Yes, certainly, Slim shouldn't stay put with the
status quo.
They should build on their strengths and do
something no one else does or will want to do.
Lots of companies do video, some do audio, but
Slim is one of them that does audio *well*.
One of the key aspects is SlimServer. Due to the
architecture of the SlimServer/Squeezebox system,
radical changes in Squeezebox operation can be
achieved by software changes in SlimServer. Beat
that Apple or Linksys! And since the software is
open-source, development is rapid and 3rd party
plugins are abundant. A Squeezebox running using
SlimServer 5.x or even 6.0 isn't the same
Squeezebox running using SlimServer 6.2.1.
Another niche for Slim is sound quality.
Commodity manufacturers cannot hope to achieve
their sound quality. Commodity manufacturers
could likely beat Slim on price, but if they
attempted to match the Squeezebox's sound quality,
the cost wouldn't be that much lower because
they'd have to do some serious R&D to come up with
such a product. You can't fit all of Squeezebox's
operations on a C-Media chip...it'll require
serious R&D, specialized, low-volume parts and
lots of firmware development. This is expensive,
even for Linksys and Apple. It's also quite
time-consuming. Slim has a large head start in
this department.
A Squeezebox bundled with a Nokia 770 would be a
great idea. It would be an expensive package to
be sure, on par with Sonos at least. But Slim
would just be a 770 reseller, the warranty and
support for the 770 would be through Nokia, and
Slim would be able to get a volume discount. They
wouldn't have to stock or produce 770 parts either.
wei wrote:
> I also like Squeezebox the way it is, but it can
always be better.
> Didn't we hear "good is the enemy of great"? :-)
Honestly, big does
> not necessarily beats small, but fast can beat slow.
>
> Slim has been an innovative company and it has to
continue staying way
> ahead of others to even maintain its niche market.
The reason is
> obvious: other commodity players will eventually
figure out ways to do
> exactly what Squeezebox does today with a lower
cost. That's exactly
> why Slim should stay ahead by continuous innovation
and not play
> Linksys's commoditization game. Linksys is mostly a
middleman, a
> business based on the ODM model. It does not have a
substantial R&D
> inhouse, and has to rely on Asian manufacturers who
have no deep
> insight into U.S. consumer behaviors to design and
develop products
> targeted for U.S. consumers. The result is evident.
>
> On the other hand, Apple has been a rather
innovative company. Despite
> it's a lot bigger than Slim, it's still a small
company in its market
> segment. And it is fast too. Apple have been
beaten many times by
> itself and competitors if looking at its overall
history. It has its
> dark past: sit on its success in its niche for too
long and stopped
> innovation.
>
> I would encourage Slim to tackle the so-call giant
by playing smarter
> and faster, and continue innovating.
>
>
> Mark Lanctot Wrote:
>
>>In summary, I like the Squeezebox the way it is.
:-)
>>
>>Slim would be in danger trying to compete
>>head-to-head with Linksys. Apple is entering this
>>market too, with a stationary iPod device. The
>>very words "iPod base station" would likely
>>revolutionize this product category and get it
>>into the mainstream. Slim cannot hope to compete
>>with Apple and Linksys on their own turf. Apple
>>has chewed up and spit out their competitors in
>>the portable market. Slim does have a niche for
>>itself - making players capable of extremely
>>high-end performance, powered by free, open-source
>>software. Apple or Linksys couldn't and wouldn't
>>meet either of those requirements, so Slim will
>>live on provided it doesn't try to tackle these
>>giants head-to-head.
>>
>
>
>
--
___________________________________
Mark Lanctot
___________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Find your next car at http://autos.yahoo.ca
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