2007 Winter NAMM Show: Open Labs announced the Gen 3 series of MiKo Mobile ProductionCenter products, with powerful upgrades to the MiKo SE and MiKo LX.

Open Labs had these on display at the NAMM show, and a little hands-on time revealed that they were more than the sum of their parts. The MiKo is small enough and light enough that it could easily be used as a complete portable DJ or electronica performance setup, but it’s big enough to provide usable hands-on interactivity.
The Open Labs Gen 3 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. Open Labs will sell the standard version of the MiKo, the MiKo SE, for $2,999 and the fully-loaded version, the MiKo LX, for $3,499.

“The MiKo has captured the imagination of a wide range of musical artists; it is simple enough to demonstrate in a dealer’s shop and complex enough to perform every kind of multimedia session that a user could want,” said Tom Linklater, vice president of sales for Open Labs. “The MiKo SE and MiKo LX represent a new breakthrough product for the market, and we will be able to satisfy all requests for what is a tremendous mobile production instrument.”

Here’s the MiKo details….

The MiKo is designed to extend the power of Open Labs’ award-winning NeKo 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 built-in Windows XP- based computer system. MiKo users can 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 MiKo SE includes:

• 37-key synth keyboard
• 1.8 GHz Core2 Duo Intel processor
• 1 GB RAM
• 160 GB HD/DVD burner
• VGA Out for dual monitors
• Audio 4in-6out with mic preamps
• 15-inch touchscreen plus assignable Alpha and DJ controllers
• QWERTY keyboard
• MiKo SE software bundle

Also included is the Open Labs Karsyn VST host for limitless sounds; Cubase LE for recording, and Traktor LE for DJing.

The MiKo LX includes:

• 37-key synth keyboard
• 2.1 GHz Core2 Duo Intel processor
• 2 GB RAM
• 250 GB HD/DVD burner
• VGA Out for dual monitors
• Audio 4in-6out with mic preamps
• 15-inch touchscreen plus assignable Alpha and DJ controllers
• QWERTY keyboard
• MiKo LX software bundle
• Mimik keyboard cloning software

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
• 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 – technologies that allow users to control different musical keyboard devices and software packages through a single interface. Together, they create an efficient environment for creation and performance. MiKo presents a streamlined user experience ideally suited for efficiency in the studio, and clarity and speed on stage.

“The MiKo is a game-changer for today’s digital artists, and the new MiKo SE and MiKo LX capture all of the essential features for a single-unit multimedia unit at a competitive price point,” Craig Negoescu, chief architect of Open Labs. “We have generated tremendous interest from our initial MiKo product, and can now address an even wider audience with these new units.”

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.

The Open Labs MiKo was originally introduced at the Winter NAMM Conference in Anaheim in January, 2006.