Open Labs to Ship "Miko", First Professional Portable Media Workcenter on August 1, 2006

Press release
Source: Chris Pfaff Tech/Media LLC

Open Labs™, the leading designer and developer of computer-based music production solutions, today announced that will ship the MiKo™, a new class of portable digital media workcenter™ that is specifically designed for the modern-day electronic artist and today’s digital lifestyle, on August 1, 2006. The product will be available from select Open Labs distributors, and from the Open Labs online store at http://www.openlabs.com/store.htm. Open Labs will demonstrate production models of the MiKo at the Summer NAMM Session in Austin, at Booth #814 in the Austin Convention Center, from Friday, July 14-Sunday, July 16.

The Open Labs MiKo is the first portable digital music, video, and animation system that provides the power of a fully-loaded Windows XP™-based computer, a world-class synthesizer, a video mixer/recorder, and a broadband Internet hub in an affordable unit that retails for $2,499. The Open Labs MiKo was originally introduced at the Winter NAMM Conference in Anaheim in January.

“The MiKo is the true synthesis of the Open Labs vision, and it appeals to a very wide range of creative artists,” said Victor Wong, CEO and founder of Open Labs. “We are pleased to bring this breakthrough product to market, and look forward to a new kind of music-multimedia experience from our users.”

The Open Labs MiKo extends the power of Open Labs’ award-winning NeKo™, the music industry’s most powerful production stations, to a broader audience of users, which include DJs, VJs, music video hobbyists, and amateur musicians. At the heart of the Open Labs MiKo is a 64-bit single and dual core processor, which drives a powerful built-in, design-specific, full-featured, Windows XP™- based computer system. MiKo users can literally record, edit, mix, master, burn, and distribute their creations, whether high-definition video or 7.1 surround sound audio, on DVD or audio CD or send straight to the Internet, either through Ethernet or Wi-Fi.

The Open Labs MiKo is the first integrated portable digital media workcenter to provide a production hub for all digital artistic elements, including:

- the first portable production unit to support HD video

- a 37-note musical keyboard, with a 4-input/6-output, 24-bit/96 KHz audio section

- a 15” XGA LCD touchscreen

- support for non-linear video editing

- real-time controls, including a dedicated control section for DJ use

- interconnectivity for MP3 players, video players, digital camcorders

- expanded podcasting capabilities, as well as support for high-quality playback of digital music and video files via the Internet with full 7.1 surround sound.

MiKo features Open Labs’ suite of applications – Karsyn™, mFusion™, and the Open Labs Navigator™ - which are a breakthrough set of technologies that allow users to control different musical keyboard devices and software packages through a single interface. Together, they create a clean, efficient environment for creation and performance. Instead of a complicated general-purpose computing environment, MiKo presents a streamlined user experience ideally suited for efficiency in the studio, and clarity and speed on stage.

“The boundless energy embodied by today’s digital artists is captured in the MiKo, and the price point now enables an even greater number of users to participate in this unique user experience,” said Craig Negoescu, chief architect of Open Labs. “We have created a product that can embrace all media types in a single unit and inspire collaborative sessions on a scale never before seen.”

Included with each MiKo is the Open Labs sound library, which contains more than 5,000 preset sounds and hundreds of effects, as well as Cubase LE for direct- to-disk recording and mastering.

About mFusion
mFusion is the latest software component of the Open Labs OpenSynth™ platform, which is used in the Open Labs NeKo, OMX™, and MiKo lines of keyboards, digital audio workstations, and digital media workcenters. mFusion is a set of software technologies along with a control panel that allows the user to easily navigate, access, and remap control surfaces for all Open Labs control panels as well as all third-party MIDI control devices. mFusion will be shipped preinstalled in all Open Labs products as well as future products from Open Labs’ growing list of development partners.

With mFusion, users merely need to touch a knob or slider to begin the process. A wide variety of options are available for each control type. For example, a button can send a MIDI note-on, initiate a program change, keystroke, or even launch an application. This versatility extends to encoders, knobs, faders, drum pads, and many other common control types, with the ability to address and remap up to thousands of controllers simultaneously.

mFusion’s unified approach further benefits existing music computing applications. mFusion takes multiple MIDI devices and exposes the system to only one device, creating a virtual gateway with multiple extensions, thereby making it possible for music programs that can only access one controller to gain full access to multiple controllers.

About Open Labs
Open Labs designs and markets tools for performing and recording musicians of every level of expertise. The company’s products, OMX and NeKo, are the first keyboards and computers to incorporate 64-bit computer processing technology into single-unit tools that can simultaneously play, record, mix, and master high-quality digital audio and effects. Open Labs, formed in 2002, combines decades of expertise in computer technology, keyboard technology, and product design. The company is headquartered in Austin, Texas. For more information, visit the Web site at www.openlabs.com.