AcousticSheep has brought its soft, elastic SleepPhones headphones that are thin and comfortable enough to be worn while sleeping to CES 2015. The company aims for the headphones to provide music or ambient noise to users who need soothing sounds close by as they fall asleep.
Created by a doctor who has trouble falling asleep herself due to frequent patient phone calls late at night, SleepPhones allow users high-quality music options without disturbing anyone trying to sleep nearby. The headphones also provide a decent amount of ambient noise blocking, and offer 10-12 hours of use on a single charge.
SleepPhones are available in multiple models of varying colors, including the original wired Classic model for $39.99, a Bluetooth Wireless version for $99.99, and multiple bundle packages that vary from a three-pack to packed-in ambient noise CDs. New to CES, however, is the unveiling of a new Bluetooth version of the headset that will provide induction charging for an even easier way to keep the device ready for every-night use. The new induction charging model will launch in April for $149.
The SleepPhones and all of their bundle options can be purchased directly from the company's official website.
Automotive convenience system marketer and manufacturer Firstech is showing off its comprehensive vehicle app service DroneMobile at CES 2015. While DroneMobile has been available for some time, the service's latest systems allow customers to remotely interact with their cars in a bevy of ways, including everything from general vehicle status to opening a trunk.
The DroneMobile app connects with a Drone module, which must be installed into a vehicle's remote start or security system, allowing unlimited access to a vehicle. Once done, the app allows users to interact with their cars from anywhere, letting them unlock their cars for friends or start the engines to turn on the air conditioning or heater. The app also provides detailed vehicle maintenance information, sending push notifications when the connected car is broken into by a burglar or impacted in any way.
According to Firstech, DroneMobile is compatable with 100 percent of cars, from imports to luxury vehicles and hybrids. The equipment needed to start using DroneMobile retails at $449.99 for the "Start It" Bundle and $549.99 for the "Max It" bundle, both offering Telematics, GPS, and Remote Start, but only the latter allowing Security features.
On top of these bundles, a yearly subscription to DroneMobile is required to enable full access to the system's features. Bundles are available at a "Basic" level of $49.99 a year allowing Keyless Entry, Remote Start and Alarm Alerts, along with a 90-day free trial, and a "Premium" level of $119.99 a year with everything from the previous level plus GPS Tracking, Alerts, and comprehensive Vehicle Status.
Customers interested in discovering nearby retailers who offer the DroneMobile bundles near them can visit the DroneMobile official website.
Residential lock manufacturer Kwikset revealed its extension of the Kevo platform with Kevo Plus at CES 2015, which features the ability to enable remote access capabilities for the Bluetooth smart lock. Kevo Plus, available this spring, establishes a direct online connection to the Kevo app, letting users lock and unlock their doors from any location in the world.
Previous Kevo account holders will be able to upgrade to Kevo Plus at any time through MyKevo.com, and will receive a free Bluetooth-enabled gateway that plugs into the user's router and allows a secure connection between the Kevo lock and a user's Kevo Plus account. The membership will also allow for unlimited and scheduled eKeys, which users can distribute using the Kevo app to allow guests access to their home immediately or at specific time and dates.
The app doubly serves as an activity monitor for all those accessing and interacting with a user's home Kevo lock unit at any given time. Kwikset promises more upgrades in the future, including Event Scheduling to allow users to plan Kevo's locking or unlocking at predetermined periods and Lock Grouping to let users group multiple Kevo locks and send one eKey for all of them at the same time.
Also revealed today at CES 2015 is a partnership between Kevo and the Nest Learning Thermostat that will allow customers of both devices to set Nest to Home and Away modes through the Kevo app. The partnership is one of fifteen new Works With Nest connections being shown off at CES.
Under Works With Nest, the Kevo app will also prompt users, upon locking their home, to set Nest to an energy-saving Away mode, which they can customize to fit their personal preferences in the Nest itself. In reverse, when a user unlocks his or her home, Kevo will promptly ask to readjust Nest to its natural temperature.
“Kwikset’s integration with Nest is an example of Kwikset’s commitment to improving the Kevo user experience,” says Keith Brandon, director of residential access solutions, Kwikset. “Both Nest and Kwikset add convenience to users’ active, on-the-go lives and we are proud to provide added value for consumers with both products.”
Nest integration is available starting today to Kevo users who have iOS 8 or greater. The iOS Kevo app is available for free on the App Store. [Direct Link]
In addition to its new charging accessories, Griffin at CES 2015 also introduced a new line of cable organizers for the home, office or in-car use. The launch lineup includes the Guide, Sleeve, Hanger and Clip with additional products planned for 2015.
Designed for desktop usage, the Guide features three magnetic cable holders that attach to a steel base. The three cable holders allow you to organize different sized cables in orientations suitable for your desktop needs. The $29.99 Guide will be available in a variety of material options starting in Q2 2015.
The Sleeve is another desktop accessory designed to hide the clutter of multiple cables and prevent them from tangling. As its name implies, the Sleeve is a braided, abrasion resistant sleeve that fits over your cables and self-closes to keep them together. The Sleeve will be available starting in February 2015 in three length options, including 1-foot, 1.5-foot and 2-foot lengths. Pricing starts at $7.99.
For the car, Griffin is pairing its Premium Flat AUX Cable and PowerJolt SE charger with its new Clip holder. The Clip is a flexible silicone holder with slot for both a Lightning connector charge cable and an AUX audio cable. The Clip is designed to hold the pair in an orientation that allows you to plug both cables into your iPhone simultaneously. Compatible with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, the new Car Connections Pack featuring Clip ($39.99) will be available in February 2015.
Lastly, Griffin also introduced the new Hanger, a car mount designed to hold audio and charging cables that are not in use, keeping them off the floor and making them easily accessible. The mount attaches to the car's heating vent and features three molded slots for cables. The $4.99 Hanger will be available starting February 2015.
This week's Consumer Electronics Show has brought the unveiling of the Narrative Clip 2, which is the follow up to the popular portable wearable camera now featuring an improved camera, enhanced light sensitivity, and wide-angle optics. The Narrative Clip 2 features a new 8-megapixel camera system with a range of 86°, along with a built-in Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth radios that allow for a user to access recent moments on the Narrative app for iOS. The camera also contains a new automatic photo capture feature that works with the Narrative Service to automatically sort photos into collections of moments for easy organization and access.
The Narrative Clip 2 comes with 8 GB of storage, but can also automatically upload photos and videos when connected to Wi-Fi to free space quickly. Narrative says that the device's battery life lasts for up to 30 hours on a single charge and comes with a removable mount for multiple clip options. The Narrative Clip 2 will ship later this year and will sell for $199.
iSketchnote demonstrated its iPad note digitization product at CES 2015, showing users a way to automatically transfer notes and sketches created with a real pen into digital files that can be edited and shared on the iPad. The note digitization is mainly handled by the Slate, which is a Bluetooth-enabled writing platform that allows users to place their favorite notebook or a piece of paper on top and draw or write as they normally would with real-time conversion. The Slate's writing surface contains a coating that holds the paper in place and is scratch-resistant, and weighs less than 14 ounces while providing up to 10 hours of battery life in stand-alone mode. The surface also features ports for a micro SD card and micro USB for charging.
Once digitized, users can access their sketches, drawings and notes on their iPad with the free iSketchnote app, which allows for color and pen tip customization along with layer creation for more complex drawing. Users may also share digitized creations with their friends, and can even send them back and forth with enhancements and enable a video replay to share the process of a piece of work.
iSketchnote is also offering pens optimized for the Slate and paper, which naturally glide on paper and contains a permanent magnet ring that is embedded within the base. The pens contain refillable cartridges with high quality ink and are offered in blue, black, and red.
iSketchnote is offering the Slate, two pens, and a premium kickstand-enabled cover for $179.99 in an iSketchnote Pack, which is available for the iPad 3 and newer and all versions of the iPad mini. The company also says the first iSketchnote Pack orders will ship later this year.
Connected products manufacturer Netatmo showed off its new Welcome HD smart home camera at CES 2015, which features the ability to recognize individual members of a family and inform other users as to who is home. The camera, which features a 130 degree field of view, also offers a live video feed with audio that is accessible through an iOS app to monitor a current home situation without the need for cloud storage or subscription fees.
Netatmo's Welcome smart home camera
Netatmo has also included a number of privacy settings with its Welcome camera including the ability to not receive notifications or store footage when specific people are recognized. Recorded videos and identification data are also kept entirely on the camera's included SD card, as the camera itself cannot access any data of its own. The Welcome app for the iPhone contains other options for privacy and displays every person recognized as being home, and lists past events and people on the timeline screen.
The Welcome (left) and a Welcome Tag (right) which extends range
Aside from facial recognition and privacy features, the camera offers night vision thanks to a powerful infrared LED and features an exterior comprised of anodized aluminum. Netatmo's Welcome camera will be available in the second quarter of 2015, and the company also says it will be releasing an accessory known as Welcome Tags that extend that camera's reach.
French startup Connected Cycle has introduced its new smart bike pedal at CES 2015, which is able to track a bike's exact location in the event of a theft and a number of distance and fitness statistics during biking activity.
The aluminum pedal works with a companion app on iOS to track where a bike is located, and can send a push notification if the bike has been moved or give a location as to where a bike was last parked. The pedal and the app also automatically record metrics like the speed of a bike, the incline of a given location, routing info and even calories burnt. Connected Cycle notes that the pedal generates its own energy and that installation takes less than two minutes without the need for mechanical skills, although removing the pedal requires a specialized key that comes in the box.
The Connected Cycle comes with two pedals, with one pedal containing smart functionality and the other pedal sporting a similar look for aesthetic purposes. Connected Cycle has yet to announce a price or release date for its smart pedal, but does note that it will come in colors including black, red, green, blue, and orange.
Drone and headphone manufacturer Parrot has unveiled its new RNB6 in-dash car entertainment system at CES 2015, which features a 7-inch, 720p touchscreen with built-in support for Apple CarPlay and Siri Eyes Free as well as Android Auto and Android Auto Voice.
Parrot's RNB6 system also boasts a number of internal specs and features including Bluetooth 4.0 and configurable 5GHz Wi-Fi, as well as rear ports for GPS, HDMI, microphone input, ethernet, onboard diagnostics and USB devices. The in-dash system features a built-in dash camera with a wide-angle lens and full HD support, and also supports steering wheel control for UI navigation.
Parrot did not give a suggested price for the RNB6, but noted that it would be shipping during the latter half of 2015.
Blue Spark Technologies has unveiled its new TempTraq wearable Bluetooth thermometer at CES 2015, which pairs with a companion app to give live updates and alerts on body temperature. The company notes that the thermometer is great for parents who want to measure their child's temperature without disturbing rest, as data can be viewed and shared in real time.
The TempTraq contains a patented flexible battery and can measure temperatures between 86.0°F and 108.3°F, providing both real time and historical data in graphical or tabular view. Caregivers can receive real-time data from the thermometer from up to 40 feet away, and simply press a button on the thermometer while typing in a unique access code on the companion app to start using it.
Blue Spark also details how it simplifies the temperature reading process on the app with the thermometer:
TempTraq further simplifies the temperature reading process by providing easy-to-follow colors that indicate temperature levels: Green, less than 100.4°F; orange, equal to or greater than 100.4°F; red, equal to or above the user-set temperature level. Caregivers can even receive alerts when a child’s temperature enters this designated red zone.
Blue Spark's TempTraq wearable Bluetooth thermometer is pending FDA approval and will be available in the near future.
Accessory maker Griffin Technology today unveiled four new products at CES 2015, including its five-slot PowerDock Pro charging station, its three-port PowerBlock 3 wall charger, its PowerBlock Wall Dock for holding a device up on the wall during charging, and its 12-volt PowerJolt Premium car charger.
Griffin's PowerBlock 3 wall charger allows users to charge up to three devices at one time with 10 watt ports, and features a space-saving design with ChargeSensor technology that can detect and optimize charging for smartphones, tablets, e-readers, and more. The PowerBlock 3 will be available in Summer 2015 for $39.99.
The PowerDock Pro charging station contains five slots and ports for users to store and charge their devices from one power source, and offers 12 watts of charging power with ChargeSensor circuitry that optimizes charging for every device. Each charging bay is designed to accommodate devices without having to remove them from a case, and the PowerDock Pro contains a built-in cord management system and a hidden compartment for cable storage. The PowerDock Pro will be available in Fall 2015 for $129.99.
Next up, Griffin's PowerBlock Wall Dock is a charging accessory for propping up and holding a device when it's charging on a wall, leaving the touchscreen fully visible for information. The dock features 12 watts of charging power and a four foot long Lightning cable that detaches. The PowerBlock Wall Dock will be available in Fall 2015 for $34.99.
Finally, Griffin's PowerJolt Premium is a 12 volt car charger that features a four foot long cable covered in a braided nylon jacket to prevent tangles. The Lightning connector itself is also reinforced with a durable aluminum housing to ensure durability, and the PowerJolt Premium also comes in a detachable power cable version. Both versions of the PowerJolt Premium will be $34.99 when they are released in Fall 2015.
Withings today revealed its new Activité Pop wearable at CES 2015, which is an analog watch that contains advanced activity and sleep tracking capabilities. The Activité Pop is a follow up to Withings' Activité watch which was revealed last year, and comes with a lightweight design that features a swappable silicone strap, a body that is water-resistance for up to 30 meters, and a battery that lasts up to 8 months.
The watch contains two hand dials, with one hand dial showing the current time and a secondary hand dial tracking activity and progress as determined by Withings' Health Mate companion app. For example, if a user sets 10,000 steps as a goal in the app, the secondary hand dial moves as steps are made, and the watch vibrates when a goal is achieved. During the day, the watch can automatically track swimming and running and tracks sleep quality at night with all info available through Health Mate.
The Activité Pop will be available to purchase online in the United States from BestBuy.com on January 5th for $149.95, and will be available at Best Buy stores in March 2015. The watch will come in three color choices including "Azure", "Shark Grey", and "Sand."
A new internal sketch of Apple's larger-screened iPad Pro has surfaced by way of a Foxconn worker (via Nowhereelse.fr, Google Translate), showing what may be our first look at the large tablet and its physical features.
The employee who captured the sketch notes that initial testing phases for the larger iPad were halted last summer after Apple received new prototypes, but adds that mass production on the device will begin soon. The source also notes that the tablet will be between 6.9 and 7.5mm thick, and feature four integrated speakers with two on the top and two on the bottom.
Previous rumors have suggested that the iPad Pro is expected to feature a screen size between 12.2 and 12.9 inches along with an A8X processor, 2 GB of RAM, and a Touch ID fingerprint sensor. Most recently, Japanese magazine Mac Fanpublished possible schematics of the upcoming device, which suggested that the tablet would carry a 12.2-inch LCD display and carry the name "iPad Air Plus".
It is currently unknown as to when Apple would launch its larger-screened iPad, with reliable KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggesting that the tablet would not enter production until the second quarter of 2015 due to increased attention on iPhone 6 Plus production. However, with the supply of its larger phone greatly improving as of late, it is possible that Apple is now ready to put its full production efforts towards its larger iPad for a launch later this year.
At the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, tech companies often take the opportunity to unveil new products. Well-known data storage company Seagate is no exception, and is introducing three impressive new products at the show.
The new 500GB Seagate Wireless portable hard drive is the company's latest HD designed specifically for use with tablets and smartphones like Apple's iPad and iPhone, introducing additional storage at affordable price. Available in five bright colors (lime green, cool blue, slate gray, fire-engine red, and white), the hard drive offers a nine hour battery life and the ability to store media like photos and videos, which can be streamed directly to an iOS device through the Seagate Media app.
It includes a new auto backup feature for making a secondary copy of photos and videos, and it can be used for storing documents and other file types. Because it has built-in Wi-Fi, the Seagate Wireless does not need an existing network connection. The Seagate Wireless will be available in January for $129.99 from the Seagate website and through retailers like Amazon and Best Buy.
Seagate's second product, the Seagate Personal Cloud, is designed to offer an alternative to traditional server side cloud-based storage. The Personal Cloud allows users to backup their computers (with the Seagate Mobile Backup app) and store content securely on a dedicated hard drive that's located within the home rather than on a server.
Content can be accessed outside of the home much like any other cloud-based storage option through the Seagate Media app, and as a home media storage option, it can stream video and play full HD content with no buffering or lag.
Seagate Personal Cloud demystifies the often frustrating process of finding, accessing and enjoying photos, videos and music on the device of your choice. Once connected to a wireless router and after a free download of the Seagate Media app, users will be treated to an intuitive, media-rich browsing experience that makes playback of content an effortless and enjoyable experience.
The Seagate Personal Cloud can be used with any device that's supported by Seagate Media apps, including Smart TVs from Samsung and LG, many consoles, streaming media players like the Chromecast and Apple TV, and smartphones and tablets like Apple's iPad and iPhone.
The Seagate Personal Cloud can also be set up with a secondary backup to other popular cloud services, like Amazon S3, Dropbox, Google Drive, and more for additional offsite protection. There's also a Seagate Personal Cloud 2-Bay option available with two internal drives for duplicate storage.
Seagate's Personal Cloud will begin shipping to retailers in January, in 3TB, 4TB, and 5TB capacities with pricing starting at $169. The Personal Cloud 2-Bay will be available in 4TB, 6TB, and 8TB capacities as well.
Seagate's most notable product this year is the Seagate Seven, which the company is calling the world's thinnest 500GB portable hard drive. At just 7mm thick, it uses Seagate's latest mobile hard drive technology and is aimed at tech enthusiasts who want the thinnest devices. With a steel finish, the hard drive is ultra portable and is, according to Seagate, the culmination of 35 years of experience.
The Seagate Seven will be available at the end of January for $99.99 from the Seagate website and from retailers like Amazon.
Seagate is also debuting several new LaCie products, including the designer LaCie Mirror hard drive and the LaCie Rugged RAID thunderbolt hard drive.
LaCie today unveiled two new products ahead of this week's Consumer Electronics Show, including the new LaCie Mirror, a hard drive encased entirely in Gorilla Glass, and the LaCie Rugged RAID Thunderbolt hard drive, the newest product in its Rugged collection.
The LaCie Mirror is a 1TB hard drive that's designed to be fashionable as well as functional. Created by product designer Pauline Deltour, the LaCie Mirror features a mirrored design that comes with an accompanying ebony stand.
"You have to look twice to discover the LaCie Mirror's true ambition," said Deltour. "Covered by mirrored glass, it's first an elegant and functional object, and only on second glance is it revealed to be a slim high-performance hard drive."
Through a collaboration with Corning, the LaCie Mirror is encased entirely in Gorilla Glass 3, making it ultra durable and resistant to chips and scratches. The 1TB LaCie Mirror will be available in late January for $279.99 from the LaCie website.
LaCie's second new product is the 4TB Rugged RAID Thunderbolt hard drive, which LaCie is calling the fastest HD available on the market with upload speeds that reach 240MB/s. Like all of LaCie's Rugged lineup, the new bus-powered Thunderbolt drive includes an aluminum shell that's encased in orange rubber for maximum protection and portability when used in the field. At 4TB, it includes two 2TB hard drives with RAID 0/1 options to optimize for speed or data security.
Aimed at audio/photo/video professionals and those who often travel, the Rugged RAID is the first mobile RAID hard drive with Thunderbolt and with resistance to shock, dust, and water thanks to its rubber casing. LaCie's Rugged RAID 4TB Thunderbolt hard drive will be shipping during the first quarter of 2015 for $449.
LaCie's parent company Seagate is also introducing several new products, including the Seagate Seven, the Seagate Personal Cloud, and the Seagate Wireless hard drive for iOS devices.
Paid music downloads, which have dominated the digital music market for years thanks in large part to Apple's iTunes Store, showed accelerating weakness in the United States last year as music streaming services like Spotify and a resurgence of vinyl record sales exploded in popularity.
According to Nielsen SoundScan (via The Wall Street Journal), streaming music grew a remarkable 54 percent in 2014, moving from 106 billion songs in 2013 to 164 billion in 2014. That growth contrasts with traditional song downloads that dropped off significantly from 2013. Paid downloads for full music albums declined 9 percent in 2014, with individual song downloads seeing an even larger 12 percent drop-off. Overall, according to SoundScan, Americans bought 257 million albums in 2014, 106.5 million of which were downloaded digitally.
Amid the digital shift from individual downloads to streaming, an older technology also saw a resurgence in 2014 with vinyl record sales at their highest levels since SoundScan began tracking music sales in 1991. Nielsen's tracking shows 9.2 million vinyl records sold, representing a 52 percent overall increase in sales from 2013.
With lackluster overall digital music downloads mirroring a similar drop in iTunes Store sales, Apple has been looking at ways to improve its positioning in the music market. Apple's initial effort with iTunes Radio to offer a Pandora-like experience that also seeks to drive iTunes Store purchases has had a less-than-stellar reception with availability in only the United States and Australia. That weak entry likely spurred Apple to pursue last year's acquisition of Beats Music for a full-fledged subscription streaming service.
Recent reports have indicated that Apple will be pursuing a major revamp of Beats early this year that may see prominent integration of the paid streaming service into iOS and iTunes, perhaps including a rebranding under the iTunes name.
With luxury watchmakers turning their attention to the smartwatch market ahead of the Apple Watch launch later this year, Montblanc is one of the first to announce specific plans. As noted by aBlogtoWatch, Montblanc's initial foray is an "e-Strap" accessory band for traditional watches that connects wirelessly to a smartphone.
The Montblanc e-Strap incorporates a small 0.9-inch wide screen into a high-quality leather band that attaches to a traditional analog watch. The screen lays flat against the underside of the wrist, allowing users to receive notifications, count steps, and control music playback on a connected smartphone. The band connects to an iPhone or iPad via Bluetooth and offers up to five days of battery life.
How impressive as a connected wearable device will the e-Strap's electronic module be? It will have a 0.9 inch monochromatic OLED touchscreen display with a 128x36 pixel resolution. That isn't exactly industry changing, but this is more than just a mere notification device. Montblanc has made it clear that in addition to basic calls, texts, e-mails, calendars, social media, and reminder notifications, the e-Strap will function as an activity monitor/tracker with a pedometer and accelerometer to measure data that feeds into an included iPhone or Android phone app.
The e-Strap will reportedly sell separately for 250 Euros and will also be available initially as an option with select Timewalker Urban Speed watches. The band will, however, apparently be compatible with all 42-mm or 43-mm wide Timewalker watches.
Montblanc is one of several luxury watchmakers adding smartwatch-inspired products to their 2015 portfolios. Timex and Fossil reportedly are partnering with Qualcomm and Intel, respectively, on upcoming smartwatches, while Swiss watchmaker TAG Heuer is exploring partnerships and acquisitions in order to jumpstart its own smartwatch projects.
As reported by 9to5Mac, Apple's iCloud.com Photos app has been experiencing difficulties for the past few days, with many users reporting the icon missing from the web interface entirely and the direct link to the app also producing a "problem loading application" error. In our own testing today, performance has been spotty, with the icon missing at times but present at other times. Even when the icon is present, clicking it has sometimes generated error messages while at other times properly loading the Photos app, albeit with some delays.
Apple has not commented on the situation, and the company's status page shows no issues with any iCloud web apps. As a result, the reason for the issues remains unknown.
The iCloud Photos app is part of Apple's iCloud Photo library, which was introduced in beta alongside iOS 8.1. The service stores all iOS photos and videos and shares them across platforms. Images can be viewed using the iOS Photos app and the iCloud Photos web app, which was last updated in November with the ability to upload photos to the user's library from the web interface. Apple is also working on an upcoming Photos app for Mac, which will replace Aperture and iPhoto.
The Narrative Clip 2 features a new 8-megapixel camera system with a range of 86°, along with a built-in Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth radios that allow for a user to access recent moments on the 
