View Full Version : Apple iPod HI-FI No Threat to SB!
ezkcdude
2006-02-28, 13:06
You heard it hear first, folks! Well, maybe you didn't, but just in case, Apple announced the iPod Hi-Fi today. It looks to me like a boom box that you simply attach your iPod to. It's certainly not going after the SqueezeBox market. In fact, I'm not really sure what Apple is thinking with this.
Think iPod a la Bose Wave.
Good to know about that. I certainly hope Steve Jobs never tries to buy Slim Devices. It's good to have a company that's unique, inventive and NOT related to Apple!
In fact, I'm not really sure what Apple is thinking with this.
Certainly not "thinking different". Looks like the same theme followed by a number of other vendors' offerings for amp+speakers for the iPod (Kloss, Bose, JBL, you name it).
I wonder if Apple settled the lawsuit by the former Beatles and widows...
Mathew_M
2006-02-28, 14:03
While I really like my Squeezebox I will say that iTunes has a much better interface.
The new iMac has optical audio so it could conceivably replace the SB if hooked up to a display.
The SB will still have the advantage for modding and audiophiles who keep a dedicated stereo setup but for those who integrate everything the mini might serve to be a better solution.
CardinalFang
2006-02-28, 14:53
In fact, I'm not really sure what Apple is thinking with this.
Responing to market demand no doubt. I know a couple of people who bought iPods simply because of the available boombox type docking stations (they use the iPod on the road and at home) and since Apple have such strong brand loyalty, it makes sense for them to have their own. The fact that there are many of them out there already means that there is a market for them, surely? My wife would use a boombox for my iPod, but for me the price of the Apple unit is a bit steep.
CardinalFang
2006-02-28, 14:55
Good to know about that. I certainly hope Steve Jobs never tries to buy Slim Devices. It's good to have a company that's unique, inventive and NOT related to Apple!
Whatever you may think of Steve Jobs, him being the driving force behind the incredible success of both Apple and Pixar tells me he does have a few ideas under his hat!
He has achieved success by entering the audio arena instead of concetrating his efforts into positioning the Macintosh as the world personal computer standard. In a sense he conceded defeat to his archrival Bill Gates...
CardinalFang
2006-03-01, 00:23
He has achieved success by entering the audio arena instead of concetrating his efforts into positioning the Macintosh as the world personal computer standard. In a sense he conceded defeat to his archrival Bill Gates...
I'm sure Slim wouldn't mind a slice of that "defeat"...:-) Neither would I.
Why are people so negative about companies that have achieved runaway success? It doesn't mean that their products are worse or that they are corrupt in any way. Would you call Slim's successful business a defeat if Roku or Sonus sold more? What if they had achieved their aims?
To be successful, you don't need to have the highest volumes, just be profitable and have a future. I'm sure Bill Gates envies the product loyalty and respect that Jobs has, plus the fact that Microsoft have tried to own the home entertainment market for a few years now and not had the sort of success that Apple have. Pick your battlegrounds well, as they say.
Paul
He has achieved success by entering the audio arena instead of concetrating his efforts into positioning the Macintosh as the world personal computer standard. In a sense he conceded defeat to his archrival Bill Gates...
It's when Apple stopped competing wil Bill & Co that their second time of success started!
In addition, Apple has concentrated on making stylish products that works together...
Me, I like linux for the freedom of choice it gives me.
bludragon
2006-03-01, 02:38
why didn't they have a slot for the ipod, and a display you can read from a distance. That would have been worth making.
why didn't they have a slot for the ipod, and a display you can read from a distance. That would have been worth making.
Or a built in one...
autopilot
2006-03-01, 03:24
Worst Apple product ever? Apples say this "redefines the home stereo system". I don't think so.
Firstly, it's fugly, but maybe thats just me.
Secondly, whats new about this? Third party manufactures (Bose for example) have been making these for ages (years?).
Thirdly, It's a useful partner for existing stereo, but does not even come close to replacing or redefining the home stereo. Most people will still want a decent proper amp/speaker setup, perhaps with a Squeezebox or a Cambridge Audio music server type device if they want to avoid CD's.
More Apple spin and hype. Are they turning into Sony?
Looks like a crap cheap speaker thats fallen over.
That said, i am sure they will sell like hot cakes.
Steven Moore
2006-03-01, 03:38
I would say they will sell pretty well and a large percentage will go to teenagers for their bedrooms.
slimdemage
2006-03-02, 10:04
People will buy anything, including Apple's new attempt to gain a piece of their own market. Apple has proven that consumers are not concerned with sound quality, and they take advantage of this ignorance. If people cared about good stereo imaging, sound quality, or reproduction of their albums they would not buy a rectangle with stereo speakers in it and play back 1 billion horribly encoded AAC files with gaps in between the tracks. However I do give them credit for this: you open the product, plug it in, and it works the first time.
No serious audio company need worry about this. The same people that buy these units probably think there's no need to buy CDs for $11.99 when they can buy an album of 128 kbps AAC files from the Itunes store.
I purchased a song from the Itunes store today - just to test - it's only 128 kpbs and sub-par sonic quality. Ok for a portable radio or computer, but inadequate for home audio.
CardinalFang
2006-03-02, 13:45
I purchased a song from the Itunes store today - just to test - it's only 128 kpbs and sub-par sonic quality. Ok for a portable radio or computer, but inadequate for home audio.
Yup, and they've already had over a billion downloads. I still like to have that silver disc, I've lost data too many times to not want the back-up, and it allows me to choose the quality for the application.
They know their market and will exploit it to the hilt. Those same people will buy an expensive boombox if it is marketed right. They've been buying overpriced Macs for years because they look good and work first time out of the box.
Pale Blue Ego
2006-03-03, 00:16
For someone who is already sucked into the iPod/iTunes vortex, this is the next logical step. They probably already have a way to play their iPod through the car stereo; now they can replace their bedroom or dorm stereo with one of these boomboxes.
For people who carry their whole music collection on the iPod, and for whom the music is more important than the sound quality, this HiFi pod is ideal, really. I'm sure there are millions who'll be happy with it, and it's probably quite listenable - better than the cheapo systems with all the flashing blue lights.
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