Apple drops Bose from retail to sell own headphones, and more tech news today

Your Tech News Digest via the DGiT Daily Tech Newsletter for Tuesday, October 6th, 2020.

1. Make waves in the sound

Not one, but three stories about audio and smart devices.

The first is that Apple has tacitly stopped selling third-party audio equipment from its retail stores, according to a Bloomberg report. Bose, Sonos, and some Logitech headphones and speakers have gone, leaving only Apple audio.

• Items like Bose Noise Canceling Headphones 700 and Logitech’s Ultimate Ears Megaboom Wireless Bluetooth Speaker are missing, while Sonos shares fell as much as 7% after the news in night trading.
• The reasoning isn’t exactly a secret. Apple did the same thing when it quickly ended retail sales of Fitbit devices when it released its first-generation Apple Watch.
• And we’ve heard for a while that Apple is working on a set of Apple Studio headphones, its first non-Beats over-ear headphones, as the AirPods line has blown the doors in terms of popularity.
• The Apple HomePod may also be redesigned as the Sonos range has been discontinued.

Speaking of smart speakers, Google’s new Nest Audio gets very good reviews. I even saw 9.5 / 10 points, and our own Lily Katz from SoundGuys was there and gave 8.2 / 10 for the new device.

What is good and what is not

• It’s $ 99, less than the original Google Home at $ 129, and it’s far better than those first-generation efforts.
• How does it sound In short, “The Nest Audio sounds pretty good for its size and works well with a variety of media, from spoken word to music. This neutral frequency response stretches from 90 Hz and means that music will sound about the way the audio engineers and artists intended it – although some may not appreciate a lack of sub-bass emphasis. “
• “It doesn’t look or sound like an audiophile sound system because it isn’t. Instead, this speaker addresses those who want an all-in-one solution with little tinkering. “
• In summary, “Google has ditched the old air freshener aesthetic for a cleaner, softer design that includes impressive hardware and is powered by even more impressive software. If you’re considering the new Amazon Echo but aren’t committed to Alexa, the Nest Audio is an attractive alternative that supports multi-room and stereo playback. “

Another smart device review while we are here::

• My colleague David Imel checked the Samsonite Konnect-i pictured above using Google Jacquard.
• It’s a smart fiber bag, the first step into backpacks after trying jacquard with Levi jackets.
• What can jacquard do? Quote: “With the jacquard fibers on the Samsonite Konnect-i backpack, you can interact with your phone without actually touching your phone. You can pause and play your music, skip tracks, place a Google Maps PIN at your current location, or trigger the Google Assistant. Jacquard works best when you’ve got headphones plugged in, but it can do other things too, like … counting things. If you like it. “
• But at $ 220 that’s a lot of money.
• I recently upgraded backpacks and spent some time settling on a slate blue STM myth with 28L of storage space and accommodating 15-inch laptops that have stepped up from an earlier 20L bag that something for my needs was too small.
• Do I wish it was a smart bag with jacquard functionality? Somehow.
• Am I glad it was a lot cheaper (around $ 98) and doesn’t need charging? Somehow too.

2. The US could get two inexpensive OnePlus phones by the end of the month: probably Nord versions with the code names OnePlus N10 and N100 (Android Authority).

3. Nvidia believes it can solve the biggest video calling challenges with AI. Incredibly impressive demo, but will it last IRL? (Android Authority). Nvidia also had a number of other announcements: a cheaper 2GB Jetson minicomputer, new Pro GPUs, and other developer tools (Engadget).

4. Google’s G Suite is now Google Workspace (TechCrunch).

5. Google and Oracle appeal to the Supreme Court: “The future of software depends on the balance” (Protocol).

6. Spotify finally lets you search songs by lyrics (The Next Web).

7. Venmo has a credit card and it seems okay? (Gizmodo).

8. The story of the UK where Excel was misused to store COVID-19 positive tests has been told as a legend for years. The data was stored in columns, not rows, and that’s just the beginning of the problems (BBC).

9. ‘The Wire’ inspired a fake turtle egg that spied on poachers (Wired).

10. There’s a “bold new shit” on the way to the International Space Station (Jalopnik).

11. Mars has not been so close to Earth for 15 years – this is how you can recognize it (medium)

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