Polk Audio is at your 'command'
Polk Audio, an award-winning designer of high-performance audio products with a 40 plus-year legacy of sound engineering and design and the largest audio brand of Sound United, has recently introduced the Polk Command Bar at CES 2018. The Polk Command Bar is the first announced voice-controlled sound bar with the Amazon Alexa Voice Service built in. It delivers the power and convenience of Amazon Alexa in a superior home theater solution that produces loud, ric audio ideal for movies, music and wireless music streaming.
The Polk Command Bar is the new heart of the smart home theater. It boasts integrated far-field microphones atop the sound bar to easily control master volume, mute, bass, sound modes and source selection with voice commands through the Polk Connect Skill. In addition, the Polk Command Bar includes a dedicated HDMI port designed to fit Amazon Fire TV devices and other HDMI streaming devices with wide form factors. With the Alexa Voice Service integrated into the Polk Command Bar, customers can use their voice to control Fire TV, connected smart home devices and the sound bar. Simple setup in mind, a built-in USB port in the rear panel can power compatible Fire TV devices. The device also supports a full set of smart home skills to control lights, locks and HVAC in addition to a variety of Amazon Alexa-supported music services (including Amazon Music) and can even read books from Audible.
“Intelligent voice services like Amazon Alexa have fundamentally transformed how we interact with our surrounding. However until now, the home theater was devoid of an elegant solution,” said Kevin Duffy, CEO and president, Sound United. “For the past year, we worked to develop a sound bar that profoundly changes how we interact with the home entertainment experience. The result is a product that produces Polk Audio-quality sound for movies and music, while simultaneously delivering voice control not yet found in a traditional sound bar.”
Details and Features
Amazon Alexa Voice Control: At launch, customers will be able to simply ask Alexa to play music, control smart home devices, provide information, read the news, set alarms, read audiobooks from Audible, control Amazon Video on Fire TV and more. It also features Universal control via HDMI CEC, IR Remote and Alexa voice commands. Alexa is always getting smarter and the Polk Command Bar receives automated over-the-air updates to provide customers access to new services and features.
Connectivity: Polk Audio’s Command Bar is Wi-Fi and Bluetooth-enabled and has a full suite of wired inputs, two built-in 4k HDMI 2.0b inputs (Dolby Vision, HDR10 and HDCP 2.2 compliant), one HDMI (ARC) output and optical input for TV audio. It also ships with both HDMI and optical cables.
Polk Voice Adjust for Crystal Clear Dialogue: Polk’s proprietary dialogue-enhancing technology, Voice Adjust, allows consumers to isolate and adjust the voice channel for clear, crisp vocals.
4K TV Compatible: Works with 4K and HDTVs - plus, built-in dual HDMI 2.0b inputs ensure 4K HDR content looks great.
Polk Smart Remote Compatibility: Whether connecting via Optical or HDMI cable, Polk Command Bar features built-in support for popular IR TV remotes from Samsung, LG, Sony and Vizio. It is also compatible with most CEC-enabled TVs.
Optimized Sound Modes: The Polk Command Bar is outfitted with several preset sound modes for Night, Movies, Music and Sports, which optimize the sound bar and subwoofer levels to ensure owners get the clearest dialogue, big room-filling sound and deep bass.
Simple Mounting: Designed for both tabletop and wall-mounting with built-in keyholes slots, the Polk Command Bar is easily mountable anywhere in the living room.
“Voice is an incredibly natural way to interact with your home, and we’re excited to work with Polk Audio to bring customers a new Alexa experience for the home theater,” said Dave Limp, Senior Vice-President of Devices and Services at Amazon. “With the new Polk Command Bar, customers get great sound quality and Alexa voice control for an even better entertainment experience.
The Polk Command Bar ushers in a new era of home theater connectivity, performance and control. It will be made available in the spring of 2018, it will retail in the U.S. for $299.95. If you would like to see more information on the Command Bar visit their page on the Polk Audio website you can also sign up to be notified for when pre-order is made available.
