1) FLAC. This is really huge the more I consider it. I like the fact that I've ripped all of my (>1000) CDs and I never have to do it again (although FLAC 1.1.3 is out with higher compression ratios, all I have to do is decode and recode the same files, with no loss, if I think it's going to buy me something. I have to check in to that.)
2) Serious listening. I am a serious music listener--I'd say one rung on the ladder down from the true "audiophile". While MP3s or WMA files are fine on my portable device (a 3 year old Nomad Zen 60GB), I find them unlistenable at home on my decent Denon receiver, or even my decent Sony receiver. Squeezebox is a high-grade, mass-market stereo component. If you compare it to the Netgear or Buffalo or (ahem) the Logitech products there's no comparison. Roku is about the same in the marketplace but the lack of FLAC support is a non-starter there. Slim competes with the Sonos, Olive, and Escient stuff well, at a fraction of the cost. Sure the Sonos controller is better but the controller alone costs more than a Squeezebox. 3) Ease of use. The Squeezebox took a lot of hacking for me to get running (especially since I insisted on using it with a Kuro Box and all the resultant hacking that took to get it working) but my wife can use it with minimal hassles. It's as easy, probably easier, than taking a CD from the rack and playing it. That's huge. 4) Upgradability and backwards compatibility. I like that my Squeezebox 2 is so far completely compatible with the Squeezebox 3. I like that you're still supporting SliMP3s. I anticipate the future products will add features that my box won't have, but I hope you continue to make it all make sense. That's what will keep loyal customers and add new ones. 5) Hackability and flexibility. I can dip into things and tweak them. I can use SoftSqueeze to listen at work, and the streaming interface wherever else I might be. I have control over things at nearly every level. Admittedly more mainstream users may not care about that, but I think you can create simple default configurations for them while still satisfying the hacker mentality. That's most of mine in a nutshell. It basically sums up to not abandoning the philosophy that made Slim great and desirable as an acquisition. -- mrfantasy --Mike ------------------------------------------------------------------------ mrfantasy's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=1127 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=31324 _______________________________________________ discuss mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/discuss
