Creative may hope to rival Jawbone's Jambox with its new colorfully geometric Bluetooth speakers, the Airwave and Airwave HD. NFC-enabled Bluetooth speakers aren't exactly news, so Creative is playing catch-up with its NFC-capable Airwave series. Users can pair NFC-equipped devices to the Airwave by simply tapping the phone against the speaker, while an integrated microphone allows for use as a speakerphone -- devices not packing NFC can connect via Bluetooth manually. The Airwave HD can support two NFC-connected devices but it sacrifices about five hours of playback compared to the less powerful Airwave, which can go 12 hours between charges.

Creative is taking a fresh approach with its styling by offering the Airwave line in a variety of colors including pink, blue, green, and red. This new design theme is echoed in Creative's Hitz headsets, which will feature an in-line microphone housing playback and volume controls. Though there's no word yet on a stateside release, the Airwave and Airwave HD will be available in Singapore in June for SG$129 (US$103) and SG$199 (US$160) respectively and the Hitz line will launch in July, with prices ranging from SG$49 (US$39) to SG$89 (US$72). For more information, see the full press release after the break.

Filed under: Portable Audio/Video

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Via: Nothing But Creative

Source: Creative

Remember late last year when Recon Instruments introduced its MOD Live Android-enabled heads-up display for the likes of ski goggles?Joining the ranks of other optics makers, Oakley's partnered with the company to seamlessly integrate the unit into its own goggles, dubbed Airwave. It's not just another shell for the system, either, as Oakley will be providing a companion app that'll work with iOS -- which seems to be first official instance as such since Recon itself said it would be coming earlier this year. The MOD Live itself is otherwise the same right-eye positioned system (providing a perceived 14-inch display at five feet away) we've seen for almost a year now, so don't expect to get the clearest picture if you're left eye dominant or use contact lenses for distance. Furthermore, there's still GPS for tracking friends / navigation, and Bluetooth to work with a water-resistant wrist remote that allows you to control your smartphone and the display itself. Of course, this also means Recon's Android SDK will also be workable, as will your Contour camera.

If you're interested in Oakley's spin on the MOD Live, the Airwave will hit Apple stores on October 31st for $600 in your choice of black with a black Iridium lens, or a white with black graphics and a "fire" colored variant of the lens -- yes, they're interchangeable just like most of Oakley's other specs. If you're curious for further details in the meantime, check out the simulation video and press release after the break. Now, how about those full-on smart glasses to take on Google Glass as the company's CEO mentioned in April?

Gallery: Oakley Airwave snowboarding goggles with Recon MOD Live HUD (eyes-on)

Filed under: Misc, Peripherals, Wearables

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There's a first for everything, including Engadget stories about software updates for thermostats. If we're going to suddenly start getting granular in our coverage of home automation products, though, we may as well start with the Nest, a device slick enough to make us use "thermostat" and "sexy' in the same sentence. Now that it's been out on the market for about five months, the company's issuing a software update that introduces a couple new features.

For starters, particularly fastidious users can now access a detailed 10-day history, showing precisely when and for how long their heating and cooling systems kicked in, as well as the reason for that shift (e.g., you manually changed the temperature, were away). Though you can't view all that data on the device's small, circular screen, you can look it up online or through Nest's iOS and Android apps. Next up is Airwave, a feature that uses your fan to distribute chilled air through the home after your air conditioner has turned off (you know, instead of letting one room get intensely, unnecessarily cold). According to Nest, that feature turns on automatically when the temperature is high and the humidity low, though we're hazy on the algorithm being used there. Rounding out the list, Nest has made certain settings easier to access, and the hardware itself will ship with redesigned connectors that purport to work well even without wall anchors. Save for that last bit, current owners can enjoy all these tweaks via a free software update -- fully automated, 'o course.

Gallery: Nest Thermostat update with 10-day energy history

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