If you’re running the Sonos Desktop Controller on your Mac, chances are you received an email from Sonos claiming that their software won’t work correctly with Lion. Essentially, the software is not compatible with Lion just yet, and the Sonos team is currently working on an update to the Mac Controller to make it compatible. If you are experiencing trouble using the Desktop Controller from Sonos on your Mac running Lion, you now know why. The update fixing compatibility issues is expected to drop “very soon.”

Here is the text of the email you should receive:

Dear Valued Sonos Customer,

Our records show that you are a user of the Sonos Desktop Controller for Mac. As you may know, Apple has released an upgrade to its Mac OS X software, version 10.7 (Lion).

The new Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion) release is not compatible with your current Sonos system if your Music Library is stored on your Mac.

We will have an update to your Sonos Desktop Controller for Mac very soon and will notify you when it is available. In the meantime, please stay with your current version of OS X.

If you have any questions please contact our Technical Support team at:

www.sonos.com/support/contact

We apologize for any inconvenience that this may have caused.

Sincerely,

The Sonos Quality Team

Here’s a neat concept that we’re hoping finds it way to production: a standalone player that comes with 8 RFID tags that can be linked to music. The idea is the little tags could be playlists and when affixed to the stand alone player would bring up that playlist. It’s a simple enough idea that harkens back to cassette tapes and custom mixes.

The concept is the brainchild of Jordi Parra and was his degree project. How he’ll bring this to market is currently unknown. A Kickstarter project was mentioned as a possibility.

Check the video below:

Spotify box from Jordi Parra on Vimeo.

Read: [Zenona blog] via [Wired]

As if telling us that it has other products aside from the Galaxy phone series, Samsung has just announced three new Bluetooth headsets – the HM1610, HM3600, and Samsung Modus 6450. The last one being the second headset other its Modus family of Bluetooth products. All three Bluetooth headsets boast of advanced multi-point technology, voice commands, SoundAlive and stereo-audio enhancements as well as Android app support.

Quickly, here’s a rundown of the key specs and features of each of these headsets. The Samsung Modus 6450 boasts of Samsung FreeSync Android App support, voice command and voice prompt, voice command and EQ setting implementation, mono and stereo convertible, SoundAlive stereo audio enhancements, dual-mic noise/echo cancellation, LED indicator, advanced multipoint and multiconnection technology, active pairing, up to 6 hours talk time and 180 hours standby time.

The Samsung HM3600 Bluetooth 3.0 headset on the other hand features on the ear speaker design, dual mic noise reduction and echo cancellation, voice prompts, advanced multipoint technology, up to 9 hours of talk time and 300 hours of standby time.

Finally, we have the Samsung Bluetooth 3.0+EDR headset has near end enhanced audio technology, single-mic noise reduction and echo cancellation, wind noise reduction, speech intelligibility, active pairing, advanced multipoint technology, automatic volume control and up to 6 hours of talk time and 250 hours of standby time.

So there, which one are you most likely to get if you’re planning to purchase a new Bluetooth headset?

via [Samsung Newsroom]

If you’re planning to get a new smartphone from Verizon on Black Friday, well you’re in luck. Verizon and Jawbone have teamed up to offer free Jawbone ICON “Hero” Bluetooth headset for free for as long as you get one of the selected Verizon smartphones. Said Bluetooth headset has a regular value of $99, so this is definitely a great deal. Unfortunately though, there’s no available information yet on which of the smartphones are eligible for this deal. So, better ask any of the Verizon staff about this gig before you buy your new smartphone.

And if you’re not keen on getting a Bluetooth headset and just want a phone, well think again. You might missed out on the good things that owning the Jawbone ICON Hero headset brings. Here’s what you’re going to get – seamless audio experience even when you are in a noisy coffee shop, listening to music, updating a Twitter status – you’d always have a clear audio experience with the said headset.

Said headset also comes with a built-in intelligence that syncs with Jawbone’s MyTALK online platform. This allows you to seamlessly download apps, updates and more.

So there you go folks. Do tells us if you’ve avail of this promo and whether the Jawbone ICON Hero headset is all worth the hype we’re getting. A comment will be wonderful.

Read [Verizon News]

Today, Olive introduces some high-end audio gear that is said to have 250 times the resolution of a CD. The Olive 4HD Music Server not only holds up to 20,000 songs at HD quality, but will record at 24 bit. The unit is backed up by a host of accessible options that allow you to control your server from your HDTV or iPhone.

Removing the need to keep a music collection on a computer, the 4HD Server will store your music, convert CDs and even burn CDs. To get users started, the company offers to import up to 100 of your CDs for free, so the new system is delivered to them complete with your music already digitized. After the first 100, there is a nominal fee per CD.

“With a proprietary DAC featuring TI’s best-of-breed BurrBrown 1792A 192Khz/24-bit DAC, optimized circuit design, HD quality digital sound, ultra-quiet hard drives and passive cooling to eliminate fan noise, the Olive 4HD Hi-Fi Music Server delivers the best possible HD hi-fi audio experience. You’ll never hear anything like this on your computer, iPod or any other MP3 music player.”

To find music, users can interact with the 4.3 touchscreen on the server, use the HDMI interface that allows selections to be made on your HDTV or even use the company’s iPhone app. Each choice offers beautiful (in my opinion) graphics, clean and clear navigation, an impressive collection of ways to interact with music. Each offers full color album cover images.

Other features include the ability receive internet radio stations, more information about your music, infrared remotes to work through closed doors and has WiFi (802.11n) as well as a wired connection.

The 4HD Music Server costs $1,999 and is backed with a 60-day money back guarentee. The company says you will hear a difference in your music from the first note.

Company site: [Olive]

Not satisfied with its recent launch of its Pandora, Sirius and Rhapsody capable AV receivers, Onkyo has announced yet more tuners. The new tuners, the TX-NR1007, TX-NR3007, TX-NR5007, each have the same Internet capabilities of the recently announced models, but include other top of the line features as well. The newest models include features that all but the most dedicated home theater aficionado would understand and go nuts for.

One of the biggest features of the new models is the inclusion of full-tilt 9.2-channel surround sound using either Audyssey DSX or Dolby ProLogic IIz. Not only will is produce that great sound, but the audio and video are handled with separate power supply transformers making them both independent for better quality. Each of the new devices is capable of supporting nearly any surround sound format through the use of TI Aureus DSP chips for whatever format you prefer. The TX-NR3007 and TX-NR5007 are even the first Onkyo receivers to feature Dolby Volume to keep the volume consistent through TV shows, commercials, and switching inputs to DVD players or any other myriad connections.

With the TX-NR1007 starting at $1,599, and the TX-NR5007 selling for $2,699 these new Onkyo receivers are definitely not for the casual home theater owner. While the new features are fantastic, the truth is that most won’t notice much of a difference most of the time. However, if you have a lot of money and your looking for a way to improve your home theater and already have the surround sound, TV and some combination of boxes, Onkyo definitely has you covered.

Read [Onkyo]

With the allure of Internet music services like Pandora and Rhapsody setting up a home theater system that incorporate them can be a bit difficult without having to put a whole computer in the system. Sure, having a computer in the setup would be cool, but when’s the last time you wanted to browse the Internet on your TV? A simple solution that allows you to have access to some of those Internet media services is really all you need. That’s what Onkyo is trying to deliver.

The new Onkyo TX-NR807 is home theater receiver that in addition to having an enormous number of ports for audio and video has an added ethernet port. It can connect to your home network and Internet for some nifty features. The TX-NR807 uses the Internet connection and an on-screen UI to connect Pandora, Rhapsody, Sirius Internet Radio, and vTuner for easy music/radio playback. The receiver also supports DLNA so you can stream nearly any audio file from any computer or storage also connected to your home network, though strangely there is no word on streaming video.

The Onkyo TX-NR807 also makes it easy to program the remote to connect to the receiver, TV and any other supported device. Through the on-screen UI, all you have to do is select the correct device, and the receiver transmits the code to the remote, which can support up to four macros. It will take a lot of the guess work out of programming the home theater to work without have to use five different remotes for the five different boxes or devices. It will be useful as the TX-NR807 can use connect to any device you could possibly think of in any nearly any possible way, which is to say more ways than most people are even aware of.

Read [Onkyo]

Americans are ditching their land lines in masses. No one knows that better than the maker of many of the phones that used to be plugged into those lines. VTech took a look at the declining market and decided it was time to diversify. So leveraging their strengths, namely RF devices, they are seizing the chance to jump into the booming Internet radio market.

VTech was kind enough to to give me the grand tour of their device that will be out in March. It’s understated good looks, simple user interface and low price point are sure to make this a compelling choice..

From the release:

VTech’s IS9181 is the first Internet radio receiver to offer a rich range of features and superior sound quality for under $200. Once users connect the IS9181 to the home wireless network (802.11 b & g), they can enjoy the vast variety of music offerings from more than 11,000 Internet radio stations worldwide, as well as audio files (MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV, Real) stored on a Wi-Fi-enabled PC or laptop. The IS9181 also includes an auxiliary audio cable to play files from digital audio players or any other device with a 3.5mm headset jack.

Low price, sound rumored to be bench marked against Logitech’s $100 more entry, and broad distribution. It sounds like a winner to me.

For more CES press coverage head over here or check out our 2009 CES page for all the CES news, CES keynotes, CES photo galleries/booth tours, and more!

GN Netcom, the company that manufacturers Jabra products has recently added two new headsets, the Jabra M5390 USB and Jabra BT530 USB to the mix. Jabra touts that these headsets are some of the lightest they have to offer and pair up with over 8 devices and 2 simultaneously.

The nice thing about these headsets is that they can be paired to 2 totally different products, such as a cell phone or a computer, and you are able to still answer the phone. Let’s begin with the Jabra M5390 USB. It has a nice 6 hour talk time – great for when you are multi-tasking and talking with your boss for an extended amount of time, and 60 hours standby time.

In addition, it comes with a 200 foot range, Plug-and-play Bluetooth connectivity to PC or VoIP, comes with software to hook up the headset to Microsoft Office Communicator, Skype, and Cisco IP Communicator. Another nice feature is that it come with Wideband noise canceling feature within the microphone and has two different wearing methods – around the ear or the head. Lastly, it is set to be available sometime in January 2009 for $191.

Moving on, we have the Jabra BT530 USB headset. The main and unique feature in this headset is its Noise Blackout technology, which helps to remove noise so you can hear the caller more clearly. As previously mentioned, it pairs with 8 different devices, Plug-and-play Bluetooth adapter for PC applications and soft-phones, again, comes with software to hook up with Skype, Microsoft Office Communicator, and Cisco. Furthermore, it comes with 3 different ear sizes, so it can match your ear with style and comfort, and it comes with 5.5 hours of straight talking, and an astounding 250 hours standby time. Lastly, it is already available and retails for $129.

David Grazio, Director of Channel Marketing, Contact Center and Office for GN Netcom, had this to say about their new headsets:

“People have embraced headsets for personal use and now is the time for business professionals to leverage headsets for increased mobility and efficiency within their office environments,” said Inc. “These cutting-edge products have improved voice quality and noise elimination, enabling professionals to be hands-free so they can multitask.”

If you want a high-end, quality Bluetooth headset, you may want to consider checking these out.

Read [PR Newswire]