Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/439817
C o n s u m e r E l e c t ro n i c s D a i l y N e ws 6 7 Tu e s d a y, J a n u a r y 6 , 2 0 1 5 EMFIT EVOLVES TO NON-CONTACT RECOVERY, STRESS AND SLEEP MONITORING Emfit, celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2015, is a pioneer and the largest manu- facturer of the most sold tonic-clonic seizure monitor and heart-beat-based bed occupancy monitor manufacturer in the world. It also manufactures its own pro- prietary electro-active dynamic polymer sensors for paper industry, sports equip- ment, music instruments, touch-sensitive human interfaces, smart buildings, etc. Emfit's team consists of 17 highly motivated, skilled and experienced pro- fessionals. Together, the team has more than 150 years of experience at Emfit, working in the U.S.A., Finland, Germany, Canada and China as well. The company's new mission is to help people improve their wellness by enabling them to quantify their sleep and track how behavioral lifestyle choices affect it to see what works best for them. In summer 2014, the company launched Emfit QS, a non- contact and hassle-free recovery, stress and sleep monitor, to solve the prob- lem of keeping track of health and wellness without needing to wear any device or remembering to start or stop any meas- urement. Emfit QS is the world's first non- contact, Heart Rate Variability enabled sleep monitor. With this new technology, athletes, leaders and everybody interest- ed in their wellbeing can now easily and effortlessly monitor and opti- mize training and recovery cycles. Emfit QS also measures heart and respiration rates and turns and tosses, and from these it calculates sleep classes. The sleep classification includes all three stages: REM, deep, and light sleep, because the brain requires a sufficient amount of REM sleep in order to recover, while the body's recovery requires deep sleep. For more information, visit Emfit at booth #74028. After the show, visit www.emfit.com. WREN SOUND SYSTEMS STEPS UP WITH PLAY-FI PLATFORM When it comes to wireless streaming technology that will bring music from a mobile device to multiple speakers, Sonos has been the market leader, with a product good enough to all but corner the market. Now, a new player has emerged to challenge that market dominance with its own streaming technology that's win- ning hearts and ears among audiophiles. "We believe that DTS Play-Fi is the first viable multi-room alternative to Sonos," said Mike Giffin, Founder and President of Wren Sound Systems, who's a fan of the technology, so much so that he's included it as the core WiFi technol- ogy in his new flagship V5US speaker, which is debuting this year at International CES ® and will be launching in the first quarter of this year to retail at around $499. Giffin's enthusiasm for Play-Fi comes both from his dedication to great sound and his excitement about being part of an ecosystem in which consumers are able to buy audio equipment from a variety of manufacturers and sync it har- moniously rather than being locked into one brand for all their equipment once they've made their first purchase. "DTS Play-Fi is a licensing model, not a walled garden," Giffin said. "Their technology is being licensed to computer companies, handset makers and other manufacturers of all kinds of audio equipment. That frees the consumer to choose from a large and growing range of audio brands and products that work together seamlessly in a wireless multi-room system" Expanding the number of choices available for con- sumers' wireless streaming needs will be good for retailers as well as for con- sumers, Giffin said. "Not only can retail- ers offer more multi-room WiFi audio choices, but they can make more profit. The level of retailer interest in Play-Fi has been very high." Wren Sound Systems designed the V5US speaker to take advantage of the wide range of choices in audio equipment available to consumers, in that it's device-agnostic. It's not an AirPlay, Bluetooth or Play-Fi product. "It basical- ly integrates all of those technologies," Giffin said. "It will work with Apple AirPlay and DTS Play-Fi, and it has Bluetooth with CSR aptX. All of these WiFi or wireless technologies are enabled in this device, and once it's hooked into the network, any- body with any device can play on it. It's also capable of multi-room streaming to up to eight speakers." Alongside the V5US in the Wren Sound Systems hospitality suite at International CES, Giffin will be show- ing the new Wren V5AP15, a combina- tion AirPlay and Bluetooth product that will retail at around $399 and a new audio platform called the V3, a smaller version of the V5 for people who want to extend their multi-room setup into small- er environments. Visit Wren in Suite 1450 in the Central Tower of the Westgate Hotel, formerly known as LVH and the Las Vegas Hilton. After the show, visit www.wrensound.com and www.dts.com. THE INTERNET OF THINGS HOLDS GREAT PROMISE, CONT. Continuing the interview with Les Ottolenghi, Global CIIO, Las Vegas Sands Corp. CEDN: Is the Internet of Things (IoT) something new? LO: The IoT actually traces its routes to 1969, when the first nodes of what would eventually become known as ARPANET, the precursor to today's Internet, were established at American universities; and 1982, when Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) became a standard, ushering in the world- wide network of fully interconnected net- works that we now call the Internet. In 2005, the United Nations (UN) first men- tioned IoT in an International Telecommunications Union report. CEDN: Do you think the IoT is ready for business use? LO: Some IoT products and services are ready now, and some – and I believe the vast majority – are still to be developed and in some cases even conceived. IoT covers many types of devices and sys- tems that I believe will not only more fully satisfy customers but also extend the reach of businesses that adopt IoT to consumers whom they may not yet be attracting. CEDN: Do you think consumers will want to use IoT? LO: Some already do. Among other demographic groups, there is a segment of technologically savvy early adopters and trend-set- ters. But overall, human beings reflect a broad range of interests and lifestyles, and I believe that different imple- mentations of IoT will appeal to a wide variety of con- sumers. CEDN: Will consumers be charged more for using IoT? LO: IoT need not drive price increases. As with other components of premium experiences, certain IoT solutions will likely be included in the base-rate, which I don't see increasing as a result of adding certain basic IoT capabilities. I do envision that other IoT products and services will be offered as add-on options for a fee. CEDN: Do you think customers will be able to choose whether or not to use IoT? LO: Absolutely, but that will vary by business. Upscale consumers will likely be presented with an optimal selection of choices and alternatives for both the included- at-no-charge and the optional add-on IoT offerings. CEDN: How will businesses monetize IoT? LO: Businesses will realize cost savings in areas such as power consumption, inventory control and waste manage- ment, thanks to implementing IoT. Businesses may also be able to share in the revenue of IoT with their vendors. Visit DCIA at booth #31701. For more information, go to www.dcia.info, call 410-476-7965 or email info@dcia.info. OPOBOTICS INTRODUCES SOPO, THE PERSONAL ROBOT Opobotics Inc. designs and develops personal robots and programs. It is a company that believes in bringing peo- ple together, one robot at a time. It has embarked upon an adventure with end- less possibilities, the extension of the personal computer. The complex trip from concept to consumer has been guided by a dedicated group, all work- ing toward the same goal: a personal robot that everyone can enjoy. With the technology available today, Opobotics has begun to develop high-quality, affordable robots which will soon be helping us at home and in our schools. To start things off, the company has developed a robot plat- form that is entertaining, educational, easy to use and can be connected to your computer, phone or tablet. Opobotics wanted this robot to have a place in the home, schools, and among friends and family. The first generation of personal robots from Opobotics Inc. is here, introducing Sopo. Sopo was developed to inspire children as well as adults to learn more about programing, without the need to worry about complicated coding. The Graphical User Interface (GUI) soft- ware, from EZ-Robot, enables Sopo to easily be programmed by anyone. Sopo is a robot you can really person- alize! Opobotics Inc. was founded in 2012 and is based in Rocky Mount, N.C. Visit Opobotics at booth #72243.