Consumer electronics business icon Jeff Coombs has passed away. Coombs is best known as the founder of two electronics brands, James Loudspeaker and Ambisonic Systems. He was president of Ambisonic sales at Origin Acoustics. Coombs died Monday, Feb. 20, 2023, in Palm Desert, California, after a battle with cancer, surrounded by family who loved and […]

PowerShades and Bond Home announced that PowerShades’ RF remote-controlled automated window shades are now compatible with the Bond Bridge Pro. The Bond Bridge Pro ($379) brings app-based (smart phone, tablet) control and integrates with home automation systems and voice activation platforms. This new compatibility with Bond Bridge Pro will allow PowerShades’ automated shades to integrate […]

Pure Resonance Audio just unveiled the S6.1 and the S8.1, two 70-volt surface mount loudspeakers for outdoor applications. The S6.1 and the S8.1 offer “high-fidelity audio with exclusive Optimal Bass Enhancement radiator technology that delivers an enhanced low-end for a richer and more robust full-range sound while maintaining an IP65 rating for indoor and outdoor […]

Last month, Women in Consumer Technology (WiCT) added Amanda “Mandy” Beckner, CEDIA’s vice president of education and training, and Norma Garcia-Muro, vice president of marketing at Kaleidescape, to its board. We sat down with Beckner and Garcia-Muro to chat about their recent appointment and their plans for the organization. rAVe: What motivated you to join […]

CEDIA has announced the opening of the 2023 CEDIA Smart Home Awards (formerly, CEDIA Awards). The new title “aligns with CEDIA’s mission to increase awareness of CEDIA and the industry among consumers and allied trades.” Additional changes to the program include a new Health, Sustainability or Wellness Project category and redefined level definitions in the […]

Draper announced a new square, triangle and overlap shade product for all sorts of unusual window sizes. The Gabled Bottom-Up FlexShade can be sill-mounted in the window. It can handle angles up to 45 degrees in either direction. The shade panel is kept under constant tension by thin cables that deploy from tensioned spring boxes […]

It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a show like this. I am proud to say we sent reporters from rAVe [PUBS] to every single booth at ISE 2023 earlier this month to shoot videos of new (and returning!) products. No other company went to every single booth. We amassed a cache of more […]

Welcome to my 23rd annual Kayye’s Krystal Ball! I wonder if this will be my last … are you bored yet? To think I have been opining this column for 23 years is stunning to me. I am humbled by your loyal readership, and I continue to be amazed by how many of you read […]

CEDIA announced the launch of CEDIA NextGen: Smart Home Career Toolkit. This new collection of free resources, designed to complement CEDIA’s existing workforce development programs, aims to help the global CEDIA channel build awareness of industry employment opportunities and recruit new hires. A note from me: This is something every CEDIA member needs to and […]

Emerald’s new Commercial Integrator Expo announced a partnership with Higher Education Technology Managers Alliance (HETMA), an advocacy organization focused on the higher education AV industry, as a supporting organization for Commercial Integrator Expo 2023. As a result, Commercial Integrator Expo 2023 will feature educational opportunities, market insights, subject matter experts and networking addressing the needs […]

Whenever you meet with your financial planner, and they discuss investments like mutual funds, one of the standard cover-their-ass sentences you see in the printed materials is “past returns do not predict future performance.” That’s true of many things. What was once Hot often becomes Not, and occasionally vice versa. So, I had a meeting […]

The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team competing in the National Football League (NFL). Since their beginning in 1933, the Eagles have been a Philadelphia institution. The team plays their home games at Lincoln Financial Field. Nestled within the South Philadelphia Sports Complex, the Lincoln Financial Field is a nearly 20-year-old stadium with […]

At the ISE 2023 show in Barcelona, Artnovian launched an all-in-one LED sky patter for the ceiling of home theaters, offices, playrooms and even living rooms. Dubbed the Cosmos Starlight Panel, it produces a soft, ambient glow that transforms a space into a star-filled nightscape. Easy to install and configure, with full control via App, […]

Legrand Shading Systems today introduced Cord Keeper, a safe, compliant solution for chain-operated shades. The Cord Keeper complies with existing chain regulations, including ANSI/WCMA A100.1-2018 in the U.S. and the latest corded window covering regulations under the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act (SOR/2019-97). Cord Keeper can be ordered with any new manual shades or can […]

Snap One has announced the international availability of the ClareVision Color At Night series IP surveillance cameras that leverage wider apertures, Sony Starvis sensors and integrated LED lighting to deliver improved nighttime visibility. By replacing IR illuminators with newer technologies, the Color At Night series eliminates IR reflections from rain or snow while using PoE, […]

AudioControl‘s new lineup of X-Series immersive processors and receivers feature HDMI 2.1 with HDCP2.3 support and accept 8K signals. These 16-channel immersive audio preamp/processors and AVRs enable home theater specialists and AV integrators to create systems that support immersive surround formats, such as 9.1.6 Dolby Atmos, Auro 3D, DTS:X and IMAX Enhanced, with 16-channels of […]

Just Add Power is now shipping its 4K60 MaxColor Series 2 solutions, which feature KVM support, a fiber port connection, and audio return channel (ARC). The new MC-TX2 transmitter and MC-RX2 receiver natively support 4K60Hz in and out, allowing end users to play HDR video, including Dolby Vision and HDR10+ formats, using the growing number […]

McIntosh just launched its new MHT300 Home Theater Receiver, a 7.2 channel home theater receiver. The MHT300 delivers 120 to 150 Watts of McIntosh power to every speaker, with all seven channels being driven and supports 8K/60Hz and 4K/120Hz video on all four of its HDMI inputs and one HDMI output. Its individual amplifier modules […]

Women in Consumer Technology (WiCT) has added two new members to its advisory board. Amanda “Mandy” Beckner, CEDIA’s vice president of education and training, and Norma Garcia-Muro, vice president of marketing at Kaleidescape. This bring the board’s total to 16 members, including founder Carol Campbell. The advisory board counsels WiCT on its education, coaching and […]

Kordz just launched SlimCat, a 4mm diameter Category 6 cable that works with standard RJ45 crimp connectors and RJ45 keystone sockets. A cabling solution developed to streamline installation in smaller spaces or where retrofitting cable is difficult, SlimCat fills a void in the industry while supporting 100W PoE++ and delivering 1Gbps network connectivity up to […]

The PPDS cloud platform, Wave, officially goes live at ISE with new energy-saving features and partnerships. PPDS, aka Philips professional displays, has announced the official launch of its Wave ecosystem. The new cloud platform is complemented with a dedicated ProStore marketplace for premium PPDS and certified development partner applications, all integrating with Philips professional displays […]

Today Canon announced the upcoming Add-On Applications System for PTZ (Pan-Tilt-Zoom) remote cameras that will provide access to add new paid video production features, beginning with auto tracking and auto loop applications for the company’s flagship 4K PTZ camera, the CR-N700. The auto-tracking application will give the CR-N700 the ability to automatically pan, tilt and […]

Following on the heels of Crestron’s recent NETGEAR partnership, Origin Acoustics also announced a new strategic partnership with NETGEAR that allows them to resell and support NETGEAR’s CI-focused wired and wireless offerings. All models of the NETGEAR AV’s M4250 and M4300 lines of managed switches and five models of the Pro WiFi Access Point products are now available directly from […]

SoundTube Entertainment debuts the MCA2004t Audio Distribution Amplifier at ISE 2023 in Barcelona, Spain, from Jan. 31 through Feb. 3, 2023, at stand 7-A400 in Fira Barcelona Gran Via. The new amplifier is currently in production and scheduled to ship globally later this quarter. The compact MCA2004t amp is designed for continuous use in commercial […]

McIntosh Group companies Sonus faber and McIntosh are both set to world-debut exciting new products at ISE 2023, against a McIntosh/Sonus faber home theatre system backdrop (editor’s note: our founder, Gary Kayye, saw this at CEDIA and said it was the best demo he’s ever seen — read about it below: BEST Demo at CEDIA […]

Screen Research says they are the first screen manufacturer to have received certification from the Professional Video Alliance (PVA). The materials for Screen Research’s ClearPix, SolidPix, and FusionPix series of screens will be featured as part of the Adeo Group’s exhibit at ISE 2023, Stand 2L600. The PVA thoroughly tests video products to ensure that […]

Pure Resonance Audio has expanded its portfolio of commercial ceiling speaker products with the C5 Micro 4″ 70-volt ceiling mount speaker. Similar to its sister product, the extremely versatile C3, the new C5 70V in-ceiling speaker adds an additional inch in diameter, making this speaker a larger option that offers a more robust sound yet […]

Bolin Technology just launched new dual-stream Dante AV PTZ cameras. Making their debut at ISE 2023 in Barcelona, the new D412UH and D220UH are some of the first PTZ cameras in the AV-Over-IP industry to offer simultaneous hardware and software codec streaming to multiple endpoints, providing total flexibility in network bandwidth and image quality selection. […]

Snap One has announced that the new Luma x20 family of surveillance products is now available to Partners online and at Snap One Partner Stores. Previewed at CEDIA 2022, the x20 family features products that are fully NDAA-compliant, deliver the latest AI-powered security features and provide customers greater peace of mind while simplifying installation and […]

Sony Electronics is launching two scalable new series of its Crystal LED premium displays series. The BH-series (ZRD-BH12D and ZRD-BH15D) and the CH-series (ZRD-CH12D and ZRD-CH15D) are designed for corporations, retail environments and screening rooms. Both new series will be available in a P1.2mm and P1.5mm pixel pitch and deliver the exceptional picture quality and […]

Commercial Integrator Expo, owned and produced by Emerald, the new exposition and conference for the commercial audiovisual integration channel and technology managers co-located with CEDIA Expo, announces a partnership with Digital Signage Federation (DSF), the only not-for-profit independent voice of the digital signage ecosystem, as a supporting organization for the show. Commercial Integrator Expo 2023 […]

Neutrik Americas announced an advancement to its powerCON and speakON product lines. New XX series powerCON blue/grey and speakON two- and four-pole cable connectors feature new functionality, easier assembly, improved power handling capabilities, new certifications to all relevant modern safety standards, and a beautiful next-generation design language. Both the powerCON and speakON XX series connectors […]