Smart Speakers

Uh Oh, Siri ⁠— Researchers Hack Smart Speakers With Lasers

November 4, 2019

Researchers have discovered that Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant are vulnerable to a laser attack. Lasers have recently been used to inject inaudible and invisible commands to hack smart speakers. The lase... Read More...

SiriusXM Doesn’t Want to Die on the Dashboard — Which Explains Its Latest Deal With Google Assistant

Ashley King

October 30, 2019

SiriusXM has announced a partnership with Google to bring its original content to Google Assistant. Sirius is working hard to get into people's homes to compete with Spotify and Apple Music head-on. Many Am... Read More...

Spotify Is Handing Out Google Home Mini Speakers to Premium Subscribers

Ashley King

October 22, 2019

Photo Credit: Google Home Mini Spotify is bringing back its free smart speaker offer to all new and existing Spotify Premium members. All premium individual and family plans are eligible to receive a new Goo... Read More...

Sony’s New 360-Degree Audio Format Is Launching Later This Year — Spotify, Apple Music Not on Board

Ashley King

October 16, 2019

Photo Credit: Sony Sony's new 360 Reality Audio format will launch this fall with several hardware partners and streaming services. Spotify and Apple Music are not on the list. Sony says the format is all a... Read More...

Amazon Wants You to Take Alexa Everywhere With ‘Echo Buds’ ⁠— Unveiled Alongside New High-End Echo Speakers

Ashley King

September 26, 2019

Photo Credit: Amazon Yesterday Amazon unveiled a ton of new Echo devices, including the Echo Buds. Among several other oddities is a new high-end Echo speaker. The $130 Echo Buds feature active noise cancell... Read More...

Looks Like Sonos Is Releasing a Portable Smart Speaker

Ashley King

August 20, 2019

Photo Credit: WinFuture.de New details about an upcoming portable smart speaker from Sonos have leaked. A German Windows site found some leaked promotional images of the upcoming speaker. Dubbed the Sonos M... Read More...

Google Employees Caught Listening to Private Conversations Through Google Home

Marsha Silva

July 12, 2019

Millions upon millions of individuals listen to music, podcasts, audiobooks, news, weather reports, and much more via Google Home devices, but it was recently revealed that Google Home speakers are listening ... Read More...

69% of American Smart Speaker Owners Use Their Device Daily — And Music Remains the Top Request

Ashley King

July 4, 2019

NPR and Edison Research have released the Smart Audio Report for 2019, revealing how these devices are used in America. Despite serious security and privacy risks, many Americans regard these devices as usef... Read More...

Sonos Sues Bluesound for Patent Infringement — But What’s the End Game?

Marsha Silva

June 24, 2019

Sonos (l) vs. Bluesound (r): strikingly similar! Sonos, the Santa Barbara-based maker of speakers and home-entertainment products, is suing Lensbrook Industries, the parent company of smart-speaker manufactur... Read More...

A Smaller Samsung Smart Speaker Passes Through FCC Testing

Ashley King

May 22, 2019

Several months after revealing the Galaxy Home, Samsung appears to have another smaller smart speaker on the way. Recent FCC filing documents show a smaller Samsung smart speaker with a design that resembles... Read More...

Slowly But Surely, Sonos Integrates Apple Music Support

Ashley King

April 19, 2019

Certain varieties of Sonos smart speaker can now stream Apple Music with the help of Amazon's Alexa. Amazon's Echo speakers officially got Apple Music support in December of last year. With that, many people... Read More...

Amazon Unleashes Its Echo Link Amp for Hi-Fi Streaming Audio — Here’s a First Look

Ashley King

April 11, 2019

Finally: a black box we like! The Amazon Echo Link Amp is finally available for sale after it was announced in September last year. The $299 device brings internet-connected streaming to traditional speakers.... Read More...

Artist Branding Isn't Selling Out Anymore — But What's the New Balance?

“My Whole Source of Income Just Disappeared” — How Two Musicians Are Dealing With Cancelled Concerts

What Does It Take to Succeed In Songwriting? Surprising Lessons from Two Successful Sync Writers

How a Movie Score Is Really Made — According to a Top Hollywood Director

Want to Get Your Music Heard? It Starts With the Winning Pitch

Want Your Music In a Major Gaming Series? Meet the Guys Who Create Their Soundtracks

The Revolution Will Be Recorded: How Can Artists Shape Movements and Change Lives?

'Bone Conduction' Headphones Don't Go Over Your Ears — But Still Transmit Sound to Your Inner Cochlea

Meet Lady A, the Black Blues Singer Whose Name Got Taken by Lady Antebellum — Our Latest Podcast

Spotify Probably Owes You More Money — Here’s How to Get It (Our Latest Podcast)

Meet the Artist Who Is Literally Saving His Fans’ Lives — Our Latest Podcast

How to Game the Billboard Charts (And Why You Shouldn’t) — Our Latest Podcast

Meet the Single Mom Cellist Who Makes a Living Off Her Music — Our Podcast Interview

How to Protect Yourself From the Copyright Trolls — Our Latest Podcast

Facebook Joins Amazon’s Voice Interoperability Initiative — Microsoft, Apple, Samsung Missing

Apple’s New HomePod Beta Lets Users Choose Spotify as the Default Music Player

Sonos Isn’t Bricking Old Speakers – But Say Goodbye To Updates

After Controversy, Sonos Scraps Recycle Mode that Bricks Old Speakers

Researchers Use Ultrasonic Waves to Hijack Digital Voice Assistants

Uh Oh, Siri ⁠— Researchers Hack Smart Speakers With Lasers

SiriusXM Doesn’t Want to Die on the Dashboard — Which Explains Its Latest Deal With Google Assistant

Spotify Is Handing Out Google Home Mini Speakers to Premium Subscribers

Sony’s New 360-Degree Audio Format Is Launching Later This Year — Spotify, Apple Music Not on Board

Amazon Wants You to Take Alexa Everywhere With ‘Echo Buds’ ⁠— Unveiled Alongside New High-End Echo Speakers

Looks Like Sonos Is Releasing a Portable Smart Speaker

Google Employees Caught Listening to Private Conversations Through Google Home

69% of American Smart Speaker Owners Use Their Device Daily — And Music Remains the Top Request

Sonos Sues Bluesound for Patent Infringement — But What’s the End Game?

A Smaller Samsung Smart Speaker Passes Through FCC Testing

Slowly But Surely, Sonos Integrates Apple Music Support

Amazon Unleashes Its Echo Link Amp for Hi-Fi Streaming Audio — Here’s a First Look