2/25/2016, Computer World -- Two security researchers have demonstrated security vulnerabilities in the Nissan Leaf electric car by using mobile management APIs supplied by the car manufacturer.

The unsecured APIs allow anyone who knows the VIN of a car to access non-critical features such as climate control and battery charge management from anywhere across the Internet. Additionally, someone exploiting the unauthenticated APIs can see the car's estimated driving range.

"The other main concern here is that the telematics system in the car is leaking all of my historic driving data," one security expert said in a blog post. "That's the details of every trip I've ever made in the car, including when I made it, how far I drove and even how efficiently I drove. This could easily be used to build up a profile of my driving habits, considering it goes back almost 2 years, and predict when I will be away from home. This kind of data should be collected and secured with the utmost respect for my privacy."

Vehicle Identification Numbers are easily visible through a vehicle's windshield. 

Read the rest here: http://www.computerworld.com/article/3036964/car-tech/hackers-can-access-the-nissan-leaf-via-insecure-apis.html

2/24/2016 

Technology-driven trends will revolutionize how industry players respond to changing consumer behavior, develop partnerships, and drive transformational change.

McKinsey -- Today’s economies are dramatically changing, triggered by development in emerging markets, the accelerated rise of new technologies, sustainability policies, and changing consumer preferences around ownership. Digitization, increasing automation, and new business models have revolutionized other industries, and automotive will be no exception. These forces are giving rise to four disruptive technology-driven trends in the automotive sector: diverse mobility, autonomous driving, electrification, and connectivity.

Most industry players and experts agree that the four trends will reinforce and accelerate one another, and that the automotive industry is ripe for disruption. Given the widespread understanding that game-changing disruption is already on the horizon, there is still no integrated perspective on how the industry will look in 10 to 15 years as a result of these trends. To that end, our eight key perspectives on the “2030 automotive revolution” are aimed at providing scenarios concerning what kind of changes are coming and how they will affect traditional vehicle manufacturers and suppliers, potential new players, regulators, consumers, markets, and the automotive value chain.

This study aims to make the imminent changes more tangible. The forecasts should thus be interpreted as a projection of the most probable assumptions across all four trends, based on our current understanding. They are certainly not deterministic in nature but should help industry players better prepare for the uncertainty by discussing potential future states.

1. Driven by shared mobility, connectivity services, and feature upgrades, new business models could expand automotive revenue pools by about 30 percent, adding up to $1.5 trillion.

The automotive revenue pool will significantly increase and diversify toward on-demand mobility services and data-driven services. This could create up to $1.5 trillion—or 30 percent more—in additional revenue potential in 2030, compared with about $5.2 trillion from traditional car sales and aftermarket products/services, up by 50 percent from about $3.5 trillion in 2015.

Connectivity, and later autonomous technology, will increasingly allow the car to become a platform for drivers and passengers to use their time in transit to consume novel forms of media and services or dedicate the freed-up time to other personal activities. The increasing speed of innovation, especially in software-based systems, will require cars to be upgradable. As shared mobility solutions with shorter life cycles will become more common, consumers will be constantly aware of technological advances, which will further increase demand for upgradability in privately used cars as well.

Read the rest here: http://www.mckinsey.com/industries/high-tech/our-insights/disruptive-trends-that-will-transform-the-auto-industry

2/24/2016, Chicago Tribune -- Carmakers are becoming a familiar sight at tech shows, where they're rolling out new models to woo a generation of consumers who question the need for a car that only gets them from A to B.

At this week's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Ford unveiled a new vehicle for Europe as well as in-cockpit technology, Volvo is showing off a keyless car and Mercedes-Benz Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton will appear on a panel with the president of chipmaker Qualcomm.

Eager to win over millennials who may care more about the latest Apple iPhone than a redesigned Mustang, automakers are trying to become more tech-savvy and shed their image as 20th century metal benders. The pivot toward the younger set comes amid a slowdown in China, competition from Tesla Motors -- which sends automatic software updates to the car's command center -- and a boom in ride-sharing services such as Uber that have left car companies anxious about growth and eager to try out a new crop of digital products and services.

"Carmakers have a very narrow window of opportunity to win over Generation Y," said Richard Viereckl, an analyst at PwC in Frankfurt who co-authored a 2015 study on connected cars. "They're at these technology shows to portray their brands as hip, and with mounting competition from the likes of Apple, Panasonic and Sony, they're fighting to keep the attention of and access to their customers."

By 2022, 345 million autos worldwide will be connected to the Internet, nearly four times more than last year, according to IHS Automotive. In six years, 98 percent of the cars sold globally will be connected, up from 30 percent last year, the consulting firm said. The trend is driven by customer demand: Three in four consumers said they consider connected car services an important feature in their next vehicle purchase, AT&T and Ericsson said in a report in October.

The risk for carmakers is that Apple, Google and Microsoft will conquer the connected-car business with operating systems and apps that people are familiar with. Google and Apple already offer in-car infotainment systems with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and Google is at the forefront of developing self-driving cars.

"Google and Apple have a good chance as anyone at grabbing the car ecosystem," said Kevin Curran, a computer science professor at Ulster University in Londonderry, Northern Ireland. "Cars today are computers with wheels, and tech companies know that field all too well."

To fend off the threat, carmakers are set to make "big decisions" over the next 24 months, striking cooperation pacts and increasing spending on research and development as well as M&A to get ahead, said Thilo Koslowski, who heads the auto practice at researcher Gartner Inc. Those who don't are at risk of being left behind, he said.

Read the rest here: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/sns-wp-blm-autos-tech-f0426ee2-d95b-11e5-8210-f0bd8de915f6-20160222-story.html

2/25/2016 -- Epsilon Electronics Inc Soundstream name brand is now shipping its VRN-74HB unit. This 1-DIN Multimedia receiver with GPS Navigation & 7” LCD Touch Screen is designed for those without the space for a large enclosure.

It is equipped with MHL MobileLink X2 Integration Android Mobile Device via Front Panel USB. It also offers turn-by-turn GPS Navigation of USA, Canada, & Mexico. Other features include Bluetooth V3.0 Hands-free calling from an enabled phone and A2DP wireless MP3 Audio playback from an enabled device.

In addition the Soundstream VRN-74HB multimedia receiver contains the following features:

• Advanced FM/AM Tuner with RDBS
• Playback from DVD & CD of MP3 & MP4
• Front & Rear Pre-amp audio outputs
• Variable Subwoofer pre-amp output
• Rear view Camera input w/trigger
• Video output for auxiliary devices
• Custom backgrounds & screen savers

•  800x480 Widescreen Resolution

For further product info: http://soundstream.com/product/vrn-74hb/

2/22/2016, NY Times -- On the 36th floor of a Midtown Manhattan skyscraper, the actors Ice Cube and Kevin Hart joshed with fans inside a glass-walled radio studio one afternoon last month. They were in the broadcast headquarters of SiriusXM, and across the lobby, near Howard Stern’s dedicated wing, Brooke Shields posed for selfies with three “Sesame Street” puppets, while Senator Rand Paul — at that point, still a candidate for president — hovered with a small entourage. Overhead, a screen announced the imminent arrival of the thrash-metal band Anthrax.

By any measure, it was an odd cross section of pop culture. Surveying the scene, Scott Greenstein, SiriusXM’s chief content officer, smiled and declared, “This is how I like it — just this diverse.”

At SiriusXM, the satellite-radio network, executives use terms like “mosaic,” “bundle” and, inevitably, “curated” to describe the company’s mix of programming. With more than 175 channels, SiriusXM has much more variety than typical AM/FM radio but a small fraction of the ads. It has channels dedicated to the Grateful Dead and the Metropolitan Opera; five feeds of thumping electronic dance music; every pro baseball, football and basketball game; and, of course, Mr. Stern’s blend of raunchy humor and celebrity interviews. Around the Super Bowl, it had 162 hours of live programming related to the game that ran across 22 shows on 10 channels.

Once flirting with bankruptcy, SiriusXM has quietly become a financial powerhouse at a time when other radio and digital music outlets are struggling to make a profit, and also as the behavior of so-called cord cutters — who cancel their cable TV subscriptions to pick and choose their entertainment online (and to save money) — has made Wall Street nervous about the future of bundled media. SiriusXM last year earned $510 million on $4.6 billion in revenue, and renewed major deals with Mr. Stern and the National Football League.

“This has been a remarkable success story against huge odds,” said Barton Crockett, a media analyst with FBR Capital Markets. “Most of the investing public thought there was no way this would work, spending huge amounts of capital to launch satellites and put equipment in cars. But they were right. This is a great business.”

SiriusXM has hit on the formula for getting people — nearly 30 million of them — to pay for radio, a form of media that has always been free. But while the company likes to emphasize the awesomeness of its audio “mosaics,” there is another, more mundane, explanation for its success: cars.

SiriusXM pays about $1 billion a year in subsidies and revenue splits to automakers, and according to the company, 75 percent of all new vehicles sold in the United States come with satellite radio installed. (It works with every major carmaker.) Of the 29.6 million subscribers to SiriusXM at the end of last year, 24.2 million paid the $11 to $20 monthly fee themselves, with the rest covered through promotions by car companies.

Yet cars are changing in ways that could threaten SiriusXM’s position. New technologies, loosely referred to as the connected car, are bringing the Internet to the dashboard. For drivers, that means that various new audio apps — many of them free — will soon be available at a touch. For SiriusXM, that means a lot of new competition in the car, the place where consumers listen to radio the most. This process has already begun, with Apple and Google pushing for their own car media platforms, and Mr. Meyer said that he expected the technology to be in most new cars by the end of this decade. Will listeners still fork over $15 for SiriusXM if they can just as easily tune in to Spotify, Pandora or Beats 1 from Apple?

“The major enemy of SiriusXM these days is Internet radio,” said Jack Nerad, executive editorial director of Kelley Blue Book. “It’s important for Sirius to be in automobiles, but I think that for the car companies, it’s going to be just another programming source.”

Mr. Meyer, who spent years managing the company’s relationships with Detroit before he became chief executive in 2012, has been hearing this refrain for a long time. But he said that SiriusXM was well positioned for the change, with plans for a new, more interactive version of its radio system, code-named SXM17, and the advantage of knowing that car companies make changes to their machines very slowly. “Even when you’re Apple,” Mr. Meyer said, “they will still live with the speed carmakers want to go.”

Phil Abram, the chief infotainment officer of General Motors, said that Pandora, as well as platforms like Apple’s CarPlay and Google’s Android Auto, have had no significant effect on how many of its customers subscribe to SiriusXM.

“People like to have a plethora of content,” Mr. Abram said. “One day you might want to listen to music on your iPhone, the next day talk radio, and the next day you want a curated set of music from a company like SiriusXM. We want to try to make it as easy as possible for our customers to enjoy whichever they want.”

Satellite radio’s fortunes have not always been so rosy. After years of planning and investment in the 1990s, the new medium began broadcasting in the early 2000s from two companies, Sirius and XM. For years both lost money as they competed to build their programming slates and sign multimillion-dollar deals with celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Martha Stewart.

The biggest catch, by far, was Mr. Stern, who signed a five-year, $500 million deal with Sirius to begin broadcasting at the start of 2006. His arrival instantly put satellite radio on the map. Sirius and XM merged in 2008 — during the recession, when car sales were plummeting. After nearly going bankrupt under the weight of its debt, the combined SiriusXM was saved by a last-minute infusion of capital from Liberty Media, the cable and entertainment empire controlled by John C. Malone, which in early 2009 lent $530 million in exchange for preferred shares convertible into 40 percent of the common stock of the company.

Gregory B. Maffei, Liberty’s chief executive and the chairman of SiriusXM, recalled that at the time of the deal, a colleague told him, “Either the world ends, or we’re going to make a lot of money.” They made a lot of money. SiriusXM repaid the loans in five months, and the roughly 62 percent stake that Liberty now has in the company — which is formally known as Sirius XM Holdings — is worth about $11 billion.

SiriusXM’s strategy for competing with free radio has been to give people a lot of the radio they like — music, sports, talk, news — and minimize what they do not, namely commercials. That means the station’s programmers do not feel the ratings pressures that bedevil terrestrial radio.

Read the rest of the story here: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/21/business/media/siriusxm-fights-to-dominate-the-dashboard-of-the-connected-car.html?_r=0

2/22/2016, CRN -- The future of autonomous, self-driving vehicles may lie in the technology of vehicle-to-vehicle communications, according to one expert.

National Highway Traffic Safety Association administrator Mark Rosekind spoke at MIT on the realities of self-reliant vehicles, and said the ability for vehicles to communicate with one another in an instantaneous fashion is crucial to ensuring the safety of passengers.

 “Connected vehicles give you further lines of safety that you couldn’t get from an independent, autonomous vehicle,” Rosekind said.

For example, before all vehicles become self-reliant, a self-reliant smarter car could communicate to other vehicles about what may lie around a corner or three football field lengths ahead in traffic. That sort of communication can extend to an entire smart city Internet-of-Things (IoT) ecosystem.

“It’s not just talking to cars, it’s talking to the infrastructure, it’s talking to pedestrians. There’s just a lot of opportunity there,” he said.

However, that sort of innovation can only happen if cars from different brands can communicate with one another, so the technology may need to come from government policy.

Read the rest of the story here: http://www.crn.com/news/networking/video/300079657/self-driving-cars-will-rely-on-vehicle-to-vehicle-communication-technology-first.htm

DD Audio will attend The Chill show in Park City, KS  from Feb.26th through the 28th. The company will be spending the weekend at the event displaying products, giving demos in the DD Work Van, and supporting the car audio competition portion of the show.

It will also have something special for the motorcycle fans at the event in the form of a Honda Grom fully outfitted with DD Audio. The sanctioning competition bodies of USACi (Street Beat) and MECA (SQ and SPL) will be on hand giving competitors a chance to earn points towards their respective 2016 finals.

The Chill is a two show series with the first of which is being held at The Kansas Pavilion Buildings, 1229 E. 85th St. North, Park City, KS (HWY I-135 Exit 17). The Park City Chill is Kansas’s largest indoor motorcycle, car, and custom semi-truck show and offers something for pretty much everyone.

There will be an impressive 46 car show classes, 33 motorcycle classes, and 10 semi-truck show classes. If all that doesn’t do it for you, there will also be a food and product vendors, a bikini contest, mechanical bull riding, and celebrity attractions such as a live performance from 80’s rockers Autograph and appearances by Cabe Sipes from MTV’s “Pimp My Ride”. 

2/22/2016 -- HELLA, Inc., the North American aftermarket subsidiary of automotive lighting and electronics supplier HELLA, has just expanded its 90mm LED module series with the introduction of a new generation of advanced 90mm LED Modules.

The new L4060 LED series is offered in low beam, high beam, and fog light modules. The design of the modules is very compact and allows up to three light functions in one module without the need for additional electronics. The modules are suitable for universal application on a wide range of both OE and aftermarket vehicles.

HELLA L4060 90mm Low Beam LED module can function as a low beam only light or a low beam, daytime running, and position light combination.

HELLA L4060 90mm High Beam LED module is available as a high beam only, a combination with a high beam, daytime running light, and position light, or high beam and direction indicator.

HELLA L4060 90mm Fog Light LED module is available as a front fog lamp only, as a combination fog lamp, daytime running light, and position light, or fog light and cornering light.

The new 90mm modules use high performance LEDs to produce a very homogenous light output. They are designed to be maintenance free and capable of operating for up to 15,000 hours. The daytime running light and position light feature an attractive white ring that gives the vehicle a striking appearance and helps it stand out from the crowd. The high beam with indicator features an attractive orange ring, which represents the indicator function.

Ultra light, chip-resistant, 40x60mm polycarbonate lenses and die-cast aluminum housings make the modules extremely resistant to stress and wear. The L4060 LED modules feature an extremely low power consumption of 20W, which helps reduce fuel consumption and emissions.

The SAE/DOT approved L4060 series is rated for operation in 12V and 24V vehicle electrical systems and incorporate integrated driver electronics, so they can directly replace 90mm halogen modules.

Rockford Fosgate is now shipping that its new add-on tweeter system for 2016 Punch element-ready speakers. With an MSRP of $199.99, the 1-inch, 100/200 Watt (RMS/Peak), 4-ohm PM2T-S is an "excellent option for those who want even more high end on sand or surf," according to the company.

“If you’re looking to add a little more high frequency output to your audio system, then look no further than the PM2T-S element-ready add-on tweeter kit,” said Jake Braaten, Rockford’s V.P. of Product Development & Engineering. “The PM2T-S features a 1-inch high quality aluminum dome tweeter designed to be incredibly accurate while still producing high output. Knowing this tweeter will likely be exposed to the elements on both sand and surf, we have designed it using marine-rated materials as well as testing it for survival in outdoor applications.”

Additionally, the PM2T-S is easily connected to Rockford’s existing line of PM series marine speakers using the additional terminals already provided in their design. The PM2T-S also features multiple mounting options such as surface mounting using our discreet dual clamp tweeter mounting system or an optional horn loading mounting flange to provide more directional and higher output volume.

The PM2T-S kit also comes with an inline audiophile-grade 18dB crossover pack to ensure proper filtering of unwanted frequencies, protecting the tweeter while directing the proper sound to it. Additional features include marine grade PEI rubber surround, high temperature Kapton voice coil former, Neodymium motor structure, all marine grade construction, and mounting hardware.

For more information on Rockford Fosgate, please visit www.rockfordfosgate.com.

Today’s audio and alarm installations can get extremely complicated, especially when multiple and complex triggers are necessary to accomplish certain tasks.  To solve the issue, PAC has released the TR12 programmable trigger module.

The smart trigger device offers a total of eight inputs (four positive and four configurable as positive or negative) and four programmable outputs. Each output channel can be specified to generate a pulsed, latched, timed, actuator, ground, and positive 12 Volt trigger (with up to three amps of current) using a PC and the PAC application. 

“The TR12 is going to be extremely handy for installers because it can resolve so many different types of installation issues,” said Nathan Wincek, product manager of integration products for AAMP Global. “With this, you’ll only need one device for initiating up to four triggers, and because it’s programmable, you can be creative in how it’s used.”

The TR12 can solve many common and custom installation issues, from timing out a device in a car to controlling small motors in a custom install.  Alarm installs can also be simplified with its triggering benefits. Through the TR12 application on a computer, each of the four outputs can be customized, set for specific objectives and precisely controlled to specs and timing.  Plus, users have the ability to save and load user defined configurations on a PC for quick programming of other modules.  The TR12 comes pre-configured for common uses including settings for Pioneer, Alpine, and Clarion radios. 

The PC application can be downloaded from the TR12 product page on pac-audio.com at no cost. 

The PAC TR12 module is now available for a suggested retail price of $69.95. 

KICKER recently announced its Founders Award recipients, Reps-of-the-Year, and Rep Firms-of-the-Year for 2015.

KICKER presents its Founders Award to distribution firms in appreciation of their long, productive partnerships with the company. This year KICKER President Steve Irby presented the awards to long-time reps Tom Ebeling of the sales firm Tree and Associates (Chicago, Ill.), Gerry Overweser of Weser Sales (Salinas, Calif.), Kevin and Scott Reil of Reil and Associates (Denver, Colo.), and Ron Holtzman of Tech Marketing (Roswell, Ga.).

KICKER also presented regional Rep Firm-of-the-Year awards to Reil and Associates in the Central Region, Opus Marketing (Bel Air, Md.) in the Eastern Region, Dynamic Sales (Port Richey, Fla.) in the South-Central Region, and Murfco (Murrieta, Calif.) in the Western Region. All four firms showed significant growth and excellence in customer service over the course of 2015.

In addition to the firm awards, KICKER recognizes outstanding regional sales reps. These honorees represent excellence in customer service, responsiveness to KICKER as well as to their clients, and an outstanding overall attitude.  The winners were Steve Abbott of Santa Fe Distributing (Lenexa, Kan.) in the Central Region, Matt Gonzalez of Trent Partners and Associates (New York, N.Y.) in the Eastern Region, Dennis Montgomery of Tech Marketing in the South-Central Region, and Randy Bowen of Murfco in the Western Region.

KICKER Performance Audio products, a division of Stillwater Designs and Audio, Inc., are available for the mobile and home audio aftermarket at authorized retailers worldwide, and also as Original Equipment for automobile manufacturers. Consumers seeking more information on KICKER or Livin’ Loud^® may call the Consumer Information Line at 1-800-256-5425 or visit the brand website at www.kicker.com. Follow KICKER socially at Facebook.com/kickeraudio, Twitter.com/kickeraudio, Instagram.com/kickeraudio, or Pinterest.com/kickeraudio.

With their newly opened Indianapolis warehouse, Davis Distribution will have a booth at this year’s KnowledgeFest 2016 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Retailers are invited to stop by Booth #447 on Saturday April 9^th from 12pm-4pm and on Sunday April 10^th from 10:30am-2pm to meet with your Davis Distribution Sales Representative and many of their great vendors.

Davis Distribution will also be inviting all of their dealer’s to a Grand Opening and Knowledgefest after hours party at The Rathskeller in downtown Indianapolis on Saturday night April 9^th from 8pm-1am. The party is being sponsored by the following premier manufacturers: Accele, Code Alarm, Compustar, Focal, Jamo, JL Audio, Just Add Power, JVC Procession, Kicker, Kenwood, Luxul, Metra Electronics, Onkyo, Polk, Proficient, Screen Innovations, SiriusXM, Sonos, Sony Car Audio, Sony Home AV, and Vanco.

Dealers that will be attending this exclusive event will have the opportunity to enjoy dinner, live entertainment from the band Queen City Silver Stars, network with representatives from great manufacturers, and win a large variety of great door prizes.

Any Davis Distribution dealer that would like to attend can contact their Davis Sales Rep at 800-746-5331 to RSVP.

Automotive IT -- Despite greater focus on digital technologies throughout the auto industry, carmakers are  still struggling with digitalization, according to a new study.

The study, conducted by management consultants Batten & Company, found that the auto industry lags behind most other industry sectors in the implementation of digital technologies.

For their research, the consultants developed a so-called “digital automotive index” that measures 70 factors. They then compared the pressure from customers, suppliers and competitors to digitize with the actual degree of digitalization in the industry.

According to the study, only Mercedes-Benz, VW and BMW scored well in the study. Land Rover and Kia were at the bottom of the 20-brand ranking.

“All are talking about digitalization, but many managers aren’t focusing on what is essential: What does an automaker need in concrete terms to address in a targeted and solution-oriented way the growing digitalization pressure ,” said Tobias Goebbel, Batten managing partner.

Read the rest of the story here: http://www.automotiveit.com/study-automakers-struggle-with-digitalization/news/id-0049757

Every year the Car Electronics Division of Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. kicks off the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas by honoring its top three distributors in the United States, rewarding them for the past year’s accomplishments.  “2015 Distributor of the Year” went to Audio America, Audio Electronics Distributing, and S.O.S. Associates for their outstanding service and dedication in helping Pioneer achieve its business goals.  Among the three awarded, S.O.S. Associates was also honored with the prestigious “Overall Distributor of the Year Award.”

Pioneer evaluates distributors on overall sales, accurate monthly sales and inventory (S&I), execution of dealer agreements, assistance with dealer programs, speedy distribution of information to dealers, management and trainings, and commitment to customer service.  The three distributors recognized consistently excel and deliver in these categories.

“We work with a great bunch of people and we’re excited to be able to recognize their hard work.  Our distributors deserve recognition for helping Pioneer succeed and we want to focus attention on the top performers in the field and say thank you for their commitment to our business.  Congratulations to Audio America, Audio Electronics Distributing, and S.O.S. Associates,” said Kevan Morris, executive vice president of sales for the Car Electronics Division of Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc.

Pioneer also honored internal employees for their hard work and dedication to the company.  Harry Kroll, senior national training manager for the Car Electronics Division, received the “Corporate Leader of the Year” award for his work, having trained Pioneer employees, dealers and distributor network for more than 26 years.    

Nick Czupek, district sales manager (DSM) for the Car Electronics Division, was presented with the “DSM of the Year Award.” Czupek covers the states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin and Illinois, providing excellent service to the accounts in his territory.  Czupek won this prestigious title once before in the nine years he has been with the company.

For 2015, Pioneer created a new award for internal “Sales Leader of the Year” to acknowledge outstanding sales performance during the year that has helped the company achieve its sales goals. The first employee to win the award is Nina Contreras, who has been with the company for 24 years and was selected as the winner for the strong relationships she has built with Pioneer’s customers, as well as her daily work helping the DSMs with orders and facilitating communication between the DSMs and corporate management. 

Soundstream is now shipping the VRN-64HB Double-DIN multimedia receiver with GPS Navigation & 6.2-inch LCD Touch Screen.

It is equipped with MHL MobileLink X2 Integration Android Mobile Device via Front Panel USB. It also offers turn-by-turn GPS Navigation of USA, Canada, and Mexico. Other exciting features include Bluetooth v3.0 Hands-free calling from enabled phone and A2DP wireless MP3 Audio playback from enabled devices.

In addition, the Soundstream VRN-64HB multimedia receiver contains the following features:

• Advanced FM/AM Tuner with RDBS
• Playback from DVD & CD of MP3 & MP4
• Front & Rear Pre-amp audio outputs
• Variable Subwoofer pre-amp output
• Rear view Camera input w/trigger
• Video output for auxiliary devices
• Custom backgrounds & screen savers

•  800x480 Widescreen Resolution

For further product info, visit: http://soundstream.com/product/vrn-64hb/

Diamond Audio is now shipping its highly anticipated Motorsport series tower speaker pods. The Motorsport series are designed to provide high far-field audio performance while withstanding the harshest environmental conditions. 

The Motorsport series tower speaker pods are constructed from high-tech materials originally designed for the aerospace industry. The UV-treated pod enclosures consist of a mixture of high density and non-porous ceramic and fiberglass resin that is combined with crushed natural mineral composites forming a solid surface that is similar to Corian®. To make it even more unique, Diamond Audio creatively shaped the speaker pods and designed it with diamond facets giving it a signature look like none other in the industry. 

The Motorsport series tower speaker pods are available in 6.5” and 8” sizes. Both HXM65POD (6.5” model) and HXM8POD (8” model) are available in the following finishes; gloss white, carbon fiber white, gun metal gray, and matte black. Both models feature integrated RGB LED lighting, built-in passive radiator for dynamic bass, and a 12dB per octave crossover. A 360 degree rotational mounting bracket and waterproof wire management consisting of 12 feet of ultra-flexible high strand PVC jacketed wire is also included.

Both Motorsport tower speaker models utilize a high-output 25mm titanium dome tweeter with an ultra-compact neodymium motor structure, waterproof Kevlar® cone, UV-treated polycarbonate cloth surround, and a high temperature UV-treated basket. The Motorsport speaker pods are IP65 compliant from infiltration of dust and water. 

Pricing on Diamond Audio’s Motorsport tower speaker pods range from $699.99 to $849.99 per pair.

KICKER Performance Audio is bringing its Marine line of amplifiers and speakers to the 2016 Miami International Boat Show, beginning Thursday, February 11. The booth is located in the C Tent, Booth #C572.

For the second consecutive year, the KICKER booth expects to be buzzing with activity. KICKER is showcasing a pair of interactive marine displays to let visitors explore product in detail, including the glowing coaxial speakers and subwoofers that constantly display a dazzling light show.

Due to continued consumer request, the 2016 KICKER Marine mix features 10- and 12-inch versions of the Solo-Baric^® L7 Square Subwoofer and their LED-infused protective grilles in white, charcoal and chrome colors. KM-Series Marine Coaxials with LEDs will also be shown, as well as KM10 Subwoofers and KXM Marine line of mono and multi-channel amplifiers. KICKER will also display its first Marine head unit, the KMC2 Gauge-Style Media Center with a charging USB port and Bluetooth.^® The KMC2 will ship later this year.

Chrome grilles are also featured for several Marine LED coaxial speakers and the Marine Subwoofer, and waterproof, single and dual empty can enclosures for four, six and eight-inch KICKER speakers will be shown as well.

The 2016 Miami International Boat Show is open to the public from February 12-15, and consumers can visit www.miamiboatshow.com for more information. 

KICKER Performance Audio products, a division of Stillwater Designs and Audio, Inc., are available for the mobile and home audio aftermarket at authorized retailers worldwide, and also as Original Equipment for automobile manufacturers. Consumers seeking more information on KICKER or Livin’ Loud may call the Consumer Information Line at 1-800-256-5425 or visit the brand website at www.kicker.com. Follow KICKER socially at Facebook.com/kickeraudio, Twitter.com/kickeraudio, Instagram.com/kickeraudio, or Pinterest.com/kickeraudio.

Bluetooth is a registered trademark of Bluetooth SIG, Inc.  

Rockford Fosgate is now shipping its new lineup of DEADSKIN sound dampening products. 

"The DEADSKIN line was announced with great success at our recent Annual Product Showcase to rave reviews,” said Jake Braaten, Rockford’s V.P. of Product Development & Engineering. “In the world of audio, noise is one of the biggest enemies we face. The Rockford product team designed the DEADSKIN line in partnership with the experts at Hushmat to reduce the everyday noise and vibration encountered in vehicles.”

DEADSKIN products include trunk, door, speaker and bulk kits as well as a license plate kit with laser-etched stainless steel license plate frame. With a material thickness just under 1/8-inch (1.5mm), DEADSKIN is designed to be applied to most surfaces with little or no preparation. It is also highly flexible and cold formable to irregular surfaces so no heat guns are required to install the products and comes with a black foil backing.

“Ambient noise detracts from our ability to enjoy our music and often requires us to turn up the volume just to hear it,” Braaten continued. “This in turn leads to listening fatigue and stress which is not how we want to spend our time in our vehicles. Whether from basic road noise or vibration created from heavy bass beats, DEADSKIN products reduce the resonating abilities of your vehicle panels allowing you to truly appreciate your music library the way it should be heard.”

DEADSKIN products are OEM specified and approved, and are manufactured in the USA. With a variety of kits available, Rockford has the sound damping material needed to do the job. Price range for the DEADSKIN line is $25.99 - $278.99. Contact Rockford Fosgate for individual kit pricing.

“Hushmat is a pioneer in the category of sound damping materials, and so they are the perfect company to help us develop our new offering of DEADSKIN products,” added Bill Jackson, Rockford president & CEO. “Rockford Fosgate is always about offering the best quality products to our customers, and this new line of DEADSKIN delivers on that promise. With a complete line that fits each application, we think our customers will be excited to pair new DEADSKIN products with their speaker and subwoofer purchases.”

For more information on Rockford Fosgate, please visit www.rockfordfosgate.com.

Gizmag -- Researchers have found a better way to crunch the data that GPS-enabled devices use to determine their location. The result could provide a level of accuracy down to the centimeter that's needed in things like autonomous vehicles and other precision tech.

We've seen other efforts to improve GPS location to centimeter-level accuracy using what's called "differential GPS," that makes use of ground-based reference points in addition to satellite GPS data. This latest effort from the University of California - Riverside (UCR) seems similar in that it's basically a software-based approach.

What's perhaps most revolutionary about the advance is not just the improved level of accuracy, but just how efficiently centimeter-accurate positioning is established.

"Achieving this level of accuracy with computational loads that are suitable for real-time applications on low-power processors will not only advance the capabilities of highly specialized navigation systems – like those used in driverless cars and precision agriculture – but it will also improve location services accessed through mobile phones and other personal devices, without increasing their cost," said UCR professor Jay Farrell, who led the research.

Read the rest of the story here: http://www.gizmag.com/gps-accurate-centimeter-level-autonomous-cars/41803/

Fortin announced the release of its exclusive MAZDA solution for remote starter and security system installations for EVO-ALL and EVO-ONE platforms. Both modules offer 3X LOCK remote starter and monitor and control the OEM remote while the engine is running. Popular long range RF Kits can also be connected directly to the module as well as compatible smartphone apps. 

A T-Harness is also available to help installers keep the original wiring intact and to speed-up their installations. THAR-MAZ1 T-Harness works for all 2013+ push-to-start vehicles for 2 Key programming installation. This T-Harness is compatible with EVO-ALL, EVO-MAZT1 COMBO and EVO-ONE Fortin modules. 2 Key programming installation also allows to keep the smart keyless entry system active as well as the alarm. A 1 Key programming installation with specific features support is also available for MAZDA and includes manual and automatic transmission vehicles.

The EVO-ONE is an all-in-one immobilizer bypass, convenience, digital high current remote starter & security system. The EVO-ALL platform also includes digital bypass, convenience and security system for the same MAZDA coverage. No key is required for both platform installations.

The EVO-MAZT1 COMBO includes an EVO-ALL module that comes preloaded with a MAZDA firmware and custom fit T-Harness. 

Fortin Electronic Systems is a world leading developer and manufacturer of integrated consumer solutions for vehicle control and connectivity.