Archive for 'Electronics'

Delivers 100% great sound
I have to say I don't like the way the headphones go into your ears but then again is it worth sacrificing amazing sound just because the earphones go into your differently?....NO

awesome quality at an awesome price
really good product, havnt tried its rival at shures but i doubt the 0 or more one wld have to fork out will be very much worth. If u want a stellar audio experience at the top of the line, get these.

Things to note wld be that the bit of the cable that joins the stiff part with the more flexy bit does look like it might be prone to wear and tear. im trying to prevent that from happening by applying some tape over that area.

The fit on these buds are also not really for everybody. i do have some of my frens telling me that the buds are too big for them, while ive had no problem with getting a good seal and fit. ears do ache after 2-3hrs of continuous use, but i believe this department of comfort wld differ from person to person. I do however find them really secure and more comfortable than most of my other buds, especially with the foam comply buds that come in the box.

Ive paired these with my cowon s9 and found the sound output to be more than exceptional and my peers agree this is the best they've ever heard. Im not much of an audiophile to zoom in and comment on the quality of highs, lows and mids. Im more of the kind who's more critical on how much i can hear and how clearly. From that paradigm, i wld say that these buds reproduce the sound jst as close as one can get from the actual recording. From live shows like Jason Mraz's 'Live on Earth' to good old Beatles. Songs with multiple instruments and vocal inputs really shine on these. Alanis Morissette's Uninvited for example shows how crisp these buds are able to produce her voice solo and the individual sounds of the orchestra which comes in later.

All in all, if ur looking for high-end IEMs and think the shure SE530s are over priced, get these!!

Perfect Earphones for Mobile Phone
I own TripleFi 10vi for about a month now and I primarily use it with my Nexus One.

Music quality: 5-stars.
Focusing more on bass, lower mid, and treble, it produces warm and clear sound.
It has good mid-range, excellent bass, and amazing treble.

Built quality: 3.5-stars.
It blocks outside noise quite well. It has very limited play control function (single click for answering call/play/pause, double clicks for next song), but it works fine with my Nexus One. It's relatively bulky for IME, could be uncomfortable for someone new to IME. Mic works great and cable is thin and weak.

It came with two sets of median comply foam tips and they fit the best.
Make sure it completely sealed to get the best sound.
Bought it on Amazon for 0 and it definitely worth every penny.

Overall, I give this 4.5 stars.

A great phone. The best one.
Produto maravilhoso. Faz jus ao slogan "A primeira vez que você escutara as suas músicas"

Perfect sound quality but Size is huge :S
too big to be comfortable with, but the quality of build and sound are really great

Perfect Earphones for Mobile Phone
I own TripleFi 10vi for about a month now and I primarily use it with my Nexus One.

Music quality: 5-stars.
Focusing more on bass, lower mid, and treble, it produces warm and clear sound.
It has good mid-range, excellent bass, and amazing treble.

Built quality: 3.5-stars.
It blocks outside noise quite well. It has very limited play control function (single click for answering call/play/pause, double clicks for next song), but it works fine with my Nexus One. It's relatively bulky for IME, could be uncomfortable for someone new to IME. Mic works great and cable is thin and weak.

It came with two sets of median comply foam tips and they fit the best.
Make sure it completely sealed to get the best sound.
Bought it on Amazon for 0 and it definitely worth every penny.

Overall, I give this 4.5 stars.

A great phone. The best one.
Produto maravilhoso. Faz jus ao slogan "A primeira vez que você escutara as suas músicas"

Perfect sound quality but Size is huge :S
too big to be comfortable with, but the quality of build and sound are really great

UE TripleFi 10
Things to consider before purchase:

They are bulky and uncomfortable.

The build quality is questionable - Have replaced cable once, and right ear piece once - because it stopped working.

The casing cracked and separated on the left ear-piece a week out of warranty - it is now being held together with medical adhesive tape.

Pros: Headroom, replaceable cable.

Cons: Over-hyped and over-priced garbage.

Look elsewhere for similar. I cannot recommend this unit nor the company and affiliates that make and distribute this product

Awesome!!
awesome place

very x 2 amazing price.

good hunting

Great video player with a few quirks
The reviews you read about this product are all over the map! Some people claim they have had such bad experiences with this product that they sound as if this device is sabotaging their entire life, while others love it.

I think it depends on what your expectations are when you buy the product. I bought the product for primarily one reason, to watch movies while I am traveling. For the most part, it does that task very well.

The firmware version I am running now is the latest, version 1.7.11 . For me it has been totally stable. The only issues I ever had before was that fairly often the device would totally lock up when playing movies. This was with DVD vob files, mpeg 2, mpeg 4, XVID or H.264 encoded movies. Since the last firmware update back in November, I have not had a single lockup (around 4-5 months).

The only issue that I have with playing videos is that the fast forward, rewind function is way too choppy and not very precise. And grabbing the scroll button and trying to drag the video back a little bit is like a random event. Sometimes I will miss what someone said and I want to roll it back 10-30 seconds or so. I have found that I cannot get it to be consistent. Sometimes I can get it to go back 10 seconds with a quick tap, sometimes it goes back 5 minutes. Very frustrating. But hey, just watch the movie right?!

The music player works fine with the exception of the same fast forward / rewind issues. I don't know what else there is too say, select your song and it plays just fine.

The touchscreen sucks, plain and simple. To do anything precise, use a stylus. As far as typing, it is a joke. But for me, I just need to tap Video, and select my movie and it plays! Do not buy this device if you need to type very much! There ABSOLUTELY NO COMPARISION TO THE APPLE ITOUCH SCREEN! The Archos touch screen works basically exactly like the one does on your bank ATM or the credit card swiper machine at you local store.

I used the internet with my wireless for a few minutes and decided that with the touchscreen, this was useless to me.

The photo viewing is very nice, and I put every photo that I have on this device and have used it quite a bit to view my picture and share them with others.

The flash games are a joke, don't even waste your time unless you think cheesy cell phone games are really fun. If you do, then you will probably think these are great.

I went through a STEEP learning curve about video encoding from DVD's to get great video on this device. This was true with my Apple Ipod touch as well.

I don't want this review to sound negative, like I said, it depends on what you are buying the device for.

For me, I bought the device to watch movies on, because the Ipod Touch screen was too small for me to comfortably watch. In this regard, the Archos has been great. There was and still is no other device on the market that does what this will do for video.

I will give a long serious look to the Apple Ipad (Ipad?, hate the name) after they come out. Maybe get the second generation. Other than that, nothing compares for watching videos. For anything else......Get an Apple!

Archos 7 160 GB
The Archos 7 160 GB is nicely packaged and easy to start up initially. I find information for items I want to add to the unit is vague, for example I want to purchase the DVD/sound attachment and none of the description infomation specifically says that it will work on units other than Archos 5. I tried to load additional widgets which was unsuccessful, Archos said to load only version 9 widgets yet I could not find where widgets version numbers are located in order to download the correct version. I would like to use the Archos on Skype and there is to voice/camera pick up. Also, I am interested in a GPS module not clear if there is a unit available for Archos7. Overall the basic system functions well as shipped, I am not impressed with available add-ons or the information readily available on how to install other widgets.
Larry

SEVERELY DISAPPOINTED
I usually only write reviews if I'm 200% disgusted with a product and want to warn other buyers. In this instance, I'm truly disappointed. My first Archos was the Jukebox - I LOVED IT! Then a friend told me about the Lyra- PURE HEAVENLY BLISS. A device that held all my Music, Vids, Pics and Records TV - too good to be true. My 504 ROCKS! With the exception of a few sporadic forced reboots over the years it has never failed to produce for me.
The 7. When I first heard about it, I could only imagine how they could improve on the previous series. Touch screen, High Def and Wi-Fi in addition to all of there previous outstanding abilities. This was too good to be true. ALAS IT WAS!
TOUCH SCREEN - Touchy at times and non responsive at others. When connected online, I had to constantly resize the screen to get it to stay in its current size so I could read it. Other times, it would not respond to my touch or respond seconds later making me double type letters and words.
WI-FI - Multiple times while playing music and surfing online the system simply rebooted without any commands from me or even indication that it was about to do so. Even after I stopped playing music while surfing it randomly rebooted.
HIGH DEFINITION - Never got to this feature.
PICTURES - This feature worked well and on a 7 inch screen showed good clarity.
VIDEOS - Videos and movies showed well, some of my older vids were blocky but I blame that on the resolution of my camcorder and not the device. I truly wanted to try out the Helmet Cam but never got to that point.
MUSIC - This was the primary selling point for me when it comes to Archos as I am a devote anti-ipod user. I unequivocally enjoy having the freedom of manipulating my MP3 files back and forth between a multitude of machines and being able to share my files with friends and family at the drop of a dime without having to worry about machine licensing or only allowing my friends access to my music for three days at a time - What is that?
The 7 FAILED MISERABLY in this department. My GOD! I did not believe how this feature could be messed up. Initially I copied my Playlists from my 504 to the 7 only to have the system warn me they may not work. Okay, I deleted them then went through the arduous task of recreating my playlists on the 7. With my lists created I set out to play my tracks in the gym. Three songs into it the system stops. I get a msg telling me the file is corrupted. I try to restart the playlist. Error file corrupted. At this point I can't start any other playlists and I can't even play any SONGS! WHAT THE F*&$! I reboot and all seems well. Again three songs into a playlist and the system craps out. WHAT THE F*&$! If the 7 can't even do the basics then what's the point?
I truly wanted to love this device but was meant with disdain and difficulty. Of course now I have read the reviews of the 7 and can only shake my head. I returned the 7 for a full refund. In spite of all this I'm considering the 5 and have read the reviews. They are a mixed bag. I'm praying I get a good one. If not I will stick with my 504 and purchase a full sized laptop to make up for all the other features it does not have.

Severely Disappointed.
C. Hoskins Jr.

PS - At the time of posting I now have a Archos 5. IT ROCKS! It performs every task I ask of it and no forced reboots. I can even surf the web and listen to music at the same time. My faith has been renewed.

A descent media player overall.
I have been using the Archos 7 IMT for about 2 months now and overall I am happy with the purchase. The Archos 7 has a very nice touch screen which has excellent resolution/clarity (for its size) and is quite responsive. The built in speakers offer descent sound even when you don't have a pair of headphones handy. The Archos 7 does a good job of playing media seamlessly and provides a relatively easy-to-use interface for controlling the device and navigating your media.

Getting media, even DRM protected media, onto the device is relatively simple when either using windows media player or windows explorer. The difficulty is getting the media to begin with. The Archos 7 (and other Gen. 6 devices) will only play a handful of codes without additional "plug-ins" from Archos. The Archos "plug-ins" will expand the types of media the device can play (e.g., unlocking the ability to play VOB's or AAC encoded audio) but have to be purchased from Archos. In order to avoid paying these fees you have to have a prior knowledge of media codes and the processes and tools to convert one to another (which can be a major pain). For that reason, I think that Archos 7 is slightly more suited to someone with some technical background.

The Archos 7 IMT has a built in 802.11b/g card that supports both WEP and WPA (among other) protected networks. Although some have complained about getting the wireless radio to connect seamlessly, I have not had a problem. The Archos 7 has the capabilities to play internet radio stations (which is a big plus for me) and Internet TV (which is very disappointing) as well as browse the web, check email, etc. The built-in email client is basic and leaves a little to be desired; but the application does what it needs to. I find the Opera Mobile web browser easy and relatively pleasant to use (and hopefully Archos will eventually include the newer version in a future firmware update).

Unfortunately Archos has currently provided little in the way of application development for the Archos 7. The applications that are available (via Archos) are few and not diverse. Although the device can be extended using Opera "widgets" and Flash 9 (Lite) applications, these options present some significant limitations. Any more "serious" development would need to use much more advanced techniques (e.g., attempting to cross-compile apps using OpenEmbedded, etc.). One glimmer of hope, however, is the "Developer Edition Firmware" released by Archos. This firmware is based on the Angstrom Linux distribution and is currently being developed by the open source community.

Large screen Ipod touch
Bought the Archos as it seemed to be a large screen Ipod touch.
As its such a convenient size I keep it close to me and mainly use it look up stuff on the internet. Ive not had major success with the flash player games, there doesnt seem to be many games using flash player 9 and point and click only ( virtual keyboard gets locked away on the flash player games I found). I use the photo viewer a lot and the email part. in fact theres not many parts of the system I dont use, I use it many times a day every day.
With the addons I can record from my TV and store the media for later viewing and play back movies to the tv. The docking station option of about £100 seems a bit excesive so I only bought the snap ons which seem to work very well
I also only paid around $US250. so very pleased with my deal
Archos 7 320 GB Internet Media Tablet

Great idea, dodgy product
The concept of the Archos is really, really great. High storage media playing device, internet client, DVR, TV, all sorts of stuff. It really is a cool product in theory. However, Archos fails when it comes to making these ideas and abilities of their device usable. It is EXTREMELY slow, laggy, and buggy. The internet client or anything that streams from some sort of connection is mediocre at best: low quality, pixelated and laggy as well. All of the additional add-ons will cost you the same as a brand new Archos. Sad to say when you get the product you can use about half the features. Otherwise, shell out another 0 here, there, etc. etc. for the DVR station, antennae, battery extension, etc. etc. Fortunately for Archos, they have a fantastic and very solid idea on their hands. Unfortunately, they have a very laggy Linux based firmware. PRICEY add-ons make it not worth your time, even if the storage capacity is great.

Archos for a Non-Geek
I'm not one of these people that goes out and buys whatever's new. I listen to a lot of music, so I like mp3 players but, prior to this was given to me as a Christmas gift this past year, I had a 20gb Dell that had a two color screen, was around ten years old, and cost me used. It didn't have nearly enough space, so I wasn't terribly happy with it, but I also wasn't willing to pay 0 for a new one that had more space.
At first, the Archos, to me, seemed like too much. I don't really have an interest in the video feature and have a general bias against touch screen devices because I think they're automatically more prone to damage and general breakage than something with buttons.
But then I really got into it. I was able to upload all of the music that I had sitting around in mp3 format, including all of the stuff that my previous mp3 player couldn't hold. When uploading, I discovered one of the Archos' big, initial issues: the initial battery charge. When you're uploading, you're actually using more battery than the little USB can take in to recharge so, you'll get weird messages on your computer and, at times, your Archos will just outright turn itself off. This is obnoxious, and it caused some sort of data corruption where I now have a couple of folders on the device that I cannot delete. I thought my device was messed up when this first happened, but I found stuff online documenting the same issue, so I just take it as a device flaw. Lesson: charge it up fully before you try to upload anything.
A couple of things that I love about this thing: the disk space and the web radio feature. It not only scans those mostly awful internet radio stations, but also the usually great, independent over-the-air stations around the world that have streams. Most of the time, when I'm at home, I find myself just plugging in the local community radio here (KXCI), WBER in Rochester, WCSB in Cleveland, WSPN in New York, KCRW in LA, KEXP in Seattle, or one of the other great, independent radio stations that are out there. It's really nice to have them in one, easy to access list, and you can also add them to your "Favorites" so that they're even easier to access.

Now, let's talk issues.
I mentioned the battery life above and that comes up again and again. The wifi feature, whether used with the web radio, internet browser or anything else, sucks it up at a really surprising pace. If it's not plugged in, you're looking at, maybe, 1-2 hours of battery life, and that's if fully charged already. Luckily, the wifi does NOT use more battery than the charge can take in, so it won't die if you use it too long.
Then there's the "standby" issue. If you leave your device unplugged and inactive, it goes to a standby mode where it requires the "On" switch to be pushed when you want to access it again. Fine. Problem is, the whole time it's in that standby mode, it's using a surprising amount of battery. If you leave it unplugged in that standby mode overnight, it will be down to about 1 bar on the battery, or even right above dead.
Now, you can avoid this by actually turning the device off. Strangely, this isn't as intuitive as you'd expect. To do this, you have go into "Tools," then "Settings," then "Power," and only then you'll see a "Device Power Off" button that you can use. When completely turned off using that button, the device uses 0 battery and really does not take much longer to start up than if it were on just standby. Now, there is the power button on the side, but that's really only for hard resets and, just knowing how doing that on a computer can damage it, I don't like to use it. It will also turn back on when you do that sometimes.
The most obnoxious issue by far though is the hard drive delay. When listening to music, it often doesn't buffer the next track. When you hit the next track, the hard drive is often on standby and has to spin up (you can hear it doing this). I'd say 1 out of 20 times, it doesn't spin up fast enough, and you get a "File is corrupted" error on the screen. This requires you to push the "OK" button to the error, then restart the music. You can just play the same track and it will work (unless it really is corrupted), but it's really annoying, especially if you're in the car and can't look at it to navigate the touch screen.
The proprietary plugs are a little annoying. It comes with a single USB plug. I just happened to have both a car USB charger and a wall outlet USB charger, so I just use those as opposed to purchasing the Archos stuff. I did lose my car one (left it in a rental), so I had to buy a new one and paid for it. Excessive, but less excessive than what the Archos store charges for the stuff. The down-side to that is that, of course, you only have one plug and, if you ever lose that, you're screwed.

All in all, I think it's a good device. I would say that it's not of tremendous quality, and that comes through when you start using it. It's cheaper than comparable products by quite a bit though, so you have to expect that.

Archos 5 250GB
I purchased the Archos 5 250GB Internet Media Tablet a few months back for 9. I was skeptical due to all the negative reviews about reliability and poor customer support from Archos but I figured for 9 I would take a chance. Mine has worked nearly flawlessly. I mainly use it to watch movies and play flash games but also use the Widgets and browse the internet occasionally. I have had one shut down and restart since I have owned it. (browsing the internet and it unexpectedly shut down). The only other problem I have had was I have one bright pixel in the upper part of the screen. I emailed Archos support and 12 hours later they responded back saying I could return it to be fixed under warranty. We exchanged 3-4 emails back and forth clarifying that I would get MY Archos unit back or a new Archos and not someone elses returned unit. They were professional and very fast in returning my emails. One was within 5 minutes, all were within 30 min. I decided to keep mine based on it's reliability thus far. It's not worth risking getting a lemon for one pixel.

This is probably the best purchase I have made in quite a while. I use it every day to watch a movie. I am very impressed.

Save your money and do NOT buy from ARCHOS!!!!!!!!
I recieved my Archos 5 as a gift this last Christmas. I was very excited about all the possibilities that I thought the Archos 5 offered. That was until I realized all of the headaches that were to come. First off, Archos nickels and dimes you every chance they get. If you want to play any of your music from Itunes, . If you want to play any movies you already have on your computer, . If you want to record TV shows or any of your personal DVDs to your unit, plan on paying and extra 9 for the DVR station. Oh, and the TV Guide that Archos talks so much about, does not exist in the US and they have no timeframe on when it will be available. That also goes for the TV tuner that is adverstised. Second, the customer service is horrible. You are lucky if you actually get a hold of someone. Third, the durability/quality of the product is horrible. I recieved my Archos 5 new in December. I have already sent it back once because the unit just stopped working all together. One day after getting the unit back it stopped working again. When I finally got a hold of someone in customer service they said I would have to send it back again, but this time they were going to give me a refurbished Archos 5. It isn't even two months old. I asked if I could have a new Archos 5 and they said that wasn't an option. I have checked various internet forums on the Archos 5 and they are all the same. Horrible! Stay away from Archos all together. They are in way over their head with technology they obviously do not understand. I will never by a product from them again!!!!

as advertised
easy to use, compact, light.
nice price for what would probably cost nearly a grand if made by apple.
supports common video and if you use the ones it doesnt support you probably should also have acces to conversion software.
beutiful screen nice resolution tons of memory links up to my windows and ubuntu based computors. store doesnt have any good aps though.
flash 9 support buggy sometimes but i blame adobe.
basically a tablet pc without ms office

Sound quality marginal
Purchased the S5 for our kitchen, our fourth zone. Overall, we love our entire Sonos system --- the ease of installation is unbeatable, as is the ease of use. The sound quality of the S5, though, is marginal at best. While we are hardly audiophiles, and didn't expect a lot from this all-in-one combo, we've been quite disappointed with the sound. Its tone is quite 'muddy' at the low end and almost non-existent at the high end, both of which are only partially improved by tweaking the Sonos system's bass/treble settings.

Worth the effort despite initial problems; great personalized support by Sonos
** Update 2-20-2010

The good news is that I've managed to resolve virtually all of the issues I described below and I am very glad I made the effort. The Sonos support staff has been extremely helpful, even reaching out to me after I posted my initial review. I was able to get my iTunes library playing nicely - I needed to move my library onto my Time Capsule hard drive (it was originally on my MacBook which was wirelessly connected to my network). Once I did that, everything worked fine. The support team sent me via email instructions that walked me through the process - it took about 10 minutes to do that.

Even though I'm still not able to access Sirius from my MacBook, I am able to do it from my iPhone, which is great. I didn't realize that the issue was just with the computer version of their software - it does work fine with the iPhone and I noticed they updated the support site with this information.

I am very impressed with the overall system and will now look to get one for my vacation home! Even more impressive is the support - my observation is that this company and its employees are really invested in pleasing their customers; most unusual in this day and age.

The sound on the system is very good - I've pushed it up one star to a four-star sound quality; for what it is, it produces very good sound.

****

Having spent quite a bit of time looking at wireless systems, it seemed clear that the best option on the market in terms of simplicity and quality was the Sonos solution. As such, I purchased the S5 along with a Zone Bridge so that I could link my router in my upstairs office with the S5, which I am planning to use downstairs in my kitchen. When I received the items and began the setup, I was extremely disappointed.

First, I followed the instructions to the letter and had great difficulty in linking my MacBook to the Zone Bridge. (I am using a Apple Time Capsule router, BTW). Even though initially I was having problems, the software directed me seamlessly to the Sonos support site, where I attempted to follow the directions related to router and firewall setup for a Mac (I am running the out-of-the-box Apple firewall). Unfortunately, the support document was not updated with the correct steps for the current version (Leopard) of OS X. Nevertheless, I tinkered for the better part of the hour and was about to give up, but unplugged everything, rebooted, and finally my Zone Bridge was discovered.

Next step was to set up the S5 itself. This was not a problem at all. Next difficulty arose when I attempted to link my online Sirius internet service with Sonos. I could not get it to work. In communicating with support (which has been very helpful and quick to respond, to be fair), they tell me that there was a recent Apple security patch that "is blocking communication with Sirius." I am not sure how this will be addressed, but it would have been nice to know before I purchased the product. A text search of Sirius on the Sonos support site shows no mention of this problem in any support documents.

Finally, in trying to play my iTunes library, the music drops out repeatedly. It works fine with Pandora and internet radio. I am still in discussions with support about this problem.

From what I could tell listening to the music I was able to get to play, the sound seemed good - not fantasic, but in line with what I was expecting for a single box. The iPhone app seemed to work nicely and was very responsive. I need to hear my own preferred music coming from it to give a good assessment of the overall sound.

I am hoping that I will be able to come back and update this review with a more positive ending. It clearly works well for many people based on all of the press and reviews; unfortunately it doesn't seem to play nice with Apple products - at least newer Apple products. More to come, but thus far, very disappointing based on all I read about how simple it was to set up and how it "just works."

Absolutely LOVE the S5's
I originally looked at the older Sonos system but didn't like it as you had to hookup each remote to it's own speaker/stereo system. So, I decided to go with Airport Expresses instead. But, after a few years of having the airports, which are good but buggy when trying to use throughout the entire house I looked for a new solution. I was excited to find the sonos s5's. I love the fact that everything is built into a single box. A great sounding speaker system, amp, and iphone software/desktop software. I currently have 6 of these systems with 3 of them in my bedroom to create a kinda surround sound.

Currently I have 1 in my living room, 1 in my kitchen, 1 in my guest bedroom, 3 in my master bedroom, 1 in my master bathroom. I have my living room unit and bedroom unit hooked up to each rooms tivo's so I can stream the audio from either room to the sonos's depending on where I am.


WHAT I LOVE:
The iphone software is really really well done. I love fact that I can be anywhere in my house and with my iphone control the system. I love the fact that they offer mac desktop software !!! Also offer pc as well. I love that each unit has an input jack so I can add my living room tv audio to the living room unit or my bedroom tb audio to my bedroom unit and access these inputs from anywhere and play them everywhere. I love that each unit has a mute and volume up and down so if I am in a room and want to manually control the volume or turn it off without pulling out my iphone i can quickly!

I also love the fact that when I needed to call sonos technical support I got an american representative.. Big Plus in my book. They have a feature in the desktop controller that sends the entire network stats and setup info to them so they can see exactly what's going on. Which saves everyone a lot of time. AGAIN REALLY REALLY SMART!!!!


WHAT I WISH FOR:I believe everything I wish the system could do, can actually be accomplished since its just software features. The units themselves are WELL thought out.

1. I wish that I could listen to my XM radio account. This isn't an issue with Sonos but an issue with XM. Currently you can only use your Sirius premium account. Since I have xm radio in my car it would require me to setup an entirely seperate account for sirius to be heard on my sonos. AGAIN, a Sirius XM issue not Sonos...

2. I wish I could stream my computer's audio through the sonos. I know you can do the audio in, but would be nice to just be able to stream an audio source from a computer wirelessly that has the sonos controller software running on it.

3. The sonos has an output jack which would allow you to connect speakers to it. But currently when you connect something to the output jack it turns off the speakers. Which makes sense if you're using headphones but I wanted to try and setup 3 speakers in my bedroom without having to use 3 units. But when I connect it, it turns off the speakers in the s5.

4. I wish they offered a .00 type airport express like unit that would allow me to connect an audio input to the sonos network without having to purchase an entire S5. Again, in my example of my bedroom, I wanted to be able to have speakers on either side of my bed and then sound from the front which could come from the tv. If I was able to purchase like a 99.00 unit that just allowed me to have an input jack to connect that audio i'd buy it.


AGAIN.. These are my wishlist items...lol.

THIS SYSTEM iS AMAZING!!!!!! It is the most well thought out wireless audio speaker system on the market BAR NONE!!!! Buy one and give it a try. You will fall in love with them as well!

Simply Amazing
After spending a good deal of time researching between a Bose Soundock and the Sonos S5, I finally took the plunge and went with the Sonos. I got it today and it absolutely amazing. Super simple to set-up. The software is a breeze. I already have an iPhone and it's just the perfect compliment. I also love that I can get my Sirius Satellite on it - and the free trials of Napster and Rhapsody are fun. The sound quality is amazing. I had a fist generation soundock and this is as good, if not better. There's also a huge wow factor when showing it to people or just using it yourself. It's some cool technology. The controls on the iPhone are pretty detailed too - including an equalizer (no presets thought) and an alarm you can set to wake you with a specific song, radio station, or whatever. I love it so much, i was moved to write this at 2 am. Very happy with my purchase, totally worth the money and I love that I can upgrade it later on (I just have this one unit hardwired to my router in my bedroom).

A great addition, really nice sound
I bought the S5 as a second zone to my existing system. It took just minutes to set it up and add it to my existing setup. The sound quality is quite surprising for its size, quite comparable to a Bose Wave system. It certainly won't replace my stereo but it is a great addition to my home office and it gets a lot more use than my stereo.

Great Internet Radio
Spent weeks looking over every internet radio that I could find online, and settled on this one.

Bought it because I love late-night radio, and live behind hills in SW Austin, TX, where Mexican stations frequently drown out even the local stations (which are operating at night power.)

I am a (new) AT&T Uverse customer, and setup of this product couldn't have been easier. Click click DONE.

Have enjoyed this receiver for 6 weeks, and almost every night I listen to my iPod going to sleep (with downloaded Old Time Radio shows.)

Extremely satisfied with Squeezebox. The only possible improvement I can imagine is an iPod base plugin (other than the existing audio-headphone plugin) that would recharge the iPod while listening.

Fascinating Electronics But Serious Problems
I have owned the basic Grace WiFi 1000B radio for several years, and am satisfied with it basic capabilities. I am looking for a second Wi-Fi radio, and tested the Logitech Squeezebox Radio as a possible answer to my needs. Several reviewers believe that device is more sophisticated than the Grace, and has good sound along with state of the art electronics. I tested the Squeezebox (which I will call "SB" for this review) over a two week time period, with the following conclusions:

1. The search and other options for the SB are markedly superior to the Grace, are easy to access and work very reliably. The Grace performs these functions very competently, but lacks the panache of the SB.

2. The sound quality of the SB's internal speaker is very marginal, and plugging the unit into Logitech X-140 speakers only made those problems louder. The tends to be SB sound is tinny and distorted on many sites. I tested both units side-by-side in a high signal quality area. The internal Grace speakers produced much more pleasant, listenable sound. When I added the X-140 speakers to the Grace, the resulting sound was excellent for all types of music.

3. As a clock radio, there is no comparison. The SB wins hands down. The Grace's readout window is dull and nearly impossible to read comfortably. By contrast, the SB offers an incredible array of display and programming options, including infinite brightness settings, and its clock function is easily read from an appreciable distance.

4. The size of the SB is much smaller, and can fit handily in almost any setting. The Grace is not huge and fits nicely on my amble bedside table. If you like to turn the radio toward the bed for ease of clock readings and radio station selection, the Grace is not acceptable.

5. The SB is more expensive than newer Grace models (Amazon prices), does not come with a remote ( extra, including a proprietary chargeable battery pack). With the battery, the SB can be used as a portable. Newer models of the Grace include a remote, and the Allegro model, which is designed as a clock radio, permits the use of regular AA batteries, as well as rechargeables which it recharges when the unit is plugged in. Grace offers a free program for the Apple IPOD Touch and IPHONE that provides perhaps the most sophisticated remote currently available, with all manner of options and tricks.

6. I had major problems with the SB's ability to hold selected stations in my bedroom area, where the signal quality degrades to 40%. Again, I tested the units side by side, and the Grace got and held any station I selected without incident. The SB did a decent job of latching on to signals, but is sorely deficient in holding them. Several times, when SB lost a station I selected, it froze the radio, and I was forced to re-initialize it, a rather time consuming and annoying process.

In conclusion, I enjoyed the size and superior electronics of the SB. It is very innovative, and I would have loved to keep it. Its marginal sound qualities and other problems were too much. After all, for the purpose of such a device is uninterrupted listening with the fewest complications possible (I prefer classical music), and on that score, the SB is sadly deficient.

As stated by other users - buggy!
As other reviewers have stated, there are issues with the radio erasing the presets. In order to get the preset back, you have to unplug the a/c adapter from the wall and put it back in. This is the only way I can get my presets back. I tried calling Technical Support and as is standard these days, you wind up speaking with someone in another country who repeats your question several times, trying to make sense at what your problem is. After a transfer and very long hold time, I got another Representative who asked the same questions as the first and again, tried to make sense of my issue (some much for outsourcing.) After 10 minutes and some prodding, he finally admitted that there is a bug and they are working on a fix.

On a positive note, the radio sounds very nice and will fill a small or medium room with decent sound. The color graphics are nice too. However, Logitech obviously rushed this out to the public as a beta product. Another issue I have is the fact that Logitech did not include a remote like they do on their Squeezebox Boom. Also, the radio has the capability to use a battery which Logitech also did not include.

Other than the nice color graphics and smaller size, the 'Boom' is a more mature product with less bugs and includes a remote. If you are looking for a small unit and willing to put up with it's shortcomings for now, this is the one to go with. I am hoping that a firmware is released ASAP that addresses the preset issue. Logitech, are you listening?

Unreliable internet reception, ineffective support
I bought this product for my wife as a Christmas gift. Initially, it worked all right for the intended purpose (internet radio). Soon (a few days) it began operating erratically. I called support and got a nice guy who was able to duplicate the problem at his end. He promised to send it on to "real experts" who would find a fix for it. No such luck, and that was two months ago.

I really like this product, but it is maddening (infuriating) that it doesn't work consistently. When I turn it on, it either (1) doesn't connect to KSTX or (2) connects but then doesn't have any sound or image or (3) connects and has image but no sound or (4) connects and has sound and image. Also, there are several ways to connect, and which one works appears to be random. I believe there is an unfixed software bug somewhere in the Squeezebox or at [...], the connection provider.

I cannot recommend this product at all to anyone who is expecting a functioning internet radio.

Fantastic and Versatile
Absolutely fantastic radio! Just what I wanted. I use this in my office, and use it primarily for access to talk radio and Pandora. I love the instant on, the ease of selecting a station to listen to, and the sound quality. OK, so it doesn't match up to the sound quality of my Sonus Fabers being driven by the Classe pre-amp and amp, but hey, it's terrific for a small radio in a small room! Setup was fast and painless; it found my wireless network and let me configure the password with no issues. The selection method for choosing text/numbers one at a time is admittedly very clumsy, but I don't expect to ever need to do that again. I do all my Pandora station setup on the computer, and just choose them from the Squeezebox selector menu. A few days ago I stumbled on the diagnostics menu, and discovered that a software update was available. So I launched the update and it took care of itself very quickly. No muss, no fuss. It just worked! I plan to get another one for use in my garage. Gotta have tunes while I'm working on projects!

Excellent purchase, more than what I expected!
I am no audiophile, but I believe I recognize good sound when I hear it. I've experienced numerous HT systems and can distinguish between good and bad. That said, I have three young children and a decor that does not allow for a traditional home theater. I'm so constrained that I literally must fit everything into my Amish-built oak entertainment center. That's right, I fit the center channel AND the subwoofer INSIDE my entertainment center! While many of you sneer, I have no choice. And this is where the review begins.

Despite the generally favorable reviews of this system, I had low expectations. Just how good could a tiny system sound? I tried it out of box, and I was impressed. Very impressed. The range of the center channel is excellent, considering you're probably dealing with paper cones. Highs are met well and lows are dynamic enough, when complimented by the sub, to add oomph to your viewing and listening experience. My reference blu-rays, Hellboy 2 and The Dark Knight, were the first tests. Explosions were felt in my gut, and the film came alive. This despite me having the subwoofer BEHIND my TV in the entertainment center. The bass in the sub is absorbed well by the sub cabinet, so I don't get awful rattling effects. In fact, there is no vibration other than the bass you WANT to hear. Dialogue was crisp, and the mid-range was full.

Another note: my living room is LARGE with 20-foot vaulted ceilings. The Ct-100 is the only system I have, so it's not a "backup." I literally threw everything at this system and put it in situations where it SHOULD have failed. But it didn't. It filled the room and created a nice sound field. Don't expect 7.1, but you won't be disappointed if you're comparing this to any other soundbar below 0. It has enhanced my movie-viewing experience, and I don't think anyone looking for a budget system could go wrong. The price is right and the performance is beyond anything in the price range or soundbar lineup.

Happy viewing!

Best soundbar under 0
Sound is perfect for smaller houses/apartments. Easy to set up with 3 HDMI inputs. Great soundbar to use with any type of TV. I have this thing paired with a LG 42SL90, Samsung BD P1600, XBOX 360 and universal learning remote. If you don't buy this soundbar your going to have to pay several hundred dollars more to get something better, without a doubt the best sound system you can buy for under 0 or even 0.

Sounds Great Most Of The Time
I agree with several other reviewers that sometimes it is hard to hear dialogue (human speech) with these speakers. There is no problem if there is not a lot of background noise. The evening news, drama shows, etc, are clear and easy to understand. I had a big problem hearing the announcer during the Super Bowl. I think the Super Bowl producers allowed a lot of crowd noise to be mixed in with the announcer. During the game, I watched it in another room, on another TV, for a while, and the announcer was much easier to hear on the TV internal speakers. There is a "sound field" button on the remote that lets you select Standard, Movie, Music, Sports, Game, and P. Audio. The user manual is pretty vague in describing these. It says that Standard is for normal sound. Movie emphasizes low-pitch sound, "with enhanced presence." P. Audio is said to be best for MP3 music input. In my judgment, Standard gives the cleanest, clearest sound. The others seem to either boost the base, add reverb, or both. I would like to have a simple bass, mid-range, and treble control, but it is not available. What you can do is adjust the volume of the center speaker and sub woofer (user manual page 31 - you won't figure it out without the manual) I took the advice of another reviewer, and turned up the center speaker to +3 and turned down the sub woofer to -3. It made it easier to hear the sports announcers.
The HT-CT100 as several options for how you connect it to your various program sources. You can connect your DVD and cable box or DVR directly to your TV, and then take the audio out jacks on your TV to connect to the HT-CT100. I tried this for about a month and it is okay. I currently connect my DVR to the HT-CT100 by HDMI cable. The HT-CT100 then has an HDMI output that goes to the TV. This gives a pure digital audio input to the HT-CT100, and the sound is generally better, cleaner, clearer. There are three HDMI input jacks on the HT-CT100 so you can connect a PlayStation or DVD to the HT-CT100 using HDMI. My old DVD does not support HDMI, so I connect its video directly to the TV, and use digital optical cable to connect the DVD audio to the HT-CT100. I notice that the HDMI going from the HT-CT100 to the TV does not have an audio signal, so you do not have the option of listening to your TV speakers. Presumably you would not want to, except I might want to try it during a noisy sports program.
Several reviewers complained that the max sound level is not loud enough for them. It is plenty loud enough for me. I sit about 14 feet from the speakers. The sound level goes from 1 to 50, and I run it between 20 and 30 most of the time. I notice that some TV networks have lower volume than others, especially during a program (louder during commercials.) With these lower-volume networks, 30 is loud enough.
In the reviews and comments to reviews, I read some controversy about where the sensor for the remote is located. It is in the sound bar. The digital display is on the front of the sub woofer. You will want to view the display sometimes. It tells you what sound field and volume level is selected, among other things.
I like the sound. I wish it had separate controls for treble, midrange, and bass.

A great little, simple system.
This is a great little system --a big sound from a small package. The bar is low profile and the sub-woofer sits nice to the side. No clutter of multiple cables and speakers spread out all over the room. (see my set up in customer image photo I posted above ) This is just a very nice, simple upgrade from your TV's speakers.

This is easy to set up (be sure to use AmazonBasics High-Speed HDMI Cable (6.5 Feet/2.0 Meters) [Amazon Frustration-Free Packaging), easy to use, and sounds great.

I use this 80% of the time for TV viewing, 10% movie viewing & 10% gaming. This system has pre-set sound modes for each. I like the preset levels --no having to set up the sound fields & make a lot of speaker adjustments, just plug and play.

I've read many negative reviews here that do not seem to be fair. THIS IS NOT A 0.00 7.1 CHANNEL HOME THEATER SURROUND SOUND SYSTEM. This IS a very nice Sound-bar system - not a 6 speaker surround system. If you want a true theater experience sound you will probably be disappointed too. This is what it is, a TV speaker upgrade.

PROS

*easy to setup
*easy to use
*small size -a real space saver
*nice full sound & good bass

CONS

*a little pricey


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PS: Don't get ripped off buying + HDMI cables. Amazon Basics (see the above link) work fine.

Great within reason
The device works really well. We got it to hook up to our TV which only has a digital audio out (looks like the composite video cable port). The base has a bit of rattle to it, but that could be my own setup. For the money it works fantastically.