A universal serial bus (USB) cradle includes a USB connector configured to engage the USB cradle with an external device. The USB further includes a cradle base integrated with the USB connector. The cradle base includes a cavity configured to accept an audio device in a docked configuration, and a magnetic connector configured to hold the audio device in a given position and orientation when the audio device is docked with the USB cradle.

The disclosure herein provides a mobile system including a mobile base station and a wireless earbud. The base station comprising a connection hole, a user input button, at least one processor, at least one memory, and circuitry. The wireless earbud is configured for plugging into the connection hole of the base station to form an integrated body with the base station. The system establishes a wireless Bluetooth pairing between a smartphone and the wireless earbud using two-way wireless communication to produce Bluetooth communication between the smartphone and the wireless earbud.

A base unit is adapted to physically and electronically engage with an electronic device. The base unit includes a well within a top surface the base unit, which is sized and shaped to receive the electronic device in a close fitting relation. The base unit includes an internal chamber and access window that permits the electrical connection between the electronic device and the base unit while the electronic device is seated in the well using a connector wire. The internal chamber obscures the connector wire so that it cannot be readily, visibly seen from a top surface of the base unit. Connections established using insulated conductive wires enable power, data, and commands to be exchanged between the electronic unit and the base unit while concurrently preventing or impeding removal of the electronic device from the base unit. Alternative arrangements seat the electronic device within base unit and employ wireless connections therebetween.

An audio system (10) has a headphone unit (12) and a speaker unit (14). The headphone unit is configured to receive wirelessly transmitted input signals from which an audio output is derived. The headphone unit is provided with a first connector unit (20) and the speaker unit is provided with a second connector unit (22). The speaker unit is configured to permit the headphone unit to be docked with the speaker unit so that the first connector unit and second connector unit connect to enable transmission of signals from the headphone unit to the speaker unit to enable the speaker unit to provide an audio output based on wireless input signals received by the headphone unit.

Example techniques relate to changing a playback device mode based on a device base. In an example implementation, a first playback device operates in a first mode where it is connected to a first network and plays back audio content while in the first mode. The playback device detects connection of the first playback device to a device base and while the first playback device is on the device base, detects connection to a second network. The first playback device switches from operating in the first mode to operating in a second mode. The first playback device forms a stereo pair configuration with a second playback device over the second network in the second mode. While in the second mode, the first playback device plays back a first channel of audio content in synchrony with the second playback device playing back a second channel of the audio content.

The technology described in this document can be embodied in a first acoustic device that includes an input port configured to receive an input signal representing audio from a media device, and one or more acoustic transducers. The first acoustic device also includes one or more processors configured to generate, from the input signal, a first signal for producing an acoustic output from the one or more transducers, and a second signal for producing an acoustic output from a second acoustic device. The first and second signals are generated from the input signal based on a feedback signal received from the second acoustic device. The first acoustic device also includes an output port for providing a portion of the second signal to the second acoustic device.

The disclosure herein provides a personal wireless media station including a main body and a wireless earbud. The personal wireless media station may detect that an earbud connector of the wireless earbud is connected to a main body connector of the main body, play sound through a speaker of the main body while the earbud connector is connected to the main body connector, detect that the earbud connector has disconnected from the main body connector, cease to play sound through the speaker of the main body in response to detecting that the earbud connector has disconnected from the main body connector, and wireless send audio data to the wireless earbud and cause sound to be played through the wireless earbud while the earbud connector is not connected to the main body connector.

A device comprising a memory and one or more processors may be configured extract, from the bitstream, a type of quantization mode. The one or more processors may also be configured to switch, based on the type of quantization mode, between non-predictive vector dequantization to reconstruct a first set of one or more weights used to approximate the multi-directional V-Vector in the higher order ambisonics domain, and predictive vector dequantization to reconstruct a second set of one or more weights used to approximate the multi-directional V-Vector in the higher order ambisonics domain. The memory may be configured to store the reconstructed first set of one or more weights used to approximate the multi-directional V-Vector in the higher order ambisonics domain, and the reconstructed second set of one or more weights used to approximate the multi-directional V-Vector in the higher order ambisonics domain.

Modular equipment includes a main module that has a main speaker, main communication components arranged to implement at least one wireless communication, power supply components arranged to acquire main power supply from the mains, main assembly means arranged to assemble the main module with one or more additional modules, a processor component arranged to detect if the main module is assembled with a first additional module comprising one or more microphones and, if this is the case, to activate at least one additional function implemented by the equipment and using the microphone(s).

The technology described in this document can be embodied in a method that includes receiving, at a processing device, a feedback signal from a recording device, and generating, based on the feedback signal, a control signal for adjusting an acoustic output of a speaker device to achieve a target acoustic distribution within the environment. The feedback signal can indicate an acoustic characteristic of an environment in which a speaker device is located. The method also includes providing the control signal to the speaker device.