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CONTENTS | December/January 2017

04 PUBLISHERS NOTE

06 SHORT BITS
Great holiday gift ideas for everyone on your list.
16
By Christine Persaud

16 HOME ENTERTAINMENT | Year-in-Review: Is it Time to Party?

Audio/video retailers are facing major challenges: market saturation in key categories,
market distress in key regions, and an aging customer base. But there are lots of reasons
to be optimistic about 2017.
By Gordon Brockhouse

26 MOBILE WORLD | The Mobile Industry Year-in-Review

A Year of Ups, Downs, and Changes: From new devices like the iPhone 7 and Google Pixel, 26
to issues with devices like the Samsung Galaxy Note7, carrier reinventions, and emerging
accessory categories, its been an eventful year in the wireless space.
By Christine Persaud

36 HANDS-ON REVIEW | HifiMan SuperMini Digital Audio Player

Portable audio players are making a resurgence, but some can cost into the thousands. How does
this $550 player compare, and is it worth the upgrade for on-the-go personal listening?
By David Susilo

38 HANDS-ON REVIEW | Bryston BDP- Digital Music Player

Specialty audio manufacturers say a dedicated music player like Brystons new BDP- can produce
38
better sound than a general-purpose computer. But the real advantage is simplicity and stability.
By Gordon Brockhouse

44 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: The Promise and the Reality

What we often refer to as artificial intelligence is not really AI, but actually closer to machine
learning data analysis and data mining. Nonetheless, there have been some incredible advances in
the field of late, across many industries.
By Frank Lenk

50 TALKING SHOP 44
Canadian Sound celebrates 30 years in business, Google opens store-in-stores in Best Buy,
Samsung surprises with its Harman acquisition, and more in this months edition.

60 TOP 10 TECH GIFT PICKS

After 12 months of reviewing audio and video equipment, mobile gear and gadgets,
and several entertainment services through 2016, here are our writers picks for top-10
tech items for the holidays.
By Gordon Brockhouse, Christine Persaud, and David Susilo

70 CES 2017
Dont miss this years Canada Night celebration during the 2017 CES!
60
December/January 2017 3
PUBLISHERS NOTE

TIME TRAVEL
PARTY LIKE ITS 2007, says Gordon Brockhouse at the end of his PUBLISHER / EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
Year-In-Review feature on the home entertainment industry. Back in John Thomson
2007, I worked for another magazine. I have all the old issues in the Cell: 416-726-3667
basement, so I thought it would be fun to flip some pages and see jthomson@wifihifi.ca
how much things have changed in 10 years. @wifihifimag

Lets start by mentioning that the issue that you are holding is the EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
largest one we have published in three years of producing WiFi HiFi, Christine Persaud
coming in at a whopping 72 pages. Ten years ago, that December cpersaud@wifihifi.ca
issue had 132 pages, of which exactly 72 pages were ads! I bet the revenue from that one issue @ChristineTechCA
in 2007 is close to what we make in five issues of WiFi HiFi today. When you were the only game
in town you could charge what you wanted. Besides, it was 2007 so people had loose ideas of EDITOR-AT-LARGE
budgets. Then came 2008 Gordon Brockhouse
gbrockhouse@wifihifi.ca
Scanning through that 2007 issue, I see ads from Hitachi, Sanyo, Toshiba, VisionQuest, In Tandem,
Dumoulin, Vantage Point, and many other brands that have disappeared from the Canadian CE CREATIVE DIRECTOR
landscape. But many brands are still going strong, and the majority have a page in this issue David Topping
10 years later. So a pat on the back to all of the companies that have successfully reinvented
CONTRIBUTORS
themselves in the last decade.
Vawn Himmelsbach, Ted Kritsonis, Frank Lenk,
The biting irony of publishing in 2017 is that while what the market will bear for advertising is Steve Makris, David Susilo
dramatically lower, audience reach is dramatically higher. Newsletters, social media, mobile,
online, print editions, digital editions and tablet editions guarantee there are more ways than DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL CONTENT
ever to connect to readers. Im crossing my fingers that Gordon is right about 2017 being the new James Campbell
2007 at least when it comes to ad pages! Its amazing how quickly we can adapt to adversity. jcampbell@wifihifi.ca
That brings to mind a favourite Oscar Wilde quote: Anyone who lives within their means suffers
DIRECTOR OF SPECIAL EVENTS
from a lack of imagination.
Cathy Thomson
Alas, chances are 2017 will be 2017, with its crazily shifting technological landscape, as you can cthomson@wifihifi.ca
read in Frank Lenks feature on Artificial Intelligence. Frank busts a few myths on precisely what
Melsa Media Inc.
AI is. The good news is that we can go to sleep confident that our fridges and sound systems are
194 Robinson Street
not conspiring about ways to kill us. Oakville, Ontario
Today, no one would question how central smartphones have become to our lives. Our phones L6J 1G3
are our information hub, our communication tool, and the epicentre of our entertainment. There
Advertising Inquiries:
are very few products that you can plug in that dont have an accompanying app at the centre John Thomson
of the user experience. Christine Persaud covers the year that was in mobile communication and jthomson@wifihifi.ca
accessories; and her report confirms that the smarphones contribution to the global economy
continues to grow. You could almost say that the smartphone industry is, ah, umon fire.
LETS STAY IN TOUCH!
This issue brings our print schedule for 2016 to a close. From our family to yours, we wish you a
Website: www.wifihifi.ca / www.wifihifi.com
happy holiday and a terrific new year. We look forward to convening in Las Vegas for CES and at Drais
Twitter: twitter.com/wifihifimag
Nightclub for Canada Night on Friday, January 6. Heres to a great 2017, where we party like its 2007.
Facebook: facebook.com/wifihifimag
As always, many thanks for reading. Instagram: instagram.com/wifihifi

John Thomson
jthomson@wifihifi.ca Check out our Vintage Airstream
www.wifihifiairstream.com

Copyright 2017. WiFi HiFi is a registered brand of Melsa Media Inc.

and is published ten times each year. All rights reserved. The contents
of this publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part
without the written consent of the publisher. The views expressed
by advertisers are not necessarily those held by the publisher.

Publications Mail Agreement Number: PM42710013

Business Number: 81171 8709

4 www.wifihifi.ca
 LIMITLESS. BOUNDLESS. TIMELESS.
The New TOTEM SKY

In an age where true valueLVSXWRQDOLPLWOHVVDQGKRQHVWPXVLFDOUHQGLWLRQWKH7RWHP6.<LVERUQ$FRPSDFWPDUYHOIRUDOOW\SHVRIVRXUFHPHGLXPVWKH6.<RIIHUVH[LELOLW\

OLYDELOLW\DQGODVWLQJDFRXVWLFTXDOLW\7KH6.<ZLOOPDNH\RX\WRDZKROHQHZOHYHORIDSSUHFLDWLRQ<RXZLOOEHDPD]HGE\WKHXOWUDZLGHVSDWLDOSHUIRUPDQFHFRPLQJRXW
IURPVXFKDFRPSDFWXQLW6OLPWULPDQGYLVXDOO\VHOIHIIDFLQJWKH6.<WUXO\VKLQHVZLWKWKHODWHVWLQQRYDWLRQVLQVSHDNHUGHVLJQ / Discover yours at totemacoustic.com
SHORT BITS Great holiday gift ideas for everyone on your list.
BY CHRISTINE PERSAUD

TURNTABLE, FROM A-TO-D

BIG TURTLE SOUND
Shaped like the slow and steady reptile, its no surprise that this
portable wireless Bluetooth speaker from Outdoor Tech (Atlantia)
is called the Big Turtle Shell. Water-resistant, dust- and shock-proof,
it doubles as a portable power bank in addition to playing back tunes
using its 7,800mAmp battery. And it can act as a speakerphone,
or be used to launch Siri via external controls, which can also be
used to adjust volume, change tracks, and play/pause.
Outdoortechnology.com
With a built-in phono preamp and A-to-D converter, the TN-400S
turntable from TEAC (Erikson Consumer) can both play back records
and archive them in digital format. Available in matte red and walnut
veneer finishes, it comes with an Audio Technica moving-magnet
cartridge, and can play 3313, 45 and 78rpm records. It features an
aluminum die-cast platter, attrition resistance stainless steel spindle
and brass spindle holder, and static-balanced aluminum S-shaped
tonearm. Connect it directly to amplifiers that lack a phono stage
via an RCA analog cable. It can also output 48kHz/16-bit PCM digital
audio via its USB connector, for archiving records onto a PC or Mac.
MSRP $600 Teac.com

LISTEN TO YOUR HEART

Expectant moms dont need to wait
for the next doctors visit to hear
the beating of their babys heart;
just use the Bellabeat Shell (Dream
Team Americas) which attaches to a
smartphone and works with an app
to help filter out background
noise and amplify the sound of the
heartbeat much like an actual
seashell. The app, which can be used
on its own as well without the Shell,
uses an algorithm to capture the
sound of the heart from within the
womb and present it in a natural
way. Record the comforting sound
to share with friends and family
on social media, view tutorials on
fetal heart positions and enjoy
multiple pregnancy tracking.
This isnt by any means a medical
device, but its a fun way to interact
with your upcoming little one.
The Shell currently only works
with select model iPhones. US$70
Bellabeat.com

6 www.wifihifi.ca
 Sound Tools for Creative Minds
M W 50 Wir e le ss O n E ar H e a d p h o n e s w w w. m a s t e r d y n am i c . c o m
SHORT BITS
HAVE A PRESENCE
The Netatmo Presence (Dream Team Americas) smart outdoor
security camera can recognize people, animals, and vehicles within a
100-degree field-of-view. It connects to Wi-Fi, then view in real-time,
or receive a notification if it detects any of the above. Manually select
zones for the camera to focus on, like the driveway or front lawn, and
determine what the camera does when it sees certain things, like
record and notify you when it sees people, but ignore animals and
cars. Store footage to the included 16GB microSD card; it accepts up to
32GB. Since everything is stored locally, there are no subscription fees,
though the camera does tie-in with DropBox if you wish to save footage
to an account there. IFTTT integration lets you include the camera in
different smart home recipes, like setting the outdoor lights to come
on whenever a car pulls into the driveway. MSRP $349 Netatmo.com
TIMEPIECE, SMARTWATCH, WRIST REMOTE
Misfits new Phase Hybrid Smartwatch combines a traditional
analog timepiece with modern smartwatch and wristworn remote.
It tracks steps, distance, and sleep duration and quality using a
three-axis accelerometer and Misfits algorithms. The watch face can
also discreetly display incoming notifications and other feedback,
like activity and alarm, using an interplay of the watch hands, a small
colour window, and vibration alerts. But it also functions as a remote
for controlling music or snapping photos from a wirelessly connected
smartphone; and can control smart home devices. It runs for up
to six months using a coin-cell battery, and is water-resistant
up to 50 metres. It comes in six colour options; wear it with any
20mm band. US$175 Misfit.com
8 www.wifihifi.ca
MOVIES IN YOUR POCKET
Viviteks Qumi Q3 portable HD pocket projector can project a 720p
HD resolution image up to 100 in size from a mobile device, via Wi-Fi
or Bluetooth pairing, HDMI, AV-in, DC-in, USB, or its 5.1GB of on-board
memory. Running on Android OS, images are delivered at up to 500
lumens and 5,000:1 contrast, and audio via two-watt speaker. It runs
for up to two hours per charge enough to get you through a full
feature-length film. At just a pound, its the perfect device to bring
along for movies, business presentations, or meetings. An integrated
media and document viewer can display documents, photos, video
and audio files. See our review at Wifihifi.ca $500 Vivitekusa.com
GET MORE IPHONE STORAGE
If you feel stuck with your 16, 32, or even 64GB of built-in iPhone space,
or feel forced to sign up for an iCloud account to backup an endless
amount of photos, videos, or non-DRM protected music files, consider
the Leef iBridge3, which you can plug into the device and use as an
external memory drive. Transfer everything from photos to videos and
documents to the iBridge to free up space, or simply use it as a backup.
Plus, shoot and store content directly to the iBridge; and transfer files
between the device and a DropBox, Google Drive, or iCloud account.
Once transferred, create a passcode or use Touch ID with LeefLock
to prevent others from accessing the content. Available in sizes from
16-256GB for MSRPs of $80-$230. Leefco.com
 T H E P E R F E C T B A L A N C E O F

Form & Function

DSLR performance with the mobility
of mirrorless. The Lumix G85 delivers
flawless photography and exceptional
video. Thanks in part to 5-axis Dual Image
Stabilization in both photo and 4k video
modes, and a 16MP sensor that does
away with the low pass filter, the G85
produces noise-free images of remarkable
clarity and realism. Plus, a weather-sealed
body and lens allow you to capture those
images virtually anywhere. Little wonder
that the Lumix G85 is being recognized as
a powerful hybrid creative tool for both
amateurs and pros the perfect balance
of form and function.

shop.panasonic.ca/lumix
Photography Johan Sorensen acrobuddhas.com
SHORT BITS
SWITCH IT UP
The Nintendo Switch gaming system includes both a console and a
handheld device that can be used for gaming on the go. At home, it
rests in the Nintendo Switch Dock that connects the system to the TV.
Lift it from the dock, and the system will automatically transition to
portable mode for continued play outside. One player can use a
Joy-Con controller in each hand, two players can each take one, or
multiple Joy-Cons can be used by numerous people for a variety of
gameplay options. The controllers easily click back into place at the
sides of the console, or can be slipped into a Joy-Con Grip accessory,
mirroring a more traditional controller. If preferred, select an optional
Nintendo Switch Pro Controller. Further, numerous people can bring
their Nintendo Switch systems together to enjoy local multiplayer
face-to-face competition. March 2017; pricing TBA. Nintendo.com
SUPER SMART MUZIK
Not only are they wireless, but the Muzik One headphones (Dream
Team Americas) have hot buttons on the right earcup that you can
program to do certain things once you press or swipe them, like
upload what youre listening to directly to social media via integration
with services like Spotify and Twitter. With IFTTT, you can also use
the hot keys to do things like control the lighting in your home. The
ear cushions pop on and off easily so you can go from on-ear to
over-ear depending on the setting, and the headphones have dual
mics for making calls as well as using voice control with a connected
smartphone. Use the Muzik Connect app to adjust settings and hot keys
to your liking. The headphones can run for up to 30 hours per charge,
and can be used wirelessly or with a wire. US$300 Muzikconnect.com
10 www.wifihifi.ca
MOUNTING MAGIC
Scosche is extending its MagicMount line of mobile mounts and
chargers (Atlantia) into the home with the Wall Charger, which allow
you to dock a mobile device to a wall outlet without the need for
cords, in the same way you already do in a car. The 12W (2.4A) Perfect
Charge USB port automatically detects and charges phones and
tablets at the correct rate. At the heart of the charger are powerful rare-
earth Neodymium magnets, which will not damage the smartphone
or tablet, but ensure a tight grip on a device. The sleek, cradle-free
design also allows users to position the screen for optimal viewing. The
MagicMount Wall Chargers surface is covered by a non-scratch silicon
pad to prevent marring of the devices surface. It ships with a large and
small MagicPlate mounting metal plate. MSRP $35 Scosche.com
SOUNDCAST GOES SMALL
Speaker manufacturer Soundcast is going small with its latest model,
the VG1 (Erikson Consumer), a portable Bluetooth speaker that is
fully waterproof, and boasts a shock-absorbing design. Weighing just
a single pound, the speaker works with Siri for hands-free control,
features a built-in microphone for conference calls, and volume can be
easily adjusted or a track can be paused via on-board controls. Pair two
via Auto Bluetooth to fill a room or backyard BBQ party. They run for
up to 15 hours per charge. MAP $199.95 Gosoundcast.com
Your brain might need a second to catch up.

Jan. 5-8, 2017 Las Vegas, NV

Register now at CES.tech
#CES2017
SHORT BITS

TRACKER FOR NEW MOMS

KEEP AN EYE ON MY PHONE, MATE
The latest version of the Tile Bluetooth tracker, the Tile Mate,
(Dream Team Americas) is 25% smaller than the original, and now
comes with a key ring hole. Attach it to your car keys or camera,
and it will communicate with your smartphone app via Bluetooth to
help you locate the item if its lost. The best part: your smartphone
doesnt have to be in range in order for you to find the lost device.
The system uses a network of Tile users from around the world to
identify where your item is, and report its location back to you via the
app. $30, or $90 for a four-pack. Existing Tile owners can upgrade for
US$15 as part of the retile program that offers a new Tile annually for
up to half off the original price once the battery dies. Thetileapp.com
Project Nursery, a VOXX Accessories Corporation, has designed the
Parent + Baby SmartBand, a wearable device for parents. Moms
can log important events like nursing and bottle feedings, pumping,
pre- and post-natal vitamins, medications, diaper changes, fetal
movements, the childs weight, and naps. Mom can also track her
own habits, including hydration, weight, diet, exercise, and sleep.
A customizable reminder and alarm function helps parents stay on
schedule, and messages of encouragement throughout the day help
keep mom happy and motivated. It can also display notifications for
caller ID, text messages, and apps. Historical data is saved in the iOS or
Android app for sharing with a doctor, for example. Splash and sweat-
resistant, it can run for up to 30 days per charge. It will come in blush
pink, white, or black in February 2017; US$150. Projectnursery.com

POWERED BY YOUR BODY HEAT

Matrix Industries is trying to solve
one of the biggest annoyances with
wearables these days, battery life,
with its PowerWatch smartwatch
that recharges from you body heat.
The PowerWatch uses thermoelectric
technology, nano-meterials, advanced
thermal engineering, and low-power
electronics to run exclusively off heat
generated from the body. It also uses
this technology to measure calories
burned and show power generated
from the body. The water-resistant
smartwatch tracks activity, sleep, calories
and power, and can store up to a years
worth of data. When you take it off,
it automatically goes into sleep mode,
keeping all the data in memory, then
turns on after a few seconds when
you put it back on. US$170; July 2017.
Matrixindustries.com

12 www.wifihifi.ca
A LEGACY OF AMAZING SOUND MEETS
THE POWER OF HEOS.
Meet the new lineup of Denon and Marantz audio video receivers,
now with HEOS wireless music capability built right in.

legacyofamazingsound.com
SHORT BITS
INSTANT PICS
Its no surprise that in an age of instant gratification, the concept
of immediate photo printing is taking off. Pyles Portable Instant
Photo Printer lets you make quick and easy prints from a compatible
Android or iOS device. It measures just 6 x 3 and weighs a single
pound, and features both Wi-Fi and Near-Field Communication (NFC)
for wirelessly communicating with your mobile device and Pyles free
PicKit app. JPEGs and PNG images can be printed at 2.1 x 3.4, and
you can edit and add custom borders to a picture before printing it.
Make about 25 prints per charge. US$100 Pyleusa.com
A NEW FRONTIER
The Samsung Gear S3 smartwatch comes in two flavours: the Frontier,
which employs a rugged, outdoor look; and the Classic, which is inspired
by traditional timepieces. Both are dust-, dirt-, and water-resistant,
able to withstand up to 1.5 metres of water for up to 30 minutes.
They come with built-in GPS and speakers for taking and making calls,
plus Bluetooth for pairing with a smartphone or wireless headphones.
Internal 4GB memory can be used to store tunes. They can also
monitor your daily fitness activities, while the altimeter, barometer and
speedometer lets you track altitude, speed, and plan for the weather.
$469 Samsung.ca
14 www.wifihifi.ca
TURN WASTE INTO FERTILIZER
Add Whirlpools Zera Food Recycler to your kitchen to turn food waste
into homemade fertilizer. The unit uses oxygen, moisture, heat, a plant-
based additive, and agitator to speed up the decomposition process
and reduce the average familys weekly food waste by two-thirds within
24 hours. A HEPA/Carbon air filter, which should be changed every two
months, continuously filters the air to control the smell. Then, throw
the result on the lawn. You can even control it remotely from the Zero
mobile app. Launching in U.S. test markets in April 2017; MSRP US$1,199,
US$19 for the filter and US$12 for a four-pack of additives. Indiegogo.com
(campaign will launch coinciding with CES 2017)
APP OF THE MONTH: meMatic
If you spend any time on social media, you know about the world of
funny, clever, witty, inspiring, or downright silly memes. The concept
is simple: take a photo or image, add some text to put it into a different
context, distribute, and watch it go viral. We love to share these morsels
of hilarity, but what about creating them? This app makes it super-
simple. Select a photo from your album, snap one live, or choose from
a selection of popular pics, from stunned cats to funny expressions,
to movie stills, or popular characters like the Most Interesting Man in
the World. Choose a layout, input some text, save and share. Free or
upgrade to Pro ($3.99) to choose text colours and fonts, remove ads,
and create meme templates from your own photos. Mematic.net
WERE SERIOUS ABOUT YOUR SUCCESS

SHERPA GROUP is a national distributor and exclusive marketing agency for some of the
most prestigious brands in consumer technology. We specialize in premium audio, video
and communication products.
Sherpa Group offers an exceptionally high level of customer service driven by our team with
the best product knowledge in the business. The success of your business is our highest priority
and we will do whatever it takes to ensure that success.
Contact us today and learn about our free educational seminars, our interactive Q&A sessions
with industry leaders, and many other dealer initiatives to ensure our partners are at the forefront
of technological developments with the products they sell.

CELEBRATING 15 YEARS 2001-2016

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80 Lindsay Avenue, Dorval, Quebec H9P 2T8 514-366-9822 / 1-866-767-6584 Fax: 514-366-4265
445 Admiral Blvd, #2, Mississauga, ON L5T 2N1 905-565-9028 / 1-866-767-6584 Fax: 866-670-5052
IS IT TIME TO PARTY? A leading contender for
the worlds best television
CE retailing faces challenges in 2017, is LGs 77 Signature
Series OLED, which started

but there are some great opportunities too shipping in the U.S. in the
fall for a cool 20 grand.
The 77-incher hasnt made
it to Canada, but LGs 65
BY GORDON BROCKHOUSE Signature Series OLED has.

I think its safe to say that most entrepreneurs are glass-half-full

types: even in the midst of a crisis, theyll find reasons for optimism. THE STORY
Total CE sales declined in 2016.
As another challenging year draws to a close, CE vendors believe Factors include market saturation and
that there are lots of reasons to be hopeful about the new year. price erosion in key categories, along
with distress in resource-dependent
Some of 2016s challenge arose from condi- years that could impact the close of 2016. In Western provinces.
tions of our industry, including price erosion and 2014 and 2015, growth through November and TV makers are hopeful that continuing
market saturation in key categories; and some December was weaker than the three months lead- technological improvements and
arose from the overall economy, notably continu- ing into it. If that trend holds this year, well have availability of more UHD content could
ing weakness in the Canadian dollar and distress negative growth of 4 to 5% over the holidays. revive growth in flat-panel sales in 2017.
in resource-dependent Western provinces. As in previous years, there are some hopeful
There are some real bright spots in
You can see the effects in industry sales data. signs beneath the data. First of all, NPDs CE totals
audio, notably wireless multi-room
According to NPD, combined Canadian retail include imaging, a category that is under severe
sound. New brands and new technology
sales of audio, video and imaging products fell distress because of the collapse of point-and-shoot
(especially voice control) could
4% in dollar terms and 8% in unit terms during camera sales and near-saturation in enthusiast
accelerate growth in 2017.
the first 10 months of 2016 compared to the cameras. Subtract imaging from the total CE fig-
same period a year earlier. If this sounds like a ure, and the picture starts looking rosier. The end of the flat-panel boom and the
broken record, thats understandable. CE sales Id call this year steady, says Moto Shimizu, Vice need to attract younger customers makes
slipped last year too, and in the year before that. President of the AV Division at Yamaha Canada it vital for CE retailers to adapt their
Mark Haar, Director of Consumer Electronics for Music Ltd. When youre steady with the whole product assortment and messaging.
NPD Canada, notes a worrisome trend from earlier Alberta thing happening, steady is very acceptable.

16 www.wifihifi.ca
 Fun > Smart
A-S1100, A-S2100 and A-S3000 Integrated Amplifiers.

www.yamaha.com
YEAR-IN-REVIEW: HOME ENTERTAINMENT
A BRIGHTER PICTURE
The other drag on CE sales is the continuing
decline in flat-panel sales. According to NPD,
Canadian retail sales of TVs fell 6% in unit terms
and 2% in dollar terms during the first 10 months
of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015.
But the TV sales picture is brighter than it first
appears. As Haar notes, the average sale price
increased by 4.5%, to $541, partly driven by surg-
ing sales of 4K models and big screen sizes.
According to NPD, the 55 and 65 segments
collectively accounted for almost half of dollar
sales during the 10 months ending October 31,
2016. Unit sales of 65 TVs were up 44% in the
first 10 months of 2016 compared to the same
period in 2015; dollar volume was up 45%. While
that segment accounted for only 4% of unit vol-
ume, it represented 24% of dollar sales. The 55
segment is growing too: by 22% in unit terms
and 19% in dollar terms; and now accounts for
13% of unit sales and 25% of dollar sales.
Sales of TVs sized 40 to 44 also grew, by 8%
in unit terms and 6% in dollar terms. They now
represent 22% of units and 17% of dollars. Where
the declines are coming is in smaller screen sizes:
the 32 segment is down 13% in units.
Dollar sales of 4K televisions have doubled this
year; and this segment is now approaching 50%
of the overall market. According to NPD, sales of
4K TVs were up 144% in units and 99% in dollars
in the first 10 months of 2016. They accounted for
41% of total dollar volume, up from 21% in the first
10 months of 2015. HDR-capable sets accounted
for 39% of total 4K unit sales, and 50% of 4K dollar
18 www.wifihifi.ca
sales. With TVs 55 and larger, 4K models repre-
sented 58% of unit sales and 71% of dollar volume
in the first 10 months of this year.
Haar notes an interesting difference between
the Canadian and American TV markets. In
Canada, were more than covering the exchange
rate, he says. Theres a 40 to 45% premium
over the same models in the U.S. on TV. Our unit
growth is far lower than in the U.S. where ASPs
are going down much more dramatically.
The major TV vendors express satisfaction with
the year just past, and optimism for the coming
year. Our sales in TV are up by double digits, says
Bruce Schepers, Vice President of Sales, Home
Electronics, at LG Electronics Canada Inc. We
have developed a separate channel for OLED, and
it is growing substantially. We made substantial
gains in TVs 65 and up. We started out under last
year for the first six months, but the trend now is
toward level sales with last year.
Comments Pat Bugos, Vice President Sales
and Marketing for the CE division of Samsung
Electronics Canada Inc.: Overall, were very
happy with 2016. The industry is down slightly
this year to date, but were starting to grow again.
Consumers are starting to be very aware of 4K.
Its worth noting that NPDs figures for 4K
marketshare do not take the holiday season
into account. Factor in Black Friday, holiday and
Boxing Week sales, and its not hard to imagine
4K representing a full 50% of TV dollar volume
for calendar 2016.
Thats an easier prediction to make when you
see some of the advertised specials for Black
One highlight of 2016 was the introduction
of stunning HDR-capable televisions, such as
Samsungs SUHD models with quantum dot
technology. Major TV brands are promising
further performance improvements for 2017.
This year, Black Friday craziness wasnt just about commodity
products. Premium products like HDR-capable UHD televisions
were offered at incredibly attractive price points.
Friday. As expected, there were loads of sub-
$500 bargains for HDTVs ranging from 32 to
50. But what really jumped out at me were the
deals on premium UHD TVs. A couple of exam-
ples: LG B-series 55 and 65 OLED TVs with full
HDR support (both HDR 10 and Dolby Vision) for
$2,298 and $3,998; Samsung 6000-series 55 and
65 UHD TVs for $975 and $1,498.
GOING ULTRA
The other thing that struck me in 2016 was the
fabulous picture performance of the latest crop of
UHD televisions. When I look at LGs 2016 OLED
TVs, Samsungs Quantum Dot SUHD TVs, or
Sonys Z-series TVs with Master Backlight Drive,
I pinch myself and ask, Can TV pictures get any
better than this? Have we hit a plateau?
TV manufacturers reply to these rhetorical
questions is predictable but telling: Yes, they can;
and no, we havent. In both our OLED and Super
UHD lines, youll see demonstrable improve-
ments in picture quality [in 2017], LGs Schepers
promises. Not to be outdone, Samsungs Bugos
states, We definitely have not hit a plateau. At
CES, you will see whats coming next for TV.
Thatll be something to see, and its one more
reason to look forward to CES. A related motivation
is seeing whats happening with Ultra HD content,
not just 4K, but content with high dynamic range
(HDR) and wide colour gamut (WCG).
In 2016, we saw steady development in 4K
programming in Canada. Major service provid-
ers began rolling out UHD set-top boxes. Rogers
Sportsnet and TSN introduced 4K channels, with
an attractive slate of programming that included
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YEAR-IN-REVIEW: HOME ENTERTAINMENT
baseball, hockey and basketball. Bell Media
announced that scripted programming for all its
networks would henceforth be commissioned in
4K, and began airing some 4K series on its TV net-
works and streaming services. Two major awards
shows the Junos and the iHeart MuchMusic
Video Awards were offered in 4K.
Netflix has several series in 4K, including new
titles like The Crown and The Get Down. During
2016, Netflix added a few UHD series with 4K video
and HDR, including four Marvel franchise titles.
There was one big disappointment on the
UHD front last year. In late 2015, Rogers Sportsnet
announced plans to offer all 81 Blue Jays home
games in 4K and HDR, but by early 2016, had pulled
back on the HDR component, citing lack of standards.
For the UHD full-meal deal, the best source to
emerge in 2016 was Ultra HD Blu-ray. Samsung
and Panasonic both shipped players this year;
and Sony will launch a premium ES-series model
in 2017. As Bugos observes, For home theatre
enthusiasts who want the best experience. pack-
aged media is still the way to go. By year-end
there were about 100 Ultra HD Blu-ray titles. The
roster keeps growing. An Ultra HD version of this
falls Arrival is already available for pre-order. Im
hopeful that well see it demoed at CES.
As weve noted repeatedly in this space, HDR
and WCG are potentially bigger deals than 4K res-
olution. But its easier for consumers to wrap their
heads around 4K, because the benefits can be
summed up in a simple number: more pixels mean
a better picture, right? I dont think consumers are
getting the HDR message, Schepers comments.
All retailers are doing is talking about 4K. We have
our work cut out for us in explaining HDR.
Last spring, Bell Media announced that it is commissioning all new scripted programming
in 4K video. New titles include CraveTVs Letterkenny.
20 www.wifihifi.ca
Yamahas latest receivers and soundbars have
built-in MusicCast multi-room capability. This year,
the company introduced several new MusicCast
products, such as the ultra-slim ISX-18 powered
network speaker.
With the right content, its easy to show the
benefits of HDR. That content is growing steadily,
though not as quickly as TV vendors would like.
In the meantime, premium UHD televisions do
a very good job upconverting HD. The content
will come, Bugos says. Its definitely slower
than the U.S, but its coming.
The prospect of improved TVs and more UHD
content has TV vendors hoping that 2017 could
be a bounce-back year. Consumers who bought
a TV in 2007 or 2008 are now ready to replace
their set, Bugos states. When you think about
design, screen size, 4K and HDR, we have a lot of
exciting technology to motivate the consumer.
Thats certainly true, and its reasonable to
expect growth in dollar sales next year. But it
doesnt mean well be back to the glory days of the
flat-panel boom. Back then, people were replacing
old direct-view TVs or big rear-projection coffins.
Most of these viewers would experience serious
TV envy every time they turned on their old set.
As great as todays TVs are (and many are really
great), theres not the same gulf between what
people own and what they want.
SPILLOVER EFFECT
The flat-panel boom wasnt just about TVs. It
also created demand for home-theatre systems,
soundbars, AV receivers and Blu-ray players.
When the flat-panel market stalled, so did
home theatre. Theres definitely been attrition
in the home theatre market, observes Enzo
Morelli, Vice President, Home Audio for Erikson
Consumer. Brands like Harman Kardon have
decided to take the exit ramp.
Were now in a period where there isnt a dom-
inant AV source to drive the industry forward. In
the past, theres always been some disruptive
technology or format that makes us change what
we do, Shimizu comments. But there hasnt
been a lightning-rod product for a while.
Adds Agata Mossop, Vice President, Canadian
Division at Lenbrook International: The flat-
panel boom brought an influx of consumers into
stores that the industry hadnt seen since the late
1980s; and that led to spillover into other cate-
gories, including audio. When that cycle ended,
stores were left with reduced foot traffic. A lot of
dealers didnt reduce their overhead accordingly.
Now traffic is lower, and everybody is trying to
figure out the magic pill.
Home theatre sales have always tracked TV
sales pretty closely, Yamahas Shimizu says. The
attach rate has always been around 20 per cent,
he elaborates, and thats holding. But the mix
is shifting. Soundbars are flat, Shimizu says,
home-theatre systems are down, and AV receiv-
ers are up, so there are more dollars.
According to NPD, Canadian unit sales of AV
receivers fell by 7% in the first 10 months of 2016
compared to the same period in 2015, but dollar
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The Ultra HD Blu-ray catalog continues to grow, with
appealing titles like this falls sci-fi hit Arrival, which is
now available for pre-order.
sales were up 3%. The average selling price
climbed 11%, to $435. Haar attributes this to
a shift in the mix, with consumers opting for
higher-priced models.
Thats a typical pattern, says Dick Tuerlings,
Managing Director of the Audio Division at
Gentec International. As the market matures,
the entry level fades out faster, but the high end
remains buoyant.
Morelli sees the same trend. With the mass
market adopting small-footprint options like
soundbars, enthusiasts who are choosing full
surround systems are moving upmarket. Luxury
audio is still a vibrant business, he says, and its
become more interesting for small dealers.
That trend is noticeable when you look at
Atmos-capable receivers. According to NPD,
Canadian unit sales of Dolby Atmos AVRs grew by
104% in the 10 months ending October 31, 2016,
admittedly on a very small base. In 2015, Atmos-
capable models accounted for 6% of AVR unit sales
and 12% of dollar volume. This year, they repre-
sent 13% of AVR unit sales and 19% of dollars.
In Atmos, were over the early adopter phase,
Shimizu says. The people using Atmos in the
home have primarily got it through the custom
channel. There are not many people who are using
22 www.wifihifi.ca
it if they spent under $1,000 on the receiver. They
may have the feature, but theyre not using it.
An interesting sub-segment is Atmos-capable
soundbars like Yamahas YSP-5600. Weve seen
a lot of interest in the YSP-5600, Shimizu says.
Samsung also launched an Atmos soundbar in 2016,
and Bugos says the product has sold well. Onkyo
announced an Atmos soundbar very recently.
Overall though, the soundbar market is seeing
declines. According to NPD, unit sales of sound-
bars were 10% lower than the same period in
2015, and dollar volume was down 1%. But the
average selling price climbed by 10%, to $274.
Whats driving overall growth is the number of
multi-room soundbars, Haar says. They account
for 9% of units, but 25% of dollars.
WORDS AND MUSIC
The growth in multi-room soundbars points to one
of the industrys sweet spots: wireless multi-room
audio. Unit growth of Wi-Fi-based multi-room
powered speakers was 34% in the first 10 months
of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015;
dollar growth was 55%. The average selling price
increased 15%, to $361.
Growth in wireless multi-room audio can be
expected to accelerate in 2017, for several reasons.
First, there are more brands beyond category pio-
neer Sonos, giving retailers more options. Several
vendors, including Klipsch, Onkyo, and Pioneer
are now rolling out multi-room products based
on DTSs Play-Fi platform, joining brands like
Paradigm, Definitive Technology and Polk. Other
brands, including Paradigm and Bluesound, have
strengthened their multi-room lineups, adding
soundbars which are a popular entry point to
multi-room sound.
As Shimizu notes, all AV makers are including
multi-room capability in some core products.
Yamaha integrates its MusicCast technology into
receivers and soundbars, and now offers acces-
sory MusicCast products like wireless speakers.
Full-blown UHD content
with high dynamic range
and wide colour gamut
is building slowly. A key
source is Netflix, whose
4K/HDR slate includes
several series in the Marvel
Comics franchise, such as
Marvels Jessica Jones.
Lenbrook offers a BluOS module for some NAD
amplifiers that allows them to be integrated into
a Bluesound multi-room system. New high-end
AVRs from Denon and Marantz can function as
part of a Denon HEOS multi-room system. The
multi-room category is in almost every other cat-
egory, Shimizi observes. Its the whole store.
The expanded choice is important for retailers,
notes Sheldon Ginn, Vice President Sales and
Marketing for Kevro International, because it lets
them offer options for consumers that deliver
better performance and produce more profit.
If youre just selling on convenience, youre
missing an opportunity to sell better gear, he
comments. Set your showroom up to show
other opportunities.
Another driver for multi-room sound is the
integration of voice control. In late summer,
Sonos announced plans to adopt Amazons Alexa
voice-recognition technology. Starting early next
year, users will be able to control Sonos multi-
room products using voice commands detected
by one of Amazons wireless speakers. Quickly,
other vendors followed suit. D+M will support
Alexa on its HEOS products; and DTS will support
Alexa on its Play-Fi platform. In all cases, this capa-
bility will be pushed out via a firmware update.
Voice capability has the potential to draw new
consumers into the market. People who have been
seduced by the Amazon Echos massive cool fac-
tor will discover that controlling music playback
by voice is one of the Echos many possibilities,
and then start investigating. Everybody knows
voice is a big part of the future, Shimizu says.
Its not just about control. Its about checking the
weather, ordering a pizza or Uber. Everybody has
to wrap their heads around this.
REINVENTING RETAIL
Embracing this new technology plays into one
of the industrys most pressing issues: attract-
ing younger customers. Millennials are already
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YEAR-IN-REVIEW: HOME ENTERTAINMENT
big music consumers, in all its forms. Theyre a
key part of the vinyl revival, notes Kurt Martens,
President of Essential Audio Corp. For years, Ive
been seeing a big audience of kids in their late
teens browsing through used record stores, not
just in big cities, but in small towns as well.
Noting how mainstream brands like Yamaha
are embracing two-channel, Martens sees good
times for enthusiast audio. Good quality stereo
is making a resurgence, he says. I think this is
going to continue in 2017. Its not slowing down;
quite the contrary.
But Mossop believes the industry could be
doing better. I dont think theres ever been a
time when so many people are listening to so
much music, she says. People need an avenue
to enjoy that. Theres a disconnect between our
industry and the consumer. People love music;
the technology is there.
Shes concerned about the industrys slowness
at cultivating new customers whose expecta-
tions differ significantly from past generations.
Our retailers are good at speaking to boomers,
Mossop states, but they dont speak very well
to the new population of consumers: millennials
and Gen-Xers. These consumers buy online, and
from lifestyle stores.
The successful retailers are those who have
embraced online, who have made it a significant
part of their strategy, she continues. Dealers
need to put the same amount of resources into
online that they put into creating advertising
five years ago. Its not just having a Website; its
about search engine optimizaiton, placement
through third-party media, social media.
Soundbar ASPs are being boosted by multi-room models like Klipschs new retro-styled RBS-14, which features
DTSs Play-Fi technology. Along with Sonos and Denon, Play-Fi will add compatibility with Amazons Alexa
voice control technology in 2017.
24 www.wifihifi.ca
Morelli believes the end of the flat-panel
boom plunged CE retail into an existential crisis.
Traditional CE dealers who had been focusing on
TV, are asking themselves, What am I going to
be? This year, many of them have gone through a
metamorphosis, retrenching and looking at their
brands. Its like putting together a hockey team.
You build around core brands, then accessories
at the periphery for variety. Then you have to find
out how to get that message to the consumer.
In all industries, and certainly in CE retail, mes-
saging is what separates the sheep from the goats.
Dealers who are promotional are doing well,
Shimizu says. Theyre using social media, offsite
events, in-store VIP events, flyers, turntable clinics.
The other component is delivering a good expe-
rience when the customer comes into the store.
Mossop points to retailers like the Sonos store in
New York, the Apple Store and William Sonoma
as useful examples. Those stores never look the
same month after month, she says. Staff are
trained to show the whole package.
Similarly, Tuerlings thinks CE retailers could
learn from kitchen-reno specialists and car deal-
erships that provide coffee, informational videos,
comfortable seating. He notes with admiration
that some Canadian CE retailers are upping their
in-store experience, with displays such as a muse-
um-like montages that shows the evolution of
the technology theyre selling.
Tuerlings is concerned about the staffing com-
ponent. When people my age went into retail,
they built up product knowledge before going on
the floor, he says. There was a fair bit of money to
be made. Both product knowledge and salesman-
Audio manufacturers are adding multi-room capability to
core products like amplifiers and AV receivers. NADs new
C 388 integrated amp accepts an optional BluOS module that
lets it function as part of a Bluesound multi-room system.
ship have degraded compared to other industries.
Competing industries have elevated their game.
The positive takeaway from all of this is that
bricks-and-mortar retail is still relevant. As Shimizu
notes, Theres still a big impetus to go to a store
to see product, negotiate a price and talk with
salespeople. For Yamaha, the proportion of bricks-
and-mortar is unchanged over the past few years.
THE BIG PICTURE
When you think of it, CE retailing has been dealing
with a lot for most of the past decade: a pro-
longed recession followed by an anemic recovery,
a resource bust that brought Canadas economic
engine to a screeching halt, crazy back-and-forth
movement in exchange rates (playing havoc with
consumer expectations), price erosion and mar-
ket saturation in key categories, the greying of the
industrys primary consumers, the growth of the
online channel, the emergence of social media as
a key method of engaging the next generation of
customers, the disappearance of major brands,
continuing downsizing and retrenchment in the
industry, headcount reductions the list goes on
and on. Change is a constant, were constantly
told; but thats a hell of a lot of change to digest.
Thankfully, were seeing some positive eco-
nomic headlines as 2016 draws to a close.
OPECs decision to cut oil production and the
federal governments approval of two new oil
pipelines are great news for the western prov-
inces. Canadas gross domestic product grew at
an annualized rate of 3.5% in the third quarter,
the highest in two years. U.S. and Canadian stock
indexes have set record highs. The Canadian dol-
lar is holding steady. Markets have digested the
Brexit and Trump phenomena.
The next slate of headlines could pop any or all
of these balloons. Even so, weve got lots to cele-
brate. Its the holidays. CES and Vegas are around
the corner. We work in a really fun industry. So
lets fill our glasses (more than halfway please),
and party like its 2007.
SEE YOU AT CES
Venetian #29-140
THE MOBILE
INDUSTRY
YEAR-IN-REVIEW
A Year of Ups, Downs,
and Changes
BY CHRISTINE PERSAUD
Roller coaster. Fickle. Monopolistic. These are the words that, when polled, those involved
in the wireless industry used to describe this year in mobile in Canada.
Grumblings about pricing and services aside,
2016 has had its share of ups and downs in the
mobile space. We saw smartphones sell like hot-
cakes, and others literally catch fire. The removal
of the headphone port in devices like the iPhone 7,
and magnetic attachment capabilities for acces-
sories with phones like the Moto Z Play. Chinese
companies like Alcatel and ZTE are gaining
ground in Canada, while home-grown brands like
BlackBerry are outsourcing device manufacturing.
Its not just about the phone, said BlackBerry OR IS IT?
CEO John Chen when the decision was made offi-
cial, but the smart in the phone.
Perhaps that comment is more wide-reaching
than Chen realizes. The smarts are getting more
attention than the phones, thanks to voice
assistants, home control recipes through plat-
forms like If This Then That (IFTTT), and a bevy of
apps and accessories that reduce the hardware
to a mere high-resolution-screened processor/
remote window into our daily activities. The
26 www.wifihifi.ca
more important question is not what phone
do you have? but rather what can, and do you
do, with your phone?
But before we look too far ahead (well do
more of that in our special edition CES 2017
February/March issue), lets take a glimpse in the
rear-view mirror at some of the biggest stories
2016 brought us in wireless.
ITS A TWO-HORSE HARDWARE RACE,
In September, Apple launched its iPhone 7 and
7 Plus, marking a shift in product design by
removing the 3.5mm headphone port. Apple is
banking on customers going wireless for private
listening, or opting for wired headphones that
come with a proprietary Lightning connector.
The impact of this move hasnt been felt just yet,
and some anticipate it wont make that big of a
dent in the wired headphones space, since wire-
less was on the rise long before Apple released
THE STORY
It has been a year of ups and down
in wireless, with Samsung and Apple
continuing their domination of the
smartphone vendor market, both
worldwide and in Canada.
The carrier space remains a three-horse
one, though WIND Mobile, now Freedom
Mobile, hopes to shake things up with
a new rebranding strategy and
operational LTE network.
Several trends are emerging, sparking
Photo courtesy of OtterBox
potential for growth in the mobile space,
namely the smart connected home and
mobile payments; plus emerging areas
like virtual reality, portable projectors,
and instant photo printers.

these devices. Still, the decision marked a sort
of end of an era for a connector that has long
been a staple in audio devices.
Interestingly, this isnt the first time Apple made
such a move: the company influenced entirely new
categories of product like Apple docks when it
launched proprietary connectors like FireWire,
Thunderbolt, and 30-pin. Others have begun to
follow suit with a proprietary and licensing strat-
egy, like the LG G5 and the Friends accessories,
and the Motorola Moto Z Play and Moto Mods
from brands like Hasselblad and JBL that magneti-
cally attach to the device instead of plugging into
the microUSB port.
Despite consumer anger at Apples closed
ecosystem, it seems to be working: Apple has
sold more than one-billion iPhones to date. And
the company remains the number-two smart-
phone provider worldwide, having shipped
45.5 million iPhones in the third quarter of 2016,
accounting for 12.5% market share, according to
IDCs Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker.
(Thats down 5.3% from the same quarter the
year prior.) However, in Canada, IDCs Canadian
Quarterly Mobile Device Tracker Q3 2016 con-
In Canada, LG remains a steady number-three smartphone
vendor, and will gain greater attention in 2017 with
devices like its V20, which comes equipped with a 32-bit
Hi-Fi Quad DAC for stellar audio playback.
firms that Apple is actually the number-one brand
north of the border. Its market share in the third
quarter of 2016 was up from the previous quarter,
sitting comfortably at 44.2% (from 41% in Q2), and
up 12.7% year-over-year. In fact, Apples share in
Canada in Q3 marked its highest quarter in a year.
The iPhone 7 is also the first Apple smart-
phone to be water- and dust-resistant. And it is
the latest in a sea of premium devices that place
greater emphasis on camera improvements,
including a new shallow depth-of-field feature
that let users snap portrait photos with blurred
backgrounds, previewing the final product in
real-time before actually taking the shot.
The second horse in the smartphone hardware
race is Samsung, which is technically the first
when you look at the numbers. According to IDC,
Samsung remains the number-one smartphone
brand worldwide with an impressive 45.5 million
handsets shipped and 20% share. However, that
represents a not-so-impressive 13.5% dip year-
over-year. In Canada, Samsungs share as the
number-two vendor dropped dramatically by
35.4% from Q2 to 26.3% share in Q3, with units
shipped down 7% year-over-year.
MOBILE WORLD
Sadly, the gap may continue to close between
Samsung and others due to some major chal-
lenges the company faced this year with the
launch of its Note7 smartphone.
Hitting the market in the summer, the Note7
could stream HDR 4K content, had a gorgeous
5.7 dual-curved QHD screen, and came with a
much thinner, more accurate Pen stylus. But
shortly after the phone was released, reports
started flooding in about the device catching
fire or the battery exploding. There were about
35 initial reports not a massive number, but
enough to recognize there was a serious prob-
lem. Samsung took swift action, issued a recall,
reported to have determined the source of
the issue, and began sending out replacement
devices. But some of those replacement devices
had the same problem, leading Samsung to issue
a second recall, and finally, deciding to halt pro-
duction of the phone altogether.
Samsung handled the situation with grace, issu-
ing full refunds or device swaps to customers for
both the phones and device-specific accessories.
But the company will be feeling the effects of this
blunder for some time to come. Reuters had pre-
December/January 2017 27
MOBILE WORLD
dicted that the Note7 could cost Samsung up to
US$17 billion to correct. At the time that Samsung
confirmed production would stop entirely, the
companys market value dropped US$20 million.
Thats not even taking into account the effects on
brand trust and reputation going forward.
Many with whom we spoke hoped the issue did
not have far-reaching implications for Samsung.
But IDCs Associate Research Director for Mobile
Devices, Melissa Chau, warns that the longer-term
impact on the brand remains to be seen. If the
first recall was a stumble for Samsung, she notes,
the second recall of replacement devices face-
planted the Note series.
There is a silver lining, as Anthony Scarsella,
Research Manager, Mobile Phones at IDC calls
the incident an industry-wide wake-up call that
will undoubtedly lead to a more vigorous test-
ing and certification process moving forward.
And we can bet that the Galaxy S8, due out next
year, will be tested, re-tested, and tested again
to ensure it meets every safety and operational
standard necessary.
No one wants a smartphone monopoly, though,
and the Android community needs an anchor
brand they can trust.
The company vying to be that anchor may
just be the one behind the Android operat-
ing system itself: Google. In the midst of the
Samsung hoopla, Google burst onto the scene
with the first device made inside out by the com-
pany, the Pixel. (While Google has previously
released its own branded Nexus devices, they
were made by other partners.)
At the heart of the Pixel is a feature thats taking
the entire tech industry by storm: voice control.
Using the built-in Google Assistant, you can ask it
just about anything using natural conversations:
get calendar details, play a video, or even pull up a
specific set of photos, like those from your recent
vacation to Rome. It intelligently works with apps,
so if your friend sends you a text message with
a destination to meet, you can simply tell the
Assistant to navigate there and it will know which
there you mean.
Google highlights the Pixels high DxOMark
Mobile score of 89, which the company says is
the highest rating ever received from a company
for a smartphone camera.
Lance Singer, Senior Account Manager at
Montreal-based accessories distributor Cesium,
believes that at least some of the Pixels success can
be attributed to what happened with Samsung.
In a market that is otherwise maturing, adds
Chau, Christmas has come early for vendors
28 www.wifihifi.ca
As the first smartphone made inside and out by
Google, the Pixel is vying to become the new anchor
Android brand, with features like a comprehensive
voice assistant, and compelling suite of accessories like
the Daydream View virtual reality headset.
Samsungs market position as the number-one
smartphone vendor worldwide and number-two in Canada
(according to IDCs Canadian Quarterly Mobile Device
Tracker, Q3 2016) could be impacted by a major snag in
2016: the company had to issue recalls and eventually end
production altogether of its Galaxy Note7 device.
Apples iPhone 7 and 7S are the first to be water-
and dust-resistant, and have eliminated the 3.5mm
headphone jack, relying instead on wireless or
Lightning headphones, or the use of an adapter.
looking to capitalize with large-screened flag-
ship alternatives like the Apple iPhone 7 Plus
and Google Pixel.
The other three phone brands that round out
the top-five worldwide, as per IDC, include Oppo
(7% share) and vivo (5.8%), two brands that arent
available in Canada, and Huawei (9.3%). But in
Canada, LG held the number-three spot with
13.7% market share in Q3, up 10.1% from Q2 and
demonstrating an impressive year-over-year unit
rise of 37.8%. (In fourth and fifth places are Alcatel
and Motorola with 3.6% and 3% share, respec-
tively.) LG released premium devices in 2016 that
continue to garner consumer interest, including
the V20, which comes equipped with a 32-bit Hi-Fi
Quad DAC.
Meanwhile, after hinting at exiting the smart-
phone hardware business for years, BlackBerry
finally made the decision to outsource hardware
manufacturing to other partners through licens-
ing agreements this year. The first such device
was the Android-based DTEK50. Chen called the
move an inflection point with BlackBerrys strat-
egy, but many proud Canucks deem it the end of
yet another era.
The Waterloo, ON company remains strong,
though, having shifted its attention to secu-
rity and applications, namely with projects like
the BlackBerry Radar end-to-end asset tracking
system, and QNX technologies for in-vehicle
smart control. In November, BlackBerry signed
an agreement with Ford Motor Company for
expanded use of QNX and security software.
QNX software already powers more than 60 mil-
lion vehicles, including the Sync 3 infotainment
system in Fords current models.
Whichever brands lead the market into 2017
and beyond, the important thing is that we have
options. That helps our industry, says Jason
Osborne, Senior Manager, Product and Inventory at
BC-based accessories distributor Hitfar Concepts,
[so] were not so narrowly focused on the iPhone.
CARRIER CAROUSELS
Speaking of options, while the hardware mar-
ket has historically been a two-horse race, with
several manufacturers trying to catch up to
Apple and Samsung, the carrier space remains
stable as a three-horse one that includes Bell,
Rogers, and Telus along with their sister brands,
Virgin Mobile, Fido, and Koodo, respectively.
WIND Mobile has been vying to become the
fourth national carrier since it first appeared on
the scene eight years ago, a feat that is easier
said than done.
MOBILE WORLD
At the end of 2015, WIND made headlines by
announcing that Shaw Communications would
acquire the company for $1.6 billion. And now as
2016 comes to a close, the carrier has made the
news once again with a complete overhaul of its
brand. WIND Mobile will henceforth be known as
Freedom Mobile.
Alek Krstajic, CEO, said the idea is to develop a
new brand, free of any past baggage (and licens-
ing obligations to the WIND name) thats all about
transparency. He makes clear that this wont be a
price play, as has been the case with other new
entrants in the past: there wont be any deep dis-
counting. Instead, the focus is on improving the
quality of the network. Freedom Mobile launched
its LTE network ahead of schedule. Active now in
Toronto and Vancouver, it will expand through
the surrounding cities by Spring 2017, followed
by Ottawa, Calgary, and Edmonton by the sum-
mer, and other 3G coverage areas by the Fall. A
standard LTE plan costs $45/mo. for 3GB of data
(doubled to 6GB through to the end of January
2018) along with unlimited Canada and U.S. call-
ing and global messaging.
Mobile payments are finally showing up
in a big way in Canada, and 2017 could
be a pivotal year that marks a shift in the
way we pay for items in store.
30 www.wifihifi.ca
Interestingly, former WIND Mobile head
Anthony Lacavera hinted during a keynote discus-
sion at the Canadian Wireless Trade Show (CWTS)
in Toronto in October that he was thinking of
re-entering the Canadian wireless space, though it
would not be for some time until his non-compete
expires. Guess well just have to wait and see.
WHERE WELL SEE GROWTH
Where will we see the biggest growth in 2017?
Were banking (pun intended) on mobile
payments. As more financial institutions come
on board, services are offered and adopted,
and innovative new options like payments by
facial recognition make waves, payments are
poised to become a bigger part of the mobile
landscape in 2017. The rollout of the Samsung
Pay mobile payment platform began in Canada
in November, with early access to CIBC users;
while a converged experience with MasterCards
Masterpass, which allows for using the service
across web, app, and in-store experiences, rolled
out in the U.S. this summer, and is expected to
extend to Canada in 2017. Apple Pay has already
arrived north of the border, and Google Pay may
very well be here by the time you read this.
But its the accessories and apps that help
build those smarts in the phone, and have great
potential to line retailers pockets. And there are
plenty of interesting growth areas to look for-
ward to in 2017.
As natural language processing improves, and
more devices and services are released (not to
mention existing ones, like the Amazon Echo,
hopefully making their way to Canada), voice-en-
abled devices will gain a foothold on the market.
This lends itself to an entirely new category of
products centred around the smartphone.
On the most aspirational side of this trend
are concepts like virtual reality (VR) and artificial
intelligence (AI), both of which will play a grow-
ing role in the mobile experience going forward,
though were yet to truly understand how effec-
tively. Frank Lenk delves into the future of AI in a
feature elsewhere in this issue.
On the more mainstream side is the concept of
the connected smart home. That includes both
voice control as well as tap control through smart-
MOBILE WORLD
Among a few emerging categories this year are
portable instant printers like the Fuji Instax Mini 8,
which comes in a number of fun colours, and lets you
snap and print photos instantly, and on-the-go.
phone apps. Sunny Gawri, Director of Marketing
for the CWTS and owner of Brampton, ON retail
store Intouch Wireless, notes that even home-
builders are now adding smart device packages
to their plans. And people want to pay.
Steven Gaskin, Senior Product Manager at
Toronto-based wireless accessories distributor
Microcel Corporation, believes that the trend
toward the connected home will mark a major
shift in strategies, requiring that retailers take
some more risks in the category. More and
more consumers are looking to do more with the
devices, he says, such as checking in on their
kids via their Wi-Fi security camera or streaming
music to a smart bulb.
He believes that so much crossover means
retailers can no longer just sell smartphones and
charging/case accessories. They need to have
the ability to sell everything that connects to
their customers device.
Gaskin recognizes this could be a risky prop-
osition: while consumers understand that their
smartphone is the hub for so many of these
tasks and activities, will they accept a wireless
retailer being the one to sell the peripherals
to them? The opportunity is there for a single
retailer to blow others out of the water by shar-
ing the connected home experience with the
public, he believes, suggesting that wireless
retailers create a smart home, in-store experi-
ence to show customers the true potential of
their devices.
But Osborne believes its still up in the air as
to how much investment will be made by retail-
ers in areas like smart home and VR. Unless you
go into a Samsung Experience Store, he says,
this isnt the norm. And, he adds, typical carrier
32 www.wifihifi.ca
stores will continue to focus on the accessories
categories that pay the bills, namely protective
cases, charging, and audio. Getting them to
move towards that experience environment with
VR and the connected home is probably going
to take a bit more time. But, he agrees that the
smart home is the next area the industry needs
to try and get behind and support.
Meanwhile, the crossovers continue in other
spaces as well. While the audio industry is
focused on hi-res, enjoying a resurgence in prod-
ucts like turntables, the mobile industry has been
capitalizing on the hi-res audio trend as well.
Theres no greater evidence of the convergence
of these two businesses than Samsungs recent
acquisition of Harman International (see related
announcement elsewhere in this issue.)
Companies like HiFiMan, Onkyo, Pioneer, and
Pono, are attempting to bring back another mar-
ket that was lost once the Walkman and iPod
were replaced by the smartphone: portable audio
players. And smartphone manufacturers are try-
ing to make their devices meet this need, too, like
HTCs 10, which is Hi-Res audio-certified and LGs
Hi-Fi Plus Portable Hi-Fi DAC attachment for the
G5. Built-in hi-res audio capabilities may help the
smartphone business maintain control over the
portables category, but there will continue to be
a growing audiophile market that prefers stand-
alone players, if the price is right.
Power will remain a stable accessories cate-
gory as we move deeper into Canadas winter,
and months of inclement weather. Although
battery life is getting better on devices, says
Osborne, the need for that instant charge or
emergency situation sourcing becomes higher
up on the priority list for attach.
Cables will shift toward the new Type-C standard,
and more rugged, sturdy, and extra-long, six-foot
designs overall. Wireless chargepads are slowly
making their way onto the scene as well. Features
like Quick Charge that can almost fully charge a
phone in 15 minutes, are a major advantage.
Fashion continues to be a big play for everything
from phone cases to headphones, smartwatches,
and activity trackers; as is the trends toward
sports and fitness accessories to suit the needs
of that community. Both are likely to continue
strong into 2017, the former constantly shifting
to follow the trends, and the latter adding more
robust design options and features to work in sync
with wearables.
And might 2017 finally be the year for the
wearable? It will be interesting to see whats
being shown at CES. The category is still trying
to find its footing, increasingly shifting toward
wristwatch replacements versus standalone
smartwatches. But theres still some confusion
over what consumers really want, and what
theyre willing to pay for it.
When we spoke with Dirk Woessner, Presi-
dent of the Consumer Business Unit at Rogers
Communications in mid-October, he was
particularly excited about the prospects for
gaming-related mobile products, portable pro-
jectors, and mini photo printers.
At a Toronto event in late November, Alek
Krstajic, CEO of WIND Mobile, revealed a new
branding strategy for the carrier: it will now be
called Freedom Mobile, and has begun rollout
of its LTE network across the country.
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MOBILE WORLD
Maybe its another year until the battery and
the brightness moves another step forward, says
Woessner of portable projectors. But I can imag-
ine that becoming a really attractive category.
Jeremy Lenk, Executive Vice President at
ReSource Group Canada, which distributes Fuji
products, says the Instax instant photo printer
is doing phenomenally well, particularly among
millennials. These could be our next hot catego-
ries to watch.
MOVING INTO 2017
The industry is excited to see whats to come,
and gauge upcoming trends at shows like CES
and Mobile World Congress.
Next year could be do or die for Samsung as it
launches its next big device, presumed to be the
Galaxy Note 8. Several sources suggest it could
employ a foldable design, and include features
like a dual-lens camera and built-in speaker in
the stylus. Meanwhile, Apple will debut its next
iteration of the iPhone, and the rumour mill has
already begun to spin, speculating features like
a larger, high-resolution OLED screen, a home
The smartphone is no longer just for communicating
outside of the home it has become a central force
in connected home control, fueling major interest in
smart home devices, apps, and accessories.
34 www.wifihifi.ca
button that transforms into a virtual on-screen
button, and wireless charging. 2017 marks the
10th anniversary of the first iPhone, so whatever
the details, we can expect them to be big.
There has never been a single device in history
that I can remember thats held such a prominent
place in our lives, says Microcels Gaskin of the
smartphone. I look forward to seeing how retail-
ers continue to communicate tangible benefits to
consumers for all of the new tech gadgets quickly
coming off the production line.
Wayne Mayall, Vice President, Multi Media,
Mobile, and SiriusXM for Baie DUrfe, QC-based
wireless and audio distributor Jam Industries-
Erikson Consumer, adds that the industry remains
an exciting and fast-paced business which
requires quick decisions and flexibility.
And as for Chens comment about the smarts
in the phone, it applies to more than just the
BlackBerry. Looking way forward, the smarts in
the phone, so to speak, might just replace the
physical device itself.
Already, products like the Amazon Echo can
control your home devices by voice, no phone
needed. Factory and aftermarket car infotain-
ment systems navigate using their own sophis-
ticated built-in computers. And some wearables
have their own SIM cards or built-in memory for
music that let you leave your phone at home. Its
an ironic trend given that the smartphone has
eaten away at categories like point-and-shoot
digicams, portable MP3 players and navigation
systems, and even home telephones over the
last decade.
Of course, were far from being ready to toss
the smartphone aside and rely solely on acces-
sories and peripherals to constantly keep us
connected to who and what we want. Thats
an almost ludicrous thought. But were moving
toward a place where connectivity is just as ubiq-
uitous as the air around us, and the hardware just
as expendable as the devices it once replaced.
Call it evolution, or simply another step in
the tech cycle. For now, we can use our phones,
and, more importantly, the smarts in them, to do
wonderful, exciting, and innovative things. And
thats something to celebrate as we prepare for
another terrific year in wireless.
Photo courtesy of Somfy
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HANDS-ON REVIEW
HifiMan SuperMini
Digital Audio Player
BY DAVID SUSILO
I HAVE TO ADMIT, as someone from the Walkman
generation, I cant fathom the idea of spending
megabucks for todays equivalent to the device:
a Digital Audio Player.
Of course, the market is riddled with super high
quality players from manufacturers like Onkyo,
Pioneer, and Astell & Kern, and with prices rang-
ing from $1,000 up to $3,000. Yes, there are more
affordable options. But, in my opinion, they tend
to be cheaply built, are buggy, or have sound
quality no better than an iPhone.
Still, in this digital age when everything has
been miniaturized and can be manufactured at
a much lower cost than a Walkman, why should a
decent Digital Audio Player cost much more than
a decent Walkman of yesteryear? Taking inflation
into account, a traditional Walkman would sell
for no more than $400 today.
In August, HifiMan, a designer/manufacturer
of high performance headphones and portable
36 www.wifihifi.ca
audio products, announced its latest portable
player, the SuperMini. The unit supports all loss-
less file formats, including DSD. Lossless formats
deliver the full dynamic range and realism cap-
tured from the original recording. The player
features expandable memory up to 256GB via
microSD card (although the term expandable
is confusing since I cant seem to detect any
internal memory at all). Represented in Canada
by XLO International, it sells for an MSRP of $549,
but with some quick searching, you can easily
fetch one for about $450. I was lucky enough to
have a SuperMini sent to me for review.
The Look
The SuperMini is truly super mini. Its merely 1.77
x 4.09 in size and just 8mm thin. But despite the
diminutive size, the build quality is still very solid.
Made with an all-metal body, the unit has zero
flex. Every button has a distinct tactile feel when
pressed, rather than feeling spongy like you might
find in other players within the same price range.
There are four slots at the bottom of the player.
One for a TransFlash/microSD card up to 256GB
in capacity, a micro USB input for charging, and
two (yes, two) 3.5mm headphone outputs: one
for regular headphones and the other for bal-
anced headphones. You cannot, however, use
both outputs at the same time. Why balanced
headphones? The theory is by using a balanced
connection, sonic anomalies caused by ground-
ing imperfection (such as hum and buzzing) can
be avoided. However, since this is a rechargeable
battery-operated unit, I dont see any reason for
grounding imperfections to ever present them-
selves on this player, which essentially makes the
balanced headphone output redundant.
The HifiMan SuperMini comes packaged with
plenty of extra goodies, including a very good
pair of balanced-earphones (Id compare them in
build and sound quality to earphones in the $150
range), and a screen protector. Plus, the instruc-
tion manual is clear and concise, something thats
hard to find nowadays. However, it does not come
with a wall charger, nor a memory card to get you
started. Thats a big deal considering that the
unit doesnt actually have any internal memory,
which means a memory card is not simply an add
on if you want to be able to store more music, but
rather a necessity, to start listening, period.
Whats more, a blank memory card is also
required in order to run firmware updates. It
would make sense if HifiMan included at least a
1GB memory card in the package amongst all of
the other accessories.
Setup and Use
That said, the firmware upgrade process is
extremely easy. I went to the HifiMan Website,
downloaded the firmware to a blank memory
card, plugged the memory card in, and the rest
was done automatically. That even included the
deletion of the firmware file from the memory
card, rendering the memory card blank once
again, and ready for the next firmware upgrade.
The Graphical User Interface may be deemed
archaic for some, but I prefer it as opposed to
ones with fancy, colourful, and sometimes con-
fusing icons. Everything is clearly labeled on the
crisp 2 (diagonal) OLED display, including infor-
mation like artist and album name, and genre, as
well as icons for settings. Within settings, you can
do things like put a song or playlist on repeat,
shuffle tracks, control backlight to your liking
and/or to save power, reset the device, or format
the inserted memory card.
It is seldom that you find a portable device thats
so straightforward to use that you never have to
refer to the manual, but that was the case with
this device. Needless to say, navigating this Digital
Audio Player was a breeze. All you need to do is
tap up and down, and hit enter or back. Playing a
game of Pac-Man is more complex than that!
The Evaluation
For this review, I used both the noise-cancelling
PSB M4U-2 headphones and the earphones equiv-
PROS
alent, the PSB M4U-4, along with uncompressed Great value proposition
PCM files in the .WAV format so no conversion Near-reference sound quality
was required. All files were extracted using my when paired with the right
computers CD reader and Exact Audio Copy at earphones/headphones
the slowest reading speed for the utmost ripping Comes complete with extremely
accuracy. Then, I transferred the files directly to the good quality earphones
memory card and inserted it into the SuperMini.
There have been so many good music record- CONS
ings of late, like Phil Collins Singles Remastered
No starter memory card included
Limited Edition and the Queen Anthology, plus
great older but classic ones like Miles Davis Kind Firmware update can only be done
Of Blue and the legendary album Jazz At The using memory card
Pawnshop. The SuperMini clearly aspires to accu- Some may balk at the retro GUI style
racy and neutrality rather than romance. There
are no euphonic lies, no tuned colourations. It
is, by any measure, a precision tool rather than a
musical instrument; as it should be. This is, after
all, a playback device, and it should never change
the sonic quality in any way.
The SuperMinis bass extension, control and
slam are nothing short of exciting, whether repro-
ducing that huge booming ending of Circle of Life
in Disneys The Lion King or the tightness of the bass
drums in Stings Windmills Of Your Mind. Dynamic
swings from soft to loud are swift and smooth,
with no unnecessary overhang, no hesitation.
Colouration, if it exists, is just about impossible
to detect and the soundstage is, as youd expect,
very wide and panoramic. This player so accu-
rately reproduces every recording I played back
during my review; anything that veers from the
sonic truth is caused by the source recording or
the headphones.
Delightfully, the player can actually operate
for the full 22 hours using its internal Lithium-ion
rechargeable battery, as advertised. I determined
this by first charging it in full, plugging in my
headphones, and playing a song at my preferred
listening volume level on repeat, then checking
back virtually every hour. Starting from the 21st True, it does not play MQA files (something
hour, I paid close attention to when the player that HifiMan could add via firmware update if so
died. To be exact, it lasted 22 hours and three min- inclined). And it does not have any internal mem-
utes from a full charge. Thats super in my books! ory, requiring that you use separately-purchased
memory cards instead. (The good news is microSD
Bottom Line cards can be purchased on the cheap these days.)
If ever an affordable Digital Audio Player suggested Also despite its clinical tendencies (read: highly
reference quality, even at a time when the cat- accurate audio reproduction, which I prefer
egory is in turmoil thanks to streaming services anyhow) and a Graphical User Interface thats a
and other distractions, its this one. I would never throwback to the 80s (which I also prefer), Id
have believed it without hearing for myself that highly suggest the SuperMini as an affordable and
a device of this size, with its high value proposi- great-sounding option if youre looking to get into
tion, could be this engaging. the world of portable high-res audio listening.
December/January 2017 37
 Several audio brands offer components that
can play music files from an attached, networked
or built-in drive, and also stream music from the
Internet. While these products look like conven-
tional stereo components, under the hood, theyre
single-function computers dedicated to playing
music. All (or almost all) of them run some variant
of the open-source Linux operating system.

HANDS-ON REVIEW Bryston offers two such products: the BDP-2

Digital Music Player ($3,295), introduced in 2012
and upgraded a year ago, and the smaller BDP-

Bryston BDP- (a.k.a. BDP-pi, $1,295), launched this past sum-

mer. Both require a separate DAC. The BDP-2 offers
several advantages over its kid brother, including

Digital Music Player
BY GORDON BROCKHOUSE
Heres a trick question: which is the better platform for
computer audio, Mac or Windows? Depending on how adept
DSD playback capability, support for internal 2.5
drives, and a broader range of output interfaces.
The newer BDP- is part of Brystons range of
one-third-size components. Inside the compact
chassis is a Raspberry Pi single-board computer
and HiFiBerry Digi+ digital output board. Originally
developed in the U.K. as a low-cost platform for
teaching computer science, the Raspberry Pi has
been adopted by hobbyists for home-built com-
puter audio playback systems.
You can piece together a home-built Raspberry
Pi music server for about one-third the cost of
a BDP-, but the process is involved and quite
fiddly (especially loading the operating system).
With the BDP-, you get a fully built and config-
ured system, with pre-installed Manic Moose
music software. Manic Moose can be controlled
from a Web browser running on a PC, Mac, iOS
or Android device.
On the back are an Ethernet network interface,
four USB ports, HDMI output (audio only), TOSLINK
optical digital output, and SPDIF coaxial digital
output. The USB ports can be used for connecting
USB drives or Brystons BOT-1 CD transport, and
for output to a USB DAC. The BDP- supports high-
res audio to 24 bits/192kHz on all outputs except
HDMI, which is limited to 16/48.
While you can theoretically operate the BDP-
using front-panel buttons and menus on the small
2.5 colour LCD, its way easier using the Web
interface. For that, you need a network connection.
The BDP- does not have built-in Wi-Fi, so if your
audio system isnt near your network router or an
Ethernet drop, youll need to put in a Wi-Fi bridge
to get the player connected to your home network.
Photo courtesy of Bryston

you are with computers, how willing you are to troubleshoot

software problems, and how highly you prioritize sound
quality, the correct answer may be neither.
APPLE VERSUS PI
The BDP- piqued my interest because its about
the same price as the Mac Mini that I use for
computer audio playback. I wanted to assess the
claims of Bryston (and makers of similar prod-

38 www.wifihifi.ca

ucts) that its digital players deliver better sound
quality than conventional computers.
Heres their rationale: when playing music, PCs
and Macs often have several unrelated processes
running. This can stress computer resources,
which may compromise bit-perfect playback,
especially with high-resolution files. Most comput-
ers have spinning hard drives and fans that inject
unwanted noise into the listening environment.
Most desktop computers (including the Mac Mini)
have internal switching power supplies, which
create electrical noise, as do the computers video,
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth circuitry. The computers
audio sub-system may perform sample-rate con-
versions that compromise bit-perfect playback,
particularly with high-resolution files.
By comparison, the BDP- has an external
power supply; and it has no video circuitry, Wi-Fi,
Bluetooth, fans, or spinning hard drive. It doesnt
have to scan for viruses or monitor peripherals. Its
hardware and software is dedicated to one task:
bit-perfect audio playback. So its reasonable to
expect a component like the BDP- to deliver
better sound than a five-year-old Mac Mini.
I should note that Ive performed some upgrades
to my Mac, all aimed at optimizing sound quality.
The most important was installing Audirvana Plus
music software. Audirvana Plus bypasses iTunes,
the Macs pre-installed music software, and the
Macs Core audio system. It prioritizes audio play-
back over other tasks. By default, iTunes plays all
music, including high-res files, at CD resolution.
Theres a pain-in-the-ass way to change playback
to a different resolution, but iTunes wont automat-
ically make changes to suit the file youre playing.
By contrast, Audirvana Plus can be set to play all
music at the native sampling rate, or to upsample
to a setting suitable for your DAC. It will prioritize
Brystons BDP- digital music player has four
USB ports for connecting external drives and output
to a USB DAC. There are also TOSLINK optical and
SPDIF coaxial digital outputs, plus HDMI. The USB,
TOSLINK and SPDIF outputs support resolution to
24 bits/192kHz; HDMI is limited to 16/48.
audio over other tasks during music playback, so
that other processes dont disrupt playback. There
are other programs that provide similar functions,
such as JRiver Media Center, which is available for
both Mac and Windows. If youre playing music
(especially high-res music) from a computer, bet-
ter player software than iTunes or Windows Media
Center is a must.
I also increased the Mac Minis RAM from 4GB
to 16GB. This lets me set Audirvana Plus to load
an entire high-res album into system memory
before playback, limiting hard drive access. Ive
also replaced the original 750GB spinning hard
drive with a 240GB solid-state drive (SSD) to
improve system performance. The operating sys-
tem and music app run from the SSD; the music
files are on an external Thunderbolt drive.
A current Mac Mini with similar capabilities
(8GB RAM, 256GB SSD) retails for C$1,207, includ-
ing mouse and keyboard. Add a monitor and
music software, and youre about the same price
as the BDP-. In both cases, you have to add stor-
age for your music library.
Even if youre playing music files from a device
like the BDP-, youll likely want a regular com- between the Mac Mini and BDP-. I spent hours
puter for tasks like ripping CDs and tagging your
music files. You can transfer music files from
your computer to a drive connected to a BDP-
over your home network from macOS Finder or
Windows File Explorer, and also edit their meta-
data from your computer.
TIME TO LISTEN
Bryston Vice President James Tanner delivered the
BDP- to my Toronto home in early October, and
connected it to my system and home network.
The network connection involved connecting an
Ethernet cable from the Apple AirPort Express
to the BDP-s network port, then pointing my
iPads Web browser at the BDP-. Easy as pie.
That brings up the Manic Moose screen. There
are two views: the dashboard for checking and
adjusting player settings, and the Media Player
for selecting music. In anticipation of this proj-
ect, I had already loaded a few hundred albums
onto a Western Digital Passport drive, which I
connected to one of the BDP-s USB ports.
On Tanners recommendation, I used a coaxial
SPDIF connection between the BDP- and the
internal DAC on my Simaudio Moon Neo 340i
integrated amplifier. I started with a generic 75
video cable. But to make the playing field as level
as possible, I substituted a 1m Wireworld Silver
Starlight 7 Digital Audio Cable (US$250). This is
a reasonably close match to the 1m Wireworld
HANDS-ON REVIEW
PROS
Excellent sound; fully comparable
with a carefully tuned Mac and
specialized software
No fuss, no muss: just connect the BDP-
to your home network and enter the
players address into your Web browser
Stability: a dedicated single-source
player makes glitches less likely,
and provides a single point of contact
if problems occur
CONS
Compared to Apple and Mac applica-
tions, control software has a Spartan
feel to it (but it gets the job done)
No Wi-Fi; if your router isnt near your
audio rack, youll need a Wi-Fi bridge
Platinum Starlight 7 USB cable between the Mac
Mini and the 340is internal DAC.
This allowed easy back-and-forth switching
cuing up the same music on both platforms and
then straining to hear differences. I listened to
jazz, classical and rock, in CD-resolution and high-
res, through KEF LS50 monitors (with a Sunfire
Atmos XT subwoofer filling in the bottom octaves)
and HiFiMAN Edition X V2 headphones. With
some tracks, I switched back and forth quickly for
instantaneous comparisons of the same passage.
On others, Id listen at length on one input and
then the other, so I could bask in the experience.
Initially, I set Audirvana Plus for bit-perfect
playback at the native sampling rate. The back-
ground on the BDP- seemed a tiny bit blacker,
with the emphasis on tiny. Next, I tweaked
Audirvanas filter settings to upsample 44.1 and
88.2kHz files to 176.4kHz, and 48 and 96kHz files
to 192kHz. This added a slight bit of refinement
to the Mac Mini, making the BDP- sound a tiny
bit grainy by comparison, again with the empha-
sis strongly on tiny. Were talking very small
stuff here, definitely not worth sweating.
Lastly, I used a new option in Audirvana Plus
to upsample PCM audio to DSD 128. This tilted
the contest in the Mac Minis favour. The sound
became smoother, more analog-like, less elec-
tronic. The portrayal of space surrounding the
musicians became more convincing, and the
image acquired greater specificity and depth.
The difference wasnt night-and-day; but it was
noticeable and worthwhile except for one thing.
December/January 2017 39
HANDS-ON REVIEW
By default, Manic Moose, the BDP-s media player software, provides a folder-and-file view of your music. Attached and
network drives appear in the right-hand pane. You can click on a folder to browse the folders contents, or click the
adjacent + sign to add its contents to the player queue. During playback, you see tracks in the queue in the Now Playing
pane on the left. Album art and track information appears in the middle pane.
Upsampling to DSD 128 stresses the Mac Minis
processor to the point that the internal fan has to
go full-speed to prevent overheating. I find this
noise intolerable, and do not use this feature.
Other than upsampling to DSD, I have never,
ever heard fan noise from my Mac Mini when
playing music. As I verified with a macOS utility
called Activity Monitor, during music playback,
Audirvana Plus is the primary user of system
resources while its loading a track into memory
(typically 30 seconds or so); but CPU load is only
about 25%. After that, it drops to less than 1%.
Using a utility in Manic Moose, I confirmed that
CPU load on the BDP- during playback ranged
from 20 to 30%.
My conclusion: other than upsampling to DSD
on the Mac, there is no significant sonic difference
between these devices. Thats not to say categor-
ically that a dedicated player like a Bryston BDP
cant outperform an off-the-shelf Mac or PC. For
example, the BDP-2 has a linear power supply,
whereas the BDP- and Mac Mini both employ
a switching-mode power supply. Proponents
maintain that linear power supplies are prefer-
able because they produce less electrical noise.
Cited benefits include improved dynamics,
transients and articulation. Some hobbyists will
retrofit an aftermarket linear power supply into
their computer in pursuit of these benefits.
40 www.wifihifi.ca
But in the case of the BDP- and Mac Mini, we
have two audio sources that are virtually identi-
cal in terms of audio quality.
IT JUST WORKS
But there are important differences between the
two platforms, one of them being stability. In the
Windows and Mac worlds, your computer can be
playing tunes just fine until you install an update
to the operating system. Then weirdness strikes.
A couple of years ago, after installing an updated
version of OS X and iTunes, the music program I
was using at the time (BitPerfect, which runs on top
of iTunes) stopped playing high-resolution files.
Basically, Apple broke something that was work-
ing just fine. I had two choices: wait until BitPerfect
issued its own update (and went through Apples
approval process), or try to revert to the old ver-
sion of OS X and iTunes (which technically isnt
allowed, and isnt at all easy).
Ive had minor issues with Audirvana Plus
following Apple software updates, in which use-
ful options that allow the player to bypass the
Macs audio subsystem were no longer available.
(Some were restored in subsequent releases of
macOS.) These things dont happen often, but
its maddening when they do.
Here is where a dedicated component like the
BDP- has a real advantage. Its basically turnkey:
you dont have to purchase and install special
software and other add-ons. It just works, and
can be expected to keep on working. Youre not
constantly being nagged to install OS updates
that could disrupt music playback. With the
hardware and software coming from a single
source, if something goes wrong, theres only
one responsible party.
This can be a huge benefit not only for comput-
er-phobic audiophiles, but for audio retailers as
well. Dealers cant be expected to help with com-
puters and third-party applications that they dont
sell. But they are in a position to support purchas-
ers of single-purpose products like the BDP-.
POLISHED APPLES
However, its not a shutout. While the BDP-s
Manic Moose interface works fine, its less polished
than applications like Audirvana and JRiver or
iTunes and Windows Media Player for that matter.
By default, Manic Mooses Media Player pro-
vides a folder-and-file view of your music, much
like Windows File Explorer and macOS Finder.
This makes it important that you choose file and
folder names that are descriptive enough for
you to remember their contents. Attached and
network drives appear in the right-hand pane of
the Manic Moose player. If you add a drive, youll
have to re-index the music library. You can click
on a folder to drill down and browse the folders
contents, or click the adjacent + sign to add its
contents to the player queue.
During playback, you see tracks in the queue in
the Now Playing pane on the left. You can change
their order just by dragging and dropping them.
Album art and track information appears in the
middle pane. On top are transport controls for
pausing, skipping tracks, etc. Alternatively, you
can choose the artist view, which shows artists
in your collection in a narrow left-hand pane,
and albums by the highlighted artist in the larger
right-hand pane. Bryston is developing an album
view for Manic Moose, which presumably will be
pushed out as a firmware update.
In addition to local content, the BDP- can
play Internet radio. You can also access the TIDAL
streaming service by clicking the Applications
button on the Dashboard screen. After logging
in, you can access your TIDAL favourites, playlists
etc., just as you can from the TIDAL app.
You can also control playback with third-party
software players. For iOS, a cheap-and-cheerful
choice is MPaD for the iPad ($4 from the App
store) and MPoD for the iPhone (free). These
provide a familiar artist-and-album view of
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HANDS-ON REVIEW
your music. Theres also an Android version:
MPoDroid. I found MPaD generally satisfactory,
except for its inconsistent display of album art.
Its more colourful than Manic Moose, but still
rather utilitarian.
At the other extreme is Roon music library
software. This is a very slick piece of software
that scans your local music libraries and TIDAL
favourites, then combines everything into an
extremely rich interface that includes not just
your music, but resources like reviews and artist
bios. And it generates recommendations based
on your preferred music.
The BDP- can act as a Roon endpoint, mean-
ing that Roon will play music through it, and
integrate music on drives connected to the BDP-
, either directly or networked. For this to work,
the Roon core software has to be running on a
PC or Mac connected to the same network as the
endpoint. You control everything with the Roon
app, which is available for Windows, macOS, iOS
and Android (but check hardware requirements).
Roon has been garnering great reviews, and
quite a few awards, but I find it overwhelming.
Its also expensive. Roon is offered on a sub-
scription basis: US$119 annually or US$499 for
a lifetime subscription. Thats not too rich for
everyones blood, but its too rich for mine.
It may be a matter of familiarity, but to me,
applications like Audirvana Plus hit the sweet spot:
polished, functionally rich and intuitive, without
being overwhelming. You can stream TIDAL from
within Audirvana, so that the service benefits from
the programs excellent sonics. For the adventur-
ous, there are lots of intriguing options, like the
ability to tweak digital filters to suit your DAC. A
license costs US$74. For US$10, you can add A+
Remote, an app that lets you control Audirvana
from your listening seat, using an iPad or iPhone.
If Audirvana isnt your cup of tea, there are
other choices, like the hugely popular JRiver
Media Center (for both Mac and Windows) and
BitPerfect ($10), a nifty Mac-only player that
works with iTunes.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Lets rephrase the question I posed at the begin-
ning of this piece. For file-based music playback,
is it better to use a general-purpose personal
computer, or a dedicated digital player like
the Bryston BDP-? As should be clear by now,
theres no straightforward answer.
From a control standpoint, I prefer PC and Mac
players like Audirvana and JRiver to Manic Moose
and MPaD. I think anyone coming to serious
computer audio from iTunes and Windows Media
Player will feel the same. But Manic Moose and
MPaD definitely get the job done.
On the other hand, I value the stability that a
dedicated digital player can provide. Ive suffered
through enough software glitches to appreciate
the value of a product dedicated to a single func-
tion. In the computer world, most of us have had
the experience of software, hardware and periph-
eral vendors pointing fingers at each other when
something stops working or just shrugging their
shoulders. That wont happen with the BDP-;
Bryston is responsible for everything.
On sonic grounds, its basically a coin toss. The
audio performance of the BDP- is excellent, but
not appreciably better (or worse) than a properly
configured Mac or PC. Note the qualifier prop-
erly configured: that involves some upfront
work, as well as periodic troubleshooting. Thats
where the real difference lies.
ARTIFICIAL
INTELLIGENCE:
The Promise and the Reality
BY FRANK LENK

One of the most recent depictions of artificial intelligence in

mainstream entertainment is in the popular new HBO sci-fi
western Westworld: in the series, synthetic androids known
Hollywood has given us many memorable visions of artificial as hosts are able to understand spoken language and ad-lib
appropriate responses, all while running on a computer that
intelligence (AI). HAL 9000 saying Im sorry Dave. Commander can fit into a human-sized skull.
Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation wearing a Sherlock
Holmes deerstalker hat. R2-D2 being comically pedantic.
Runaway hosts on Westworld getting too smart for comfort.
But lately, the term AI has taken on a very different meaning.
Work on actual machine intelligence hit a When we separate the hype from the fact, it
brick wall decades ago. We still have no idea turns out that there are two distinct AI stories to be
what human intelligence is all about, so creating
machines that can think like humans seemed
told. One is a fascinating true story about advances
in data processing. The other is an aspirational fan-
THE STORY
about as likely as inventing faster-than-light tasy about the creation of a thinking machine. True artificial intelligence, now known
space travel. as strong AI, doesnt exist, and we dont
Nevertheless, many new products and ser- WEAK OR STRONG really know how to create it.
vices are being sprinkled with AI pixie dust, Artificial Intelligence is a term originally coined What is now commonly called AI is really
to make them sound more futuristic. AI is the by Dr. John McCarthy at Dartmouth College in machine learning, a powerful data-
spice to make software delicious, said Jin Hyung 1956, referring to computers that could use lan- analysis technique that is a key enabler
Kim, Chairman of the Korea National Open Data guage, form concepts, and generally solve the of capabilities such as voice recognition,
Strategy Council, in a recent Microsoft-hosted kind of problems that only humans have been language translation, medical diagnosis
Photo courtesy of HBO Canada

panel on the subject.
The irony is that todays so-called AI sys-
tems dont need misleading nomenclature to
make them more impressive. Even if theyre not
exactly intelligent, they do offer powerful, and
eminently profitable, solutions to some very
practical problems.
good at. The Holy Grail would be a machine that and self-driving cars.
could pass the test postulated by the great math-
Machine learning can also enable
ematician Alan Turing, indistinguishable from a
full-scale data mining, valuable to
human under cross-examination.
enterprises and governments, but with
McCarthy eventually admitted that, AI is harder
significant privacy concerns.
than we thought. And indeed, today we still
have nothing remotely resembling true AI, even

44 www.wifihifi.ca
Innovation begins with a single word.

Jan. 5-8, 2017 Las Vegas, NV

Register now at CES.tech
#CES2017
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
in the most advanced laboratory. Early optimism
started evaporating back in the 1980s, and many
AI researchers moved on to simpler tasks that
showed some hope of producing practical results.
What was initially meant by AI was unceremo-
niously renamed strong AI. This sleight of hand
has allowed companies like Microsoft and Google
to operate huge projects in the field of AI, with-
out tackling the intractable problems of actual
machine intelligence. Strong AI doesnt exist,
sums up tech journal LifeHacker.com. Artificial
intelligence just means anything thats smart.
Douglas Hofstadter, Professor of Cognitive
Science at Indiana University and author of the
Pulitzer-Prize-winning book Gdel, Escher, Bach,
is one of relatively few researchers still com-
mitted to understanding the nature of human
intelligence, and how it might be replicated by
digital electronics. In a 2013 interview with The
Atlantic, he referred to recent AI efforts as trick-
ery, and added: I dont want to be involved in
passing off some fancy programs behaviour for
intelligence when I know that it has nothing to
do with intelligence.
On the other hand, dilettante inventor, entre-
preneur and author Ray Kurzweil continues to
strongly propound the opposing view: that true
artificial intelligence is inevitable, and coming
fast. While Hofstadter and others extrapolate
conservatively, Kurzweil draws a curve shooting
skyward towards The Singularity (in about 2045),
when humans and computers will merge.
The divide is very wide. Apart from Hofstadter,
Kurzweils critics include linguist and MIT Professor
Emeritus Noam Chomsky, and even Microsoft
co-founder Paul Allen. They see Kurzweils ideas
as superficial, and not grounded in hard data from
AI research.
Still, at a Singularity Summit a few years ago,
Hofstadter willingly admitted the possibility that
Kurzweils predictions might prove valid. He
asked only that they be debated and tested on
a scientific rather than hand-waving basis.
ROTE LEARNING
While the direct development of strong AI makes
little obvious progress, a new type of computing
technology has made rapid advances. Most of
what is currently being called AI can be more
properly labeled as machine learning. Even
that term is too grandiose but by any name,
machine learning is a bona fide breakthrough in
software design.
The principle is beautifully elegant. Set up a
software system that answers a particular type
46 www.wifihifi.ca
IBMs Watson became synonymous with artificial intelligence after it clobbered two human Jeopardy! champions by
interpreting the quiz games cryptic answer clues to complex questions using techniques like pre-coded logic rules
and full machine learning.
of question with near-random results. Feed in
millions of example questions, and compare
the systems answers with the correct solutions.
Then use these scores to refine the systems
guessing process.
IBMs Candide translation system pioneered
this approach in the early 1990s. It was fed mil-
lions of equivalent English and French sentences
drawn, oddly enough, from bilingual Hansard
proceedings of the Canadian Parliament.
Eventually, the system became adept at translat-
ing between the two languages.
Today, Google Translate works similarly. These
systems dont understand language. Instead,
they use ever-more-reliable statistical math to
choose equivalent words and phrases. (Theres
also a great deal of work done around the edges,
to deal with special cases, and make the system
more efficient.)
Neural networks are a particularly interest-
ing way of building machine learning systems.
First, you create a tiny software processing
unit that uses a simple rule to combine multi-
ple inputs into a single output. Then, combine
many of these units into a system that can take a
more-complex input and create an overall result.
As with other machine learning systems, sample
data is fed in and the results are used by the net-
work to adjust itself.
Neural networks allow certain types of process-
ing to be represented elegantly. Theyre effective
in analyzing fuzzy data, such as rough images,
market statistics, or even engine noise. Google has
a great example at quickdraw.withgoogle.com
a neural network that learns to recognize whats
depicted by users doodles.
At present, neural nets need a lot of computer
power, so youre most likely to encounter them at
the other end of a cloud connection, like Googles
Quick Draw. The myriad of processing units of a
neural network dont map well onto todays hard-
ware, with its limited number of processor cores.
Nonetheless, neural nets have been a huge
advance in tackling certain types of problems.
This, and the fact that they seem to resemble the
structure of the human brain, leads enthusiasts
like Kurzweil to conclude that they presage a
quick development of strong AI. There are prob-
lems with this view.
For a start, the human brain has close to 100
billion neurons operating simultaneously. Each
neuron may connect to 10,000 others, for a total
of several hundred trillion synapses. Neural
networks approaching that scale have been
simulated in the lab, but only by running them
hundreds or thousands of times slower than real
time. Theyve shown some interesting brain-like
behaviours, but thats about it.
Still, learning systems in general are an exciting
development. But before considering their impact,
we have to deal with the odd fact that machine
learning is not only being misleadingly called AI,
its become virtually synonymous with AI.
It is in fact quite probable that machine learn-
ing does take us closer to the development of
genuine artificial intelligence. But machine learn-
ing in itself is not remotely close to what most
people would think of as AI. While speaking at a
Microsoft-sponsored AI panel discussion in Seoul,
South Korea, Seung-won Hwang, Professor at
Yonsei University, referred to machine learning
as just another paradigm of programming.
At the same AI forum, Jin Hyung Kim theorizes
that strong AI should be possible, but that
were nowhere close to it today. Its a long, long,
long, long way to go, he predicts.

THE APPLICATIONS
Over-ambitious use of the term AI is partic-
ularly unfortunate in that it tends to obscure
the true value of machine learning technology.
These new systems are so useful exactly because
theyre good at something humans do badly:
chewing through huge masses of data and
extracting useful patterns or correlations.
This is sometimes referred to as data mining,
although even that term doesnt quite suggest
the full range of possibilities.
On a large scale, a security agency might col-
lect massive amounts of user data and mine
it for certain patterns of phone calls, or certain
combinations of social media connections. But
learning systems can also offer more personal
service, when incorporated into search engines,
or personal assistants like Siri and Cortana.
Perhaps the most mundane example of
machine learning is to be found in e-mail soft-
ware, such as Mozillas Thunderbird. Bayesian
filtering uses statistical analysis to detect spam
messages with amazing accuracy, while leaving
legitimate mail alone.
In Thunderbird, you click a little flame icon to
mark or un-mark messages as spam. The filter
learns quickly from your selections. Theres no
need to blacklist or whitelist specific mail sources,
or to create narrow rules (such as looking for the
word enlargement). All those nuances are taken
into account by the stats. Many other e-mail sys-
tems use the same approach.
Nobody would claim that the tiny bit of
Bayesian software is intelligent. But it is incredi-
bly efficient at its designated task.
Advanced artificial intelligence is often
ascribed to computer games. In reality, com-
puter-controlled opponents in games tend to
operate based on relatively simple rules, hand-
scripted by the games developers. If the game
is too easy to beat, these scripts may cheat by
accessing information withheld from the human
player. Often, the games scoring may simply be
slanted in favour of the computer.
Computer systems that play games have also
not been very smart. In 1997, Deep Blue (barely)
beat chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov purely
by extrapolating every possible move and count-
er-move, evaluating up to 330 million positions
per second. Humans dont play that way. They
abstract the problem, looking for patterns.
However, there have been advances. Recently,
Google DeepMinds AlphaGo beat human Go
master Lee Se-dol, four games to one. Go is too
complex for the brute force approach, so AlphaGo
Photo: Martha Hoelzer
Photo courtesy of IBM
IBM is now selling a family of Watson products for all sorts
of applications. Here are a few examples:
Above-Top: VA oncologists Michael Kelley (left) and Neil
Spector review a Watson for Genomics DNA analysis report,
to help doctors expand and scale access to precision
medicine for American veterans with cancer.
Above-Bottom: IBM Research Manager Abe Ittycheriah
demonstrates how IBM Watson parses a sentence in English
and tokenizes it to learn Korean
Below-Top: The Macys On Call mobile web tool powered by
IBM Watson and Satisfi allows customers to input questions
in natural language about the stores product assortment,
services and facilities and receive customized responses.
Below-Bottom: Local Motors CEO and co-founder John
B. Rogers, Jr. with Olli, the first self-driving vehicle to
integrate the advanced cognitive computing capabilities
of IBM Watson.
Photo courtesy of IBM
Photo: Rich Riggins/IBM
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
combined conventional software logic with
machine learning. Presumably, it digested many
typical game configurations, until it was able to
produce desirable moves.
It would be a stretch to suggest that AlphaGo
understands Go. But the software does demon-
strate the power of machine learning in attacking
problems that involve massive numbers of poten-
tial data points.
Another new game-playing system, IBMs
Watson, is even more interesting. Watson won
a Jeopardy! match against two human champi-
ons by correctly interpreting the games cryptic
English-language clues.
Watson used multiple techniques, ranging
from pre-coded logic rules to full machine learn-
ing. It came up with multiple possible meanings
for each question, then chose one according to
a probability score. Retrieving the answers was
relatively easy. Watson had hundreds of millions
of pages of reference material stored in memory,
reputedly including the full text of Wikipedia. It
also ran on powerful hardware: a cluster of 90
IBM servers, with a total of 720 processor cores.
To put this in perspective, compare it to the
hosts of HBOs Westworld, which not only under-
stand spoken language, but ad lib appropriate
responses, while running on a computer that can
fit into a human-sized skull. Obviously, we are
multiple generations of hardware and software
breakthroughs away from that kind of AI.
Nonetheless, Watson is an impressive achieve-
ment, and a very useful advance in natural-language
processing. IBM is now selling a whole family of
Watson products for all sorts of applications.
Consumers may already be encountering Watson
in the cloud, or in automated phone systems.
There are many practical applications for learn-
ing systems, from finance, to weather forecasting,
to surveillance and security. Applications in medi-
cine are particularly advanced, helping both with
day-to-day treatment and longer-term goals.
Early attempts to use computers in medicine
were focused on expert systems: essentially
electronic textbooks that tried to offer an intui-
tive means of retrieving vital knowledge. Various
other systems have been in wide use since the
1980s, able to compile lists of symptoms and
match them against possible diagnoses.
Today, machine learning (including IBMs
Watson systems) is finding a natural fit. Feed in
our huge existing library of symptoms and diagno-
ses, and the system can start to recognize specific
conditions. It may even be better able to deal with
vague or contradictory symptoms than a human.
December/January 2017 47
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

the cloud. Increasing amounts of data make the

system more reliable, but even so, autonomous
cars have trouble dealing with surprises, or edge
cases. Computers still find it difficult to extrap-
olate from experience, to deal with radically
unexpected challenges.
Even so, self-driving cars are probably only a few
years off. Theyll rely heavily on machine learning,
but theyll succeed mainly because clever humans
have anticipated every possible eventuality.

Often considered AI, voice assistants like Microsofts THE LIMITATIONS

Cortana are more accurately a form of data mining
or learning system that puts together massive
amounts of data and extracts useful patterns or
correlations to offer a personal service.
Of course, its unlikely that anyone today would
want to be diagnosed solely by a computer. But
machine learning systems can give doctors a bet-
ter basis for their final conclusion.
There are lots of other possibilities. For exam-
ple, learning systems can take data on weak
drug effects and suggest chemical attributes
that might strengthen those effects. This could
help lead researchers to entire new families of
useful compounds.
A very current example of machine intelli-
gence is the quest to create a self-driving car.
These projects use every trick in the book, and
still have a rough road ahead.
A big enabler is radar sensing, which allows
a car to see its complete surroundings in real
time. This image data needs to be combined with
GPS data, standard map data and detailed data
compiled on specific streets. So far, self-driving
cars generally operate only on streets that have
been mapped to high accuracy, and extensively
test-driven by humans.
Machine learning techniques are used to ana-
lyze all this data, both ahead of time and while
driving, with the heaviest work being done in
The dark side of machine learning is the ability to
take masses of statistics about our daily lives and
extract more information than wed care to have
known. Theres no easy way to prevent this kind
of analysis, so it will become increasingly import-
ant to place tight controls on the collection of
even the most innocuous personal details.
Police forces are already using data-driven
policing to predict crime patterns. One clearly
beneficial application is in analysis of traffic acci-
dent data, to remedy dangers that might not
have been obvious to human examination. For
retailers, data can help reduce the incidence of
shoplifting, by identifying high-risk store areas.
On the other hand, its a very short step from
such benign uses to sweeping criminal profiling
that could stigmatize wide swaths of the popu-
lation. Nobody wants to find himself arrested (or
assassinated) for a crime he hasnt (yet) commit-
ted, as in the film Minority Report, or the TV series
Person of Interest.
In Sci-Fi, its often the systems themselves that
become dangerous. But in reality, its humans
who will decide how theyre used.
The technology does have its own limitations.
For example, machine learning systems are obvi-
ously single-purpose. A system like AlphaGo does
one thing well. Medical diagnosis would require a
separate system trained for that purpose.
Is the human brain just a collection of such sys-
tems? We cant be sure. What we do know is that
Ford is one of many vehicle manufacturers working
on autonomous cars that use machine-learning
techniques and map data to enable self-driving.
Seen here is the Fusion Hybrid autonomous vehicle,
which has been tested in Michigan, Arizona,
and California. Ford aims to launch a fully
autonomous vehicle for ride-sharing by 2021.
Neural networks are an interesting way of building machine
learning systems: Google Quick Draw, which analyzes a
users doodle drawings and attempts to correctly identify
what they are, is a simple but great example.
the most powerful learning systems today, like
Watson or AlphaGo the ones that come closest
to looking like genuine artificial intelligence, if
only within narrow bounds tend to be hybrids,
in which machine learning is supported by the
best procedural logic humans can devise.
Turing said that the question of whether
machines can think is too meaningless to deserve
discussion. Machine learning seems to reinforce
this view, solving difficult problems without obvi-
ously mimicking human thought processes.
Of course, in a broader sense, all computing
does mimic human intelligence in some way.
But we shouldnt let our terminology jump the
gun. Nobody called the first light-emitting diode
a high-definition display. And nobody referred
to the first TVs in the 1940s as virtual reality.
Whats more, nobody in the 1950s would have
predicted that HD displays and VR systems were
mere decades away while AI remained a dis-
tant goal. Today, the future of digital technology
is only becoming more difficult to predict. In
some areas, such as heat dissipation inside sili-
con chips, were coming up against hard limits.
And yet progress continues in other ways.
Like other technologies, AI will probably con-
tinue to evolve inexorably along multiple paths,
each of which will spawn useful applications
along the way. Ultimately, our biggest challenge
isnt to make computers smarter, but to become
smart enough ourselves to use them wisely.

48 www.wifihifi.ca
 DONT BREAK UP
WITH YOUR CAR
UPGRADE IT

BEFORE AFTER

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TECHNOLOGY PACKAGE ENTERTAINMENT

Upgrade your vehicle Put your mind at ease while Enjoy more entertainment
with the latest in-vehicle on the road when you upgrade options when you upgrade the
smartphone technology your vehicle with safety and music sources in your vehicle with
by adding Android Auto, convenience features including HD Radio, Pandora, SiriusXM2,
Apple CarPlay, and Bluetooth. back up camera, navigation, and Spotify.
rear parking assist1, and vehicle
diagnostic information1.

pioneerelectornics.com/car

1. Retained features may vary by vehicle. Check compatibility at maestro.idatalink.com. Maestro RR module and additional accessory cables required.
2. SiriusXM Connect Vehicle Tuner and subscription to SiriusXM Radio required (sold separately).

PIONEER, and the Pioneer logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Pioneer Corporation. Apple, CarPlay, and the CarPlay logo are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
Bluetooth and associated logos are trademarks of Bluetooth SIG, Inc. HD Radio and the HD Radio logo are proprietary trademarks of iBiquity Digital Corp. SiriusXM and all related marks and logos are trademarks
of SiriusXM Radio Inc. Android and Android Auto are trademarks of Google Inc. iDatalink and Maestro are trademarks of Automotive Data Solutions Inc. Pandora, the Pandora logo and the Pandora trade dress
are trademarks of Pandora Media, Inc. used with permission. Spotify, the Spotify logo, and Spotify trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of Spotify AB used with permission.
2017 Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc.
TALKING SHOP
Whats happening in Canadian consumer tech retail.
CANADIANS SPEND MORE ON INTERNET THAN TV
The latest Communications Monitoring Report
from the Canadian Radio-television and Tele-
communications Commission (CRTC) finds that
Canadians are, for the first time, spending more
on Internet subscriptions than they are television.
Canadians watched an average of 27.2 hours
of television through cable, over-the-air, satellite,
or streaming on the Internet in 2015, down 0.7%
from 2014. Revenue on the TV side was down
3.4% to $7.1 billion.
That said, Canadians are still watching TV,
except its on the Internet through streaming ser-
vices, as well as video entertainment content on
sites like YouTube. For example, the report found
that 57% of English-speaking and 49% of French-
speaking Canadians watch TV online; and more
than half (55%) stream music videos on YouTube.
While older Canadians still listen to traditional
radio, that form of media is on the decline for
Canadians aged 12-24. And Canadians 65 and
older watch more than twice as much traditional
TV than younger Canadians.
The numbers further indicate that while tra-
ditional television viewing is on the decline,
our thirst for television content is not. Cable TV
subscribers sit at 60% of Canadians in 2015, down
from 69% in 2011. Yet IPTV services accounted for
19.2% of total subscribers in 2015 compared to just
5.8% in 2011. Thats 34.9% growth. Whats more,
for the first time, IPTV providers reported surpass-
ing more than two-million subscribers in 2015.
So, does this mean Canadians are cutting the
cord, and entertainment is rapidly moving online?
In a way, yes, it would seem so. While television,
music, and other entertainment content is key
to the customer experience, they are no longer
getting them from the traditional channels, like
AM/FM radio and cable TV.
This years report clearly shows that view-
ing and listening habits are continuing to shift,
says Jean-Pierre Blais, CRTC Chairman and CEO.
Younger Canadians are the ones who consume
the least amount of audio-visual content using
traditional ways. Online platforms are increas-
ingly attractive and accessible to Canadians. The
broadcasting industry must ensure that it meets
the changing needs of Canadians, who increas-
ingly want to watch and listen to content on the
platform of their choice.
50 www.wifihifi.ca
That has proven to be a formidable challenge
for Canadian providers. The Rogers/Shaw joint
venture shomi is arguably the best example of
this: the streaming service will shut down at the
end of November, having failed to make signifi-
cant waves with consumers in the streaming TV
space. However, Netflix remains strong, while
Bells CraveTV streaming service and Fibe IPTV
platform also appear to be doing well. Several
networks have launched digital options for cus-
tomers, too, allowing them to access content
like sporting events and shows remotely, from
mobile devices. But providers still have a long
way to go in addressing the changing needs of
consumers while understanding how to remain
profitable. The solution of charging more for
data consumption would not go over well with
Canadians, particularly those who feel we already
pay some of the highest mobile data rates in the
world. Meanwhile, pick-and-pay cable channel
package options might not be enough to sway
customers, particularly young ones, back to tra-
ditional TV channels.
Mobile is key in this space: the CRTC report
also found that more than two-thirds of wire-
less subscribers in Canada have a data plan, the
majority of whom pay for at least 1GB per month.
Data usage increased by 44% for wireless and
40% for residential Internet services between
2014 and 2015.
Not surprisingly, Canadian millennials aged 30
and younger spend more than three times the
amount of money on mobile wireless services
than other Canadians. Conversely, subscriptions
to landline telephone services are on the decline,
and the gap between mobile-only households
and landline-only continues to increase, at 24%
versus 14%.
Broadband Internet subscriptions have
increased 3.3% from 2014, and more and more
Canadians are opting for plans that offer speeds
of 50Mbps and higher, likely to accommodate
the need to connect more devices, and do more
data-intensive things, like watch television and
videos, stream music, and gaming. On average
in 2015, Canadians downloaded 93GB of data
monthly, and more than two-thirds of all res-
idential high-speed Internet subscribers have
plans greater than 100GB per month. This has
made, for the first time, Internet access revenues
higher than broadcasting distribution revenues,
placing it second only to wireless.
In wireless, data usage increased 44% from
2014 to 2015, with 74% of mobile subscribers
having a data plan, compared to just 67% in
2014. Canadians under the age of 30 spend an
average of $114.42 per month on their mobile
wireless service compared to just $33.50 for
those aged 65 and older.
Meanwhile, there has been a nearly 800,000
reduction in landline telephone services in 2015,
compared to approximately one-million new
wireless service subscribers. For the first time,
more than half of all retail revenues in 2015 were
from wireless services.
Adds Blais: This explosive growth in data con-
sumption clearly demonstrates that Canadians
are relying more and more on streaming and
real-time communication applications to con-
sume content and communicate with the world.
This is, by no means, a revelation for the indus-
try. But the numbers may point to the shift being
far more significant than many may have thought
prior to the data release. Christine Persaud
Photo courtesy of Netflix
 Give
MOMENTS
This holiday season, give more. More than just a TV, a camera
or a pair of headphones. Give memories that will last a lifetime,
chills that can only come from a great ballad, a shared laugh
while watching your favourite holiday special. Give moments
that you will always remember.

For more details, visit sony.ca

MDR-1000X ILCE-6500 Z-series 4KTV

Give more
WITH SONY 2016 Sony Electronics Inc. All rights reserved.
TALKING SHOP

OAKVILLE, ON-BASED CANADIAN SOUND CELEBRATES 30TH ANNIVERSARY

Oakville, ON-based home automation specialist
Canadian Sound celebrated its 30th anniversary in
business in November the shop opened in 1986
to offer standalone sound systems for audiophiles.
The rage at the time was high-fidelity ste-
reo, recalls Nicholas Bourikas, founder and
CEO. Everyone was interested in great sound
good enough was just not good enough
back then. Bourikas remembers fondly selling
container loads of tube TVs and VHS machines
(remember those?), and the good ol days of
selling half-a-million dollars worth of merchan-
dise on Boxing Day out of a 3,000-square-foot
shop and tractor trailer in the parking lot. The
biggest trend at the time, he adds, was the
The end user is now more concerned with
who they buy the electronics from and the value
proposition versus the brand, Bourikas says. In
years gone by, the consumer was fiercely brand
loyal and the retailer hoped they had the brand
which was most sought by the consumer. That
said, he allows that when a client buys a custom
home from a builder, he selects his partner based
on reputation for quality, service, and integrity,
not the brand of drywall, wood, or nails he uses in
his projects. This isnt to say brand reputation and
selection is not important. But its more important
Nick Bourikas, founder and CEO, Canadian Sound,
than ever for retailers to step up their game and recalls fondly the days of selling half-a-million dollars
offer services and experiences that make end users worth of merchandise on Boxing Day, and when good
confident to do business with them, and that they enough sound wasnt good enough.

marriage of audio and video, predating the era
of home theatre.
Thirty years later, and Canadian Sound has
evolved with the trends, and morphed into
a company that offers fully-integrated smart
home and automation solutions for both home-
owners and businesses. Specializing in security,
surveillance, lighting, shading, home theatres
and cinemas, networking, and commercial
audio/video, Canadian Sound offers consulting
and design, as well as installation and servic-
ing of its products. Its two locations in Toronto
and Oakville, ON operate by appointment only,
though staff regularly meets clients for consul-
tations and smart home demonstrations.
While the industry has faced many challenges
over the last few decades, including the focus on
that race to zero over quality and performance
and the loss of protected distribution, Canadian
Sound has prevailed.
will select the right products to meet their needs.
Bourikas believes the retail industry is now
split three ways, with high-fidelity retailers,
smart home providers, and electronics retailers.
And lets not forget the Internet, as well as sev-
eral latent industries that have jumped into the
space, Bourikas notes.
Over the past three decades, the industry has
also seen the emergence of some fantastic new
technologies and product categories. Bourikas
names home theatre, plasma flat-screen TVs, and
home automation as three of the biggest trends
that have influenced his business. Going forward,
he predicts that the middle market for the smart
home will disappear, and well see consumers
focus on one of two ends of the spectrum: the
do-it-yourself (DIY) market, and the high-end.
Theres always a buyer for Porsche, Mercedes,
and Jaguar, he analogizes, but still a bigger
market for Hondas and Chevys.
My brother Steve and I could not be more
proud to celebrate our 30th anniversary doing
something we love, Bourikas comments. From
the beginning, we set out to build a service-fo-
cused business, and we believe our commitment
to service excellence and relentless focus on inno-
vation has enabled us to stand the test of time.
As we celebrate 30 years in business, he adds,
we want to thank each of our clients, co-workers
and suppliers, both past and present, that have
been with us on this rewarding journey. I believe
our values of excellence, integrity and client-cen-
tric care has served us well and will continue to
differentiate us as we prepare for an even more
exciting, smart technology-fuelled future.
In celebration of the milestone, Canadian Sound
launched a redesigned, fully-responsive Website
as a nod to the companys commitment to mar-
keting in a modern world, says Bourikas. CP

K-MOBILE OPENS THIRD GTA STORE

K-Mobile, a new wireless retailer selling phones,
service plans, and accessories, opened its third
store in the greater Toronto area (GTA), in Ajax,
ON, about 35 minutes from downtown Toronto.
K-Mobile opened its second store in Mississ-
auga, ON in September, and its first flagship store in
the East York Town Centre in August. The retailer
plans to open 250 locations across the GTA by
2018, including standalone stores within strip
plazas and malls, and some kiosks. K-Mobile sells
merchandise from third-party brands, as well as
its own branded phone, the Android-based K2.
In addition to an existing partnership with Koodo
Mobile, K-Mobile also recently partnered with
Virgin Mobile Canada.
At the Ajax opening, Shami Munir, CEO of
K-Mobile, was joined by city Mayor Steve Parish,
and Ajax-Pickering Board of Trades Director
Ian McCutcheon and Business Development
Manager Iris Nicolaison.
Prior to opening these new retail locations,
K-Mobiles parent company Kimcot owned and
operated 19 WIND Mobile stores. CP
Shami Munir, CEO, K-Mobile (left), poses with Ajax Mayor
Steve Parish at the opening of the Ajax, ON store.

52 www.wifihifi.ca
 victor
ia, bri
tish c
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olum

A N C O U bia

Gr eetings fromV

Both are lovely places to visit.

Bt hich oe hols the ost poteal or yor siess
ssz<dss
shWK^
DdEW'

Zeay to o here the roth is Contact The NPD Group at 866-444-1411 or email contactnpd@npd.com.
npdgroup.ca
Source: The NPD Group/Retail Tracking Service, YTD August 2016 vs. year prior.
TALKING SHOP

GOOGLE OPENS FIRST NORTH AMERICAN STORE-IN-STORES

IN CANADIAN BEST BUYS
Best Buy stores in four Canadian cities are now
home to large-scale Google shops, where con-
sumers can fully experience the companys
family of hardware, like Pixel, Daydream View
and Chromecast Ultra.
Google Canadas shop within a shop spaces
officially opened in early November at the Best Buy
location in Mississaugas Heartland Town Centre,
along with three others in Calgary, Edmonton and
Vancouver. The collaboration is part of Best Buys
redesigned Experience Stores, which includes
upgrades to more than a dozen locations.
In October, 10 smaller Google shops were intro-
duced in Best Buy stores. However, the Heartland
store marked the debut of the significantly larg-
er-scale shops, which Google says allows the
company to showcase its family of hardware in an
immersive retail space.
Janell Fischer, Director of Retail Marketing at
Google Inc., says the concept aims to enhance
the traditional way of shopping and aligns with
Googles immersive approach.
At Google shops, guests can get hands-on with
Google products in interactive and experiential
spaces. Shoppers can also experience Portal, an
immersive super-sized display where they can
fly over anywhere on the planet through Google
Earth, explore what people around the world are
searching for, and play other fun Google apps.
In addition to booking 1:1 appointments with
Google guides, customers can also take part in
hands-on daily workshops to learn the ins and
outs of Google tech and sign up for unique and
fun seasonal events, led by YouTube creators,
popular tech experts, and others. CP
Quebec-based AV and CI distributor SHERPA
GROUP moved to a new, upgraded and
larger headquarters in Dorval on October
31, right in time to celebrate its 15-year
anniversary. The new office at 80 Lindsay
Ave., just eight minutes from the previous
location, includes a larger warehouse, along
with a showroom and training facilities
that the company says will help it become
better equipped to handle the needs of its
growing business. Sherpa hosted a special
15th Anniversary event on November 29-30
where guests visited the new office, met
manufacturer representatives, learned
about new products, and enjoyed food and
refreshments, and special promotions.

Sherpa Group owners Philippe Rayes, President

(right) and Claudia Pizzi, Vice President and
General Manager.

SAMSUNG SURPRISES WITH US$8B ACQUISITION OF HARMAN

Samsung Electronics will acquire Harman International Industries, Inc. for
$112 per share in cash, or total equity value of approximately $8 billion.
The transaction will give Samsung a significant presence in the growing
market for connected technologies, particularly automotive electronics,
which the company estimates will grow to more than US$100 billion by 2025.
Approximately 65% of Harmans US$7 billion of reported sales during the
12 months ended September 30, 2016 were automotive-related, including
licenses of the Bowers & Wilkins (B&W) and Bang & Olufsen brands.
But there are a number of major home audio brands under Harmans
umbrella as well, including JBL, Harman Kardon, Mark Levinson, AKG,
Lexicon, Infinity, and Revel. Samsung says it will leverage these brands for
its mobile, display, virtual reality, and wearable products to deliver a fully
differentiated audio and visual experience for customers.
Upon closing, Harman will operate as a standalone Samsung subsidiary,
and continue to be led by Dinesh Paliwal, Chairman, President, and CEO
of Harman, and his current management team. Samsung plans to retain
Harmans work force, headquarters and facilities, as well as all of its con-
sumer and professional audio brands. Samsungs Automotive Electronics
Business Team, established in December of 2015, will work closely with the
Harman management team.
The purchase price represents a premium of 28% based on Harmans
closing stock price on November 11, 2016 and a 37% premium to Harmans
30-calendar day volume weighted average price ending November 11, 2016.
The transaction, which is subject to approval by Harman shareholders,
regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, is expected
to close in mid-2017. CP

54 www.wifihifi.ca
Because there are many TVs.
But there is only one LG OLED.

The LG OLED isnt just a new TV. Its a whole new category of television. The screen
is comprised of revolutionary, self-lighting pixels. Every pixel works independently.
So it can brighten, dim or power off on its own to achieve perfect black and infinite
contrast. The result? Deeper, richer colours and jaw-dropping, life-like picture.
SEE ONLY THE BEST At LG, this kind of innovation powers every TV we make.
TALKING SHOP

WHO WENT WHERE? AVAD LLC has confirmed a series of

initiatives for North America, including
Alcatel has appointed Wayne White to the position of Vice President of Sales expanding its field sales force to markets
for North America. In this position, White assumes responsibility for growing the beyond its current footprint, and blending
Alcatel product family among carriers and expanding the companys presence national and regional call centres to reach
in the enterprise segment. He has more than 25 years of experience in sales and more of its customers and provide local
marketing, most recently serving as executive president, sales & marketing at support to its dealer base. AVAD will update
Kobo in Toronto. Previous to that, he worked with Motorola, Verizon Wireless, many locations, and open additional
AT&T Ameritech, and General Electric. ones; central distribution centres will be
established across North America, providing
Evolution Home Entertainment Corp. has appointed John Gravel as its new increased inventory availability and rapid
Credit Manager for Evolution and sister companies Gemsen and Bioworld. Gravel order fulfillment. Expanded will-call access
succeeds Marilena Fiorini, who has held the position for almost 14 years, and will more precisely place product where
retired in December. Gravel brings over 20 years of credit management expertise and when it needs to be available.
to Evolution. (416) 603-9090 ext. 256, or johng@evolutionhomecorp.com. Additionally, AVAD is launching a new
transactional and information-based web
and mobile portal platform for customers.
Bay Bloor Radio has appointed Ian Landy as its new General Manager. Landy The portal will also be a gathering place
was previously CEO of Toronto-based photography retail chain Henrys Camera, for the AVAD community to learn, train,
where he spent 16 years. Prior to that, he has worked with companies like Dylex and share ideas. AVAD is also expanding its
and Grand & Toy. design services for dealers, and has doubled
its tech support department. Products will
also be showcased at soon-to-be-announced
experience centre locations throughout
ERA OPENS NEW RECYCLING DEPOT IN TORONTO the U.S. and Canada.

The Electronic Recycling ERA currently has locations in Vancouver, Calgary,

Association (ERA), a not- Edmonton, Saskatoon, Winnipeg and Montreal.
for-profit organization that The new depot is located at 8491 Brimley Rd. The CANADIAN IMPERIAL BANK OF
helps reduce e-waste and in Toronto. Equipment can be dropped off at this COMMERCE (CIBC) is the first bank to get
its adverse environmental location for reuse or recycling. Pickup and physi- early access to the Samsung Pay mobile
contribution through the recovery, refurbishment cal data destruction services can be arranged by payment service. CIBC Visa cardholders can
and donation of electronic and IT equipment, has calling (416) 477-0664. now use a compatible Samsung device to
opened a new depot in Toronto. Services are Reuse is an extremely important first step in pay for items up to $100 at participating
already available, but a special grand opening is the technology cycle, says ERA President Bojan retailers. The financial institution says it
scheduled for January 30, 2017. Paduh, and were committed to responsibly will work just about everywhere you can
ERA will work with individuals and corporations extending the life of technology while addressing tap or swipe a credit card. All thats required
to reuse and refurbish computers, laptops and the digital divide through our computer donation is that Samsung device owners register
other electronic equipment, and make technology program. There is a real need in the community for the service, add their CIBC credit card
donations to local communities where applicable. for this type of service. to the app, and verify the card using a
one-time passcode and signature via finger
or stylus. Currently, Samsung Pay works
with the Galaxy S7 Edge, S6 Edge, S6 Edge+,
LEONS FURNITURE LTD. opened 10 new retail locations across Canada, including its first S7, S6, and Note 5, and with CIBC Visa
four stores in B.C., two The Brick stores, and one Appliance Canada location. The opening of cards; MasterCards are not yet supported.
four stores in greater Vancouver marks the first time the 100-year-old retailer has reached
Canadians across the country with its Leons banner. Six of the new stores are Leons banner
stores, with three in Ontario (Etobicoke, Mississauga, and Brampton), which opened at the
end of September, and three in B.C., in Abbotsford, Langley, and Richmond, which opened in
October. One The Brick banner store opened in Moncton, NB at the end of July, while Bolton,
ON also saw the addition of The Brick Mattress Store in August. The 10th new location is an
Appliance Canada store in Mississauga, ON, which officially opened at the end of September.

56 www.wifihifi.ca
TALKING SHOP
WHOS DOING WHAT?
BlackBerry Limited has signed an agreement with Ford Motor
Company for expanded use of its QNX and security software. As part
of the agreement, BlackBerry will dedicate a team to work with Ford
on expanding the use of BlackBerrys QNX Neutrino Operating System,
Certicom security technology, QNX hypervisor and QNX audio processing
software. The terms of the deal are confidential. BlackBerrys QNX
software powers more than 60 million vehicles, including the SYNC 3
Infotainment system in Fords current models. The deal, says BlackBerry,
signifies an acceleration in the companys pivot from hardware to
software in support of the automakers goal of providing connected
vehicles and mobility to its customers.
Atlantia is now distributing DeFunc
Bluetooth headphones. One of the
newest models is the Hybrid, which
comes in black, white, red, and blue,
and employs angled and extended
silicone tips to ensure a comfortable
fit. A heel at the top of each earbud
helps them stay in place should you be
wearing them during strenuous physical
activities. Using Bluetooth 4.1, the
headphones offer from 3-4 hours battery
life, and up to 80 hours of standby.
Cantrex Nationwide Group has partnered with Sonos, allowing
Cantrexs network of independent retailers to leverage the company
to finance their Sonos purchases. The new agreement provides Sonos
authorized resellers greater financial flexibility when ordering and
paying for Sonos range of home audio products, says Cantrex. This
includes flexible financing options; uniformity to financial payment
terms; typically higher credit limits than what is currently offered through
Sonos; simplified vendor management by using one Cantrex account;
and streamlined administrative processes to reallocate resources where
they are needed. Existing Cantrex Nationwide
members can contact their Sonos
representative to apply to become
a Sonos authorized reseller, while
Sonos authorized resellers can contact
a Cantrex Nationwide representative
to explore their opportunities in
joining the Group.
Amherst, NY-based Stampede has been appointed global distribution
partner for Calibres line of electronic display equipment. Stampede will
serve as distribution partner for the Calibre HQView range of ultra-fast
presentation switchers, LEDView range of premium switcher-scalers for LED
displays, and HQUltra range of scaler-switchers specially designed for rental
staging. All products incorporate Calibres HQUltra precision scaling and
HQUltraFast typical quarter second input switching. Stampede will also
distribute Calibres range of professional blend-and-warp image processors.
58 www.wifihifi.ca
Toronto-based Gemsen has been
appointed the exclusive Canadian
distributor for Krell hifi audio
products. Recently re-purchased by
Rondi DAgostino, Krell is returning to
its roots and designing and building
products in the U.S. Contact Rich Zidel, National Sales Manager for
Gemsens Home Audio Division, (514) 781-3902, richz@gemsen.com.
Representation across Canada will be handled by: Mark Owen,
of the Mark Owen Agency in British Columbia, (604) 512-1125,
mark.owen@mac.com; Brian Graham of Big Sky Marketing in Alberta/
Saskatchewan/Manitoba, (403) 852-0447, brian@bigskymarketing.ca;
Bruno de Lorimier of Unison Sales in Ontario, (905) 767-5663,
bruno@unisonsales.ca; Rich Zidel of Zidel Marketing in Quebec,
(514) 781-3902, rich@zidelmarketing.com; and Scott Kelly of
Audio East Marketing in Nova Scotia/NF/NB/PE, (506) 863-4400,
audioest@nb.sympatico.ca.
Montreal-based Plurison has been appointed Canadian distributor for
Astell & Kern. Korea-based Astell & Kern is best known for its audiophile-
grade portable digital audio players, but the company also offers
earphones and accessories, such as a CD ripper, portable Bluetooth amp,
and charging cradle. In Canada, prices for Astell & Kern players range
from $649 for the AK Jr to $4,599 for the flagship AK380. Contact Michel
Plante, Sales Director at Plurison, mplante@plurison.com.
Music technology company MQA has joined The Digital
Entertainment Group (DEG) to support the expansion of high-
resolution audio as a standard component of consumer entertainment.
The DEG is an industry association that advocates and promotes
entertainment platforms, products and distribution channels, on
behalf of motion picture, music, consumer electronics and technology
companies. MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) is a technology that
delivers master quality audio in a file thats small enough to stream or
download. MQA is also backward compatible, so you can play MQA
music on any device. MQA was originally developed by audio products
manufacturer Meridian Audio Ltd., and later spun off into its own
UK-based private company.
BC-based Atlantia has been
appointed a Canadian distributor
for Outdoor Techs line of
mobile and audio accessories.
Outdoor Tech offers a wide
range of products, from audio
helmets to wireless headphones
and speakers, boomboxes,
portable powerbanks, Bluetooth
converters and wireless
adapters, and other accessories
for outdoor enthusiasts.
Gordon Brockhouses
TOP 10 TECH GIFT PICKS
THESE DAYS, my main beat for WiFi HiFi is two-channel audio, so thats where my focus is on this
gift list. Occasionally, I stray into other categories, such as 12V, so Ive got some ideas there as well.

Ive tried to focus on (relatively) affordable gifts. But some of my suggestions venture well into
splurge territory audio isnt a cheap hobby!

In the end, home entertainment is really about great movies, great TV shows, great music. To that
3 Sennheiser HD 600: This classic
headphone has been on the market
for almost two decades, proving that you
end, Ive included a Blu-ray set and album that someone on your list is sure to enjoy.
dont have to be the latest to be one of the
greatest. The HD 600 is still prized for its low
distortion and smooth, inviting sound.
Its velour earpads make it comfortable even

2 Pioneer AVH-4200NEX:
This powerhouse in-dash DVD receiver
supports Apple CarPlay and Android Auto,
for long listening sessions. The open-back
design results in a very spacious presentation.
But it allows ambient sounds to intrude,
which lets you control smartphone apps like
making the HD 600 suitable mainly for
navigation, text messaging, music playback
indoor use. If you want to introduce a young
and telephony using a combination of voice
bass-head to real high-fidelity headphone
and gestures on the 7 touchscreen. Theres
sound, this is a great way to do it. $550

1 IsoAcoustics Aperta: Developed in

Canada, this innovative accessory will
improve the sound of any loudspeaker.
also a function that automatically analyzes your
cars acoustics using an accessory microphone,
then adjusts frequency balance to compensate.
En.ca.sennheiser.com

The IsoAcoustics Aperta decouples your
speakers from surrounding surfaces using
isolators in the top and bottom sections.
Made from aluminum, the Aperta has
built-in tilt adjustment, so you can aim the
speaker at the primary listening position.
In my system, I use the Aperta to decouple
my bookshelf speakers from the acoustically
lively built-in cabinets on which theyre
placed, and have noticed a significant
improvement in clarity, focus, speed and
dynamics. Available in black and aluminum
finishes for $230 per pair. Isoacoustics.com
With the right speakers, the AVH-4200NEX can
deliver killer sound. At $1,050, its not cheap;
but its a great gift for anyone who wants to
bring their old ride up to date. You can read a
full review of the AVH-4200NEX on Wifihifi.ca.
Pioneerelectronics.ca
standards by Duke Ellington, Bill Evans and Fats
4 Allen Toussaint: American Tunes:
The legendary New Orleans R&B singer,
pianist, composer and producer Allen Toussaint
passed away in November 2015, following
a concert in Madrid. His final album, American
Tunes, is one of my favourites of 2016. Toussaint
and a roster of distinguished guests play
Waller, as well as Toussaints own compositions.
Beautifully performed and recorded, the album
is simultaneously joyful and nostalgic. The
last track, Toussaints cover of Paul Simons
American Tune, is a wonderful coda to a life
spent in music. Released on the Nonesuch label,
American Tunes is available on CD (about $20),

5 Spin-Clean Record Washer Mk II:

Vinyl collectors who buy LPs at flea markets and
garage sales need a way of cleaning their new-found
as a two-disc LP set (about $40), as a 24/96
download (US$20), or as a compressed iTunes
download ($11). Allentoussaint.com
treasures, and the Spin-Clean is an effective, affordable
solution. Pour distilled water and a capful of cleaning
concentrate into the reservoir, stand the record up
between the two built-in squeegees, and then turn it
three times in each direction. Carefully buff the record
with the supplied cloths, let it air-dry for a bit, then
play and enjoy. Ive used the Spin-Clean on LPs I picked
up at used record stores, and its significantly reduced
surface noise and mistracking on some damaged
records. $110 Spincleanrecordwasher.com

60 www.wifihifi.ca
TECH GIFT PICKS

6 Onkyo DP-X1: Featuring machined unibody construction and a gorgeous 4.7 touchscreen, this Android-based digital
audio player oozes class and quality. The DP-X1 has 32GB of internal storage plus two microSD memory card slots for
storing your music, and built-in Wi-Fi for Internet streaming. Not only does it play high-resolution files up to 384kHz/24 bits,
as well as DSD 64, 128 and 256, it supports the new MQA format. MQA promises to deliver high-resolution quality in
CD-resolution file sizes, and minimize undesirable artifacts of digital recording. Theres not much MQA content yet, but Warner
Music Group says it plans to encode its entire catalog in MQA. And the music streaming service TIDAL also plans to support
MQA. Priced at $999, the DP-X1 has conventional and balanced headphone outputs. You can read my review of the DP-X1
(and its cousin, Pioneers XDP-100R) on Wifihifi.ca. Onkyo.ca

8 Pro-Ject Debut Carbon DC:

If a millennial in your life is spinning
vinyl on a groove-grinder from a clothing
store or garage sale, a real turntable will make
a great gift. Not only will it sound better, it
will play records without destroying them.
Priced at $619 and available in seven colours
(including seasonal red and green), the Debut
Carbon (Gentec International) is Pro-Jects least 9 Audioquest DragonFly
Black 1.5/Red: This nifty gadget

7 The Wire: Created by David

Simon, formerly a homicide reporter
for the Baltimore Sun, this iconic HBO
series chronicles life in a gritty Baltimore
neighborhood. The central characters
and storyline shift from season to season:
a team of detectives trying to bring down
a drug kingpin, dockworkers and their
corrupt union, a troubled inner-city school,
wheeling-and-dealing politicians at City
Hall, and a newsroom struggling with
budget cuts. This 60-episode series, which
ran from 2002 to 2008, is simultaneously
dark and uplifting. Its totally riveting and
(be warned) completely binge-worthy.
Rolling Stone has The Wire as its number-two
pick of all-time best TV shows, second
only to The Sopranos. Cant argue there.
About $120 for the 20-disc Blu-ray box set.
Hbo.com/the-wire
expensive model with tonearm made of carbon
fibre. This highly rigid material lets the phono
cartridge extract more musical goodness from
your records grooves. The Debut Carbon has a
pre-installed Ortofon phono cartridge. You need
to connect it to an amp with built-in phono
stage; or else add an external phono preamp.
Alternatively, you can step up to the Debut
Carbon USB. Priced at $729, it has a built-in
phono preamp so that it will work with any
amplifier, plus a USB port that lets you record
your vinyl onto a computer. Project-audio.ca
combines a headphone amplifier and
high-resolution DAC (digital-to-analog
converter) into a device about the size of
a thumb drive. Insert the DragonFly
into a USB port, and it takes over audio
processing from your computers internal
circuitry, making the sound smoother,
more immediate, more detailed and more
spacious. Audioquests latest DragonFlys
also work with smartphones and tablets.
Use an Android On the Go cable to connect
the DragonFly to your Android device, or
a Lightning-to-USB adapter to connect it
to your Apple device and prepare to be
amazed. The DragonFly Black 1.5 ($149) has
enough oomph to drive powered speakers
and efficient headphones. The DragonFly
Red ($229) is more powerful, and has better
audio circuitry. You can read my review on
Wifihifi.ca. Audioquest.com/dragonfly-series

10 KEF LS50 Wireless: At three grand, were way into splurge territory here. But the
LS50 Wireless is a complete sound system, perfect for music-lovers who want high-
performance audio without cluttering up their living space with components. This gorgeous
speaker is based on KEFs acclaimed LS50 monitor loudspeaker ($1,600/pair), but adds built-in
amplifiers (460 watts total) and high-resolution DAC. With its active design, theres no
power-sucking crossover between the amp and speaker; and the filters are precisely matched
to the drivers. This LS50 Wireless has inputs for connecting a computer, TV and disc player,
plus built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for wireless streaming. I havent heard the LS50 Wireless yet;
but I use the LS50s as my reference speakers, and love them. The LS50 Wireless might be hard
to find this year, as shipments to dealers have just started. You could opt for the conventional
passive LS50 (a great speaker), or put the LS50 Wireless on your list for next year. Ca.kef.com

62 www.wifihifi.ca
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN
TOUCHED BY SOUND ?
Introducing the PULSE SOUNDBAR.
Discover a whole new world of sound at bluesound.com/touchedbysound
Christine Persauds
TOP 10 TECH GIFT PICKS
THE TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY is full of great gear to enhance ones life, and particularly,
the experience with your smartphone.

Over the course of 2016, I had the opportunity to try out tons of great gear that works with
smartphones, or ties to them in some way. Here are my top gift picks in that category, including
2 Under Armour UA HealthBox:
Its everything youd need to get
started on a quest to get fit, lose weight, or
items I love for myself, and ones that would be perfect for that special someone on your list. improve overall health. Inside is a UA Band
for tracking activities, sleep, and resting
heart rate; a Bluetooth and Wi-Fi-enabled
UA Scale for logging your weight and body

1 Fitbit Charge 2 Heart Rate: I often get asked about activity

trackers and what they do. The Fitbit Charge 2 Heart Rate
helps you track everything from steps to sleep, calories in and out,
fat; and the UA Heart Rate chest strap for
keeping tabs on your heart rate as you
workout. Keep track of everything through
exercise, heart rate, and even hydration. Plus, it delivers smartphone the UA Record app, plus a free subscription
notifications, prompts you when its time to move, and includes to MapMyFitness, and integration with
breathing exercises to help you wind down from a workout or calm other apps, like MyFitnessPal, for logging
down after a particularly stressful day. Its pretty stylish, with a number your daily food diaries. This is fitness tech
of band options from which to choose. Check out my full review at in a box. Check out my in-depth review
WiFiHiFi.ca. $200 Fitbit.com at WiFiHiFi.ca. $549 Underarmour.com

4 Thermos Connected Hydration Bottle:

Are you drinking enough water? The Thermos
Connected Hydration Bottle comes with a Smart Lid that
works with an app for tracking water intake. Set goals by
entering your age, gender, height, weight, and activity
level. A sensor tube on the lid detects how much water is
consumed through the day, and syncs with the app over
Bluetooth to provide real-time tracking. If you arent on
track, the app will remind you to drink more. The bottle

3 Ellia Gather Diffuser: Forget air

fresheners or candles; Ellia Diffusers
(HoMedics Canada) with essential oils provide
natural aromas and a calming environment
to help relieve stress, and alleviate dry air.
The Gather can run for up to 10 hours (20 hours
intermittent), plus adds peaceful sounds to the
mix if desired. Made from ceramic and wood,
each Diffuser in the line, which also includes
models like the Soothe, Flourish, Blossom,
Thrive, Awaken, Rise, Reflect, and Balance,
come with oil samples like orange, pay attention,
and fight it, that arent diluted with carrier oils
or synthetic properties, and are bottled in violet
glass to protect them from UV rays. The Gather
is MSRP $130, and essential oils, including
scents like lavender, peppermint, and
lemongrass, are $25/15mL bottle or $40 for
a three-pack of 10mL bottles. Ellia.com
can sync with a Fitbit wearable, like the Charge 2, to add
hydration to your daily health monitoring. The bottle
remains charged for up to 12 days. Check out my review
at WiFiHiFi.ca $90 Thermosbrand.ca
5 Scosche MagicMount Pro Dash
Smartphone Mount: If youre like me, you use
se
your smartphone for navigation in the car. Rather than
get a mount with a clip, or awkwardly peek over at yourr
phone while its in the centre console, this Scosche
mount (Atlantia) connects to your phone via a strong
Neodynium earth magnet. Place it on your cars dash,
and the phone connects via another magnet affixed to o
its back or its case. It rotates a full 360-degrees so you
can position it as needed, in portrait or landscape,
or tilted up to avoid glare from the sun, for example.
US$50 Scosche.com

64 www.wifihifi.ca
TECH GIFT PICKS

6 Epson FastFoto FF-640 High-Speed Photo Scanner: Anyone who

wants a digital archive of their photo albums, or who enjoys creative photo
projects, will appreciate this scanner. Its super small, and can scan photos as large as
5x7 in batches of up to 30, or pics one at a time up to 8x10, at a rate of one per second.
Really its that fast. For fragile photos, use the carrier sheet. The unique naming
system files your scanned images in designated folders based on a name, date range,
or occasion or location you assign, making organization a breeze. Automatic photo fix
restores faded colours and removes red-eye, then outputs two digital files in a single
pass. You can even do double-sided scans to capture writing on the back of a photo in
a single pass as well. Check out my review at WiFiHiFi.ca. $900 Epson.ca

7 Next-gen power Rapid Wireless

Charging Pad by Qmadix:
While this Rapid Wireless Charging Pad
9 Dyson V8 Absolute Wireless
Vacuum: Who doesnt love Dyson?
Ive been using the V6 absolute wireless
is great for recharging iPhones housed in vacuum for about a year, and absolutely
Qi-enabled cases (like the Dog & Bone (pun intended) love it for quick clean-ups.
one mentioned here), its better for Android The latest version, the V8 absolute, doubles the
users. Why? If you have a smartphone run time to about 40 minutes per charge, and
compatible with Qualcomm Quick is ultra quiet. Its great for doing a quick pass
Charge 2.0 technology, you can simply in the kitchen, or getting hard-

8
rest your device atop this pad and get up to-reach spots (with the right
Dog & Bone Backbone
to twice the power of first-generation attachment) like ceilings. Like the
iPhone Case: Not only does the
wireless charging pads. Which means you V6, the top portion can detach so
Dog & Bone Backbone case (Hitfar Concepts)
can leave the house (or hotel room) with you can use it outdoors as well
offer shock-proof protection that meets
a full or near-full battery, even if you forgot to clean the car. It weighs a mere
military specs (Ive already dropped my iPhone
to start charging your phone until the last 5.7 lbs., and comes with two
6S a handful of times!) and in a super-slim
minute. US$50 Qmadix.com cleaner heads for removing
design, to boot, it also comes with a receiver
ground-in dirt and pet hair from
piece that slots neatly into the backside of
carpets, and large debris and
the case to allow for wireless charging on
fine dust from hard floors.
Qi-enabled surfaces and pads. When you
Empty the debris in the
need more power, swap the receiver for an
trash when youre done,
optional battery pack. $100 for the case and
and wash the filter once
receiver, $140 for a starter pack that adds a
a month. $700
Qi charging pad, and $40 for the battery pack.
Dyson.ca
Dogandbonecases.com

10 One-Year Netflix Subscription: Now that shomi is no more in Canada,

the streaming TV options north of the border are slim. Netflix is a go-to, and
for good reason: theres plenty of stellar content through the service, including a great
roster of original series. For someone who loves to binge-watch, a new sign-up, or
credit for the new year for existing subscribers, is a great gift. Further personalize it with
a list of show recommendations. For sci-fi and thriller seekers, suggest Stranger Things
and Black Mirror. If theyre into comedies, theres Master of None and Unbreakable Kimmy
Schmidt. Great dramas include The Walking Dead, Suits, and Orange is the New Black.
Know a foodie? Recommend the fantastic Chefs Table series; and for stand-up comedy
lovers, theres a growing selection, including a recent and hilarious addition that will
appeal to any millennial: Iliza: Confirmed Kills. $132 for a yearly premium subscription
(including one month free), or $88 for the basic. Netflix.com

66 www.wifihifi.ca
 The Tradition Continues!

JOIN US FOR CANADA NIGHT

Friday, January 6, 2017 7:00-10:00pm Drais After Hours at The Cromwell Las Vegas

Mark your calendar for the night the Canadian industry gets together at CES in Las Vegas.
We look forward to seeing you!
RSVP at canadanight.com

To join the growing list of companies that make Canada Night possible, please contact John Thomson
at jthomson@wifihifi.ca or call 416-726-3667 and become a sponsor today!
David Susilos
TOP 10 TECH GIFT PICKS
OVER THE PAST YEAR, Ive tested hundreds of tech products, from Ultra HD televisions,
to high-end premium headphones, and other fun gadgets and gear. Here are 10 that I believe
would make fantastic gifts for those you love.
2 Anker PowerCore 20100 Charger:
1 Jam Audio Jam Symphony
Wireless Speaker: Lets face it,
not everybody needs 32 speakers spread
around the house. In fact, most of us only
need eight or fewer of them. This 2.1
speaker unit will satisfy most distributed-
audio needs, operating via Wi-Fi rather
than Bluetooth, and controllable from
your smartphone. Download the app to
stream tunes from services like Spotfify
and iHeartRadio. It also works as an
intercom: use the app to talk through your
speakers. I ended up buying four of them
for my father (you can sync up to eight)
so he could listen to his Australian radio
stations. $200 Jamaudio.com
68 www.wifihifi.ca
Dont you hate when both your phone
3 Chipolo Plus Key Finder:
This is one of the best key finders
Ive tried. Not only does it come in seven
and your tablet run out of battery? With the
different colours, but its loud, and also
PowerCore 20100, you can not only charge your
water-resistant. Too many times, the
phone and tablet at the same time, but you
Chipolo Plus has saved me from wasting
can also get them both back to 100% from a
my time trying to find my misplaced keys.
completely depleted stage at the same speed
Download the iOS or Android app, attach
of a fast charger. I bought one for me, but my
the Finder to your keychain, then call your
uncle, the world traveler, is getting one this
lost keys from your phone when you cant
Christmas as well. $45 Amazon.ca
find them. It will work over Bluetooth as
long as the device is within 200 feet of the
phone perfect if you left your keys in that
other jacket pocket, or if theyve fallen in
between the couch cushions. Its a perfect
stocking stuffer for pretty well anyone on
your list. $100 for a four-pack. Chipolo.net
4 Soundcast VG1 Bluetooth Speaker:
This rugged shockproof, waterproof
Bluetooth speaker (Erikson Consumer, also
featured in Short Bits) can work as a single unit or
with another VG1 to create a stereo pair. In my
tests, the unit lasts about 18 hours in paired mode.
Its a perfect gift for the active person. I bought
my 18-year-old daughter a pair of these, also so
she could use one as a hands-free device on her
bicycle. $200 Gosoundcast.com
5 Pioneer SC-LX901 AV Receiver: For the person who has
everything, this full HDMI 2.0a AV receiver is the only model
on earth with 11-channel digital amplification, and that comes fully
equipped with Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. By using this phenomenal
receiver, you can easily obtain the best possible 7.2.4 surround system
in one chassis. $3,500 Pioneerelectronics.ca
6 Roku Ultra Streamer: Roku truly put the
ultra in UltraHD with this media streamer.
To my knowledge, its the only media streamer in
9 Puro Sound Labs BT-5200
Hearing-Safe Headphones:
Puro Sound Labs designs hearing-safe
its price range thats HDR10 and Dolby Digital headphones that provide the assurance
Plus-compliant. This way, the streamer has the youre not damaging your hearing by
potential to reproduce the full Ultra HD goodies, blasting the volume too loud. This is
including Dolby Atmos. Other features include achieved through volume-limiting ear
voice search and a lost remote finder. Im definitely protection (85dB) advanced microprocessor
getting this as a gift from me to me to complete driven LEDs indicate the proper volume
my 4K home theatre. $140 Roku.com for safe listening levels. Sound quality is
extremely good for Bluetooth headphones,
but you can also plug them in to a

8 HoMedics Shiatsu Air Pro Foot

Massager With Heat: Whats better
than taking off your shoes after a long workday?
compatible source device via the 3.5mm
auxiliary cable if preferred. Its a perfect gift
for somebody who commutes frequently
Massaging your feet with this effective unit, via public transportation, when people tend
available through HoMedics Canada. With its to listen too loudly in an effort to drown
simulated deep kneading shiatsu massage out the surrounding noise. About $250
and rhythmic air compression, the feeling you Purosound.com
get on your feet, from heel to toe, is nothing
short of heavenly. There are customized
controls and heat to help you get the perfect
massage. My mom would be ecstatic with
this gift. $250 Homedics.ca

7 Ultra HD Blu-ray Movies:

Why not treat your family members
to the best audio and video presentation
possible through UltraHD? As much as
4K streaming can wow you in the video
department, the measly 15Mbps offered
by 4K streaming is no comparison to
the 100Mbps audio/video data transfer
youd get with a UHD Blu-ray disc. For those
who already have a 4K TV and Ultra HD
Blu-ray player, a few discs is a perfect gift.
Need some recommendations? Some of my
favourites are Angry Birds, Pacific Rim, Jason
Bourne, Suicide Squad and Lucy. $25-$45

10 Monitor Audio ASB-10 + WS-10 Soundbar &

Subwoofer Combo: For the person on your list who,
for whatever reason, cant have a full-fledged surround sound
system in his desired room, this soundbar and wireless subwoofer
combo from Monitor Audio (Kevro International) employs Dolby
Virtual Speaker technology to expand the soundfield of the
soundbar. Better still, the WS-10 subwoofer ($849) can also be
used as a standalone subwoofer for a regular home theatre
set up. $1,848 (for both) Monitoraudio.ca

December/January 2017 69
SEE YOU AT DRAIS
For over 25 years, Canada Night has been bringing the
Canadian industry together during CES. Please join us
for a drink, use Canada Night as a meeting point before
you take your guests to dinner, and come to say hi to old
friends. The tunes will be great, the drinks will be cold
and the food and the crowd will be hot.
See you at Drais on Friday, January 6th at 7pm. Ill buy
you a drink!

Photo: John Thomson

70 www.wifihifi.ca
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