dr. dre

Beats to Monster: We're just not that into you

LAS VEGAS--The Beats and Monster brands are so synonymous that it's hard to believe the relationship is over. After a five-year lovefest that spawned dozens of headphones including the eponymous Beats by Dr. Dre and Lady Gaga's own Heartbeats, Beats is cutting ties and refusing to renew the partnership contract.

According to a report from Businessweek, two anonymous sources confirmed that Noel Lee's Monster Brand and Jimmy Iovine's Beats label severed ties after an irreconcilable dispute over who should get more credit for last year's 53 percent headphone marketshare.

Dre and Iovine remain adamant about their aim to educate young listeners on the value of accurate sound reproduction seemingly lost in this era of awful-sounding Apple ibuds, and they even brought names like Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, and Miles Davis into the fold to help drive sales with cameos in music videos and live DJ sets.… Read more

Shaken and stirred by Bob Marley headphones

I was treated to a nice sampling of House of Marley audio gear at a trade show recently, and came away impressed. HOM offers a wide selection of distinctly styled in-ear and full-size headphones, docks, and other gear, but when it came down to what I wanted to review I gravitated to the Stir It Up on-ear headphones ($200 with free shipping).

The Stir It Up won me over even before I heard it. Construction quality is a step up from the mostly plastic Bose Quiet Comfort, Monster Beats by Dre and Ludacris headphones. I realize a lot of folks … Read more

Get Fluance's audiophile-quality iPod speaker for just $100

Apparently, the designers at Fluance think different.

Instead of plastic they made their FiSDK500 iPod speaker out of wood, and they made it sound good enough to please audiophiles. It's usually $200, but it's on sale through November 7 for just $100. (Just be sure to add the coupon code "FISDK500" when checking out.)

I usually judge iPod speakers on a different scale than regular speakers. I have to, they're handicapped in a number of ways, even the $600 models never really delver hi-fi sound quality, and the one-piece models have almost no stereo separation. … Read more

Microsoft previews Windows 8

Facebook organizes your friends into Smart Lists, Google Flight Search takes off, and Microsoft previews the next Windows operating system with a new touch-screen mode.

Links from Wednesday's episode of Loaded:

Microsft previews Windows 8 Facebook unveils Smart Lists Verizon launches $50 unlimited prepaid plan Google Flight Search takes off Intel shows off Ivy Bridge for ultrabooks HTC Sensation XE debuts with Beats Audio Subscribe: iTunes (MP3) | iTunes (320x180) | iTunes (HD) | RSS (MP3) | RSS (320x180) | RSS HD

Buzz Out Loud 1529: HTC tries to buy some street cred (Podcast)

HTC spends $300 million to acquire some Beats Electronics awesomeness, but we have to admit: we're befuddled. Also, Apple is now officially the world's most valuable company, and we're happy, because they're slightly less evil than ExxonMobil. And in the worst idea we've heard in a while, the British Prime Minister floats the idea of turning off social networks to stem the rioting in London. Dude, do you WANT more riots!?

Gizmodo not charged in iPhone 4 theft

Hewlett-Packard permanently cuts the price of the TouchPad to just $399, Google is reportedly rushing to finish the Ice Cream Sandwich update to its Android operating system, and the San Mateo, Calif., district attorney has filed charges in the theft of an iPhone 4 prototype but not against Gizmodo.

Links from Thursday's episode of Loaded:

iPhone 4 charged filed against two men but not Gizmodo HTC buys Beats by Dr. Dre HP cuts price of TouchPad to $399 Google rushing to finish Ice Cream Sandwich Verizon and AT&T block jailbroken tetherers Nintendo 3DS gets "Flame Red" … Read more

HTC's Beats deal: Hear no evil?

HTC's acquisition of a majority stake in Beats Electronics amounts to nothing but a lot of white noise.

The Taiwanese smartphone maker said yesterday that it would acquire a majority stake in the famed headphone manufacturer--best known for its partnership with Dr. Dre--for $300 million. Sources told CNET's Greg Sandoval that the deal could eventually be worth more than $500 million.

HTC Chief Executive Peter Chou and Beats Chairman Jimmy Iovine touted the opportunity to integrate Beats' sound technology into HTC's mobile devices. But HTC, typically savvy when appealing to its customers' needs, may be missing the … Read more

HTC to acquire majority stake in Dr. Dre's Beats

HTC is expected to announce Thursday that it has acquired a 51 percent stake in Beats Electronics, the company that manufacturers the Beats by Dr. Dre headphones and loudspeakers, sources close to the talks told CNET today.

HTC, a maker of popular smartphones, will obtain the majority stake in Beats Electronics at a cost of more than $500 million, the sources said. The Beats headphones has emerged as a player in higher performance audio and more importantly become a status symbol among music fans and the country's youth.

Dow Jones and All Things Digital were first to report the … Read more

Lara Croft uses Beats by Dr. Dre, iPhone 4

Here's an odd one. While perusing the E3 trailer for the new Tomb Raider game, we noticed that iconic pistol-packing heroine Lara Croft was using what are--unmistakably--Beats by Dr. Dre headphones.

The iconic red-ribbon cable tipped us off, but after a comical double-take we noticed that Miss Croft's headphones de choix also sport the Beats ControlTalk cable remote, which lets you control music playback and--if you're using an iPhone--take calls as well. That makes these action-packed 'buds the Beats by Dr. Dre Tour.

Read more of "Lara Croft uses Beats by Dr Dre headphones, and an iPhone 4" at Crave UK.… Read more

Crave giveaway: Monster Beatbox

OK, this week we've got a hot one courtesy of the folks at Monster: the Monster Beats by Dr. Dre Beatbox iPod Dock.

This is one room-thumping iPod/iPhone stereo system. I should know because I reviewed the thing. I said that, "The Monster Beatbox has a simple mission that goes something like this: deliver big sound from a small box." And while I didn't think it delivered the most refined sonics in the world, I recommended that if you were looking for big, aggressive sound from a compact system, this was the one to get. (… Read more