On CE - For Dealers, Distributors and OEMs of Consumer Electronics throughout EMEA

Taking care of house plants should not too difficult, right? Koubachi believes could be even easier-- by using a Wifi Plant Sensor to give your customers' plants a voice.

Users stick the sensor in the soil, where it measures soil moisture, temperature and light. Acting a bit like a Withings Scale for plants, it measures data (saving it on the cloud-based "Koubachi Plant Care Engine") and sends out alerts over wifi network or smartphone app to let users know when and how the plant needs care.

Koubachi says the sensor uses "individual plant care models," comes pre-calibrated and works in all common substrates. Setup is apparently painless (requiring a few simple steps) and power comes through x2 standard AA batteries with a battery life the company claims is over 1 year.

Go Koubachi Wifi Plant Sensor

Onkyo adds two 7.2 network-connected home theatre receivers to its mid-range series-- the TX-NR717 and TX-NR818, both carrying THX-certified sound.

The TX-NR818 also offers Audyssey MultEQ XT32 audio calibration and an "exclusive dual core engine," the HQV Vida VHD 1900 video processor. Using a Marvel Qdeo processor, it upscales all inputs to up to 1080p and digital sources to up to 4K resolutions.

Both receivers also include InstaPrevue and MHL (Mobile High Definition Link) technologies, DTS Neo:X, Dolby Pro Logic IIz and Audyssey DSX audio processing, x8 HDMI inputs (x1 front and x7 rear), x2 HDMI outputs, wifi and LAN connectivity and rear- and front-panel USB ports.

Onkyo also plans to release the UBT-1 USB Bluetooth adapter (allowing receivers to interact with a variety of mobile devices) and a new iOS remote control app enabling music streaming from iDevices.

Go Onkyo Mid-Range Home Cinema Receivers

The AirPlay speaker market gets a Logitech addition-- the UE Air Speaker, the first audio system from the company using the Apple wireless technology.

It streams uncompressed audio from either iDevices or laptops using available wifi networks and Logitech UE Air app.

Carrying a pair of tweeters and woofers, it also looks fairly good with subtle curves and a piano-black finish. A hideaway drawer also reveals an Apple dock connector, allowing users to either charge devices or play music from classic iPod models.

Go Logitech UE Air Speaker

The iPad might rule the tablet market, but the situation might change soon enough-- ABI Research predicts low cost (sub-$400) tablets will take over 60% of the market by 2016, while the over $400 segment shrinks.

The tablet market remains a booming segment 3 years after its general birth. Tablet models currently on sale total over 220 models ABI says, with the majority having sub-$400 price points.

Display sizes are also set to change-- while tablets with wide aspect displays (9" and over) account for 75% of total 2011 tablet shipments (mostly due to iPad 2 shipments) the analyst expects smaller (7-9") models to gain more ground in the future. How come? Customers preferring the more portable option, mainly.

ABI says eReaders will also remain relatively strong. The market offers over 30 different models from major vendors, while 2011 growth totals 33% Y-o-Y (with 2012 Y-o-Y growth to reach 20%). However the slow pace of digitisation of local content will continue holding both eReader and tablet adoption back in key emerging markets.

Go Apple Will Maintain Tablet Market Dominance in the Short Term, Low Cost Segment to Take 60% by 2016 (ABI Research)