Rebecca Day

SCARSDALE, N.Y. -- A few unexpected results emerged from Value Electronics’ 2014 Flat-Panel TV Shootout Saturday and Sunday to determine the best premier flat-panel TV for the 2014-2015 selling seasons.

Sonos discontinued production of its black matte subwoofer -- the Matte SUB -- “in order to simplify the Sonos product lineup,” the company said in an email to customers Monday. Matte models will remain in stock while supplies last, which is expected to be over “the coming months,” it said. The subwoofer remains at $699, according to the Sonos website. The matte and glossy versions -- both in black -- have incited some controversy, according to the Sonos user forum, which showed a few passionate preferences for either the glossy or matte finish dating back to last year. One customer had been waiting for eight months for the matte version, according to a post dated March 2013, and claimed to have been promised a price that was $100 less than the glossy version when it arrived in stock. The customer said quantities of the matte version were limited and that Sonos said it wouldn’t make them anymore after an initial small run, leaving the customer to “have to suffer with the glossy finish that I don’t like.” Two hours later, the customer reported that “scalpers” were getting $1,000 for the matte version on eBay. Both SUB models have a contemporary stylized block design with an open tile in the middle that looks starkly different from the company’s other traditionally styled audio products. Sonos didn’t immediately respond to questions on whether the glossy version is on its way out soon, too, since the style hasn’t been carried through to new Sonos products. The SUB, designed by Mieko Kusano, won a 2013 IDEA Curator’s Choice award from the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), which described it as “an enigmatic object -- almost a distant relative of the monolith in 2001 -- streamlined yet blocky, polished yet dark.” The IDSA apparently sided with glossy.

SMS Audio, whose principal investor is rapper and entrepreneur Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, launched with Intel sport-oriented in-ear headphones for the holiday season that incorporate a charging solution and integrated heart rate monitor designed by Intel. A launch date wasn’t given for the sub $150 earphones, dubbed the SMS Audio BioSport In-Ear Headphones powered by Intel. The heart rate monitor will work with the RunKeeper fitness app.

Apple’s and Samsung’s dominance in the “maturing” tablet market is waning, said a report from DisplaySearch. Total tablet display shipments fell 10 percent from the first six months of 2013 to first-half 2014, while display shipments to Apple and Samsung plummeted 34 percent, DisplaySearch said. The market leaders’ combined share of 42 percent for first half 2013, fell to 29 percent over the first six months this year, it said.

At a multisession briefing in New York Wednesday, introduced by Public Relations Manager Josh Gershman as “not a news event,” Dolby gave “ears-on” Dolby Atmos demonstrations to journalists, installers and industry members in cinema-level and home theater configurations. The event was used to give an “apples-to-apples comparison” between not only cinema and home versions of Dolby Atmos but also between home Atmos systems using in-ceiling and Dolby-enabled integrated speakers. Executives also addressed some of the many questions circulating about the Dolby Atmos rollout this fall.

The entry of Apple and Google in the automotive space has elevated the concept of a base car infotainment system, said Sachin Lawande, president-Harman’s Infotainment division, in a presentation at the Pacific Crest Global Technology Leadership Forum webcast Monday from Vail, Colorado.

Best Buy began taking pre-orders Monday for a $3,499 55-inch curved OLED 1080p TV, more than 75 percent off the price of LG’s initial OLED TV that hit the market last summer at $14,999. The sub-$3,500 retail price is due to “very significant yield improvements” comparable to large-screen LCD TV yields at a similar stage of that technology’s evolution, John Taylor, LG vice president-government and public affairs, told Consumer Electronics Daily. In a news release Monday, LG took shots at Panasonic and Samsung, saying: “As other TV manufacturers abandon plasma and struggle with OLED production, LG Electronics is reinforcing its leadership in this premium display technology with the official U.S. launch of its next-generation OLED TV.” LG also plans to launch 55- and 65-inch Ultra HD OLED models this fall, but a launch date hasn’t been set, Taylor said. The 55-inch 55EC9300 HD model will begin shipping Aug. 24 at Best Buy and will be available at other regional retailers including Abt Electronics, BrandsMart and P.C. Richard this month following the Best Buy launch, LG said. The 55EC9300 is LG’s third OLED TV release in 13 months and is the first OLED in LG’s line with the LG Smart TV+webOS connected TV platform. LG called the platform a “speedy interface that delivers lightning-quick transitions” between broadcast TV, streaming services and external devices. The TV comes with LG’s gesture-driven Magic remote control. According to the TV’s FTC Energy Guide label, annual energy costs for using the 55EC9300 TV are roughly $17. Meanwhile, LG chopped $4,700 off the price of the predecessor 55-inch HD 3D smart and curved OLED TV, bringing it to $3,299. The limited-market 55EA8800 55-inch gallery OLED TV -- with pre-loaded artwork, an articulating arm and integrated 100-watt speaker system -- remains in the line at $8,499. “It’s a different animal,” Taylor said.

In a week that is truly “back-to-school” for some districts and a prelude for others, an eclectic swath of retailers is advertising school-themed electronics deals, we found in an ad sweep. New York-area supermarket chain ShopRite showed beneath an ad for Pop-Tarts and shampoo, a Sony RDPX200iP speaker dock for iPad and iPhone, listed as a final-sale “hot deal” for $49, down from $79. The dock, with an older-generation 30-pin Apple connector, has been discontinued by Sony, but is selling at Amazon for $85, we found. ShopRite was also selling a 19-inch RCA LED-lit TV for $88, down from $99, and iPad minis for $224, a $75 discount.

Vizio posted a notice on its website warning owners of certain E-Series 39- and 42-inch TVs of a possible “tip-over” hazard that the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said affected some 245,000 units. According to the CPSC, Vizio has received 51 reports of the TVs tipping over, but no reported injuries. The hazard is that the stand assembly can fail and cause the television “to tip over unexpectedly, posing a risk of impact injury to the consumer,” said Vizio. In a notice on its website (http://bit.ly/1okWEVI), Vizio said the manufacturing defect is not visible on the outside of the stand assembly but that “as with any TV tip-over, injury to users is possible.” Affected TVs were manufactured between December 2013 and June 2014 by AmTRAN Technology, based in Taipei City, Taiwan, with plants in Taiwan and Mexico, the CPSC said. The sets were sold through Amazon, Best Buy, Costco.com, Meijer, Sams.com, Target and Walmart from December 2013 through June 2014 for between $370 and $450, said the CPSC. The notice doesn’t affect TVs mounted to a wall, but Vizio urged all owners of the affected sets to follow directions on how to obtain a replacement stand for future use. Vizio is extending its standard one-year limited warranty to two years from the date of purchase for the specific stand issue involving E390-B0, E390i-B0 or E420i-B0 TVs, it said. The company directed customers to its toll-free number (855-472-7450) and gave an email address where they can register for a replacement stand. Vizio urged customers to “immediately detach the stand, place the television in a safe location and contact VIZIO for a replacement stand assembly.” Despite mainstream news reports citing a Vizio TV recall, a company spokesman told us the stands, not the TVs, are covered under the recall notice. The TVs don’t need to be replaced, he said.

A biometrics fingerprint company with roots in military security applications is looking to gain a foothold in the smartphone security market. Jim Cantrell, CEO of IDair, told Consumer Electronics Daily that the company’s innerID software-based module offers app developers a way to differentiate their apps using IDair’s fingerprint technology. The key to the IDair product is converting an image of a fingertip, taken with a smartphone camera, into a fingerprint image, Cantrell said.