Pandora Adds Classical Music – Pandora has added classical music to the Music Genome Project, which places it ahead in this respect over other online music services. Pandora is known for its ability to figure out what listeners like based on a musical genetic code for each tune. Nowhere is a song’s musical genetic code more relevant to figuring out what you like than in the complexities of classically-composed music. Pandora Classical includes a collection of over 10,000 recordings by more than 500 composers spanning all classical music genres. In additions to their own stations based on one artist, listeners can listen to one movement in a piece and build a station recommending other similar music pieces by other artists. The founder of Pandora said “…we hope to make classical music more accessible and relevant to everyone.”
Over a Million Monthly VR Users Now – The VR market, which didn’t exist less than six months ago, has been taken by Oculus, Samsung and others to a growing ecosystem of games and content. Seven of the top ten apps for Gear VR are video content, and nearly 80% of users watch video content with the device. The Oculus Home Gear VR marketplace has debuted a 360-degree 3D-VR series, Nomads, which will be a recurring series about the lives of nomadic people around the globe. Next the Discovery Channels’ hit show on TV, Deadliest Catch, will make its VR debut using a Discovery VR app.
New Sony VPL-HW45ES Full HD 3D Projector – The new nome theater projector was developed with the demand for high image quality in mind. It is Sony’s SXRD panels and advanced Reality Creation technology to offer detailed Full HD images with improved brightness, contrast and resolution from its predecessor, taking it a step closer to the 1080p original source. It has a whisper-quiet fan and a long-lasting lamp with an operation time of up to 6000 hours. 1800 lumens brightness assure clear projection even in a well-lit room, A USB port on the side allows for firmware updates with the latest feature and software releases. There is a both a manual zoom and wife lens shift range and the SXRD images effectively eliminate the screen door effect. Retail price is $1999.99.
Wireless an inevitablity? The MD of Chord says that in time all of our home entertainment sources will become wireless. “The real question for home cinema enthusiasts has to be what quality can be achieved with the technology? Currently, audiophiles will always opt for wired over wireless AV, he argues. “Signal conversion to wireless and back again opens audio to potential degradation and interface issues. Many existing digital systems are very intolerant of HF noise. Well-screened cables help keep this issue at bay allowing higher levels of performance from even very modest equipment.” Another CEO suggests that sometimes the wireless element is not actually integrated into the speaker or TV, and consequently additional black boxes are required to transmit and receive the signal.
