Today marks the last day that Google Glass in its current form will officially be available for $1,500 as part of the Explorer Program. Late last week, the company announced that it would stop selling the smart glasses and the device would no longer be developed by the Google X research division. However, Google Glass is expected to continue as a standalone project with former Apple exec Tony Fadell in charge. Fadell is known for helping to design the iPod and inventing the Nest thermostat. Google purchased Nest last year. Continue reading Today is Final Day to Purchase Google Glass Explorer Edition

Deloitte forecasts that the 83 million 18- to 34-year-old consumers in North America will spend about $62 billion on media consumption in 2015, an average of $750 per person. Roughly 80 percent of millennials are projected to spend an average of $80 per month on pay TV, with another $40 per year for streaming video services such as Netflix or Amazon Prime. The same demographic is likely to spend about $100 on concerts and $25 a year on music downloads and streaming services, according to Deloitte. Continue reading Research Points to Millennials Spending $62 Billion on Media

According to a recent study by SNL Kagan, mobile entertainment revenue is poised to match that of box office totals. Last year in the U.S., revenue generated by mobile games, videos, music and location-based services topped $9.14 billion (and has grown at a combined annual rate of 50 percent the last three years, notes the research). The 2014 total is getting close to the estimated $10.35 billion consumers spent on movie tickets in the U.S. Mobile games led the charge by far, earning more than $5.2 billion last year. Continue reading Research Points to Mobile Revenue Reaching Box Office Totals

Despite the rise of online streaming music services, the “local nature” of radio makes it the most popular platform for music discovery. According to Nielsen, some 243 million people still tune in to radio each week and 51 percent of listeners use radio to discover new music. That’s more than the number of people that find new music on services like YouTube or Spotify, but many music consumers use a combination of both traditional radio and online services to listen to their favorite tunes. Continue reading Studies Show Listeners Still Turn to Radio for Music Discovery

Paris-based myBrain Technologies introduced its first product at CES this week — the audio-based stress reducer Melomind. The electroencephalograph (EEG)-measuring headset connects to your phone and gives an indication of your “stress level” recorded in real time. The accompanying app then chooses a selection of music composed by the team’s sound designers to improve and control the user’s mental state. The 15-minute relaxation sessions help teach the users how to relax by employing their brain activity to modulate the music. Continue reading CES: Melomind Aids Relaxation with Mind-Controlled Audio

Aftershokz showed its newest version of direct bone conducting Bluetooth headphones at the 2015 International CES this week. When maintaining situational awareness is necessary, these devices allow natural sounds to travel unimpeded through your ear drums and use the alternative path of passing tiny vibrations through your cheek bones physically to your inner ear. One touch access to calling on any attached smartphone is possible along with equalization presets to maximize them to your preferences. Continue reading Aftershokz Headphones: Stay Connected Through Your Bones

The ONvocal Mix360 Bluetooth headset and phone app allow you to easily balance the volume of your music player, phone, speaking voice, and the ambient noise around you. This is an elegant solution for people who spend a lot of time on the phone while on the go. According to the company, the tech allows Mix360’s “playback to rival the sound quality of a wired connection, and high-performance speakers deliver deep bass, clear vocals, and sparkling highs.” The Mix360, which worked well during its CES demo, sells for $299. Continue reading ONvocal Introduces its Mix360 3-Way Control Headset at CES

Musician Neil Young’s high quality Pono music player is slated to hit retail stores next Monday retailing at $399. Young designed the music player to exceed the audio capabilities of any MP3 player currently on the market. The PonoPlayer will have a limited release, initially hitting about 80 locations throughout the U.S. Audio files for the Pono will be available from the PonoMusic Store that went live earlier this week. Young made his announcements in front of an enthusiastic crowd at CES in Las Vegas. Continue reading Neil Young’s High-End Pono Music Player Available Next Week

Google is encouraging more people to check out Google Cardboard, the virtual reality platform and headset that connects to a smartphone. Over 500,000 of the devices shipped this year and now VR apps have their own section on the Google Play Store, featuring apps that include musical performances and exotic locations. Now, the tech giant has released an SDK for Android and Unity, so that developers can continue making apps and crafting their own custom headsets. Continue reading Google Releases Cardboard VR App Update and Android SDK

YouTube has confirmed a new feature that will play suggested follow up videos at the end of a viewed video. The video autoplay is currently being tested among a small percentage of users. Autoplay could replace YouTube’s current suggested video grid that appears at the end of every video. If well received by its users, autoplay is a tool that YouTube plans to use to feed content to those casual users that do not necessarily know what they are looking for on the video site. Continue reading YouTube Autoplay Could Change How We Watch Our Videos

According to anti-piracy firm Excipio, the number of global illegally downloaded files has gone relatively unaffected by the recent shut down of The Pirate Bay. During the six-day period following the recent raid of the piracy organization’s data hosting center, illegal downloads slightly dropped, only to go up again a few days later. Even without The Pirate Bay’s active online presence, people have plenty of other alternative sites to visit for pirated movies, music and TV shows. Continue reading Online Piracy is Still Going Strong Despite Pirate Bay Closure

With the launch of a new mobile app, Shazam hopes its latest features will increase the average time people spend using the app. The new features will allow users to see what songs are being searched for the most globally. Additionally, users will now have access to a stream of content such as articles and Twitter posts about different artists and songs. Also worth noting is that Spotify users will have the option to add the music they discover on Shazam to a Spotify playlist without leaving the app. Continue reading Shazam Revamps its Mobile App with Improved Music Features

Virtual reality developer Jaunt has created a new app for Google Cardboard that allows users to experience performances by musician Jack White in a 360-degree, stereoscopic 3D virtual reality experience. The app, called “Jack White: THIRD-D,” is part of Google’s rollout of a new page in its Play store dedicated exclusively to content for Cardboard. Google claims that it has shipped more than 500,000 Cardboard devices as the demand for virtual reality has risen. Continue reading Jaunt Releases New VR Music Experience for Google Cardboard

The company behind the LINE messaging app is the latest to join the crowded music streaming business. LINE will launch “LINE MUSIC” in collaboration with recording labels Avex Digital and Sony Music Entertainment. The new venture is backed by about $4 million, but it will have to compete with established streaming services such as Spotify, Pandora, and Google. LINE has achieved success with its messaging app, which now has over 500 million registered users. Continue reading LINE Messaging App Plans to Start Subscription Music Service

According to research from Strategy Analytics, the average U.S. home with broadband service now has 1.9 connected TV devices, up 28 percent from Q3 2013, and up 5 percent from the second quarter of 2014. The report indicates there are now 168 million connected smart TVs, Blu-ray players, IP-enabled game consoles and streaming devices such as Apple TV, Roku and Google Chromecast. Samsung maintained a 35 percent share of smart TV shipments during the third quarter. Continue reading Connected Televisions in U.S. Households Jump to 168 Million