Archive for December, 2010

Samsung HW-C450 Soundbar Speaker

Samsung HW-C450 Soundbar Speaker

List Price: $ 349.99
Price: $279.00

Amplify your listening pleasure with the slim, compact HT-450 Sound Bar. Difficult room configurations are not a problem – the HT-450 can be mounted on the wall, with the wireless subwoofer placed anywhere in the room to achieve maximum audio impact. Connect to your HDTV, then sit back and enjoy the show, enhanced by 280 watts of 2.1 channel virtual surround sound.

Features

  • 2.1 Channel
  • Wireless Active Subwoofer
  • Optical Input
  • Smart Volume
  • Virtual Surround (C451 will have a brushed aluminum finish to match TV)

Customer Reviews

115 of 121 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best Soundbar on the Market for the price…, March 31, 2010
By
This review is from: Samsung HW-C450 Soundbar Speaker (Electronics)

Ok let’s start by telling you, that I am not just some guy doing a review. I have purchased and tested 3 other Soundbars and tested all the rest in the stores… First was the Vizio Bar – Ok sound, but did not produce a real surround sound effect. And I was able to max… out the volume at 3am in the morning with out waking anyone up… Needless to say it ain’t all that loud… Although it had easy one wire hookup with a fiber optic cable… Second was the Sony HTC100 with HDMI hookups. This one was loved for it”s ease to hookup HMDI components straight to it and it acted as a switch. The big thing is, this unit was horrible on sound. I turned it up to it’s max of 50 and could still hear my dishwasher in the background… As a matter of fact when me and best buy guy Dave tried it, we could talk over it on max vol… Now for the Samsung HW-C450: Amazing – amazing- amazing… This unit out did all the others on volume of only 26 with a max of I don’t know (I think 60), because I’m afraid to turn it up because it may bust the speakers it’s so loud… This Sound bar is great for the person who knows nothing about 5.1 and 7.2 channel theater systems. You will be very happy. Now I am a owner of a old Sherwood Receiver and 5.1 Dolby Surround System, with Cerwin Vega speakers… And it doesn”t give the back noise as great, but it definitely stands it’s ground for a one pc speaker… Now for someone who knows about theater systems, don’t get scare, this is the best low cost unit you can get and you will be amazed, but all I’m saying is, don’t expect a 5.1 Dolby Sound from this. It is amazing sound, but doesn’t hit every corner like your seperate speakers will. Now for design, A+++… Samsung gets thumbs up from me. It’s not a big as the others @38″ I think… But this thing hits harder then the rest. But the look is classy with revealed speakers with the crome tone tips… Just nice… Oh and I almost forgot it’s touch operated, which is a nice added feature… Now for room size, mine covers a petty good sized family room. And still rattles the walls upstairs. And clearly heard outside the house. This one has 2 options for sound hook up, Analog RCA (Provided) and Fiber Optic (Provided). I opted for Fiber Optic, because my TV automatically sends the sound from the TV to the Soundbar. Which is the easiest thing for me, because it saves you from having to hook up and waste money on a receiver. All you would have to do if you had all HDMI hookup (Seeing if your TV didn’t already have enough of them) is buy a HDMI switch from online or Best Buy. I use my Cable box HDMI, Blu Ray Player HDMI, DVD/VCR HMDI. But if you havee more things like Wii, Xbox360, etc. The switch will help you send the signal to the TV. I have not found any negatives with the unit as of yet. It has played both, burned DVDs well and regular ones with great sound… So there has not been any problems… Great sound, Great look, and Great price… And the Wireless Sub is fantastic. Use Cinema for Music, not Music… Under the equalizer. Has about 5 options…

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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Looks good, sounds good, easy to setup!, May 23, 2010
By
D. Lam (California) – See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
Amazon Verified Purchase(What’s this?)
This review is from: Samsung HW-C450 Soundbar Speaker (Electronics)

Bought this soundbar to go along with my 52″ Samsung LCD. What a big improvement over the TV speakers! Watched 2 Blu-ray movies with it already and was very impressed by the sound. It was very easy to hookup. Just used the provided optical cable to connect the sound bar to the TV. Plugged in the subwoofer, plugged in the soundbar, turned on…. and the sub was instantly connected to the soundbar. It was up and running literally in minutes. The volume of the soundbar can be controlled by the TV remote so that’s nice. You may or may not want to turn off the TV speakers. The problem with turning off your TV speakers is it will say “not available” on your TV when you adjust the volume with the TV remote, but that is a minor problem.

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24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Pretty good, syncing needs to be better, July 9, 2010
Amazon Verified Purchase(What’s this?)
This review is from: Samsung HW-C450 Soundbar Speaker (Electronics)

The sound from this system is great. Not necessarily surround sound, but it’s much better than the tv speakers. I have this connected to a new Samsung TV. When using the TV speakers AND the SoundBar unit together it sounds like you are in a cave. I use the soundbar exclusively now, with the TV speakers turned off. My biggest complaint is that every once in a while the TV remote, and the SoundBar remote do not work. You can hit every button on the soundbar remote, or the volume on the tv remote, and it does nothing. This problem does not happen all the time, just randomly. It could happen twice in an hour or once a week. Every once in a while it also switches itself from Dital 1 input to the Digital 2 input (which there is nothing connected to). This usually happens in the middle of a movie, and again, it’s totally random. Most of the time I love this soundbar, MOST of the time.

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Sony SSF-7000 Floor-Standing 4-way Speaker with 8″ Woofer (Pair)

List Price: $ 350.00
Price:

The ultra-powerful SS-F7000 floor-standing speakers will refresh your appreciation for music. With pristine sound reproduction and high-quality drivers, these speakers bring new life to your music collection. Just as the original composer intended, the sound quality is so rich you feel like you’re at a private concert. Lows, mid-ranges and high tones are recreated in high resolution audio, making even the most subtle sounds music to your ears.

Features

  • Newly developed 8″ mica reinforced woofer
  • 8″ enhanced H.O.P. cone woofer
  • 3.25″ mid-driver
  • 1″ Nano-Fine balanced dome tweeter
  • 200-watt maximum input power

Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Speakers At A Great Price!, October 3, 2007
By
Cory “Spend time with your kids. It won’t be… (College Station, Texas. Home of the Fighting Texas Aggies!) – See all my reviews
This review is from: Sony SSF-7000 Floor-Standing 4-way Speaker with 8″ Woofer (Pair) (Electronics)

Purchased and Received these speakers just a couple days ago. The free shipping was great considering the weight of the speakers.

They are great! No complaints here. I was upgrading from my original aiwa speakers (made by sony) in my home entertainment system. The difference is amazing. Highs mids and lows are all great. I always recommend a powered sub woofer, I do have one. However, if you get these speakers you can get by without one.

My listening interests are varied. I have listened to Kiss, ELO, The Hollies, Peter Frampton, Supertramp and some classical on these speakers so far. I have also viewed a couple movies using them. All sounded great. “Do You, (Feel Like I Do) sounded GREAT! All the ELO was crisp, clean and clear. The only “booming,” as mentioned in the other review, that I heard was while listening to “Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress” by the Hollies. However, it did appear to be a bass sound that was appropriate with the song, not anything abnormal. But then again, it may just be different taste.

Oh, and the picture shows the speaker as looking more of a grey than black. They are black, not the grey like the picture shows. that is good since my tv and all my entertaiment system units are all black.

My advice is you cannot go wrong with these. If anything changes I will update.

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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best bang for your buck, February 18, 2008
By
Lee (Front Royal, Va United States) – See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What’s this?)
This review is from: Sony SSF-7000 Floor-Standing 4-way Speaker with 8″ Woofer (Pair) (Electronics)

I bought these because a consumer magazine rated the performance of this model’s predecessor a “best buy” in floor standing speakers. They even beat out some very expensive Polks for sonic accuracy. After getting them installed, they didn’t disappoint. Excellent highs and more than adequate bass especially considering the price paid.

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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good for Music, Better for Movies, September 3, 2008
This review is from: Sony SSF-7000 Floor-Standing 4-way Speaker with 8″ Woofer (Pair) (Electronics)

The first thing you will notice when you get these is the size (Height) these are defiantly “towers” in every regard. I have owned many speakers throughout the years, but not many had the full range clarity these do, they seem to ‘come alive’ on just about anything video games, Movies, Music, ect.. and they can get LOUD if you wire them correctly. I am no stereo guru but I know great sound when I here it, I scoped the more higher end stuff first, everything from Polk, Infinity, Kef, Omnisat, even Focal which was featured in stereo review this year. It is amazing to think these are SONY speakers, for one I’d never been a fan of their products but this does not sound like sony! add that to the many good reviews = Me buying them and Im glad i did! sure you can get ‘better speakers’ i.e. a little bit more ‘boom’ but for you buck you will not find anything even remotely as good as these. All in all it depends what your listening tastes are if your into Rock you will love these because of the crystal highs and a good ‘punch’ of Bass to fill your room or whatever. Movies on the other hand, is where these shine it’s probably been said many times before but when viewing a movie you hear things that you may have never herd before the multi-faceted range is amazing it is a “Things are coming at you” (you are in the action) type of feeling, and if you have a Sub (I recommend the SW-12 Infinity) forget about going to the movies your at the movies! Just make sure you have the right hook-up Monster Cable is a must. The only thing I did not like about these is the cheesy puny wires it comes with you need THICK wires for good sound reproduction, other then that these are a steal for the money nobody and I mean nobody (to my knowledge) has put out something with this good of quality sound plus the price to top it off. It’s like ‘paying for a SONY product’ the only difference is that your getting POLK AUDIO Sound!!! Absolutely Recommended. Just wanted to add you can use them as fronts or surrounds dose not matter they sound good either way. Don’t be a fool and spend hundreds more Buy Them while you can!

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    Pioneer VSX-1020-K 7.1 Home Theater Receiver

    Pioneer VSX-1020-K 7.1 Home Theater Receiver

    List Price: $ 599.00
    Price: $360.98

    Key Features are 110 Watts X 7, 7 Channel Configurable Amplifier, Surround Back. Dolby Pro-logic IIz or B Speaker, Dolby True-HD / DTS-HD Master Audio and Advanced MCACC. It has a 9 Band EQ. Auto Crossover Setting, USB to PC Graphs, PQLS – 2 Channel, Auto Level Control – Multi-Channel, Sound Retriever AIR – Multi- channel. It has a Internet radio. iPod Digital USB / USB Memory Audio. Its iPhone Certified, Sirius Satellite Radio, HDMI Repeater (6 In / 1 out), Analog to HDMI Video Conver

    Features

    • Front USB connectivity provide iPod, touch, and iPhone users ultimate plug-and-play integration of their Apple products with their home theater
    • Simple connectivity to high-performance HD video, HD audio, portable, internet, wireless, and analog components
    • The latest version of HDMI inputs and outputs provide more HD connectivity options with “future-proof” 3-D capability
    • 1080p video conversion and upscaling ensures the highest quality video from any source

    Customer Reviews

    73 of 73 people found the following review helpful:
    5.0 out of 5 stars
    Outstanding Bang for the Buck, Future Proof (7.1 & 3D), iPhone App is Great, Buy an Airport Express Too, May 20, 2010
    This review is from: Pioneer VSX-1020-K 7.1 Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)

    I tend to do a lot of research before making large purchasing decisions and so far this receiver is receiving a pretty rosy reception! Its successor, the 1019, was CNET’s and Gizmodo’s top mid-range receiver. Both reviewers had just as high hopes for the 1020, and Gizmodo already called it the best receiver 0 can buy, saying the 1020 “hit the sweet spot” that gave the most bang for buyer’s buck.

    The critics I read all raved about the excellent sound quality, but the 1020 brings some new offerings to the table for a mid-range receiver.

    In short, the most valuable features you get with this model that you don’t get with the next step down are:

    1. A fifth HDMI port in back, an extra sixth in front (for digital cameras, computers, etc.).

    2. Analog video upscaling (which I don’t care too much about since most of my content is HD already or played through an upscaling player).

    3. The iContolAV iPhone app. Very cool for controlling volume and switching inputs. Works simply by having your receiver connected to ethernet and your iPhone connected to the network via WiFi. A few times the app has had trouble properly connecting, but it usually works well.

    4. Internet radio with programmable stations, which is cool, though you can’t currently control the station selections from the iPhone App, unfortunately.

    5. A color configuration interface output to your TV via the HDMI output. I can’t imagine trying to configure all my speakers without seeing a graphical representation of their location on screen.

    That last feature feature, the HDMI 1.4 ports that support 3D, the 7.1 surround capabilities, excellent sound quality and the iPhone App are what made the VSX-1020 the clear choice for me. I also appreciated the automatic calibration with the included microphone and the included iPod cable/compatibility, but those weren’t as strong of selling points.

    The only negatives of note for me is that the little front port cover is a little cheap. It’s not even a door, simply a little plastic piece that pops out if you push one side. I, like others, have also experienced the issue where the receiver switches to TV/Sat when first turned on, but I’ve yet to determine whether that’s a problem with the receiver itself or my Harmony universal remote (I’ll update the review as I get more information).

    One last tip to buyers, however. If you’re considering listening to your phone’s music over Bluetooth by buying the AS-BT100 adapter, I’d consider buying a Apple Airport Express instead (assuming your music is managed through iTunes). It lets you stream music from your computer to the receiver over WiFi and control what’s playing via iTunes or Apple’s robust “Remote” iPhone app, but more importantly the Airport Express acts as a USB print server and a one port wireless bridge (something that lets you connect wired devices to a wireless network).

    That wireless bridge capability is especially valuable, since you’ll need it or something similar for internet radio and iControlAV iPhone app support if your VSX-1020 receiver isn’t close to your wireless router (mine isn’t). Buying the Airport Express kills two birds with one stone.

    UPDATE:

    A few ideas have been thrown out by other Amazon posters to help alleviate the issue with the receiver switching to TV/Sat when it first turns on. The first idea is to change the receiver’s settings thusly:

    “1 Press Receiver , then press Home Menu.

    2 Select `System Setup’, then press ENTER.

    3 Select `Other Setup’, then press ENTER.

    4 Select `HDMI Setup’, then press ENTER.

    5. Set Control to ‘Off’.”

    The second idea is to adjust your TV settings like so.

    “Go into Menu under HDMI-CEC and turn it Off. If the set is a Samsung look for AnyNet+ (default is normally On) and turn it Off.”

    I’m still having issues going directly to a given HDMI input when the unit first power on (going to “HDMI Input 1″ simply toggles the current HDMI input instead of going directly to the one you want), but I’ve made the quirk tolerable by programming one of the buttons on my universal remote to toggle inputs, so it’s easy to fix.

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    59 of 61 people found the following review helpful:
    4.0 out of 5 stars
    Very good performance and versatility with a few shortcomings, May 10, 2010
    This review is from: Pioneer VSX-1020-K 7.1 Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)

    I picked up a 1020 over the weekend. I have been building custom cabinetry and needed a slimmer (and cooler) receiver for our secondary viewing room and the 1020 seemed to fit the bill in large part based upon a pleasant experience with the 919/1019 and the elite 21.

    For reference, the 1020 is replacing an Onkyo 1007, which I really enjoyed, but was a bit big for the cabinet and largely unused with a baby’s bedroom nearly adjacent to the area. Keep in mind, the Onkyo weighs 52 lbs and draws nearly 11 amps – not a fair fight between the two.

    In comparison to the 1019/919 (which powers my second and third zones), the 1020 looks very similar, but Pioneer removed the blue led power button (they did the same with the bdp-320 from the 51fd last year as well). The front panel buttons have been reconfigured slightly, but overall the two look very similar.

    I have the 1020 configured as 5.1 plus wides. The speaker setup was pretty easy, but it appears that setting it up as normal plus wides would prevent you from operating Zone 2 despite the manual saying the contrary.

    In terms of audio quality, the receiver sounds very good and similar to the 1019/919. That said, when turned louder (say -5db), it appears to lose its legs a bit sooner than the 1019. I heard a bit more distortion in playing music loudly (i was alternating the same speakers and source via speaker switch before I had the two connected). That said, I would think most folks would not be able to tell a difference at normal volume levels, but the power draw cut from last year does seem to manifest itself at loud levels in my amateurish testing. Please do not try to pull every thread in my comparison – just an average guy comparing the two side by side.

    Running MCACC was as simple as other pioneer models, but the system did seem to be a bit too generous as to the speaker size of the speakers in my setup (audyssey classified them as small and set the individual speaker crossovers at 100hz). I have been using the wide listening mode and have found it reasonably effective in providing a broader sound array for the wide room. I will need more critical listening time to compare it to Audyssey DSX’s wide presence processing mode. Overall, I am pleased with the sound quality of the 1020, but it could benefit by a bit more power. I would caution about tying to drive large or inefficient speakers with this receiver if your listening preferences are very loud.

    The remote is an improvement in that it is learning, but a step back in dark room navigation. Yes the keys glow in the dark, but labels are small and difficult to quickly identify. It is miles ahead of Denon’s odd remotes, but lacks some of the simple and easy to identify buttons of Onkyo.

    The receiver has run cooly, which is an improvement from the space-heater my Onkyo could be.

    The receiver does offer a really good listening experience for a very light (and presumably efficient) unit. That said, I do lament a few things: onscreen osd – at least volume/source/audio codec; a slightly ergonomic remote; and assignable speakers to let you customize presence and zone 2.

    Overall, I am happy with the unit and pleasantly surprise how cooly it runs.

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    64 of 69 people found the following review helpful:
    3.0 out of 5 stars
    Packed with features but does have some flaws, June 10, 2010
    By
    Rich Gold (Raleigh, NC) – See all my reviews
    (REAL NAME)
    This review is from: Pioneer VSX-1020-K 7.1 Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)

    This thing is loaded with features. My favorite by far is playing internet radio directly from an internet connection. It has an easy way to program and rename stations from an http site. It has a nice glossy front and runs really cool especially compared to my old Onkyo oven. The iphone control is pretty cool although it would be nice if you could turn on the receiver from the iphone app. It plays an ipod well and does display cover art for music although very small. It’s pretty cool that you can use a standard USB cable to connect an ipod as well as some other USB devices (Haven’t played with that). I do wish the USB input was on the back. I have an ipod dock that i want to leave plugged in and it looks pretty bad plugged into the front.

    This thing switches inputs relatively quickly and can scroll through audio settings without long interruptions in sound. Powering up on the other hand is extremely sluggish. I timed 40 seconds from power up to get picture and sound rolling. I really like that you can customize the input names although the method of scrolling through each letter takes a while. It’s also nice to be able to hide some inputs so that you don’t have to scroll through a bunch of inputs that are never used when scanning through.

    The remote is setup like a universal remote. You have to select a specific mode for most inputs. Say you’re in ipod mode, you have to go back into receiver mode to use many of the settings buttons. This makes it very difficult to program a universal remote to control the receiver. you have to have a different set of arrow commands programmed for each input. Also, for programming a universal remote. All inputs have a separate button that you can program except of course HDMI inputs which are the ones I use. To select one of the 5 HDMI inputs you can continually press the HDMI button to get the one you want which is not a good method when you just want to hit one button to get to the correct input. There is a backwards way to reassign the analog input selection to use an HDMI input then rename it, but it takes some work. It is impressive that the included remote can be programmed for other devices and can even learn commands and perform simple macros.

    The display on the unit I received has a small thread of some sort hanging down inside the display. This is probably just rare defect but it is annoying when looking at the display.

    HDCP ERROR

    I see this message flash multiple times on the display every time I power on. This is some kind of copyright nonsense built into HDMI cables. Although all HDMI inputs on my TV are HDCP compliant and I have used the same HDMI cables on a previous receiver without issues I had all kinds of problems getting my receiver to work at all because of this error. Time and time again I would be watching TV and then without touching anything I would see this error, then no inputs would work and it would take a while for anything to come back up. After playing with lots of setting and trying multiple cables and inputs on my TV now I just get the error without losing picture and sound. The manual says this: “Some components that are compatible with HDCP still cause this message to be displayed, but so long as there is no problem with displaying video, this is not a malfunction.” Ummm, sorry Pioneer but when an error is displayed incorrectly that is called a bug and IS a problem. I’m sure they are being forced by law to incorporate this HDCP stuff in their unit but they are doing a very poor job.

    Zone 2

    Buying this receiver I had a plan to wire an adjacent room as a zone 2 so that I could play music in that other room. Unfortunately the zone 2 feature on this unit does not work with any digital inputs. Because I have everything connected via HDMI this makes zone 2 a worthless feature to me. As an alternative I decided to hook up the other room to the Speaker B connection. This won’t allow me to listen to two different inputs simultaneously as zone 2 does, but at-least I can listed to digital inputs in the other room when I want. The problem is for some reason the speaker selection cannot be controlled with the remote. So I have to walk to the receiver to select to use Speaker B and then walk back to turn it off That may not sound like much, but part of my plan was to use an RF remote to control the music in the other room while in the other room. There is just no way to really get this unit to perform in such a scenario.

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    Logitech Squeezebox Radio Music Player with Color Screen (Black)

    List Price: $ 179.99
    Price: $144.19

    Logitech Squeezebox Radio brings a world of music—free Internet radio, subscription services, or your personal digital music collection—to any space in your home, over your Wi-Fi network.

    Features

    • Listen to infinite music, news and sports from every corner of the globe with this
      easy-to-use, all-in-one Wi-Fi music player–all without a computer
    • Start listening to free Internet radio stations, online music services, and your personal iTunes collection in minutes–connects easily to your home network via Wi-Fi
    • Bring full, high-quality sound to any room with an ultra-compact design that fits easily on your night table or kitchen counter
    • Just turn the dial to browse radio stations, music tracks and even album art, displayed on the full-color screen
    • Recommend music to Facebook friends instantly right from your Squeezebox

    Customer Reviews

    373 of 378 people found the following review helpful:
    3.0 out of 5 stars
    Great functionality and sound but needs some work, November 1, 2009
    This review is from: Logitech Squeezebox Radio Music Player with Color Screen (Black) (Electronics)

    I am a long time owner of Squeezebox products and was pretty excited to find out about the little table top Squeezebox Radio model. I picked one up and thought I would share my thoughts.

    The first thing you notice is how much heft this little player has. It is really well built and the fit and finish is superb. It has plenty of weight and solid rubber feet so that it won’t skid around on your night stand or table top. The screen looks great and all of the buttons have a nice solid tactile feel. Compared to many other cheap wireless network streaming radios, this device feels an entire order of magnitude better in its construction quality. The only disappointment here is the lack of back lit buttons, for using the radio in low lighting. It’s also worth noting that the entire radio has a high gloss finish that will be a magnet for fingerprints. Looks great though!

    The biggest challenge for most consumers with this device will be the initial set up. You need to create an account at [...] in order to set up your new Squeezebox Radio. The device uses this connection to play free internet music services as well as download software updates, etc, to the Radio. I already had a Squeezebox account so this was not a huge challenge for me, but it might be for some people who might be confused that they need to set up an account before they can use the device. There is an option to set up the account from the device itself. Don’t do this (it is slow and tedious)! Go to the website and set it up in a few seconds and then just type your login and password on the device.

    Other than the laborious task of entering my full email and password for [...] the rest of the setup is very easy. The Squeezebox Radio supports push to connect wi-fi set up which is common on many newer model wireless routers. It’s similar to programming a garage door opener. Simply point the Squeezebox Radio at your wireless network and for 120 seconds it will try to connect with the push to connect functionality. Then just push the connect button on your router and it’s automagically all set up.

    Once set up the Radio will update its firmware and reboot, a process that takes a few extra minutes. After that you are good to go.

    In addition to the many built in free online services, you can also play your own music through the Squeezebox Server application. I run the Squeezebox Server application on my HP EX495 Windows Home Server but you can also run Squeezebox Server on any Mac, Windows PC or even Linux box (there are even installable distributions for many Network Attached Storage units). This allows the Squeezebox Radio (and any other Squeeze players) to access all of the music on my home network. It’s absolutely wonderful to be able to take the little table top radio anywhere in the home and listen to your entire music collection.

    Sound quality is very good, easily enough to fill a small to medium sized room. It gets quite loud with little to no distortion and the controls are easy to use to change tracks, change volume, etc. Wireless strength is superb. I get a full signal anywhere within about 40 feet of my router, and the radio works anywhere on my suburban property with no audio hiccups or dropouts.

    In addition to the intuitive controls such as “home”, “play”, “stop”, “back”, etc, the unit also features six programmable “preset” buttons similar to what you have on a car radio. Setting these up is a bit more of a challenge than you would expect. You are supposed to be able to hold these down on any song, album, playlist, etc, that is being displayed in the radio menu and have it added as a preset. Unfortunately some items don’t add correctly and must first be programmed as a “favorite”. It turns out that you can only add favorites for some items (such as playlists) from the Squeezebox Server web based menu, which is quite inconvenient. I don’t doubt that Slim Devices (the arm of Logitech that makes these devices) will fix this soon enough.

    Other minor glitches include some weird alarm behavior (it will show the time of the alarm when it is going off but strangely won’t show the current time, which is annoying if you have hit the snooze button a few times and need to know what time it is), some auto dimming issues (the auto dimming works great but gets almost TOO dim in a dark room to see the radio) and a few other very minor nits.

    Slim Devices have a long history of enhancement and improvement of device firmware, so I would expect a lot of these issues to be worked out in the coming months. Additionally there will soon be a battery pack and small infrared remote for the Squeezebox Radio available as a $ [...] add on purchase. Personally I think at $ [...] the Radio should include these items, but considering the great sound of the radio, the high quality screen and the superb fit and finish it is…

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    133 of 142 people found the following review helpful:
    2.0 out of 5 stars
    Buggy!, November 14, 2009
    By
    William G. Schmidt (Farmersville, OH USA) – See all my reviews
    (REAL NAME)
    Amazon Verified Purchase(What’s this?)
    This review is from: Logitech Squeezebox Radio Music Player with Color Screen (Black) (Electronics)

    I’ve had the Squeezebox Radio for just over a week but that’s long enough to decide what I like and what still needs some work. First, set-up was a snap. The radio found my wireless network instantly and I was able to enter the password and connect quickly. The radio them updated its own software so I was working with the newest release.

    What do I like? The radio seems solid. It’s heavy enough that you can press the buttons with the radio on a nightstand and not have it slide. The front is angled back which helps even more. I’d call the sound quality – though not stereo – excellent. There’s no comparison between how this radio sounds and the Sony clock radio I replaced it with. It has a very clear, crisp sound.

    What don’t I like? I had the radio only three days when it lost all it’s presets. I re-entered them and all has been well since. This is a well known bug. I am using [...] and NOT using my PC so the problem is likely there. Presets should be stored locally, not on a server. I saved all my presets as favorites so they MIGHT be there the next time this happens (then again, maybe the favorites list will be erased, too). I’d like to see an easier way to set the sleep timer. You have to use the menu and it should be a simple button press. Why not use the power button and cycle through sleep settings? i.e. ON … 45 … 30 … 15 … OFF? There also needs to be a simple way to snooze. Maybe the big button in the middle?

    The auto-dimming setting gets awfully dark at night! I should be able to set a minimum brightness level that suits me.

    And I’d love to see the apps include weather radar. Yes, this is a radio but it’s got a great color display and being able to watch live weather radar on the screen would be super. A general weather app that makes use of this display would be a plus! Come on Logitech, get with it! This radio has more possibilities than, well, radio!

    Later: I’ve had the radio for a month now and am no longer quite so excited. I reduced my initial 4 stars to just 2 stars. This radio is buggy! My initial loss of the presets has now been followed by a loss of the volume control. There was absolutely no way to get it back besides a “factory reset” which removes every setting I so carefully made. You should be able to simply sit down and enjoy a radio, not beta test a product.

    I am returning it within Amazon’s 30 day window. I’ve had enough.

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    56 of 63 people found the following review helpful:
    5.0 out of 5 stars
    Better than expected, October 14, 2009
    This review is from: Logitech Squeezebox Radio Music Player with Color Screen (Black) (Electronics)

    When the Boom came out, I wanted to purchase it right away, but the 0 price tag and the inability to truely make it wireless detered me. Now that the Radio is out with a lower price tag, battery capability and a color LCD, I was totally sold. I’ve had the Radio for about a week now, and I simply love it. Even the wife was jamming to it when I got home from work the day after I bought it.

    So far I have only had one issue with it…I can not find a setting to set the Album Art size to full screen on the Now Playing screen. It says in the manual that it is under the Screensaver settings, but when I go there it doesn’t exist. I sent an email to Logitech support, but have not heard back from them yet. [Updated] Logitech just released a new software version that will correct this issue.

    Another cool feature that I didn’t realize existed, was the ability to control the Radio from the web.

    As far as sound quality goes, it is far better than expected. There is virtually no distortion even at maximum volume. I even plugged a set of Computer Speakers into the Headphone Jack and it didn’t make that much of a difference. The Base levels aren’t that deep, but they are there. I can put it in my livingroom and pump it up near max volume and hear it clearly throughout the house.

    I haven’t tested the Wireless strength extensively yet, but I was able to hook it up in the garage (1 Floor below and 50 feet from the router) and the signal strength was near full.

    Overall, I am very satisfied with my purchase and can’t wait to get the battery pack so I can just carry this thing around anywhere.

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