watts output, the Cocoon Portable is 25% smaller and weather-resistant. The Home version is available in either black or white.  

How Consumer Electronics Makers Are Doing â€" Makers and sellers of consumer-electronics devices have released their earnings reports to the AP. Microsoft shipped 1.1 million Zbox 360 consoles during the last quarter, down from a previous 1.7 million. Sony sold 2.8 million PlayStations, down from 3.2 million a year earlier. Apple sold 4 million Macs, a 2% increase, and 6.8 million iPods, a 10% decline. It sold 28% more iPhones than a year ago and had an 84% increase in sales of iPads. Nokia’s sales of smartphones dropped 39% from a year ago, and AT&T was down from 5.5 million smartphones a year ago to 5.1 this time. Nintendo Co. sold 710,000 Wii units last quarter, down from 1.56 million a year ago.

New Website Offers Consumers Impartial Resource for Home Automation â€" HomeAutomationHound.com is a new online resource dedicated to consumer education and comparative analysis among the major home automation systems and professionals in the marketplace.  It is an impartial and ad free online resource explaining the basics of home automation thru easy-to-understand videos, graphics, and non-technical language, while providing tools for researching and comparing products and professionals by system, and by location. There is a “Ask a Pro” feature to speak directly with an expert. The site draws from the expertise of home automation professionals across the U.S. with plans to source information internationally.

Report on Global Consumer Electronics Shows U.S. to Reach $1,210 Billion by 2017 â€" Lucintel, a leading global management consulting and market research firm, analyzed the global consumer electronics market. The top ten players contribute about 52% of total market size. The industry is a highly dynamic and fast-changing one. Cost of their raw materials such as steel and copper have increased, while rising income and consumer spending have effected the price of finished goods. The industry has essnetially recovered from the recent recession and is in the growing phase. A growing need for automation and technological advancement drives demand. There is a potential for appreciable growth potential due to a fast-growing middle class and available of trained labor in China, Japan, India, Malaysia and Singapore.

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