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As noted by Macworld, Pioneer has lowered the prices on several of its AirPlay speakers, which have, historically, been offered at a much higher pricing tier than Bluetooth speakers.
The company recently dropped the price of its XW-SMA1 speaker from $299 to $149, while the prices of the XW-SMA3 and XW-SMA4 have similarly been cut in half from $399 to $199. (These changes aren't yet reflected on Pioneer's website, where the latter two speakers are still listed at $399.)
Macworld spoke to a Pioneer representative, who said that the company is aiming to make its AirPlay speakers price competitive with its Bluetooth models, with the hope that lower prices will help consumers to appreciate AirPlay's advantages.
While Bluetooth has been a more affordable option for consumers, AirPlay has a distinct edge, offering a much longer range with the option of utilizing multiple speakers for a complete home audio experience.
Traditionally, AirPlay speakers have been priced higher than Bluetooth speakers due to the cost of licensing the technology from Apple. It is unclear if Pioneer is eating the additional cost or if Apple has made AirPlay licensing more affordable, but with Pioneer lowering the price of its AirPlay speakers, it is likely that other manufacturers may have to follow suit in order to continue to offer competitive pricing.
Top Rated Comments
I really hate saw the old Kuro went off the grid, and now Panasonic is raising the white flag too. I wish all HDTV is plasma :(
Ahh the real Mcintosh ;)
Now that's real audio is all about
Indeed. However Pioneer lost money on every Kuro it sold, even at the premium price point it deserved. That is why it stopped making TV's, the 'KURO' team was sold, or moved to Panansonic and the fruits of their work were seen in last years plasma's. I will keep my 60" KRP600A until it dies [or Apple hire / buy the KURO team and make a 70" Plasma.., which out performs it ;)].
Plasma was always better for gamers. The early LCD's (and in some of the new ones I have seen) suffered from extremely poor motion blurring etc. I have had Panasonic Plasma in my Lounge since 2001 and a Pioneer in a dedicated room since 2009. Both were used with PS2 / PS3 respectively.