Consumer Electronics Daily News

VTech Showcases Wide Range Of Products At Spring Toy Fair

VTech®, a world leader in age-appropriate and developmental stage-based electronic learning products for children, continues to assert its commitment to innovation and making learning fun with its current display of products at the Time to Play Spring Showcase. From the top-rated Alphabet Activity Cube, VTech's #1 new infant electronic learning toy released in Fall 2012, to the InnoTab®2S Wi-Fi Learning App Tablet, one of the first children's learning based tablets with Wi-Fi, VTech's developmental learning toys enhance play experiences, stimulate senses and ignite imaginations.

"We know children learn best when they're having fun, which is why we're excited to showcase our wide range of products featuring our innovative technologies," said William To, President, VTech Electronics North America. "We pride ourselves on being a trusted brand with parents and we are confident that with our latest introductions we will continue to help children learn key developmental and motor skills while also having fun."

The items on display at the event include:

InnoTab® 2S Wi-Fi Learning App Tablet
VTech's InnoTab 2S Wi-Fi Learning App Tablet offers children their very own tablet that opens up a world of educational content across a wide variety of curriculums, from downloads to software cartridges, combining innovative technology with a developmental learning tool that grows with a child and makes learning fun. Featuring a secure wireless connection to VTech's comprehensive app store, the Learning Lodge™, children can explore the games, e-books, videos, music and more, pick their favorites, create a wish list and send the list right to their parents' e-mail. Parents can then approve the wish list, which sends the purchases wirelessly, directly to the InnoTab 2S.

Featured throughout the downloads and software cartridges are popular characters such as Mike the Knight™, Angelina Ballerina®, Team Umizoomi™, Dora the Explorer™, Thomas & Friends®, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles®, Jake & the Neverland Pirates, Sesame Street and more. New titles coming out on the Learning Lodge beginning in June include: Monsters University®, Turbo®, Planes®, and more. Ages 3-9 years, MSRP:$99.99.

InnoTab® 2 Baby
InnoTab 2 Baby is the first tablet designed with a growing child in mind, with special content geared towards even the youngest of learners, starting at 12 months. This tablet includes content specifically for infants, including Baby Sign Language, with 100 popular signs, baby's learning games, photo slideshows featuring zoo, sea and forest creatures, and much more. The InnoTab 2 Baby is the ideal learning tool for little ones and helps them achieve early developmental milestones such as cause and effect, sensory development and motor skills. It also comes with a soft, removable gel bumper that helps protect the InnoTab 2 Baby from drops and tumbles, and has multiple activities geared towards infants and toddlers, including a simple Noah's Ark e-book, sing-along nursery rhyme songs, and drawing and coloring activities. Ages 12 months-9 years, MSRP: $89.00.

Go! Go! Smart Wheels
Go! Go! Smart Wheels enhance one of the most popular play patterns – good old-fashioned role play – while teaching important learning skills, boosting imaginative play through cause and effect and encouraging interactivity.

Each playset features SmartPoint™ locations that can be recognized by Go! Go! Smart Wheels vehicles. As a vehicle is rolled over a playset's various SmartPoint locations, the car will flash, play greetings, fun sounds, short tunes and sing-along songs. Vehicle prices start at $7.99, and complementary playsets at $14.99.

Toshiba Launches Canvio Connect Portable Hard Drive

Toshiba's Digital Products Division, a division of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., today announced Canvio® Connect, a portable external hard drive that offers high capacity storage along with the ability to access and share files directly from the device, making it the first of its kind.

"Toshiba's Canvio Connect represents the next evolution in external portable hard drives," said Maciek Brzeski, Vice President of Product Marketing and Development, Branded Storage Products, Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., Digital Products Division. "With its remote access and file sharing capabilities, users can now share their digital content with friends, family and colleagues from anywhere at any time directly from their Canvio Connect — making it unlike any other portable hard drive on the market."

Toshiba's Canvio Connect is a portable external hard drive that offers up to 2TB of storage in a new slim and compact form factor and is available in several different colors, including black, silver, blue, red and white. What sets the Canvio Connect apart from competitive storage offerings currently on the market is its ability to access and share files anytime, anywhere. For the first time ever, a product within Toshiba's portable hard drive lineup will allow users to back up videos and photos directly from smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices that are equipped with Toshiba Storage's iOS or Android app to the external hard drive.

As long as Toshiba's Canvio Connect is connected to an Internet-enabled PC that is powered on, users will have complete access to their files, photos, music and movies from any device — no matter where they are. The Canvio Connect also allows users to share large files and folders instantly. As an additional bonus, the Canvio Connect includes 10GB of free cloud storage for storing "always available" copies of important files. 

While the access and share feature sets the Canvio Connect apart from competitive products, the device is still a powerhouse when it comes to traditional storage and full system, files and folder backup capabilities and is extremely easy to set up and use. And like all Toshiba products, the Canvio Connect portable hard drive is designed from the ground up with consumer needs in mind, and then tested again and again for reliability.  It can be counted on to perform as advertised—every time.

Toshiba's Canvio Connect is pre-formatted NTFS for Windows PC and comes with a NTFS driver for Mac, allowing users to store and access files from their PC and Mac without reformatting. The device also includes two year limited warranty.

Pricing and Availability
The Canvio Connect will be available for purchase on ToshibaDirect.com and select retailers in mid-May. Pricing for the external hard drive will be $99 for 500GB, $109.99 for 750GB, $129.99 for 1TB, $169.99 for 1.5TB and $189.99 for 2TB

 

Wacom's DTK-2241 Interactive Pen Display Targets Electronic Documents Workflow

Wacom^® today announced the DTK-2241 interactive pen display, a premium communication tool designed to streamline the electronic documents workflow within education, healthcare and business settings. The successor to the DTU-2231, the new device offers improved pen performance, a higher quality HD LCD with a wider viewing angle and five customizable ExpressKeys^™ for an intuitive and interactive experience that adds impact to digital communication and presentations.

Efficient interface for paperless workflow
Paperless workflows in a variety of customer-facing business situations continue to grow at an extremely rapid pace. Electronic handwritten signatures are used for terms of service contracts, agreements and other applications. By viewing terms and conditions of the deal on Wacom's DTK-2241 and signing electronically on the screen, business professionals gain record-tracking efficiencies and cost-saving benefits by reducing the dependency on paper.

Effective communication with patients
Healthcare professionals are often required to deliver complicated information to patients. Wacom's DTK-2241 improves the process by enabling hospital doctors, GPs, ophthalmologists and dentists to write, annotate and draw directly on patient charts and x-rays. This makes explanations clearer, more impactful and easier to understand. In addition, it is an excellent solution for healthcare administrators managing the electronic medical records process.  Procedure consent and insurance forms can be easily viewed and signed on the DTK-2241, greatly improving the patient experience and the overall quality of care.

Dynamic and interactive presentations
Educators in colleges and universities, as well as in corporate settings, strive for greater audience engagement. With Wacom's DTK-2241, presenters can turn static material into active and engaging content. By writing with the digital pen directly on the screen, new ideas, comments, sketches and diagrams can be spontaneously added throughout a session, creating a lively and more collaborative environment.

The DTK-2241 gives presenters an opportunity to further engage with their students by letting them face the audience, rather than turning away as would be the case in a traditional blackboard setting. When connected to a projector, the DTK-2241 also ensures ideas and information can be shared with audiences of any size, making it suitable for lecture halls, training rooms and boardrooms.

Useful features for workflow efficiency
The impressive 21.5" IPS LCD with high resolution and wide viewing angle provides a large screen for users to work on. It also features anti-glare properties and is scratch resistant. Saving valuable time for users, five customizable ExpressKeys on the device offer easy access to shortcuts and commonly used functions. Advanced pen technology with 1024 pressure levels ensures excellent performance for writing and drawing with the highly durable digital pen, which also comes with two side switches for additional customization and a faster workflow. To prevent loss, the pen can be tethered to the unit.

The DTK-2241 is HDCP compliant and its built-in DVI-I pass-thru connector allows mirroring of the pen display to a projector or another display. The DTK-2241 also includes two USB ports for connecting external devices such as USB drives. Supporting a variety of working positions, the new interactive pen display comes with an adjustable stand with ranges from 15 to 72 degrees. For further convenience, the VESA mount even allows third party arms to be attached. A security lock prevents theft of the device.

Wacom's DTK-2241 can be easily integrated into existing systems and become an integral part of a paperless workflow. Due to its high durability and reliability, it offers a low total cost of ownership, requiring little maintenance.

Wacom's DTK-2241 ($1,799 USD) will be available in early June at select reseller locations as well as Wacom's eStore.

 

Jim Meyer Appointed CEO of SiriusXM

Sirius XM Radio today announced that James E. Meyer has been appointed Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately.  Meyer has served as the interim CEO since December.

"After a thorough search of excellent candidates, we are delighted to name Jim as the CEO of SiriusXM, where he will continue to lead a very strong executive team. Jim is a highly qualified leader and operator, and we look forward to working with him to build on SiriusXM's position as the innovator in audio entertainment," said Gregory B. Maffei, Chairman of SiriusXM.  "He has been a vital part of SiriusXM for close to a decade, and his extensive knowledge of SiriusXM's business and significant industry experience will be invaluable assets in the highly competitive market within which SiriusXM is thriving. Jim's leadership, strategic vision and operating focus are exactly what SiriusXM needs today and in the future."

"I look forward to leading SiriusXM," said Meyer. "SiriusXM is a great service with world-class programming that comes from teams of focused and motivated employees. I am honored to be working with our talented management team as we continue to deliver the best content and services to our subscribers nationwide and enhance value for our stockholders."

Meyer served as SiriusXM's President of Sales and Operations from May 2004 until his appointment as our interim CEO in December.  Prior to joining SiriusXM, Meyer was President of Aegis Ventures, a general management consulting company, and provided consultant support for SiriusXM.  Before Aegis, he held a number of senior management positions in consumer electronics, including the Senior Executive Vice President of Digital Media Solutions for Thomson, a worldwide leader in consumer electronics.

New Mexican Banda Expansion Pack For The Yamaha PSR-S650 Keyboard

Just in time for Cinco de Mayo, Yamaha has introduced the brand new Mexican Banda Voice and Style Expansion Pack for its popular PSR-S650 portable keyboard, enabling anyone to add festive live music to the celebration.

This package contains seven new authentic Banda Voices recorded in a professional studio with professional Banda musicians. Instruments include Trombon Banda, Trompeta Banda, Clarinete Banda, Charcheta Banda, Tuba Banda, Bateria-Tambora and a special Gritos Kit of vocal expressions. One of the main ingredients of Mexican music is Gritos, the fun, vocal exclamations that accompany the music. The Voice and Style Mexican Banda Pack Expansion features 60 unique gritos that inject flavor into any performance.

Also included are 20 popular Banda Styles covering Acoustic Banda, Electric Banda and Duranguense. Each Style comes complete with four One Touch Settings that match these excellent new instrument Voices to each of the four Style sections. Panel registrations, with special Banda and Duranguense keyboard splits and layers make it easy to play with the band.

 

The Yamaha Banda Expansion Pack can be downloaded free of charge for the next three months at http://4wrd.it/BANDAPR.

LeapFrog Unveils the LeapReader

LeapFrog Enterprises, Inc. today announced LeapReader, the complete learn to read and write solution for children. LeapReader, from the creator of the #1 selling Tag learn to read system, is the next generation of learning that helps children build literacy skills and reading confidence. With LeapReader’s three essential experiences – learn to read, learn to write and learn through listening – children sound out words and read sentences, write letters with interactive guidance, and develop comprehension skills through audio books, music and more all available in the LeapReader library of more than 150 learning experiences.

“For the last 18 years, LeapFrog has helped millions of children around the world to learn to read,” said John Barbour, Chief Executive Officer at LeapFrog. “With LeapReader, we are taking the way children learn to read to the next level and adding writing to build a foundation for future academic success. Our highly experienced team of learning experts worked alongside our talented teams of designers and producers to create the ultimate reading tool and engaging content experiences that reinforce a child’s language and literacy skills. We are extremely proud of how fun and interactive every book, workbook, map, audio book and flash card is while providing children rich and unique learning experiences.”

“The statistics are jaw-dropping – one in six children who are not reading proficiently in third grade fail to graduate from high school on time, four times the rate for children with proficient third grade reading skills,” said Dr. Jody Sherman LeVos, leader of LeapFrog’s Learning Team. “We know that children learn to read and write better when experienced together. LeapReader allows these skills to be practiced concurrently using physical books along with related skills like listening comprehension. With LeapReader, as children touch letters to hear their sounds and listen to words pronounced and sounded out, they build phonics and word recognition skills. Additionally, as they trace and write letters, they learn about proper stroke order and writing fluency.”

The LeapReader Library
The extensive LeapReader library includes more than 150 engaging and fun learning experiences such as books, audio books, flash cards, maps, learn-to-write sets, music albums and trivia challenges. The LeapReader library of content lets parents easily personalize their child’s learning journey by choosing titles based on their child’s reading level, favorite characters or learning style. It offers parents the best and most engaging, high-quality educational solutions available to help children learn to read and write:

• Learn to Read: Children learn to read by sounding out words, reading sentences and building comprehension through LeapReader books, maps and flash cards.
• Learn to Write: Interactive LeapReader workbooks feature audio coaching and support to help children learn the sequence of strokes and build writing fluency. These new workbooks feature revolutionary LeapFrog Learning Paper which contains ink embedded within the page for a mess-free writing solution.
• Learn through Listening: LeapReader audio books, learning songs and trivia challenges foster children’s comprehension skills, vocabulary and imagination.

LeapFrog worked closely with world-class publishing partners including Random House, Scholastic Inc. and KIDZ BOP, among others, to select the best audio content for the LeapReader library. The library features beloved children’s characters and audio books such as The Magic Tree House and Little Golden Books from Listening Library, a division of Random House Inc., and Clifford and The Velveteen Rabbit from Scholastic Inc., and today’s biggest hits, sung for kids by kids, from the popular audio series, KIDZ BOP.

LeapReader (MSRP $49.99 and in pink and green, for children ages 4-8) will be available for pre-order beginning June 12, and available at major retail locations and at www.leapfrog.com in early July. All audio books and music albums will be available for download using LeapFrog Connect Application for LeapReader. LeapReader holds audio for up to 40 books or 175 songs at a time and works with most Tag books.

 

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Hotel Booking Site Receives $2M in First Round Funding

Chicago-based Rocketmiles today announced that is has raised $2 million in funding led by Atlas Venture.  Founded in 2012, Rocketmiles is a hotel booking site geared toward travelers who want to stockpile miles for dream vacations, from an anniversary trip to Paris to a family spring break getaway to Key West.  The company made its public debut earlier this month following a successful two month beta.

The $2 million convertible note financing is the first round of external fundraising for Rocketmiles. Participants include Atlas Venture, Link Ventures, and Peterson Ventures and several angel investors in the travel and loyalty industry.

"Until now, the easiest way for travelers to earn reward miles was from flights and credit cards. Rocketmiles was created to offer travelers a lucrative new option that allows them to stockpile miles when booking hotel rooms so they can save up for free vacations faster," said Jay Hoffmann, CEO and Cofounder of Rocketmiles and former Managing Director at Mileage Plus.  "Rocketmiles customers can book rooms at desirable premium hotels for similar rates as found on popular online travel agencies, and at the same time earn an average of 3,000 reward miles per night.  For the frequent traveler, that adds up to 90,000 extra miles per year that they can use to fly nearly anywhere in the world."

"Rocketmiles has developed a creative new way to add value to online travel, the largest e-commerce category. The unique business model and experienced founding members are impressive and we are very excited to be part of this team," said Ryan Moore, Partner, Atlas Venture.

Rocketmiles will use the funding to invest in marketing and customer acquisition as well as to expand its airline and hotel partnerships.

 

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Rocketmiles lets travelers earn thousands of miles by booking hotel rooms

Storyboard Your Life

4 cuts' new storytelling app, Bintory, lets you take four photos from your Android phone, arrange them and add word balloons to tell a story. Take new photos or use what's in your gallery already. Bintory supports basic photo editing functions such as cutting and rotating as well as story -making functions such as the addition of word balloons and emoticons. Once you've composed your storyboard, you can share with friends. 

The app is now available for free on Google Play, and the developer says it will be released soon for iPhone.

AudioEye is Named 2013 Gold Edison Award Winner

AudioEye®, Inc., the creators of the Audio Internet™, the patented audio browsing and automated publishing technology, announced that AudioEye was voted a gold winner for innovation in the category of "Lifestyle and Social Impact; Quality of Life" at an April 25 event at Navy Pier in Chicago.  AudioEye CEO Nathaniel Bradley joined hundreds of senior executives from some of the world's most recognized companies to acknowledge the hard work and commitment of all of the 2013 Edison Award winners. The awards are named after Thomas Alva Edison (1847 - 1931) whose inventions, new product development methods and innovative achievements literally changed the world, garnered him 1,093 U.S. patents, and made him a household name around the world.

"Our judges recognized AudioEye as a true innovator out of the many products in its category," said Frank Bonafilia, executive director of the Edison Awards. The ballot of nominees for the Edison Awards™ was judged by a panel of more than 3,000 leading business executives including past award winners, academics and leaders in the fields of product development, design, engineering, science and medical. One of the evening's many highlights was the presentation of the prestigious Edison Achievement Award to Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, Chairman and CEO of Qualcomm Incorporated. The award honors innovation leaders and business executives who have made a significant and lasting contribution to innovation throughout their careers. The Edison Achievement Award serves as inspiration to future innovators and to the world at large.

New Samsung S4 Rated a Dangerous 7 on Breakability Scale

 SquareTrade^® today announced its Breakability Score™ for the new Samsung Galaxy S®4. The SquareTrade Breakability Score ranks today's top devices based on how prone they are to break due to accidents. Evaluating key elements such as front and back panel design, edge construction and materials, size, weight, friction quotient, water resistance and grip-ability, SquareTrade's Breakability Score fills in the missing gap left by traditional device reviews: it tests devices in everyday danger situations brought on by our lifestyles and habits.

The Richter Scale it isn't, but the SquareTrade Breakability Score is based on a number of factors, from physical characteristics to the results of SquareTrade's drop test. The higher a device scores on a scale from 1-10, the higher the risk of it breaking due to an accident.

Comparing the Samsung Galaxy S4 to the S3 and Apple's iPhone^®5, the iPhone 5 was the clear winner. SquareTrade's breakability score revealed the following:

• While the S4 proved slightly more water resistant than its predecessor the S3, Samsung's new Galaxy phone actually performed worse in most other categories. Major strikes against the S4 include high breakability during drop tests, a slippery back panel, and a wider screen that reduces grip-ability, especially compared to the ultra-slim iPhone 5. Breakability Score: 7
• While the Samsung S3 screen is more durable, it is less water resistant than the S4 and its plastic back and wide width decreases its grip-ability. Breakability score: 6.5
• The iPhone 5 scored the highest of the three phones tested. While it lost points for its larger size due to more breakable surface area, its excellent grip-ability and low friction coefficient make it far more durable overall. Breakability Score: 5

"Our research and experience shows that even the smallest device characteristics can dramatically affect its breakability: the weight balance of a device can affect the way it spins in free-fall, making it more likely to land on its screen; devices with rubber backs are less likely to slide, and device dimensions can effect how snugly smartphones fit in pant and jeans pockets," said Ty Shay, CMO at SquareTrade. "The likelihood of damage due to these common scenarios has never been higher."