NOMADIC lifestyle The
NOMADIC lifestyle The Sound of 50 Cent Quality is everything in the 21 st century headphone wars SMS Audio is a premier audio headphone and accessories brand, dedicated to improving the way people experience music. The company aims to bring the highest calibre of sound, comfort and fashion to every product. Brian Nohe, President and Partner, explains why SMS is not just another celebrity endorsement vehicle… We are different because this company is owned by a world-famous musician, 50 Cent, who wanted to create the best possible listening experience instead of just lending his name to a manufacturer. Hence the name SMS, which stands for Studio Mastered Sound. This is a guarantee of superior sound quality. What are you introducing at IFA? We are introducing our new Street by 50 On-Ear Wired Headphones and the new Street by 50 DJ Style Wired Headphones. Of course, this is our first European show and we are looking forward to connecting with our current and potential customers. How do the headphones differ from competing products in the same category? Better sound quality and superior components, including our own technology and Kleer Wireless Audio Technology. Plus, we have the considerable advantage of 50 Cent backing all promotion activities, which is great marketing support for buyers and retailers. What are your main objectives in terms of projections of volume of orders and new distribution partners? The products launched in the USA in January, and we started the global launch of the brand in April. Since then, we have experienced tremendous success and we are now expanding further in Europe and the Middle East. Both regions are extremely well represented at IFA, so the event is the natural place to see and be seen. » HALL 15 / STAND 133 50 Cent & Brian Nohe, President and Partner, SMS Audio “We are different because this company is owned by a worldfamous musician – 50 Cent – who wanted to create the best possible listening experience.” TDK’s 3 Speaker Boombox SOUNDS LIKE A SOLUTION TDK Life on Record brings the original music-culture icon back to life in its 3 Speaker Boombox. Combining dynamic sound performance, premium surfaces and features, the system allows users to customise their favourite sounds. A 6-inch subwoofer driver and two 6-inch coaxial drivers deliver full-range sound with a bold, retro look. An innovative equalizer gives the music a visual heartbeat, while touchsensitive buttons offer simple and intuitive control. Inputs include USB, 3.5mm and auxiliary ports that connect an iPod, iPhone, smartphone or USB flash drive. Guitars and microphones also plug straight in. » HALL 17 / STAND 117 » HALL 16 / STAND 201 24
Special Feature Spreading the Word The Kobo Touch e-reader — any place, any time, any device Kobo comes to IFA with its award-winning Kobo Touch, the sleek, chic, customisable e-reader that is revolutionising the consumer experience. Mr Todd Humphrey, Kobo’s Executive Vice-President of Business Development, runs through the Kobo Touch’s USPs… Our open-platform vision has enabled us to bring e-reading to virtually any smartphone, tablet or desktop computer. We believe that, when you buy an ebook, it is yours and that you should be able to read it any time, any place and on any device you choose. The Kobo Touch device offers readers a natural no-glare responsive e-ink touch screen that is lightweight and easy to travel with. It comes in four colour varieties with Kobo’s signature soft-quilted back. Customers can also engage with Kobo’s application Reading Life, which is an industry-first social e-reading experience that enables Kobo customers to earn awards simply for time spent reading. Through Kobo Pulse and Facebook, readers can also share their favourite passages via social media and chat with other fans within the book itself. Kobo has top-ranked e-reading applications for iPad, iPhone, BlackBerry, Android, Windows and Mac OS, and is the e-reading application of choice for the leading tablet OEMs. Where is Kobo Touch available? It’s new to many markets in Europe, including Italy, where we’ve recently launched with our partner Mondadori. But it’s now available in Germany, France, the UK, the Netherlands, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Austria, Switzerland and Japan, along with Kobo’s free e-reading applications, which are available anywhere in the world. Can you give us any facts and figures? Within the first two weeks of Todd Humphrey Kobo’s Todd Humphrey: “one of the largest e-reading catalogues in the world” launching in Japan, we sold more than 100,000 Kobo Touch e-readers. With Italy coming on board, and Spain and Brazil planned this year, we expect to replicate this success around the world. We represent 60 languages in our growing catalogue of over three million ebook titles — one of the largest e-reading catalogues in the world. » HALL 15 / STAND 133 Yifang’s Surprise for the Era of Touch Screen Yifang Digital of China comes to IFA as one of the leading developers and suppliers of Android Tablets worldwide. They continue to offer well designed consumer electronics products including a highly innovative digital pen and media tablets, all developed by its team of more than 500 R&D engineers and programmers. Sales Director Kenny Hua tells IFA International what the company will be showing at IFA 2012… What are you introducing at IFA? Yifang´s wide portfolio of over 60 worldwide patents covering ultrasonic digital pen technology and other product lines lets them offer a variety of devices and products in line with this year’s market trends. Touch8, a smart peripheral, is designed for Windows OS 8 which works with all PC touch screens. CloudMemo is a smart pen that enables handwritten notes to be auto-synced with the cloud (and the XN303i model, a digital pen with Bluetooth to Kenny Hua Sales Director Yifang Digital sync the users’ handwriting notes to iPhone, iPad, Android phones, Androidbased tablet, Blackberry, and PCs. Yifang introduces the e-Schoolbag product series - combining an Android tablet with a digital pen - which has proved to be very popular already. We are also introducing many new models of Android-based tablets including a model with a Qualcomm solution for 3G and has a dual-core processor. » HALL 17 / STAND 121 Waterproof! A pressing question for iPad users who want to use their device in wet situations is how to protect it? Hama has produced a solution for anyone who wants to use an iPad in the pool, the ocean, or the ski slope — or even in the shower. The waterproof silicone case has multiple sealing flaps to protect all three iPad generations in up to 10 metres of water. The back of the cover has a handle that can be adjusted to the size of your hand using a hook and loop fastener. » HALL 10.2 / STAND 101 IFA International • Friday 31 st August 2012 25
