Philips adds to your audio adoration with new auditory appliances

Anyone looking to update the music capabilities of their smartphone or home theatre will surely want to keep an eye out for some new products on the way from Philips, as the brand unveils several new devices catering to where most of us send most of our sound from.

Launched as part of the Philips Fidelio line-up are three sets of products, catered to delivering music from the likes of your smartphone or your TV, with products that are compatible with the latest generation of iPhone, and Bluetooth for the rest, while the home theatre experience will have a soundbar that can separate in two distinct parts.

We’ll start with the docks because there are more to cover in this area. Three are launching with Lightning connector support, meaning the iPhone 5, fifth-gen iPod Touch, new iPads, and likely upcoming iPhone models will be supported.

Philips DS3480

The three models include the small DS3480 for $149, the DS8300 for $229, and the DS8400 for $299 which all feature the new connector for simultaneous charging and audio playing from the new iDevices, as well as Bluetooth streaming for devices that lack the Lightning port, meaning an iPhone 4 or 4S, Android device, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone can all send audio straight to the dock wirelessly.

The two higher priced models (DS8300, DS8400) take advantage of “SoundCurve” design, which curves the back of the dock to lessen vibration and sound distortion. Digital sound processing is also featured in these two devices, while a Philips SoundStudio app will make aspects of the dock easy to configure and change.

The DS8400 features a rechargeable battery.

While both of these feature the same technologies, the main reason for the $70 price difference appears to be a rechargeable battery, with the DS8400 letting you take the dock with you, while the other models all have to be plugged into a wall to work.

Moving slightly beyond the docks is a speaker that skips the docking port connector and works with Apple AirPlay.

This speaker is the Philips Fidelio SoundAvia, a 40W wireless speaker that needs to be plugged in the wall, costs $399 RRP, and that takes advantage of Philips’ “FullSound” DSP to where music is apparently “dynamically analysed and optimised to give music great detail and warmth on playback.”

One downside to this speaker appears to be the omission of Bluetooth, meaning it’s intended to be used by iDevices only, such as the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, though we’ve seen some AirPlay support extended to various Android apps, among other gadgets, so it’s likely someone will get this working with devices outside just what Philips lists compatibility for sooner or later.

Finally, there are new speakers for your home theatre listening pleasure.

Two, in fact.

At the start of this product range is the HTL3120 (above), a $299 soundbar that supports a virtualised surround sound environment, minimalistic design, Dolby Digital, Bluetooth, two HDMI ports, and an integrated active subwoofer.

For $700 more ($999 RRP), you’ll find the Philips Fidelio Soundbar HTL9100, a soundbar that supports Dolby Digital Pro Logic II, wireless subwoofer, Bluetooth streaming, and two HDMI ports.

The 9100 also looks to be one of the first speakers in the world to have “Surround on Demand” listed as a feature, which allows the soundbar to be separated into two specific speakers, with the second part able to be moved to any part of the room and wirelessly provide an even more obvious surround dispersion of sound.

This model comes with an actual wireless subwoofer, not one solely integrated into the unit, for more capable bass.

All of the Philips products announced this week should be hitting stores within the next couple of weeks.