audiosplitz: Streaming

2018 Smart Speaker Roundup

December 11, 2017

As 2017 comes to a close, it's important to look back at what defined the year in music hardware. Speakers and headphones have evolved considerably to a level where app support is practically the norm. True wireless earphones hit the mainstream.

Beyond that, 2017 was all about digital assistant-powered devices such as smart speakers. It kickstarted in May at the Google I/O conference where they announced the expansion of the Google Assistant ecosystem and capabilities. Apple soon followed with the HomePod smart speaker announcement at their WWDC event in June. If not already clear, the next frontier for the big tech companies would be in artificial intelligence and digital assistants. The only question is which would emerge victorious or would there somehow be a convergence of digital/voice assistants in the future? We'll leave that question for another time while we check out the smart speakers that hit the markets this year and pave the way for 2018.

1. Amazon Echo (2nd Generation)

Voice Assistant - Alexa
Launched - Oct 2017
Price - USD 99.99
What's the deal? -
It ups the ante on the 1st gen with a new speaker, with Dolby processing, and new design. It fits very well in the living room as it doesn't look as industrial as its predecessor.

2. Amazon Echo Dot

Voice Assistant - Alexa
Launched - Oct 2016
Price - USD 49.99
What's the deal? -
A very compact alternative to the Amazon Echo, with all the capability of Alexa at your disposal. It connects through a 3.5mm audio cable or Bluetooth. At half the price of the Amazon Echo, this is a great option to an entry-level smart speaker.

3. Apple HomePod

Voice Assistant - Siri
Launched - June 2017. To sell in Early 2018.
Price - USD 349
What's the deal? -
Apple's first big speaker since the discontinued iPod Hi-Fi. To make the deal sweeter, make them look more compact, add Siri voice assistant and presto, you get the Apple HomePod. Would've sold like hotcakes if they'd come out by X'mas. Likely will sell like hotcakes once they are out in 2018, anyway.

4. Google Home Mini

Voice Assistant - Google Assistant
Launched - Oct 2017
Price - USD 49
What's the deal? - No prizes for guessing who its competitor is. The Google Home Mini is about the size of the Echo Dot, has a similar price tag and looks pretty darn good. Only drawback is the lack of a 3.5mm jack.

5. Harman Kardon Invoke

Voice Assistant - Microsoft Cortana
Launched - Oct 2017
Price - USD 199
What's the deal? -
It looks very much like an Echo, or Bose SoundLink Revolve, but is the very first to feature Microsoft Cortana digital assistant. The speakers, unlike the Home or the Echo, are more powerful and hence sound that much better.

6. Sonos One

Voice Assistant - Alexa
Launched - Oct 2017
Price - USD 199 / SGD 329
What's the deal? -
If you've noticed, Oct 2017 was a popular month for smart speaker launches. Likely one of the best sounding smart speakers in the whole selection, the Sonos One differentiates itself from the Sonos Play:1 by the integration of Alexa. Like the other speakers in the Sonos ecosystem, they run only on the Wi-Fi network.

Ampifiers

Sonos Playbase Launch in Singapore

March 27, 2017

24 Mar - Sonos announced the launch of the Playbase, their first soundbase product that is meant to sit nicely under your TV. We were invited to a private session by Sonos and TC Acoustic, their South East Asian distributors, to experience the Playbase firsthand in a cozy setting in River Valley, Singapore.

What's The Big Deal?
Sonos product launches are quite a rarity. To prove the point, we'd have to go back one and a half years back to October 2015 when the Play:5 hit the shops. This is their first foray into soundbases and is comparable to their soundbar (Playbar) in terms of specs and sound.

1. Design and Build
The Sonos Playbase is really thin at 5.8cm tall coming with a sufficiently wide base of 72 x 38cm and weighing 8.6kg. It packs 3 tweeters, 6 midrange drivers and 1 woofer within. As soundbases are parked directly under TVs, one big challenge for audio manufacturers is to try to keep the vibrations from the lower frequencies down since the entire TV is placed on the soundbase. From what we hear, Sonos built the Playbase from scratch and included a custom-designed glass filled polycarbonate exterior both to reduce the vibrations and to support the weight of a TV (up to 75lbs / 54 inch screen).

2. Playbar Alternative
Sonos already has a soundbar product called the Playbar, also priced at SGD 1,299, that can be wall mounted under your TV. According to Sonos' research, 70% of TVs actually sit on furniture which inspired them to come out with the Playbase. Basically, these two products serve to give a choice to consumers based on their living room configuration.

3. App Support
The Sonos Controller app (iOS, Android ready) already supports the Sonos ecosystem of speakers and it now adds the Playbase. You can play music from streaming platforms like Spotify, Deezer, Apple Music. There's a Trueplay calibration (only for iOS users) which even allows tuning of your speakers based on your room setup.

4. Connectivity
The ports at the rear are minimal - a digital optical out, LAN and power point. This is actually sparse. One would imagine the inclusion of an HDMI (with Audio Return Channel) or even Bluetooth but on the other hand, Sonos has already designed the rest of its product range to connect to each other through Wifi.

First Impressions - Sound
Seated in a living room with a sofa at the front and high chairs at the back, the media folks were given a taste of the Playbase. We were played samples such as Dolby "Spheres" that showcased the surround sound capability and then Radiohead's atmospheric Everything In Its Right Place illustrated the clear stereo separation. And then the Playbase was paired with two Play:1 speakers propped on stands at the back and the Sub for a full 5.1 experience, set up nicely for a climactic battle scene from The Force Awakens with X-Wings and TIE fighters zooming around. Just based on those few minutes, it's a undoubtedly a good first impression. There's quite a bit of power that bassheads can relate with instantly and environmental sounds are crisp though it remains to be seen how The Force Awakens fares if we just listen from the Playbase solely.

Pricing and Availability
The Sonos Playbase goes for USD 699 / GBP 699 / SGD 1,299 and comes in black and white variants. It is available as of April 2017.

Bang & Olufsen

IFA 2016 - Bang & Olufsen BeoSound 1 Launch

September 02, 2016

Apple

Taylor Swift's Viral Apple Music Video

April 04, 2016

Apple

Streaming Music Outpaces Digital Downloads

March 26, 2016

It's a first.

According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), US streaming music revenues have officially surpassed digital downloads for 2015. From USD 1.87B in 2014, streaming music racked up a 29% rise to hit USD 2.41B in 2015.

Definitions
By the streaming category, the RIAA is talking about revenues from subscription services (such as paid versions of Spotify, TIDAL, and Apple Music, among others), streaming radio service revenues that are distributed by SoundExchange (like Pandora, SiriusXM, and other Internet radio), and other non-subscription on-demand streaming services (such as YouTube, Vevo, and ad-supported Spotify).

Trends
From the chart below, you can see that streaming music (34.3%) marginally beats digital downloads at (34.0%). Marginal is the word but the trend looks favorable to the long term success of streaming music.

According to RIAA, paid subscriptions formed the biggest and fastest growing portion of the streaming market. What is significant is that they mentioned Apple Music and TIDAL's entrance that makes this space so hot. Interestingly, market share by active users, downloads and revenue, is something quite different as Pandora and Deezer, as at Q3 2015 were champions in their respective countries of US and France, according to App Annie. What remains to be seen is the impact of the new entrants in the long run.

Is it a Big Deal?
Sure it is. Every era has a champion. Take the 1980s. The cassette was king. The 90s saw the rise of Compact Discs (CDs). Record companies thought the status quo was fantastic. A few pennies to press discs and the casing, some to the artists and the majority to expand their vast empires. Enter the 2000s and MP3s. Napster and iTunes arrived and so did the massively successful iPod.

Now, we're in the 2010s. Spotify arrived not too long ago and finally the combined powers of the streaming music companies have toppled digital downloads. From 2011 to 2014, the revenue from streaming music experienced a 6% year-on-year increase and in the past year, we see a 7% increase. The rise of streaming music is here to stay. Make no mistake about it.

Apple

Apple Music - Should Spotify users care?

June 19, 2015

Apple Music's launch at WWDC 2015 was the hot topic in the music scene last week. Should you care? Well, if you love music and Spotify is your cup of tea, damn right you should.

What's So Special?
Much has already been said online on what Apple Music is about. Let's summarize all that:

1. A streaming music platform.
From the makers of iTunes, it's not their first venture into cloud music (think iTunes Match) but this long overdue (and awaited) service is likely to cause a certain Swedish company a few sleepless nights.

2. 30 million songs.
Their iTunes legacy can continue with a massive database. Taylor Swift? From WWDC, that looked like a yes, but just today, it appears that she is saying no to the release of her current 1989 album on Apple Music.

3. Audio Quality
256kbps AAC. It's different from the 320kbps MP3 being offered by Spotify Premium but in terms of audio quality, it's best to give a blind test to both the AAC and the MP3 formats to see if there's a significant difference.

4. Apple Music Connect
Artists can share info on their material through lyrics, backstage photos. Fans can comment and if the artists find it worth their while, they can reply you too. In a nutshell, another potential social media platform.

Pricing
USD 9.99 for single membership.
USD 14.99 for family membership (up to six members). This is big advantage over Spotify. This translates to support for 5 more pax at just USD 5 more.

Availability
On 30 June in 100 countries. From then, users get a free 3 month trial after which membership fees apply.

The platforms initially supported are iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac and PC.

Come Fall (Sep - Oct range), Apple TV and Android phones will be supported.

Apple Music vs Spotify comparison

What's the impact if I'm a:

- Spotify (Free) user
You are streaming at up to 160kbps MP3 music. There is not much reason to switch to Apple Music as you get somewhat limited features.
For example, you get access to:
1. Beats 1 Radio station and Apple Music radio stations.
2. Connect feature.

- Spotify (Premium) user
Will you only use one account? Not much impact. Will there be more people you know using the service? Yes? Then Apple Music's Family Membership will look mighty enticing, but let's see if Spotify will match or better Apple's offer.

You are already running 320kbps MP3 music so you may want to assess how different Apple Music's default 256kbps AAC music will be like.

News

The end of music retailers?

September 22, 2013

This week was a sad week.

Not just for me but those who grew up in Singapore loving music.

Gramophone, one of the few music retailers left in Singapore, shut its doors for good.

While not unexpected, this definitely was a disappointment to me. I'm sure there are many who had frequented their flagship Raffles Place store within the MRT station. I was one of those. Heading here straight after school was quite the norm for me. Gramophone would be a place where you could get discs at a great price.Of the top of my head, Portishead's 'Dummy' and Texas' 'The Hush' spring to mind. What was better was that 2nd hand discs were available and there were pretty good titles such as Oasis' 'Be Here Now' for a cut throat price of 8 bucks.

They had set up other branches across the island. My favourite was Capitol Centre. The location next to City Hall MRT was great. I think there would have been more than a few who would have remembered its musty smell which smacks you in the face the moment you step through the glass doors. I have never figured out why they couldn't get rid of it but somehow, it became somewhat of a signature of this outlet. Anyway, did I mention the location? Whichever the case, this closed down in 2010. And so did all of their outlets culminating in their last and only store at The Cathay just this week.

Taking stock of the music retailers in Singapore, Tower Records folded in 2006, Sembawang Music Store in 2009 and now Gramophone in 2013. The future looks pretty bleak for music retailers, not just in Singapore but worldwide. The only ones left appear to be HMV at Marina Square and That CD Shop with few branches around.

The death knell for music retailers has sounded.

But if most people had noticed, it had already started ringing slightly over 10 years ago.

In the early 2000s, the big record labels probably thought the compact disc medium would last forever. Why change it? The profits per disc were massive. Some money for making the disc, some for the sleeve, some for the making of plastic casing, some money for manufacturing, distribution, retailers. A teeny bit to the artistes and oh yes, a sizeable chunk to the record labels. Indeed, why change it? Why change a format that was a sure money generator?

Clearly, mp3s were a medium that the record labels and music retailers did not take seriously enough. That merits an entire discussion in itself but the point is, mp3s are now the dominant music format in Singapore that consumers use.

Would the future for the music retailers have changed had they understood and took steps to address this concern? Most likely yes. Steve Jobs didn't come from the music retail scene but to allow Apple's iPod to take off, iTunes was instrumental in creating a symbiotic relationship. iTunes, the eCommerce portal for music and iPod, the listening device for the music you purchased. You shop. You listen. It was something ahead of its time.

Right now, what seems to be the model for success for music distribution? From the looks of it, it appears to be subscription services. Apples iTunes has diversified to iTunes Match which provides the music you purchase on all compatible hardware at US$24.99 a year. Singapore's Starhub has come up with a streaming model for millions of songs at S$9.90 a month. Spotify also is a streaming service which allows you to opt for either the ad-supported free version or the Premium version at S$9.90 a month.

Do all these online services spell doom for traditional retailers with physical stores? I'll hold my tongue for now. Let's leave that as a point to ponder over, shall we?