Audio

Bose launched a new audio product in late 2018, in the shape of two pairs of sunglasses equipped with tiny speakers and a microphone. And clearly the company has had some success with them as three more flavors have now joined the Frames lineup.

Facebook's Reality Labs Research wing is currently working on a number of projects designed to help us cut through noisy environments and zero in on folks we're trying to hold a conversation with, or enhance our daily lives when used with AR glasses.

Some living room hi-fi amplifiers no longer have their own dedicated phono stage, meaning that the output from a turntable will need a boost from a little box called a preamp. The latest to come from the UK's iFi Audio is the Zen Phono.

Pro-Ject has announced the next generation of its affordable Debut line of turntables. The Debut Carbon Evo retains the company's minimalist design but brings improved damping, better motor noise elimination and built-in speed control.

Five years after releasing a stylish smartpen, NeoLab Convergence has launched a Kickstarter for a recording device called the Reco that works with its Smartpen and Ncoded paper to match written notes with what's being recorded.

Late in 2018, Røde launched the Rødecaster Pro, the "world's first fully integrated podcast production studio. But its need for mains power made casting on the road a challenge. The Maonocaster solves that drawback thanks to a built-in battery.

You might be used to finding your lost smartphone on a map, but what about your other gadgets? Skullcandy has teamed up with tracking experts Tile to create a new series of true wireless earbuds that you can locate using an app on your phone.

COVID-19 has put paid to big tech events for now, but companies are still pushing out their wares. Microsoft is the latest firm to launch new hardware: the Surface Book 3, the Surface Go 2, the Surface Headphones 2, and the new Surface Earbuds.

Google first dipped its toes into wireless earbuds with the original Pixel Buds in 2017. Having been announced last October, the new and improved Pixel Buds are now on sale in the US, ready to give Apple's AirPods even stronger competition.

Digital music players and smartphones pretty much caused an extinction event for portable analog audio. But RecordingTheMasters is banking on a comeback for tapes with the launch of Mystik portable audio cassette player.

Digital modeling of vintage guitar amps has been getting better and better over the years, but there are folks who swear that the tone emulations just don't sound authentic. Research out of Finland's Aalto University suggests otherwise.

We've seen a lot of wireless earbuds launch in recent years – many off the back of the runaway success of the Apple AirPods – and Samsung today launched a 2020 upgrade for its Galaxy Buds pair, as well as a bunch of phones.