dealerscope

LG has announced the pricing and availability of its 2023 lineup of soundbars. This year’s lineup features two new products – the   SC9 and SE6 . Both of the new soundbars models boast triple level spatial sound and a triple artificial intelligence sound optimizer, which analyzes audio content and automatically applies the most appropriate settings. Additionally, the   soundbars   feature VRR to reduce screen tearing, and ALLM to eliminate lag while also permitting up to 4K and 120Hz pass-through. The SC9 and SE6 cost $999 and $450, respectively.   In other news, Cody Browne has been named the new vice president of marketing at Howard’s. Joining the premier independent appliance retailer’s leadership team, Browne will be responsible for managing the marketing process from research and planning to execution and analysis. With years of experience leading international brands, including Starbucks and Adidas, Browne was most recently di...

  Sony Electronics has announced its latest projectors, which the company is touting as the “world’s smallest WUXGA 3LCD laser projectors.” The models are the  VPL-PHZ61 and the VPL-PHZ51 , and both come outfitted with 4K projection and 55 percent vertical shift capabilities. The VPL-PHZ61has 6,400 lumens and the VPL-PHZ51 has 5,300. Throughout the press release, as well as on the projectors’  webpages , it appears that the intended use cases lie in conference rooms and classrooms. “Many of our customers struggle to find display solutions that provide both exceptional high brightness and sophisticated features that can enhance their content and overall user experience,” said Rich Ventura, Vice President of B2B, Sony Electronics, in a press release. “We don’t want our customers to compromise on any of these asks, which is why we’ve built upon our existing legacy in developing feature-rich laser projectors, to provide compact and advanced projectors to the market. These pro...

  Coffee and tea enthusiasts have probably at some time come across the company  Fellow . It’s a popular maker and seller of high-end brewing equipment, such as kettles that hold their precisely set temperatures for extended periods of time, and  today it has announced  perhaps the most high-end — and high-tech — of electric kettles. The new Stagg EKG Pro can adjust for altitude so the water inside doesn’t boil over, schedule a set time to begin heating and set presets for various types of coffee or tea. The Stagg EKG Pro Studio Edition does all that with a fancier, metal-and-glass design. Launching this month, the EKG Pro starts at $195 and the EKG Pro Studio Edition starts at $225. In other news, yesterday the European Parliament approved a law that will  require devices to use a USB-C  charging port by the end of 2024. While some devices already charge using USB-C, one of the most talked about companies that will have to adapt to this law is Apple. Apple...

iPhone users that have downloaded the latest iOS 16 operating   system   have reported a number of issues ranging from copy and paste bugs to shaky cameras when using certain apps. These issues come from unintended bugs that slipped through the company’s notice before the first version of iOS 16 was released. But iPhone users won’t have to deal with these annoyances much longer as   Apple will soon be releasing   a new version of the system that fixes these issues. This update is supposed to come out next week, though the specific day is currently unknown. In other operating system related news, the “first major update” to Windows 11 has just been released by Microsoft. Some of the noteworthy features include app folders in the Start menu, a number of new accessibility features, drag and drop capabilities on the taskbar and an assortment of touch gestures and animations. Despite the launch of the Windows 11 2022 Update, as it’s being called, it will not be ...

  The announcement of  Nationwide Marketing Group’s partnership with Thermador  last week at  PrimeTime  solidified the commitment made by the CE, furniture, and  appliance buying group  to put a focus on luxury appliances. “Luxury appliances have a longer sales cycle and a very different customer journey,” explained John O’Halloran, Senior Merchant, Luxury Appliances, at Nationwide Marketing Group. “There is more research on the part of the consumer, more people involved in the decision making, and obviously more money.” Nationwide Learning Aca d emy now offers  Luxury University  which was created to help educate  independent retailers  on how to navigate the different sales cycles for luxury appliances. The Luxury University includes in-person events for  appliance retailers  to feel comfortable in the space, learn more about the products, and enjoy a bit of the luxury they provide. This year at PrimeTime, Thermador and...

  A recent survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Commerce found that the United States is facing a daunting shortage of semiconductor chips , which are used to manufacture cars, electronics, medical devices, and other products. At the moment, median inventory among chip consumers in the U.S. is down to just five days from 40 days prior to the start of the pandemic. This means that if something unforeseen were to happen to current chip production, such as another COVID-19 outbreak, most companies would only be able to manufacture products for 5 days before being forced to shut down.  Between 2019 and 2021, demand for chips has grown a whopping 17 percent while the supply of chips saw no relative growth. Increasing chip-making capacity is a process that requires significant amounts of lead times and financial investment. For example, Intel has announced that it is investing $20 billion to create chip plants in Ohio, but the factories are only set to begin...

  THE DAILY SCOPE, 1/19/22: BodyGuardz, a device protection solutions provider, released its new Pure 3 screen protector for the Apple iPhone 13. According to BodyGuardz, it is the first and only screen protector to be awarded the Green Product Mark by TÜV Rheinland . The Pure 3 is made up of 30 percent recycled glass and is five times stronger than the stand-alone phone screen. BodyGaurdz also utilizes post-consumer recycled cardboard and biodegradable components in its packaging of the Pure 3 to make sure that every aspect of the wrapping can be curbside recycled . The Green Product Mark certification by TÜV Rheinland is based on three areas of criterion: Prevention of pollution, sustainable use of resources, and climate change mitigation. TÜV Rheinland only awards the certification to companies that responsibly manage their energy usage as well as their air and water pollution footprint. The Green Product Mark is recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection A...

  The smart home is progressing quickly in 2022, and CES covered this topic in a conference session called “Building a Resilient Smart Home .” Hosted by Mitch Klein, executive director at the Z-Wave Alliance, the panel included both security and lighting professionals, including Dr. Haim Amir, CEO and Owner at Essence, Avi Rosenthal, partner at Blue Salve partners, and Melissa Andresko, chief corporate brand ambassador at Lutron Electronics Co., Inc. Security, both from outside threats and from breaches of privacy, were at the forefront of this talk. Homeowners want to know that their homes and their belongings are safe, and they appreciate full control of their home’s entrances and exits. There is now technology from Lutron that enables the home to randomly lower shades and turn lights on and off to mimic someone being home, which reinforces the security system’s motion sensors and cameras. There is also emerging security for inside the home when it comes to safety. Technology c...

  Have the inside scoop on what products are making big waves in the consumer electronics industry ? Let us know and nominate them for Dealerscope’s 2022 IMPACT Awards. Dealerscope is looking for groundbreaking tech that’s drawing consumers into stores and pioneering solutions for the future. Once all nominations have been received, we will have a team of esteemed judges to pick the winners. Also our editors will pick their “Editors Choice Award” as well.” The winners will be recognized with a physical award and featured in Dealerscope’s special CES Digimag issue and will be announced during CES. We will also take a closer look at the winning products in our February issue as well. Embargoed products can be entered since no announcements will be made until CES.

Launched by a mix of photographers and technology entrepreneurs two years ago, Berlin Photo Week (BPW) will be held again for the second time since 2019 on August 26-29, 2021 at the Haubentaucher, a multipurpose events venue with exhibition spaces, restaurants, clubs, and a swimming pool in Berlin’s Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district. In addition to booths and installations by major photography brands such as Sony, Panasonic, FujiFilm, and Leica, the three-day event will offer workshops, Instagram-friendly shooting stations, photo tours, lectures, and even opportunities to buy both used and the latest new cameras. In addition, exhibitions of work by established and emerging photographers alike will be held at satellite locations in galleries, museums, and other points of interest across the city. Even though one of its major partner exhibitions, IFA Berlin, won’t take place again until 2022, BPW will continue as scheduled. While it was originally meant as a more art-and-lifestyle-focuse...

Known best for its sound systems, bookshelf speakers, and personal audio devices, Chinese audio company Edifier announced the July release of its new NeoBuds Pro, which are among the first true wireless earbuds to receive Hi-Res Audio certification. The NeoBuds Pro blends a dynamic driver, a Knowles balanced armature, and a LHDC+AAC codec that allows for the transmitting of 96kHz 24Bit HD audio over Bluetooth. The 24Bit HD audio allows for greater sound resolution in comparison to the standard 16Bit found in most earbuds, with an end result that’s close r to what is heard by musicians and engineers in the studio. The NeoBuds Pro bi-amping with DSP-based active crossover technology precisely splits the Bluetooth electrical signal into high and low frequencies before reaching the amplifiers in the earbuds. Within the earbuds, there are two separate amplifiers that create sound: the dynamic driver and the Knowles balanced armature. The dynamic driver provides the bass using magnetic techn...

It’s probably not hyperbole to state that Fall 2021 will be the most unpredictable back-to-school season retailers have ever faced. As we lurch back to normal from a year of almost exclusive remote learning, most parents (and kids) are expecting to see students return to the classroom. But there is still some understandable hesitation to a full return, and how that will play out in terms of retail trends remains in question. Will families look for traditional back-to-school tech, or plan for more homeschooling? A recent survey of parents in Massachusetts, for example, found that almost 70 percent want their children to go back to in-person scho oling this fall — while about 28 percent still want a hybrid or fully remote learning option. Either way, analysts and tech companies say some of the technologies adopted during the pandemic are here to stay. “Of course, the laptop is the centerpiece of coursework,” notes Ross Rubin, principal analyst at Reticle Research. So he believes that dem...

Beko U.S., a subsidiary of Europe’s leading home appliance brand stands by their refrigerators so much that they are willing to put their money where their mouth is. The Fresh Produce Promise, launching on May 27, promises customers that their fruits and vegetables will remain fresh for 30 days with Beko’s EverFresh+ technology or their money back. The global home appliance manufacturer says they will work with dealers to ensure customers’ full satisfaction with their refrigerator purchases. In order to qualify for a refund or store credit, customers must keep their refrigerators for the full 30-day freshness cycle and fulfill a few simple requirements detailed on Beko’s dealer-specific webpage. The Fresh P roduce Promise applies to all ten Beko refrigerator models that include the advanced technology, including French door, side-by-side, top-freezer and bottom-freezer models. Because of their safe and efficient pandemic plan, Beko is one of the few appliance manufacturers with signifi...

1. What has been happening in the last couple of months in your business sector? Every spring/summer marks the new model year for TVs.  This year’s new TV models have more significant video display technology upgrades and enhancements that exploit the abilities of the new 4K HDR TV Video System.  Brighter OLED TVs not only deliver brighter images and better HDR and improved DCI P3 with good color saturation and full color volume, but it also gives the users another technical advantage that has not been discussed yet and that’s the much larger dynamic tonal range.  The larger dynamic tonal range that is only possible with LG’s G1 Gallery Series and Sony’s A90J Master Series OLED TVs gives the images more detail and the perception is a sharper and more real to life detailed picture. Larger screen sizes with these new high-performance OLED TVs are now available up to 83”, ranging from 55”, 65”, 77” and now the 83” class. Samsung’s new Neo series includes a beautiful range of...

  Voting for  Dealerscope’s inaugural Audience Awards  is now open! For the 2021 Dealerscope Audience Awards, we’re asking YOU, our avid readers, to help us choose which products truly stand out in the consumer tech industry. The products up for recognition this year span a wide range of categories from audio, to smart home, to accessories, and more. All you have to do is go through the list and select the products you feel are innovative, practical, and worthy of a Dealerscope Audience Award. You may choose as many or as little as you’d like. Please make sure to scroll all the way to the bottom of the form so you don’t miss any. Once you’re finished, click “submit” to ensure your vote is counted. Voting closes on Friday, July 23. Vote Now

Despite the lack of any hard evidence to back up his claims of TikTok as a “national security threat,” Donald Trump had seemingly set his sights on taking down the wildly popular looping video social media network as one of his last orders of business as president. Luckily, the former president struck a deal that kept the app alive (and somewhat under U.S. control), enabling brands to still reap the benefits that TikTok has to offer. Perhaps the most eye-opening statistic from Adweek revealed that 49 percent of TikTok users have made a purchase after seeing a product appear on the platform. Comparatively, the survey found that 41 percent of adults reported purchasing something after seeing it on Facebook. That eight percent upper hand doesn’t seem like a big deal on its own, but when you consider just how much longer Facebook has been around compared to TikTok, which was founded in 2016, it is impressive. What’s even more interesting about the purchasing power TikTok holds is that the ...

Citing continued international travel restrictions and rising COVID-19 variants across the globe, the organizers of CE China 2021, which was scheduled to be held from September 16th to September 18th, announced that the show has been canceled. Held at the Guangzhou Poly World Trade Center in Guangzhou, China, the annual event connects international electronics and appliance manufacturers with some of the biggest retailers across Asia, including Suning and Tmall/Alibaba. This year’s event was meant to be a return to the traditional company booth and show floor format, with a special German manufacturer pavilion and brands such as Changhong, Cuori, Galanz, Konka, Vatti, and Whirlpool signed on as exhibitors. As a result of the pandemic, last year‘s stripped-down version of the show, dubbed the CE Summit, featured a mix of workshops,  speakers, and exhibitors showcasing new products on a stage before an audience of mask-wearing, socially-distanced attendees.  “Of course, this wa...

After a devastating year that saw the Olympic games thrown off of their quadrennial cycle due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it is a major relief to see the global community once again gather under the banner of sports. Set to kick off on July 23, the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games is bound to be one of the most-watched sporting events to date. In anticipation of this highly touted event, Comcast Xfinity this week announced plans to optimize viewer accessibility to Olympic content across its three major platforms: Xfinity X1 (TV), Xfinity Flex (Internet), and Xfinity Stream (mobile app). In the American market, NBC has held exclusive broadcasting rights to the Summer games since 1988, and the Winter games since 2002. In 2011, Comcast purchased NBC’s parent company NBCUniversal which has a monopoly over Olympic content via the NBC network, Telemundo, the Olympic Channel, and the streaming service Peacock.  This relationship gives Xfinity customers unparalleled access to NBCUniversal’s 7...

Voting for Dealerscope’s inaugural Audience Awards is now open! For the 2021 Dealerscope Audience Awards, we’re asking YOU, our avid readers, to help us choose which products truly stand out in the consumer tech industry. The products up for recognition this year span a wide range of categories from audio, to smart home, to accessories, and more. All you have to do is go through the list and select the products you feel are innovative, practical, and worthy of a Dealerscope Audience Award. You may choose as many or as little as you’d like. Please make sure to scroll all the way to the bottom of the form so you don’t miss any. Once you’re finished, click “submit” to ensure your vote is counted. Get detailed info:  Vote Now in Dealerscope’s Audience Awards Important Link:  Appliance Distributors

  Miami’s bustling design district, known for its sleek architecture, luxury boutiques and celebrity-chef restaurants will be receiving a new tenant in 2022.   On June 23,  BSH Home Appliances  announced it would be opening an Experience and Design Center in Miami to showcase its newest product innovations. BSH’s Experience and Design Centers give consumers the opportunity to interact with home appliances from Bosch, Thermador and Gaggenau, and to see their products in action during live cooking demonstrations.    The Miami Experience and Design Center will be located in an 8,000 square foot showcase on the top floor of the Design 41 building within Miami’s design district. Thomas Staebler, Head of Experience and Design Centers, North America, for BSH Home Appliances said, “By strategically locating our new space within Miami’s bu stling Design District, we will be where consumers, designers, builders and trade professionals alike come for design ...