Audio-Technica has released its latest noise-canceling headphones, the ATH-ANC7b QuietPoint. The active noise-canceling technology is claimed to reduce background noise by up to 85 percent. A closed-back design houses large-aperture 40mm drivers with neodymium magnets, which reproduce sound from 10Hz to 25.5KHz with a sensitivity of 109dB and a 300 ohm impedance.
Ultrasone has announced the latest product in its series of HFI headphones, the HFI-2400. The headphone features 40mm gold-plated drivers, while the company’s S-Logic technology is claimed to widen the perceived soundstage. MU Metal shielding is designed to help reduce the amount of magnetic radiation by up to 98% compared to standard headphones. The drivers are built with 70 Ohm impedance and produce a frequency range of 10Hz – 25kHz, with a sound pressure level of 94dB.
Griffin Technology has announced MyPhones, a new headphone with an integrated volume limiter to protect against hearing loss for children. The headphones are designed with soft-rubber ear cushions that sit just over the ear, with an adjustable band for comfort. The primary feature is an 85 decibel limit on the volume, helping to ensure that sound can never go high enough to damage the ear drum. It also comes with a customizable carrying case, along with three swappable shell caps.
Today's featured deal of the day from DealNN is on the Skullcandy Chops headphones. They were priced at $19.99, but have been reduced by $15 to $4.99, making these the lowest priced Skull Candy headphones we have seen anywhere. The Skullcandy Chops feature an over-the-ear design which helps keep the earbuds in place.
Bose on Wednesday introduced the QuietComfort 15, its latest noise-canceling headphones. The headphones boast new sound-reduction technology that is claimed to offer improved attenuation in loud environments, while expanding the correction across a wider range of frequencies.
Sennheiser Communications has released the PC 300 G4ME headset, a new portable earphone created for all types of media purposes on either a laptop or PC, including online gaming or chatting with friends. The headset features a light-weight in-ear design made to reduce noise, and comes complete with an integrated microphone and in-line volume control. It’s made from the same capsules as the company’s CX 300-II ear-canal phones and provides three differently sized silicone ear-sleeves to help ensure comfort.
JVC has released a new series of foldable headphones, called the Black series, and two new in-ear headphones, the HA-EBX85 and HA-FX20. The Black series is available in two models, the HA-M750 and HA-S650, that are both over-the-head style headphones and use large driver units with carbon compound diaphragms for their bass reproduction. The two Black series headphones also have carbon bodies with anti-resonance properties to improve their sound clarity.
Apple has made a minor but significant update to its In-Ear Headphones, which improve over stock earbuds supplied with iPhones and iPods by isolating sound, and using separate tweeter and woofer drivers. The casing around the jack plug is now made of hard plastic, instead of a light rubber. It was previously possible to tear or separate the older casing after extended use.
Genius has released a new pair of noise-cancellation headphones, the GHP-04NCs. Inverted signals are used to cancel out background sound. The headphones are additionally equipped with a 40mm bass driver, plus leather earpads, a soft headband sponge, and swiveling earcups.
People looking to use headphones of their own with the newest iPod shuffle will have to be patient, Apple is said to have confirmed. The problem arises from the control scheme for the updated player, which has shifted almost entirely to proprietary Apple earbuds. At the moment the player is rendered useless without them, Apple notes.
Ultrasone has debuted the Edition 8, the latest addition to its series of headphones geared for audiophiles. The closed headphones feature a 40mm titanium-plated driver and a neodymium magnet that provide a frequency range of 6 Hz to 42 kHz and a sound pressure level of 96 dB. The interior ear-cups are lined with Ethiopian sheepskin, while the outer cups are plated in Ruthenium. Both the standard 1.2m cord and the 4m extension are built with oxygen-free copper cable and gold plated plugs.
In brief: Future Sonics has announced that new models of the Atrio earphones are shipping and that visitors to its booth at NAMM will be able to receive free ear impressions. Canvastic has announced that it will be continuing to search for technology leaders among school districts and those that meet a list of criteria will receive licenses for Canvastic 3.5. Freeverse has submitted a new racing game to the App Store and in anticipation of its launch a tutorial for using the included track editor has been posted.
Electronics builder Memorex has announced a collection of new audio-video systems, generally focused around support for Apple handhelds. The Mi9490P is nominally a slot-loading CD player with an FM radio, but also features a dock on top which supports both iPods and iPhones. Output is rated at 30W, and the stereo also features an LCD with track display and adjustable equalizer settings. A related system is the Mi4290P, an alarm clock. Though it drops the CD player and equalizer, and is capable of just 10W of output, the clock retains an FM tuner and LCD display along with support for iPods and iPhones. Dual alarms allow couples to wake at different times.
Demonstrating at booth 1902 during Macworld, Griffin has revealed a number of the new iPod and iPhone accessories it will ship during the coming year. Prominent amongst these is the TuneBuds Fit, a pair of in-ear headphones with an "anatomically correct" curved design, meant to more comfortably slide into the ear canal. The shell of the headphones is made of aluminum, claimed to dampen resonance, while sound is produced via 10mm drivers. Fits should begin shipping in February for $50.
In brief: Limit Point Software gas announced a holiday promotion for its products called "The Everything Bundle," which includes a package of their applications at a greatly reduced price. Another bundle has been put together by three different developers dubbed the "Mac Switcher Bundle," which offers TextExpander, 1Password and Witch. Meanwhile, Flying Mac has announced that FarFinder and WebJimbo, their Macintosh remote access products are now on sale. Electronista has reviewed the Able Planet Sound Clarity Wireless Headphones, favoring the comfort of wearing these headphones but found that when moving out of the signals "sweet spot" a hiss was introduced.
Apple has begun selling its special In-Ear Headphones with Remote and Mic, which should ship to buyers in approximately seven to 10 workdays. The headphones are meant to serve as an upgrade to Apple's stock earbuds, which do not isolate ambient sound due to sitting outside of the ear canal. The new gear is also equipped with separate tweeters and woofers in each earpiece, and has inline controls that can adjust volume, or play, pause and skip tracks.
Wi-Gear on Thursday launched the newest version of its iMuffs wireless headphones, now compatible with the iPhone. Already designed for iPod touches and clickwheel players, the upgrade offers an improved Bluetooth radio, with increased range and less radio interference. According to Wi-Gear, the iMuffs MB220s will also enable customers to receive phone calls by speaking through an integrated microphone.
Nokia on Thursday introduced a range of headphones, including the wire-free Bluetooth BH-504 set alongside the wired WH-500, WH-202 and WH-800 sets. The BH-504 set doubles as a headset and features echo cancellation and noise reduction technology built in for clearer conversations. The headphones sport dedicated music controls including a volume adjustment. The folding headphones are battery-powered and rated at 7.5 hours of playback time, 9 hours of talk time and can stand by for 90 hours.
German headphone company Ultrasone has released its latest set, the PRO 900. This closed-back headphone features 40mm Titanium-plated drivers that incorporate magnetic shielding and "S-Logic Plus" technology claimed to enhance the listening experience. Two sets of velvet covered earpads are included, and a choice of spiral or straight cables. Regarding performance specs, the frequency range is 6Hz-42kHz, with 40 Ohm impedance, and sound pressure levels of 96 dB.
Peripheral maker Razer has announced a new headset, the Megalodon. Intended for gaming, the unit has a microphone for voice chats and commands, with sensitivity adjustable through a desk-based control module. The headset's focus however is on simulating 7.1-channel surround sound, a task handled through a decoder which Razer claims is eight times faster than similar chipsets. As necessary, the control module also lets users toggle back to 2.0-channel sound, and tweak settings for bass, volume and positioning.
Amazing Tech Products on Wednesday unveiled Purebuds, a set of earbud-style headphones that are designed to reduce damage done to the internal workings of the ear through "Reverse Sound Technology". Rather than driving sound directly into the ear, Purebuds fire towards the back of the earbud, reflecting the sound back to the eardrum. Amazing Tech Products is offering the digital Purebuds for $50, and are currently available from the company's website with free shipping.
On Monday, Swedish designer and manufacturer of digital media accessories, Jays, announced the release of its m-Jays Music Adapter to allow its earphone range to be used with Apple's iPhone. The 3.5mm mini-plug is skinny enough to allow connection to the iPhone's recessed headphone port at one end, and any standard set of headphones with a similar jack on the other. Both are gold-plated.
Accessory maker H20 has introduced a new product for iPods, the iSH2 headset. The unit is designed explicitly for second-generation Shuffles, and waterproofs them to a depth of 10 feet. The Shuffle is safeguarded in a case on the back of the head, which still has controls for playing, pausing and skipping tracks; the silicon earbuds are meanwhile designed to hold out water, when used in tandem with included earplugs, and can clip to swimming goggles.
In brief: We have a review of PowerPhones Pro headphones, RAM upgrades for the new iMacs are available, a guide to FileMaker-driven Web sits debuts, and an iPod cord wrap for tangle-less headphones has been released... We have posted a review of the PowerPhones Pro headphones, which ship in a simple easily recyclable cardboard box, but inside the earphones are tucked in a stylish silver case. A velvet storage bag and an extra set of flanged silicone ear buds for smaller ears are carefully packed under foam in the case. For the price, I expected a second set of each size in a zip-lock bag, as are found in many other comparably priced earphones. The unique PowerPhones Pro design makes them easier to use when moving. An around-the-neck lanyard doubles as a headphone wire and the weight of the headphone wires reduced the possibility of the ear buds accidentally popping out of the ears.
Sony today unveiled a pair of 'personal field speakers' (site not updated) that act similar to headphones as well as new multimedia speakers designed to produce high quality audio. The company's new PFR-V1 personal field speakers are designed to create a listening field around the ears, projecting music through two 1-inch die-cast aluminum speakers connected with a headband made of lightweight duralumin metal. Sony's PFR-V1 personal field speakers are slated for shipment in April for around $500.
TEAC recently unveiled the inCore Audio ZE-1000 headphones that use high-definition drivers to provide rich and lifelike sound. TEAC claims the headphones provide a full range of audio, and provide superior sound isolation due to a five-layer cushion around the driver. The speakers use a balanced armature, which reportedly gives natural dynamics to sound, and layers of textures and subtleties. TEAC did not mention pricing or availability for the inCore Audio ZE-1000 headphones.
Griffin yesterday unveiled several new products at CES, with the releases centered on home, personal, and automotive audio products, with a few power-related items as well. Griffin’s popular iTrip saw another revision, dubbed the iTrip AutoPilot with SmartScan. The updated iTrip FM transceiver displays RDS information on any capable car stereo, while the new SmartScan technology automatically seeks out the three best FM frequencies to broadcast over. The new AutoPilot charger puts music controls within easy reach of the driver; the controls sit on the back of the charging unit. iTrip AutoPilot with SmartScan will ship during the second quarter for $100.
