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Pioneer, a Japanese company that has delved in everything from headphones to car stereos, has unveiled a few new products, and the standout is a high-fidelity music player. Even more of a highlight is that the player runs a version of Android Lollipop, expanding Pioneer’s relationship with Android devices.
The electronics company has been through some less than ideal conditions recently and was sold last year to Onkyo, which manufactures audio equipment. Andrew Jones, a highly venerated designer in the speaker industry, left Pioneer for another company to design a new line of products. Seemingly undeterred, Pioneer has launched new devices of its own. Choosing to announce these products at the Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association Expo, the business revealed a total of three newly available hi-fi gadgets.
The device that will perhaps attract more customers is the new Pioneer XDP-100R, the company’s second media player and only the first to see an arrival in the United States. The handset is the average size of a smartphone and boasts a 4.7-inch display. Of course, the XDP-100R is able to play a variety of music files, including DSD and 384 kHz/24 bit FLAC/WAV audio. The quality of such music files is substantially higher than your average mp3 file, and a step above the high-quality formats used in Tidal, a music streaming site. The XDP-100R only has 32 GB of internal storage, but Pioneer has included two SD card slots that should allow you to carry your entire library with you. Along with Wi-Fi capabilities, a 10-hour battery life, and a built-in speaker, the device is made to look like the premium offering it is. The new media player is encased with an aluminum build available in either black or silver that offers the product a dose of much-needed robustness. With Lollipop running the show, Pioneer’s product is presented as an advanced device that also allows the use of streaming services.
Pioneer’s other devices include the SE-MASTER1 high-end headphone set and the SX-N30 stereo receiver. The electronics company says its new headphones are a work of art, with careful attention given to each unit, which reportedly requires more than 100 steps to complete. The new SX-N30 hi-fi receiver is also no slouch, offering access to the Internet via Wi-Fi and an 80-watt-per-channel amplifier. The ability to connect wirelessly allows streaming services like Spotify to make an appearance, as does Bluetooth and Apple’s Airplay technology.
Pioneer will launch the three devices next year, and expect them to carry a premium tag. The Android-running XDP-100R media player will be $700 and the SX-N30 receiver will set you back $600. The SE-MASTER1 headphones command the highest price of the bunch with an expected price of $2,500.