For anyone who loves great audio devices, listen to your heart (and wallet)
Crisp, clear audio is the order of the day as visitors at Gitex Shopper 2017 scout for the best deals across the headphone, sound bar system and portable speaker categories.
Retailers at the exhibition are eager to cater to the demands of shoppers, and have unveiled a number of exclusive deals across various audio segments. One of the most popular devices in the market right now have been sound bar systems, experts at Emax noted.
“While JBL has launched a couple of devices in the sound bar segment, Harman Kardon has been the brand of choice for many shoppers over the years,” said Airis Jose, a promoter at the exhibition. “Of course, a lot of it depends on what type of budget you have, but many customers have been coming in after doing their research and they know which brands are the top performers in a given segment.”
Emax is currently offering shoppers at the exhibition a chance to purchase a sound bar system by Harman Kardon for Dh1,699. The offer also includes a free AKG noise cancelling headphone that is originally priced at Dh899. For shoppers with a tighter budget, of total smart watch shipments in 2021 will be in the kids’ segment Emax is offering a JBL SB250 sound bar at Dh1,499.
When it comes to headphones, Jose noted that the trend has been shifting in favour of noise cancelling devices. Offers at the exhibition in this segment range between Dh100 to Dh1,300. Skullcandy headphones have been proving to be a popular draw for visitors, with bundle deals ranging from Dh145 to Dh279.
However, musicians and audio enthusiasts who are prepared to invest in quality devices will have their eye on high-end brands such as AKG and Bose. Shoppers looking for premium products were drawn to Bose’s QuietComfort 35 headphones, which deliver on the brand’s promise of noise cancellation. Priced at Dh1,299, the wireless Bluetooth headphones promise more than 20 hours of battery life, and are available at both Emax and Jumbo.
Paolo Aglubat, a sales executive at Harman House, noted that the clear winner in the portable speaker segment was JBL. “They have 65 per cent of the market share in the UAE, and a wide range of products that that we are displaying here at Gitex.” Catering to adventure seekers, who enjoy getting their thrills to the beat of their favourite songs, is the waterproof JBL Flip4. Priced at Dh399 at the Jumbo stand, the device offers 12 hours of playtime and comes with a builtin microphone. More premium products in the segment include the new JBL Pulse 3 and the JBL
Many customers have been coming in after doing their research and they know which brands are the top performers in a given segment
Airis Jose, Promoter at Gitex Shopper
Xtreme priced at Dh999 and Dh1,299 respectively. Aglubat noted that the Pulse had been very well received by customers because of its 360 degree lightshow.
For dedicated musicians at the exhibition, the siren call was towards the Marshall lineup of speakers at Sharaf DG.
Nousheer Perne Yakoob, a promoter at Target One, the official retailer for Marshall in the region, said that the brand has a long history of excellence and is known by everyone in the music industry.
“It is the brand of choice for many international and wellknown artists, and that only adds to its popularity with buyers,” he said. “This Gitex, we have a special offer where customers, who buy any Marshall speaker above Dh1,000, will walk away with Marshall Major II headphones worth Dh419 for free.”
— rohma@khaleejtimes.com