January 10th, 2012

Watch The Pioneer CES 2012 Press Conference: AppRadio 2 For All

Pioneer’s AppRadio was pretty darn cool when it first launched and now there’s another version with improved apps, improved UI, and improved hardware. We hung out with Pioneer at CES yesterday and here is the raw feed featuring Pioneer’s products including car stereos, AppRadio, iPhone interfaces for your whip.
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January 9th, 2012

Pioneer Announces Android Support For AppRadio 2

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AppRadio has always been a pretty sweet offering from Pioneer, but something important was missing: support for Android. In 2012, however, Pioneer’s new AppRadio 2 platform will support both iPhone 4/4S as well as select Android phones.

It has built-in Bluetooth, which only makes sense in the car, along with two configurable RCA Pre-outs for connecting to aftermarket or OEM amplifiers. The AppRadio 2 also comes with a full 7-inch touchscreen.

The new model will go for $499. → Read More

October 26th, 2011

Potternavi: Pioneer Announces 3G-Equipped GPS For Bikes

pioneer feat

Pioneer yesterday announced the so-called Potternavi [JP], a GPS for bicycles that will be available in white or black. Buyers can expect a 2.4-inch color LCD with 240×320 resolution, ANT+ support, an acceleration sensor, a USB port, and 10 hours of battery life.

Pioneer says that the Potternavi not only shows maps and directions but also lets users look for popular spots, for example the nearest restaurant or store. It also gives tips for healthy biking, indicates which actions burn how many calories etc. → Read More

October 17th, 2011

5 Product Innovations From CEATEC 2011 In Japan (Video Gallery)

Picture 1

Truth be told, I wasn’t very impressed with what electronics makers showed at the CEATEC 2011 tech exhibition – especially because a lot of the new products were “leaked” to the Japanese press before the event started.

However, here are a total of five of the coolest innovations Japanese companies showed at CEATEC 2011 in video form, delivered from our friends at Diginfo TV (YouTube channel). All the videos were shot directly on location and are in English. → Read More

July 6th, 2011

Pioneer Announces Car Navigation System Specifically Designed For Electric Vehicles

First an Augmented Reality-based car navigation system, now a model that’s specifically designed for electric vehicles: Pioneer has today announced [JP] the AVIC-ZH09-MEV, which doubles as a multimedia entertainment system and comes with a number of functions that are supposed to make the lives of EV drivers easier. According to Pioneer, it’s the first car navigation system of its kind. → Read More

June 22nd, 2011

The Pioneer AppRadio Gets Official Video Demos, $399 Retail MSRP

A month after its official unveiling, Pioneer finally found it fit to release a pair of official demo videos of the AppRadio. However, both are clearly meant for marketing purposes rather than actually showing what it does. Check out the second after the jump. The radio is also now available for purchase $399 at the usual suspects of Amazon, Best Buy, and Crutchfield. Pioneer previously stated that it would retail for less than $500 so they clearly made good on their promise. → Read More

June 3rd, 2011

Zypr Releases API That Lets You Control Your Favorite Web Services With Your Voice

Pioneer Electronics today announced a nifty new service called Zypr, a platform that collects your favorite web services all in one place and allows you to control them using your voice — on any connected device. Today, our experience of the Web is fragmented across devices, as we use each device, be it a phone, tablet, etc, for their traditional uses, yet each of them is connected but few of them are cooperating. Zypr’s API is designed to simplify device connectivity to the many devices and applications we use on a daily basis, including in-vehicle entertainment, tablets, TVs, and smartphone apps, aggregating them in a single portal, under a single account. It’s a consistent way to access voice UI, maps and routing, local search, social networking, music, radio, etc. from your car, from home, from work, or on your smartphone at the grocery store. → Read More

May 26th, 2011

Video: Pioneer's Amazing 3D Floating Vision Display

Pioneer has been working on “Floating Vision” displays for quite a while, and now the company has shown the technology used in embedded systems. The naked-eye 3D display Pioneer recently showed at an exhibition in Tokyo lets users view images or videos “floating” in space – embedded in a prototype car navigation system. → Read More

May 25th, 2011

The Pioneer AppRadio: Select iOS Apps In Your Car's Dash For Less Than $500

→ Read More

May 12th, 2011

Discussion Table: Pioneer's (Awesome) Take On Microsoft's Surface (Video)

Yesterday, Pioneer unveiled the WWS-DT101 Discussion Table [JP], which is essentially the company’s answer to Microsoft’s Surface – just bigger and better. The main component here is the 52-inch multi-touch “interactive” LCD display with full HD resolution that supports up to 10 points of contact simultaneously. → Read More

May 11th, 2011

Pioneer Teases About Making Our Dash Smarter

Well, well. We were wondering when Pioneer was going to clear the air about the so-called AppRadio we spotted in the FCC and later detailed a few weeks back. Looks like all will be revealed come May 25th. → Read More

May 9th, 2011

Pioneer Shows Augmented Reality-Powered Car Navigation System

Pioneer in Japan announced [JP] a number of new car navigation systems today, but the AVIC-VH09CS took the cake: it’s what the company calls the first in-dash car navigation system ever to make use of Augmented Reality. And by the looks of it, the device produces some pretty cool results. → Read More

April 26th, 2011

Exclusive: The Pioneer AppRadio Will Put The Look Of iOS On Your Dash

Pioneer is about ready to launch a car audio head unit that features an GUI remarkable similar to iOS, complete with apps, iTunes, and iPhone connectivity. Meet the Pioneer AppRadio, model number SPH-DA01. This unannounced double-din head unit hit the FCC database yesterday and a tipster wrote in to answer many of our questions. Obviously, given the name, this is a radio designed around iPhone and iPod. The UI features homescreens, each with two rows of three app icons each. (like the mock-up shows) We hear it feels “exactly like the iOS experience” but since it doesn’t actually run iOS we’re mighty curious how the AppRadio will sit with Apple corporate. → Read More

April 25th, 2011

Pioneer SPH-DA01 AppRadio Docs Hits The FCC Sporting An iPhone-ish Center-Mounted Button

Fresh Pioneer Corporation docs just landed in the FCC database of a so-called AppRadio, or as it’s named in one document, iPhone Control Receiver. The unit, SPH-DA01, has a whole host of testing documents in the database but only two are are all that interesting. The user manual names this device AppRadio and then there’s an unflattering picture that shows a center-mounted iPhone button. → Read More

April 5th, 2011

Pioneer Announces Wireless Speaker Specifically Designed For The Elderly

Pioneer announced [JP] the VMS-700-K for the Japanese market today, a wireless speaker specifically designed for elderly people. The idea here is to place the device right next to the user when watching TV so they can adjust the volume the way they like, without potentially harassing other family members. → Read More

March 24th, 2011

Sound Wing: Pioneer Announces Their First HVT Speaker

In the fall of last year, Pioneer introduced the HVT (Horizontal-Vertical Transforming) technology [PDF, in English] during CEATEC 2010 in Tokyo. HVT makes it possible to “drastically reduce the thickness of speakers” and keep down unwanted vibrations – all without losing audio quality, according to Pioneer. → Read More

March 8th, 2011

Pioneer Announces New Receivers, Airplay In Top Model

Today, Pioneer announced four new A/V receivers to join their VSX line. All of the new receivers are smartphone compatible with an optional Bluetooth adapter, and can stream audio from the devices. The top end model, the VSX-1021 ($549), is the one to get as it has a ton of connectivity to smartphones and computers, and is compatible with Apple’s new Airplay. → Read More

January 27th, 2011

Sharp & Pioneer Resurrect The Pioneer Elite Display Line

(My son a few years back in front of a 60-inch Pioneer Elite plasma. He *loved* it.) There was a time when the Pioneer Elite display was the cream of the crop, the top dog, the big kid on the bus, you know, the best damn TV available. But even having the best color and black level reproduction on the market, the expensive line couldn’t withstand the recession and the onslaught of cheap LCDs and plasmas. Pioneer killed the Elite display line in 2009 and a little part of the world died with it. → Read More

January 11th, 2011

Pioneer Prototypes Android-based Cyclocomputer (Video)

If you thought Android can be used just to power phones, tablets, TVs or similar devices, think again: Pioneer is now using the Google OS (version unknown) in the development of a “next-generation” cyclometer. It helps users track four main parameters: speed, cadence, heart rate, and power. → Read More

January 3rd, 2011

Pioneer Japan Outs Stylish Cordless Phones

Everybody may own at least one cell phone nowadays, but that doesn’t mean fixed line networks are dead. Case in point: Pioneer Japan’s TF-FN2000 [JP], a new series of cordless phones that will be available in black, white and red. → Read More

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