Tivoli Audio NetWorks Shipping in June
Nearly a year ago, Tivoli announced the the NetWorks, a free-standing device designed to let you tune into and stream Web radio independent of a PC. It didn’t quite happen. But today, Tivoli CEO Tom DeVesto announced that the NetWorks is finally going into production and will be shipping within a few weeks. The price? $600, which DeVesto defended by claiming terrific audio fidelity. More details after the jump.
The NetWorks we saw today looks quite different than the prototype device shown last year, but it definitely looks like a Tivoli product, with a wood case and simple, elegant design. It’s a standalone unit but can be expanded with a CD player, a subwoofer, or another speaker, for surround sound. It connects to the Web via Wi-Fi or Ethernet and can also be used with your other music sources: there′s a USB port for flash players as well as an audio jack for headsets or other players–such as iPods, since the NetWorks supports only WMA and MP3 formats.
Other features: a simple EQ, five presets that can be customized, up to 100 favorites, and automatic software upgrades. DeVesto said that future upgrades will include more languages (the NetWorks will support 10, initially); compatibility with iTunes and satellite radio; and compatibility with online music services like Pandora.
PC Magazine′s audio analyst, Tim Gideon, was at the event with me. His take:
The price seems quite high for a mono radio unit. The stereo add-on speaker is app. $100 extra, making this a $700 investment if you want to hear anything in stereo…whoa! With Tivoli, however, I always keep in mind that it’s as much about the style as it is the sound: these are design pieces. It’s also worth noting that most devices that stream content from your computer don’t have built-in speakers, much less nice built-in speakers. In essence, you’re getting a nice sound system and access to HD radio, the ability to stream shared files from your computer (not iTunes, though) and it comes it a beautiful wooden box. Some people will not balk at paying for that. It was a bit distressing, however, that Tivoli didn’t think to secure more content partners–this is a device that would compliment free services like Pandora and Slacker perfect, and it would seem easy enough to do.
By the way, DeVesto is always a pretty charming speaker. My favorite quote from today: When asked to compare his company’s NetWorks with the Sonos, he said, “I guess people who like little white plastic boxes go for Sonos.”
Oh, snap!
Original post by Carol Mangis