Slacker 8 GB Portable Radio with 40 Stations (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The Slacker portables bring a new dimension to music listening.
Without the hassle of ripping your own MP3s, the service allows you to create your own customized radio stations and then, by WiFi or USB, load them onto the player for your enjoyment at any time.
Many reviews have discussed the player in depth, so let me address a couple of issues in regards to the older player, the G1, versus the new player, the G2.
The G1 player is obviously bigger, and while one advantage is an easier to read screen, it is a bigger package to carry around.
The G1 player also has not had any further firmware updates since March '08, while the G2 player has had frequent updates. Therefore, some important features such as improved battery life, and better USB connectivity have not (yet) been updated for the G1. Please check the slacker forums if you're thinking about buying a G1 to see if any updates have occurred since this was posted.
The G1 player lacks an equalizer control setting, while this was incorporated into the G2 player. I can't say that the G2's equalizer is worth much, as they don't have any user adjustable settings.
The G2 player has a setting to manage the WiFi settings, whereas this has not (yet) been implemented in the G1 player. This again reflects the lack of any further apparent support for this first generation player.
As the price of the 8Gb G1 player has not dropped substantially (although for a time it was selling for less than [...] from Amazon), the G2 unit appears to be the primary hardware that is receiving support from the company.
The G1 player has had an annoying habit of occasionally having a break in audio at the beginning of a song. This has not been a problem with the G2 units. It is unknown what creates the problem, but there has not been a fix issued for the G1 unit to address this issue.
Remember, if you use the web based player at [...] ..... not all the songs that can be heard on the web player are licensed to be downloaded onto the portable players. The company says that there are they are continually gaining more licensing rights, but it is unclear what percentage of music that you hear on the webplayer can be transferred to the portable player. Even with this limitation, you can create a wide variety of stations and enjoy them on the units.
However, for your money, you will probably find the G2 unit less buggy, and better supported by the company with updates.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Slacker 8 GB Portable Radio with 40 Stations (Black)

Click here for more information about Slacker 8 GB Portable Radio with 40 Stations (Black)

Myine Electronics IR001 WiFi Internet Radio Adaptor Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The press release from Myine Electronics states "Myine's Ira Wireless Internet Radio is designed to harness the universe of radio broadcasts available on the Internet and to allow user enjoyment anywhere a wireless internet connection, a speaker system and power sources are available." And that pretty well sums it up - and it does a great job at it too!
The general point of the unit is to not only give you access to the world of internet streaming radio and podcasts, but to do it easily, quickly, and without having to know a whole lot about what's going on with your network or connections. "There is a lack of good products available for people who are not tech savvy or just busy," said Jake Sigal, Principal and Founder of Myine Electronics. "Ira doesn't have any unnecessary bells and whistles, and sets up automatically right out of the box without a computer. We believe that with potentially confusing electronics, less is more."
When you first break the Ira out of the box, you'll see that it comes with the unit itself, a power cable, and a remote. It relies on WiFi being available to access the internet, and this is the first caution I would give potential buyers - make sure you have WiFi in your home, and that it is strong in the area you intend to put the Ira. The Ira seems very sensitive to interference and distance, so don't expect it to work as consistently and quickly as your laptop card does.
After plugging it in to the power and a set of speakers or a receiver, the next thing you'll need to do is configure it to access that WiFi broadcast. Although the Ira is geared towards `low-tech' users, it will definitely take some knowledge of networking and network configuration (plus a fair amount of patience) if you have any security enabled. Although it picks up the SSID if you are broadcasting that, and will tell you what type of security or encryption protocol, you'll need to be able to enter the passcode. If this is a WEP secure connection, this means you'll need to use the arrows on the remote and a pseudo keyboard on the screen to plunk out the 16 digits/characters/symbols - and unfortunately the Ira will not save incorrect configurations meaning you'll have to do it all again if you get one of the numbers wrong! It saves it if you get it right, so this may not be a big deal, particularly once you're past it.
Once you've got it all set up, you really start seeing the value and power of this unit. Users can filter by location or genre, and there are literally thousands of stations available. There are you're your typical shoutcast internet only stations, but also streaming live stations from around the globe. You've also got access to podcasts (including yours truly) and audio presentations, though you may find some of the more obscure ones missing. Myine selects the podcasts and stations that it will display through some mechanism that wasn't revealed to me. They did add podcasts that I requested (e.g., TechTalk on WRLR) without any questions or hesitation however, so I don't see this as a big hit.
If you're familiar at all with listening to radio or streaming audio on your laptop or desktop, you'll "get" this product immediately. What's really neat about it for me is how portable it is - I can listen to tunes up in my bedroom, then take the little unit downstairs to our porch outside, plug it into some speakers there and keep listening - without having to drag my laptop with it's rather junky soundcard all over the place! It's even small enough to throw in a jacket pocket and take to someone else's house to show off.
One area for future development and a feature that I really missed on the Ira is the lack of song information. Most stations broadcast the track and artist info with the song, but oddly the Ira unit does not display it. You can get a lot of other streaming and audio info, just nothing about the current track playing. The Ira software does have the capability to get updated over the wifi connection you use, so I would expect to see this fixed in a later release.
Overall Rating - 3 out of 5 Chips. It's a fantastic little product and idea, with portability and ease-of-use in the forefront of internet connected audio players (plus the benefit of not paying for XM or other similar options!). The lack of song tagging and weak reception strength make it just a little tougher to use than it should be however, and drops it down a notch. The price point is a touch high but still definitely within reach at around $130.
For more great topics and reviews like this, check out the weekly TechTalk show on WRLR 98.3 FM in Chicago, or listen anytime via iTunes or at our website:
techtalk.wrlr.fm

Click Here to see more reviews about: Myine Electronics IR001 WiFi Internet Radio Adaptor

Do you have wireless Internet? Do you want to get FREE music, sports, and news from around the world? Tired of confusing terminology and confusing features? Meet Ira – Our Internet Radio Adaptor that connects automatically to any wireless internet network. Extra features were intentionally removed so you can quickly listen to free music, sports, and news, without the extra hassles. Just take it out of the box, plug it in, connect it to your home stereo or boombox and use it. Automatically sets up in about three minutes and doesn't need a computer. All cables included. Ira has over 11,000 stations from just about every country in the world. Filter by location or genre to find new stations in under 30 seconds. Listen to NPR or your favorite local channels in CD like quality. Includes On Demand Podcast programming for many stations so you can listen to your favorite shows when you want. Includes a one-touch "STAR” button to store up to 40 of your favorite stations.

Click here for more information about Myine Electronics IR001 WiFi Internet Radio Adaptor

Philips NP1100/37 Streamium Network Music Player with 3.0" B&W Display Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The Philips Streamium NP1100 player connects your stereo to your PC and its Internet connection, letting you easily access your digital content where you want it. No more sitting in front of your PC to listen to your music!
SETUP
The NP1100 is basically a wireless access point bundled with a simple on-screen user interface and a remote control. Setup was unbelievably easy - I plugged the NP1100 into my A/V receiver, powered it up, and off it went. It automatically detected my wireless home network and once I supplied my WPA security key, it connected itself with no problem. The unit also includes an ethernet port if you prefer a wired connection.
Once connected, it automatically updated its own software, which is good but it was a minor nuisance that I then had to re-enter all of initial settings after the update.
You'll also want to register the unit by supplying the NP1100 with your email address. This sends you a link to set up a Club Philips online account. From this online account, you can manage the various sources of media that the NP1100 accesses, which is much faster when using a full-size keyboard vs. the player's remote. Registering this way also saves you from the hassle of reading the teeny-tiny serial numbers on the bottom of the unit.
PERFORMANCE
I planned on trying three distinct media sources with the Streamium, with pretty varied results: Internet radio, my own PCs media library, and my separate Sirius online subscription.
First, Internet radio. After connecting to your network, a pre-loaded catalog of Internet radio stations becomes available. You can organize this catalog by content (talk vs. music), music genre, country of origin, language, etc. Five minutes out of the box, I was catching up with the latest ambient music from France, local artists from Argentina, news headlines from Japan (just because I could - it's not like I speak Japanese!), and even the online home of the greatest radio station ever (The Future of Rock n Roll WOXY - 97X, Oxford, OH). The amazing variety of offerings makes for a pretty big 'wow' factor.
But the variety can also be overwhelming. Fortunately, the NP1100 has a "Favorites" functionality for bookmarking your preferred sources. This favorites list makes finding your top choices very easy.
Next, I decided to tackle my own digital media library. Unfortunately, the NP1100 requires Windows Media Player 11 (WMP) as its interface to your PC. I much prefer the iTunes interface to catalog my digital music, but there's no option to use it with the NP1100. So, I had to reinstall WMP on my PC (it's included on the CD that comes with this player) and then configure it to manage a parallel library of my music. WMP is simply awful to use - rigid installation that overwrites most of your existing media preferences (e.g. it's always resetting itself as my default player for all formats), clunky visual interface, and also a stubborn determination to not accept anything that's not Microsoft-endorsed. For example, almost my entire library is in AAC file format; however, Microsoft backs MP3. So when I first tried to access my library from the Streamium, only the tiny fraction of MP3s appeared - no AAC files at all. I eventually found a WMP plug-in that makes AACs appear in its library, but I still have trouble getting them to completely function. This isn't a flaw with the Streamium per se, but their exclusive choice of partner makes the user perform a lot of runaround to meet their specifications.
Once you do get your library set up, the content functions very well. Just as with Internet radio sources, you can access your PC's media by artist, album, genre, etc. You can also send playlists to the Streamium, which is very useful for party mixes.
Lastly, I wanted to see if the Streamium could access my online Sirius subscription. I tried several different variations on the Sirius player's online address, but nothing worked. Again, the player seems handcuffed by Philips' exclusive business arrangements - out of the box, the Streamium player comes ready to work with a Rhapsody online music subscription. However, that didn't interest me and it seems that other competing services aren't allowed.
Playback quality is good - of course digital music files transmitted wirelessly aren't going satisfy any serious audiophile, but that's not the point of this device.
ERGONOMICS
The NP1100 is roughly the size of a paperback novel on its side. It has a retro-Scandanvian look with its silver housing and a clear window that encases it black-and white display. The display itself is bit disappointing. First, it's only a small portion of the unit's face - most of what you see in the picture is a black frame that surrounds the screen. Second, it's difficult to read at any appreciable angle. Since the Streamium's base doesn't allow you to tilt, you basically have to place it wherever it'll be eye-level most frequently. Third, its font sizes are all wrong and can't be changed. You can guess that they tried to accommodate people who keep the player close at hand and those who'll put it across the room, but unfortunately, the characters are difficult to read in either case.
The remote is a total throwaway. Small buttons with microscopic labels, no backlighting, etc. However, I was able to program my Logitech Harmony pretty easily to mimic it.
CONCLUSION
The NP1100 excels at delivering your digital media with convenience and flexibility. Its out-of-the-box simplicity make it a great idea for even the technologically-challenged. And its affordable price mean that finally you can enjoy your music where you really want to without being tied down to your PC.
PROS
Simple setup, even with wireless networking
Comes packaged with an amazing set of streaming content offerings
Good sound quality
CONS
Being forced to use WMP for your media library
Screen display should be bigger and easier to read
Throwaway remote control


Click Here to see more reviews about: Philips NP1100/37 Streamium Network Music Player with 3.0" B&W Display

By connecting to both your PC and audio system, Philips Streamium network music player gives you wireless access to your PC music library, Internet radio and Rhapsody online music service. A whole world of exciting music possibilities!

Click here for more information about Philips NP1100/37 Streamium Network Music Player with 3.0" B&W Display