The new UE Smart Radio is not compatible with Squeezebox products, despite running software that doesn't seem all that different. But I'd bet that many Squeezebox owners have little idea that the platform is going away, unless they've been reading a page thread on the Squeezebox forum of owners looking for answers.
On its own, it's not surprising that the Squeezebox line is being discontinued. Products are discontinued all the time, such is the nature of progress. But the Squeezebox network audio streamers weren't typical products; owners were buying into an ecosystem of products. The ability to add more Squeezebox products to your network was a major selling point, making Squeezebox owners more invested the platform than you'd be with another gadget.
The Squeezebox ecosystem also includes software, and now there's a serious question as to how long the now-discontinued products will continue to work at full functionality. Squeezebox products rely on the MySqueezebox. If Logitech stops supporting MySqueezebox, Squeezebox products will be limited to streaming local digital music libraries over a home network. At the moment, Squeezebox owners have a faint promise from a sympathetic Squeezebox developer on the forum commenting in an unofficial capacity that there are "no plans" to shut down the MySqueezebox site, but that's far from a hard guarantee that it will remain running for at least, say, two years.
In fact, later on the same developer seems less confident, stating Squeezebox products are " very likely to work great 6 to 12 months in the future. And if you're not one of the diehards who read the forum, you probably have no idea that your digital audio ecosystem is now on borrowed time. That's not to say that Logitech necessarily made the wrong decision to shift to the simplified UE Smart Radio -- in fact, my review highlights that it's much easier to set up and use than the Squeezebox products, making it a considerably more accessible product.
The old Squeezebox Radio will also be upgradable to the new UE software, although no other Squeezebox products will have the upgrade option. But at the very least, Logitech owes dedicated Squeezebox fans many who have invested a lot of time, money, and effort on the platform for over a decade an official update about the end of the product line and what they can expect going forward.
The punchline to the story is that same page thread of frustrated Squeezebox enthusiasts includes a hint that there will be new UE products compatible with the Smart Radio , creating a Squeezebox-like family of products that work together. It may be wise to see how Logitech handles its Squeezebox customers before committing to the new UE ecosystem. All Squeezebox Radio users will have the option to upgrade to the Logitech UE Smart Radio platform, allowing them to take advantage of the new and improved software features.
This upgrade is completely optional, and those that don't want to alter their Squeezebox Radio experience will not be required to. While the Logitech UE Smart Radio can play alongside existing Logitech Squeezebox products, it will operate and be controlled separately.
The current mysqueezebox. Unlike the Squeezebox Boom, the Squeezebox Radio does not include a remote. The speaker grill on the front has a Black knit material over it.
Judie : A handle is built into the back of the radio, which makes it easy to pick up and move when you want to place it somewhere else.
Those of us who wind up using this as a bedside alarm clock will appreciate the battery pack option. A cool thing I found is that the same infrared remote which works with the Logitech Boom will also control the Radio without changing any settings or … doing anything, really; it just automagically works. Julie : Darn it! This little radio has a small footprint, but feels really sturdy. To me it almost looks kind of retro, which I think is kind of cool. Judie : And I agree with you about the retro flavor and sturdiness of the Squeezebox.
I also like that it has a nice weight to it; it feels substantial without being ridiculously heavy; you can even get it in bright shiny red if black is too utilitarian for you. Twisting the large knob allows you to change selections, and pressing the large knob selects your choices. There is a clever scrolling alphanumeric keypad which will appear when it is time to enter the wireless network security key. After the key has been entered, pressing the Play button will begin the connection.
Most likely, the first thing that you will see after that is news of a software update. At this writing, the current version is 7. Julie : After the initial setup has finished, you will use the main knob and the back button to scroll backwards and forwards through the various menus. The main menu is a portal to your music library on your computer this requires that you install server software on your computer , internet radio and the apps you have installed Pandora, Slacker Radio, Facebook, etc.
Spin the knob to select the menu you want to access and then press the knob in to go into that menu. Pressing the back button goes back one menu level. If you ever want to go back to the home menu shown below , you can just press the Home button. Squeezebox software is compatible with Windows, Mac and Linux. Julie : My fave apps are Pandora and Slacker Radio. But I also enjoy surfing through all the different internet radio genres and stations.
I love this feature. Judie : I really like the little color screen and the way that it shows album art, photos or Facebook news stream when songs are playing.
The time always displays at the bottom, along with a wireless signal indicator. Julie : I agree that the LCD is a great feature. It has helped me to find quite a few new favorite artists since I began using the Squeezebox. The obvious music playlist choices are there, but so are musical sounds, natural sounds, and sound effects. The only thing I wish was that there were different clock styles to choose from instead of just white on black.
Judie : Oh, I totally agree! But it is a minor quibble when everything else about the device is really good. Julie : I like everything about the Squeezebox Radio. One thing I want to point out, you can absolutely customize the clock, there are a number of different formats.
This will give you different clock options. Will this work with some of the NPR programs that archive programs and to play one must open a separate browser window? I bought one of these to replace a dedicated sirius reciver in my house. It works well most the time, but there are time that the mysqueezebox server is down and you can not use any of the add-on services directly from the reciver ie, sirius. If you have the little web gui loaded on your computer, it will allow you to change the channels using that.
It was frustrating that it has to use that remote server to function correctly. It just shuts off. Granted its cheaper monthly than a dedicated sirius reciver, but that part is allittle annoying. My wife bought this for me for my birthday in Jan. Spent 3 days trying to get it to connect to my wireless router Linksys WRT54G, fully updated with no joy.
0コメント