Gadgets :: September 4, 2019
by Gregg Ellman
(@greggellman)
Creative’s Nova Wi-Fi multi-room smart speaker is a great multi-function device, with portability to carry from room to room with ease.
There are a lot of great features, but what stands out is the room-filling sound with a 5-driver speaker. When I say room-filling, I mean your average household room. The volume cranks up to a high level with good sound at high and low settings. The sound system includes dual bass radiators, dual far field drivers and a built-in woofer.
The battery-powered speaker is good for up to 7-hours of use, but will vary depending on the volume and how much you use the other functions.
For wireless, the Nova has Bluetooth and Wi-Fi along with an Aux-in connection. The Nova’s Wi-Fi connects to your home Wi-Fi for the-free standing speaker access Amazon Alexa, which can be as simple as getting a weather report or selecting a playlist from iHeartRadio.
If your home is equipped with smart home devices, Nova can access Alexa to control lights, thermostats or even open the garage door.
Another-eye catching feature is that the outside of the Nova glows with a 16.8 million color ambient lamp, which glows different colors for mood lighting or have the sleep timer just fade the light and music off in the time you do the same. And if you really like going to bed with the music/light show, you can set it to wake up to the same.
A Sound and Light Spa feature plays relaxation sounds, which can be customized as a pre-set with the app.
I only used one Nova for my testing but according to Creative’s website, you can “Play music on one Nova or synchronize Nova speakers wirelessly via Wi-Fi. Stream music directly online without connecting your phone, so the music goes on even when there is a call.”
With the easy to use Sound Blaster InterConnect companion app, your smartphone turns into your music remote control to choose the music you want and in which rooms rooms equipped with Nova’s you want it to play.
A carrying handle and an iP55 water and dust resistant outside are great portability features for indoors, on the beach or getting caught at a picnic rain shower.
https://us.creative.com/ $139.99
The Mixcder HD901 premium Bluetooth headphones are not going to produce the sound like some of the top of the line high priced headphones. Nor will they cost hundreds of dollars. But the Mixcder HD901 is gonna sound pretty good and make you even happier when you see the price.
They weigh just 5-ounces and features everything you need. This includes 40mm drives, an adjustable headband, soft ear cups and folding for great portability.
Mixcder gets the smooth sound from an advanced CSR chip, which delivers high-definition, clean, smooth audio with a balanced mid-range and deep bass.
The headphones have Bluetooth or you can used them wired with the included 3.5mm audio cable in the Aux in port to play music with a direct wired connection. Another option, which I almost never see in headphones is a memory card slot built right into the headphones. 
The TF Card slot can take you loaded memory card for MP3 music. And before you ask, the card slot will also take a more commonly used MircroSD memory card, which has the same dimensions. With the memory card feature, tunes are really on-the-go without a media source.
The Mixcder HD901 also has built-in microphones for answering handsfree calls.
https://mixcder.com $18.99
