CES 2024: the Best Audio Equipment We’ve Spotted
At CES 2024, we saw a variety of audio products, from a completely unusual speaker with a built-in photo frame to practical headphones for offline translation. The concepts and products unveiled at CES never cease to amaze, even if many of them arrive months or years later or never arrive at all. This conference is not worth attending if you want to buy products today, but if you want to reach the pinnacle of future technology, there is no better place. Here are the best audio products from CES 2024.
Samsung music photo frame.
Remember the popular The Frame TV from Samsung? If you have one of these, or even if you don’t, you should check out the Samsung Music Frame, which is a speaker with a built-in photo frame. It has a square frame (12.9 inches on each side) and comes with a real print that you can customize before ordering, according to Samsung . (In other words, it doesn’t have a digital screen for quickly loading or sharing images like a digital photo frame.) The company says this speaker delivers surround sound when paired with its 2024 lineup of TVs and soundbars, but it can also work as a standalone speaker Bluetooth.
Speaker to help with this unintelligible dialogue
One of the biggest problems with modern films is that the dialogue is often too difficult to hear. If you’re tired of sound effects that are too loud and can’t understand dialogue, you might be interested in the Mirai speaker. It claims to improve the audio of dialogue so you don’t have to search for subtitles again. Unlike many of the promising technologies showcased at CES, this one is available right now for $300 .
Waterproof headphones that fit outside your ears
Popular accessories brand Anker is showing off a pair of headphones called the Soundcore Aerofit, which it calls “the world’s first open-back headphones that are waterproof.” The Aerofit is rated IPX7 waterproof, which means you can submerge this pair of headphones in up to 1 meter of water for up to 30 minutes. The open ear design means they sit just behind the ear canal, which may be more comfortable for some people. Anker already sells the Aerofit Pro , which has a lower IPX5 waterproof rating. According to Anker, the new Aerofit offers up to 11 hours of playback on a single charge, which can be extended to 42 hours with the charging case.
An elegant soundbar for your monitor
When we talk about soundbars, we mostly mean TV speakers, but the Blueant Soundblade is a soundbar designed for monitors. The speaker will be launched at CES 2024 and its sleek design immediately caught our attention. If you place it under your monitor, it will look more like a stand than a speaker. It supports 3.5mm auxiliary input, USB-C, and Bluetooth 5.3. The product is available in five colors and you can pre-order it for $200 USD . The company says you won’t be charged until the product ships.
Headphones with offline translation function
Mymanu Clik 2 is a pair of wireless headphones that support live streaming both in person and online. Its makers claim that the product has an eSIM and is Wi-Fi enabled, and its translation tools can be accessed offline. This product has won a CES Innovation Award. While pricing and availability are unclear, you can take a look at the Mymanu Clik S on the company’s website to get a general idea of pricing and features.
Reducing cable clutter in home theaters
An audio video receiver (AVR) is at the center of almost every home theater. This creates a ton of cables behind your TV, going to every speaker in your setup. Audio Cu is a product that can replace the AVR in a home theater audio system and reduces cable clutter by distributing audio power. The company claims that you can connect an audio transmitter to the TV, and a receiver to each speaker. The transmitter transmits audio via power to each Audio Cu receiver. This means there will be a pair of cables running from your TV to the Audio Cu transmitter, and one cable from each speaker to each receiver. Audio Cu also claims Dolby Atmos for audio. The project was originally funded through Indiegogo , and is now a CES 2024 Innovation Award winner.