Stewart Wolpin

Posted on 14 May 2024 by Stewart Wolpin

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CTA Centennial

Posted on 13 May 2024 by Stewart Wolpin

April 16, 2024, was the 100th anniversary of the founding of the CTA (Consumer Technology Association), which started as the RMA (Radio Manufacturers Association). This is a series of essays I have written for TWICE exploring and celebrating CTA’s and the consumer technology industry’s first century of invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

These essays have been assembled from varying technology historical research and writings I have done over the course of 20-plus years, including from an annually updated industry history for CTA’s now-defunct Digital America, 20-plus years of CTA Hall of Fame inductee biographies, and numerous tech history articles for a variety of publications over the years.

Part 1 (1924-1929): Founding

Herbert H. Frost: CTA’s ‘George Washington’

Part 2 (1930-1945): David Sarnoff

Part 3 (1946-1960): The TV Age

Part 4 (1961-1974): The Sixties

Interlude: Jack Wayman, Our Industry’s Indispensable Exec

Part 5a (1975-1985): A Decade of Disruption – Home Video Revolution

Part 5b (1975-1985): A Decade Of Disruption – Personal Audio Revolution

Part 5c (1975-1985): A Decade of Disruption – Personal Computing

Part 5d (1975-1985): A Decade of Disruption – 1984 ‘Phones It In’

Part 5e (1975-1985): A Decade of Disruption – 1984: Hollywood Loses The Battle Against Home Video – But Wins The War

Part 6a (1985-2000): Platform Wars – Recording Media

Part 6b (1985-2000): Platform Wars – Video Games

Part 6c (1985-2000): Platform Wars – Airways (Part 1)

Part 6c (1985-2000): Platform Wars – Airways (Part 2)

Part 6d (1985-2000): Platform Wars – Compression

Part 6e (1985-2000): Platform Wars – Digital Photography

Part 6f (1985-2000): Platform Wars – DVD

Part 6g (1985-2000): Platform Wars – HDTV (Part 1)

Part 6g (1985-2000): Platform Wars – HDTV (Part 2)

Posted in Tech History, TWICE | Tagged ABC, Admiral, Akio Morita, Apple, audio cassette, Beta, cassette, CBS, CEA, CEMA, CES, compact disc, Consumer Electronics Show, CTA, David Sarnoff, DynaTAC, Edwin Howard Armstrong, EIA, Engelbart, Fairchild, Gary Shapiro, GPS, Herbert Frost, hi-fi, IBM, Intel, Jack Wayman, JVC, LG, Masaru Ibuka, Matshusita, microchip, Microsoft, Mother of all Demos, Motorola, mouse, NBC, NTSC, Panasonic, Philo Farnsworth, phonograph, radio, Radio Manufacturers Association, RCA, RMA, Samsung, solid state, Sony, television, transistor, TV, VCR, VHS, video cassette, Zenith | Leave a comment

Happy 100th Birthday, Consumer Technology Business

Posted on 4 December 2020 by Stewart Wolpin

Celebrating the 100th birthday of the consumer technology industry with the story behind how and why our business came to be and of those responsible for creating it, in five parts:

Part 1: The Wireless Age

Part 2: A National Priority

Part 3: A Pittsburgh Radio Sensation

Part 4: The Birth of a Business

Part 5: “When The Public Is Ready For Mass Demand”

Posted in Tech History, TWICE | Tagged 1920, Consumer electronics, consumer technology, Consumer Technology Association, CTA, history, KDKA, Pittsburgh, radio, RCA, tech history, Westinghouse, WIRELESS | Leave a comment

How the Consumer Technology Industry Was Born

Posted on 1 December 2020 by Stewart Wolpin

What we now call the consumer technology industry was born November 30, 1920, when the first consumer electronics product, the two-piece RA-DA, the first commercially produced radio designed for the mass market, rolled off the Westinghouse assembly line in East Pittsburgh. After a two-year period of hectic technological, business and legislative/regulatory developments following the end of World War I, the Westinghouse RA-DA and the entire radio industry emerged, becoming the dominant consumer technology product for three decades. On the centennial of our industry, let’s take a look at the events of 1919-1920 that cleared the way for the future.

Part 1: The Day Radio Died

Part 2: How the Consumer Technology Industry Was Almost Never Born

Part 3: How President Wilson Shaped the Airways

Part 4: Happy 100th Birthday To The Consumer Technology Industry

Posted in Tech History | Tagged Alexanderson Alternator, consumer technology, Consumer Technology Association, GE, General Electric, Owen D. Young, radio, RCA, tech history, technology retailer, U.S. Navy, Westinghouse | Leave a comment

Versuni Enters North American Market With Small Appliance Portfolio

Posted on 24 September 2024 by Stewart Wolpin

Beginning with Philips-branded coffee and espresso makers, Versuni’s brand portfolio will expand with air fryers and garment cleaning devices in the coming months.

Read the rest of this story here at TWICE.com.

Posted in TWICE | Tagged coffee makers, espresso makers, garment care, Philips, small appliances, Versuni | Leave a comment

Will the AirPods Pro 2 Make Good Hearing Aids?

Posted on 23 September 2024 by Stewart Wolpin

Sometime in the next few weeks – or sooner – Apple will release a software update that will transform its popular AirPods Pro 2 into official FDA-authorized over-the-counter (OTC) self-fitting hearing aids.

So, if you think you need hearing aids, should you wait for the software upgrade or go ahead and buy a “normal” dedicated hearing aid, such as the new Sony CRE-C20 or one of the current Bluetooth-enabled OTC hearing aids such as the HP Hearing Pro?

Read the rest of this story here at Techlicious.com.

Posted in Apple, cell/smartphones, ear/headphones, OTC Hearing Aids, Techlicious | Tagged AirPods, AirPods Pro 2, Apple, FDA, hearing aids, OTC hearing aids, over the counter | Leave a comment

Review: Sony’s New CRE-C20 Are the Best OTC Hearing Aids I’ve Tested

Posted on 23 September 2024 by Stewart Wolpin

My biggest complaint about Sony’s first OTC hearing aids, the CRE-C10, was the in-ear buds being powered by annoying and tiny single-use hearing aid batteries.

Problem solved for Sony’s second generation CRE-C20 ($999.99).

Read the rest of this review here at Techlicious.com.

Posted in ear/headphones, OTC Hearing Aids, Techlicious | Tagged Bluetooth, CRE-C10, CRE-C20, hearing aids, over the counter, Sony | Leave a comment

Could Apple Disrupt OTC Hearing Aid Business?

Posted on 13 September 2024 by Stewart Wolpin

Pending software update will turn tens of millions of $250 AirPods Pro 2 into OTC hearing aids, which could force other makers to reconsider pricing and product.

Read the rest of this report here at TWICE.com.