Darryl Wilkinson

CES 2016Remotely Possible
Riva Waves Its Magic Multiroom Music WAND
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 07, 2016
Have you heard of Riva Audio? Yeah, me neither—until earlier this evening when I attended a press reception in the Riva Audio suite at the Westgate Hotel in the midst of all the craziness that is CES. Riva currently offers two extremely well-reviewed models of portable, rechargeable, Bluetooth speakers: the water-resistant Turbo S and the larger, more powerful Turbo X. (You can read Lauren Dragan’s review of the Turbo X here. But that’s just the beginning for the young company, because Riva plans to introduce a wireless, multiroom speaker ecosystem later this year.
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CES 2016Remotely Possible
Roost Makes Old-School Smoke Alarms Smart
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 06, 2016
Most battery-powered smoke detectors are designed to give a warning when the battery is running low, and that’s a good thing. On the other hand, it’s almost inevitable that your smoke detector will wait until the middle of the night before it starts emitting that purposely annoying chirp warning sound. The Roost Smart Battery For Smoke Alarms is a dead-simple, very affordable device that will prevent middle-of-the-night chirping and also add some smarts to your “dumb” smoke alarm.
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CES 2016Remotely Possible
Meet Triby, the Super Smart, Voice-Controlled Bluetooth Speaker
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 06, 2016
Parent company Invoxia calls Triby “the next generation voice-controlled speaker for the kitchen”, which is a relatively boring, generic description for a device that is much more exciting than that tag line makes it seem to be. And now that Triby is “the first third-party device to announce integration with the Amazon Alexa Voice Service” it’s even more exciting.
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CES 2016Remotely Possible
DISH Unveils Mother of All DVRs
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 05, 2016
Despite the fact that CES2016 hasn't even officially opened yet, DISH's press conference is likely to be one of the top highlights of the entire Show this year.

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CES 2016Remotely Possible
Beddit’s Smart Sleep Tracker Makes Great Sleep a Dream Come True
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 05, 2016
Although you might mistake the company’s name, Beddit, for something likely to be sold in an adult video store, the Beddit Smart Sleep Tracker isn’t all fun and games. In fact, the new Beddit Smart Sleep Tracker is super-serious about helping you get a good night’s sleep—and get even better sleep as time goes on.
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CES 2016Remotely Possible
CES Scents & Scentsibilities
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 05, 2016
Sure, it's not our normal beat. But who wouldn't want a Candy Crush scented phone case...?
CES 2016Remotely Possible
Sengled’s LED Smart Bulbs Are More Than Meets the Eye
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Jan 05, 2016
One of Sengled’s tag lines is “Be Surprised”; and if you had walked into CES Unveiled on Monday evening without a clue as to who or what Sengled is, you’d have been quite surprised at what the LED smart bulb maker has been up to over the past 12 months.
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Remotely Possible
Sonos Trueplay Speaker Tuning: The Bear Facts
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Dec 14, 2015
Sonos Trueplay. What is it, and can it make a stuffed bear disappear?
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Remotely Possible
Smart Gifts for Smart Homes and Secure Apartments
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Dec 04, 2015
Still looking for the perfect gift for the smart home "enthusiast" (aka, geek)? Here are some smart ideas for smart gifts for smart homes and apartments—even caves and straw huts...as long as there's internet access, that is.
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Wireless Multiroom Speaker Reviews
Raumfeld Wireless Multiroom Audio System Review
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Dec 01, 2015

Stereo Cubes Speaker
Performance
Build Quality
Value
One S Speaker
Performance
Build Quality
Value
PRICE $2,944 as reviewed

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Intuitive, easy-to-use app
Classy, minimalist cosmetics
Supports up to 192-kHz/24-bit files
Minus
No Bluetooth or AirPlay
Only four currently supported online music services
No subwoofer outputs

THE VERDICT
The Raumfeld system’s excellent-sounding active/passive speakers, ability to handle hi-res audio, and very intuitive app make it a top-notch competitor and a standout in a category that’s spawning a plethora of me-too Sonos imitators.

It’s mandatory at the beginning of any wireless streaming audio system review to mention Sonos. The company is a Goliath that launched the category more than a decade ago and now dominates it. The reason is simple: Sonos gear sounds good, is reliable, and is about as easy to use as it gets. That doesn’t mean, of course, that Sonos is perfection incarnate, nor is it totally without flaws. (There are chinks in every suit of armor.) But you do have to feel at least a modicum of pity for any manufacturer that decides to pick up a slingshot and take aim at the Sonos colossus.

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