Recently Published AV News
Win a FREE Pair of Arendal Sound 1961 Tower Speakers ($2k value)!
	
	
	
	
	
	Kick off the holidays with a FREE Audioholics giveaway! Win 1961 Tower Speakers ($2,000/pair) from Norway’s audio masters. Free entry & shipping—no purchase needed! Enter by Nov 31st, 2025!
Warner Sues Superman, Gets Sued for Piracy
	
	
	
	
	
	Lex Luthor couldn’t have come up with a better legal entanglement for Warner Brothers. The movie studio that owns DC Comics stands accused of pirating a German company’s anti-piracy software.
Google Switches to Mac, Bans Windows Over Security Flaws
	
	
	
	
	
	Google, who employs over 10,000 people worldwide, is gradually but systematically ditching Windows across its entire company due to security concerns. It's a security effort, said one Google employee.
Apple Overtakes Microsoft as 2nd Largest U.S. Company
	
	
	
	
	
	Something big happened yesterday. And yet it remained largely unreported. Apple had finally overtaken Microsoft in terms of market capitalization, making it the second largest company in the U.S.
Sony's GoogleTV Android Alliance
	
	
	
	
	
	Sony Corp. Chairman, Sir Howard Stringer concluded a press conference about its forthcoming Android-based Internet TV yesterday with a widely quoted declaration: "This really is a very big deal."
Prof. Dr. Fritz Sennheiser Dies at 98
	
	
	
	
	
	Late during the evening of 17 May 2010, only a few days after his 98th birthday, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Fritz Sennheiser, audio pioneer and founder of today’s Sennheiser electronic GmbH & Co KG, passed away.
MTV Games 2nd Annual Rock Band Competition at Harrah's
	
	
	
	
	
	Harrah's Entertainment and MTV Games are once again seeking the best Rock Band gamers in the U.S. The winning band will receive $10,000 and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet Ringo Starr.
OLET May Render OLED Obsolete
	
	
	
	
	
	Get ready to keep holding your breath for a new hope: the Organic Light Emitting Transistor (OLET). Findings suggests that OLET can outperform OLED in both brightness and efficiency in emitting light.
Open Source Blu‑ray Authoring Software Sees Light of Day
	
	
	
	
	
	Blu-ray video authoring is an expensive proposition, but recently, an open source software group has developed the basis for an alternative to expensive proprietary software.
FCC's AllVid to Bail Out Failed CableCARD Technology
	
	
	
	
	
	CableCARD. The technology that would allow any manufacturer to interface with satellite and cableTV programming. Except that, like the Tiger Woods Center for Marriage Enrichment, it failed miserably.
Denon Turns 100 ‑ New Receivers, Blu‑ray, Headphones
	
	
	
	
	
	Denon turns 100 and releases new receivers, Blu-ray players, and headphones. The headphones will be noise-canceling, the Blu-ray players universal, and the receivers feature packed.
VUDU Scoops Avatar HD Streaming
	
	
	
	
	
	VUDU announced this morning that they are the only streaming media service provider that will offer Avatar in HD on April 22nd at 12:01 am EST, Earth Day, in a rare day-and-date release.
Niles Audio ZR‑6 Recalled Due to Fire Hazard
	
	
	
	
	
	The Niles ZR-6 Multi-zone receiver was voluntarily conducted by Niles Audio Corp. of Miami, Florida in cooperation with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
D&M Holdings Discontinues Snell and Escient
	
	
	
	
	
	D&M Holdings issued a press release today that it is discontinuing Escient and Snell and rolling much of those technologies into its remaining brands: Denon, Marantz, McIntosh and Boston Acoustics.
Are You an AV Professional? This Music Video is for You
	
	
	
	
	
	Every once in a while we see something that's funny enough to put on our home page. This time around it's a video called A/V Professional by "HiPhi" and directed by Joel T Wilson.
Redbox Announces Blu‑rays at Walmart ‑ Soon Everywhere
	
	
	
	
	
	Redbox, who has over 22,400 kiosks across the country is getting ready to release Blu-ray Discs to consumers. Blu-ray Discs will be available in a majority of Redbox kiosks by July.
You Want Speakers? We Got Speakers!
	
	
	
	
	
	Long time members of the Audioholics Forums will know that we often have contests. This month, we have something a little special. Speakers from Aperion Audio, ZVOX, and Orb Audio.
HDMI Releases 1.4a Specification
	
	
	
	
	
	HDMI Licensing, the agent responsible for licensing the High-Definition Multimedia Interface specification, today announced the release of HDMI Specification Version 1.4a featuring key enhancements.
AV123 Mark Schifter Indicted by Grand Jury on Five Counts
	
	
	
	
	
	The story was first reported at length on our own Audioholics Forums several months ago, but the official grand jury indictment finally came through for Mark L. Schifter of AV123.com.
2010 Mobile World Congress; Software over Bling
	
	
	
	
	
	This year's Mobile World Congress was short on new handset bling but big on new software, the GSM mobile world is not recession proof. An underlying optimism springs from the announcements; promise.
Walmart Acquires VUDU Inc
	
	
	
	
	
	In a surprising announcement, Walmart announced today a definitive agreement to acquire VUDU, Inc., a leading provider of streaming digital technologies and services to stream media to TVs.
2010: The Year AACS and HDMI Kill Off Component Video
	
	
	
	
	
	AACS is going to royally screw up a lot of home theaters next year. After December 31, 2010, manufacturers will not be "allowed" introduce new hardware with high-definition component video outputs.
After Only 2 Years, Sony Drops OLED in Japan
	
	
	
	
	
	Once trumpeted as Sony's return to high technology leadership, the company has stopped production of OLED TV in Japan. With worldwide shipments of just 2000 units it's not entirely an unexpected move.
Sony PS3 Upgradable to 3D Blu‑ray and Gaming
	
	
	
	
	
	The Sony PlayStation 3 is being set up for another huge transformation, one that will further its reputation as the "buy it once, use it forever" Blu-ray player. A firmware update will make it 3D.
Vizio Brand Redux, Featuring Beyonce and The Internet
	
	
	
	
	
	Vizio, the once budget TV maker has used the pricey Superbowl XLIV ad-space and Beyonce to rebuild its brand. The new Vizio wants to transform into a leading-edge, Internet connectivity.
Netflix in 1080p and 5.1 Surround Sound ‑ Not so Fast!
	
	
	
	
	
	A flurry of activity went on today as Cnet broke a story about Netflix adding 1080p and 5.1 audio to its entire streaming library later this year. Turns out it wasn't entirely accurate... we'll wait.
Super Bowl XLIV Uncompressed Feed: Will You Get The Immaculate Reception?
	
	
	
	
	
	Super Bowl XLIV will be transmitted to CBS in pristine, compression free HDTV thanks to Level 3 Communications Inc. Unfortunately most Cable and Satellite TV won't see this year's Immaculate Reception
Apple iPhones it in with iPad
	
	
	
	
	
	Apple's iPad announcement has been met with disappointment among tech-press. The biggest disappointment with iPad, besides its unfortunate name, is not about features... it's the interface.
MagicJack Casts A Spell On Your Cell Phone
	
	
	
	
	
	The wizards at YMAX Corporation, the company that created MagicJack, have a new trick up their sleeve – they want to turn into Skype. Unfortunately, YMAX's sudden rise, is a case of growing too fast.