June 25th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
More good news. This month, Rocketfish started selling two new wireless headphone models in Best Buy stores nationwide. There are two models, the RF-WHP01 and RF-WHP02. Each model has Avnera’s first generation wireless audio system, which at this point is popping up in many other places.
Both models are targeted at TV and home AV environments.
Key application usages:
- Watching TV at night without disturbing house-mates (Killer frickin’ app)
- Enhancing TV/AV audio for people with diminished hearing
- Listening to music from iPod dock, PC, home stereo while cooking dinner, doing housework, etc.
The RF-WHP01 and RF-WHPo2 are both very similar models, with the primary difference being:
- RF-WHP02 is mainly targeted at TV users, so it offers some hook-up flexibility. Including a boom mic option for older sets that don’t have supplementary audio outputs. This is also a quick and dirty way for someone to enjoy music at a higher volume level than others also watching the same TV, without headphones.
- RF-WHP02 has a spatial enhancement feature to enhance stereo sound.
- RF-WHP02 also offers some voice enhancement meant for people with diminished hearing who have difficulty picking out speech when watching TV.
- RF-WHP01 has black trim. The RF-WHP02 has metallic maroon trim.
The RF-WHP01 & RFWHP02 are available now at Best Buy stores. As of the writing of this article, they are not yet available online, though that’s only a matter of time.
UPDATE: They are available now online: RF-WHP01 for $79.99 and RF-WHP02 for $99.99.
To get a sense of what a killer deal this is… compare this to Sony’s 2.4GHz and the 60-some dB SNR 900 MHz junk that is still hanging around…
So forget IR, forget 900 MHz, forget paying north of $200… pick up a pair of Rocketfish headphones that just work.
October 23rd, 2007 at 4:15 am
HONG KONG — So for those who can put 2 and 2 and 4 together, it may not come as a suprise that I work for a company called Avnera. I’ve not mentioned it before since we’ve been in “stealth” mode, which has its advantages, no doubt. But it’s also a good thing when the story does get out, and that has begun as we issue our first press release and make some early product announcements with some of our early customers… customers whose products have been much discussed here at Alive Matters. Namely the RF-WHTIB from Rocketfish and the AWD210 from Acoustic Research.
Here’s a list of public information and press coverage of our company and products:
Additional coverage will be seeping out over the coming days, and most folks around Avnera are happy to be able to tell their families what the late hours have been about for the past 3.5 years.
It’s kinda funny to read how our meticulously crafted and technically-precise pitch has been interpreted and relayed to the masses. The craft of stroytelling and reporting is one I’ve grown up understanding from my father, who was a journalist by training and throughout most his life, lived with the spirit of storytelling. But as a technically-minded, detail-oriented person — who from day two has been continuously tasked with helping craft our “story” — to see what happens as the meat passes through a writer/critic’s gray-matter is a minor roller coaster. But overall, I am gratified that the core of our message has penetrated through. Our technology comes from a fundamentally sound, grounds-up systems-based approach to problem solving, and delivers a wireless audio solution that is robust and easy to use, and probably most important, affordable enough to enable true, mass-market applications. Premium performance, at mainstream prices. That’s why we’ve been able to raise $40+ Million, all on a positive-slope valuation curve, and enable a diversified set of early customer applications. There are still kinks in these muscles as we continue to “get warm”, and there will be growing pains, as anyone with startup experience knows, but it’s been an exciting adventure for a gadget guy who definitely shares the meaty grin of one of our founders, Chris O’Connor (pictured in today’s local rag, captured at the right).
Personally, I look forward to being able to share more about our progress and our technology. If detailed answers are what you seek, or if you wish to design with Avnera, contact corporate via the web. If you’re an interested tech-geek or general consumer, chime in on threads here at Alive Matters, if it’s fit to print, and I don’t smell a rat, you’ll get the most accurate take on matters that I am at liberty to discuss. And again, this blog is not officially affiliated with Avnera, and it will always be my intention to blog what I can and should. And it follows, that whatever opinions I express are strictly my own.
The covers have been taken off our first two product lines, but there is much more to come, so stay tuned…
October 6th, 2007 at 1:01 am
Logitech ClearChat comfort USB headset is a nice piece. I really believe in usb headphones and headsets. They sound amazing, free of hard drive noise, and other audio imperfections you get from the standard headphone jacks on a PC. Using the USB socket ensures a purely digital stream that is crystal clear and enables cool things like playback controls and volume control from the headset itself via the USB-HID mechanism. HID stands for human interface device and is a way to add control to the mix. Keyboards and things like that use HID. But audio devices that make use of HID opens up many new application possibilities.
I can think of ways to make this experience much better. How about you?
I bet the World of Warcraft and Skype faithful know exactly what I am talking about. How can we make the PC audio experience better?
September 18th, 2007 at 6:37 pm
Heh heh. The Q-Bean. For a while our customer has been telling us this thing was going to be huge. What I can say is that while it’s form factor is quirky, and its marketing even quirkier, the usability and sound quality you’ll experience is unmatched.
There are two variants of the Q-Bean. Basically the main difference is the type of audio transmitter device that it comes with. The Q-Bean-ST comes with a stereo line-input sender device that can run on batteries or be powered from the wall. The Q-Bean-U comes with a USB audio sender, and supports a microphone back-channel.
The Q-Bean-U version is simply plug & play, and converts your favorite pair of headphones into a full blown headset targeted at all manner of PC multimedia applications: Music, DVDs, VoIP, gaming, you name it.
One fascinating bundle that LTB Audio managed to cut was with One Voice. One Voice has a voice recognition software add-on for Windows Media Center that allows you to voice command your PC to do all manner of cool things. The bundle includes the Media Center Communicator application software and a Q-Bean-U, and it’s available on Amazon @ $174.99. It can also be bought directly from One Voice @ 174.99.
The Q-Bean has received a few mentions around the internets of late… check out reviews and listings here:
Q-Bean-U on Amazon.com @ $77.00
Q-Bean-ST on Amazon.com @ $85.00
Q-Bean-U on Radioshack.com @ $119.00
Q-Bean-ST on RadioShack.com @ $129.99
Coverage at Engadget
Coverage at CrunchGear
Review at OverclockersClub
Lust at I4U
September 9th, 2007 at 7:03 pm
Acoustic Research (a division of Audiovox) has recently updated their website to include the AWD210 headphone that Alive Matters mentioned last month. Having listened to these bad-boys not long ago, I can say that the audio quality is actually pretty amazing. Personally, I’d prefer a pair that had a USB transmitter since all my music is on my computer. But for most people, particulary those who know and trust AR, the analog in audio sender will be more appealing.
Alive Matters has also identified a few sites who are taking advanced orders for the AWD210. They are a bit random, but likely tied to a wholesaler that Audiovox works with.
Ambient Weather @ $117.49
Trio Computers @ $117.99
July 26th, 2007 at 2:56 am
This Gizmodo post shows some of the latest products coming from the Audiovox group of companies.
For those who may not know (I didn’t until I checked their website), Audiovox maintains the following brands: Audiovox, Jensen, Advent, Acoustic Research, Phase Linear, and most recently, the accessory business from RCA, which they acquired from Thomson.
Alive Matters is particularly interested in how the market reacts to the AWD210 which will be branded Acoustic Research. Can it deliver a better experience than the old 900 MHz stuff they offered?
Stay tuned…
