Filed under: Home Entertainment

Remember Kerbango? In the early months of the decade, 3Com’s foray (via acquisition) into the then-nonexistent world of tabletop internet radios crashed and burned before it was ever even launched, a classic example of an arguably visionary product launching well, well ahead of its time. Over seven years have passed since the Kerbango Radio’s untimely death, but for whatever reason, the concept really hasn’t re-emerged on a grand scale. On the surface, it seems like a no-brainer: everyone has an alarm clock, many have bedside or kitchen radios, WiFi has since emerged as a ubiquitous cloud of high-speed data, and more people are listening to streamed audio than ever before — yet the market for these devices is still treated like a niche. What gives?

Continue reading Squeezebox Boom review

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Filed under: Home Entertainment

It’s been a month since we first caught a glimpse of the sharp-looking Logitech Squeezebox Boom, but the wireless network speakers are official today, coming in at a list price of $299. Yeah, it’s basically a standard-issue Squeezebox with a built-in amp and speakers, but that’s a pretty solid idea, especially since we’re guessing the 24-bit Burr Brown D/A converter and bi-amped 3-inch woofers and 3/4-inch tweeters will offer up some decent sound. Everything else is regular Squeezebox kit — 802.11g WiFi, SqueezeNetwork, optical and S/PDIF out, VFD display, 10/100Base-T Ethernet — so if you’re looking to expand your system, this is probably a pretty solid way of getting it done. Expect to see this one on shelves next month. One more pic after the break.

Continue reading Logitech Squeezebox Boom hits the stage

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