Holiday gift ideas: home entertainment gadgets

We are closer than ever to the realization of the networked living room dream that has been promised for years by technology vendors. No longer do we need to consume our content in one location on a specific device – the networked home means you can consume digital entertainment in a variety of locations and in a variety of ways. Here's a bunch of products that you'll want to add to your home network to be entertained:

Logitech Squeezebox Radio

The latest version of the Squeezebox digital, networked music player includes the concept of "apps", downloadable programs that let you access Internet radio services such as Slacker and Pandora. If you already subscribe to these services, the app concept is an easy way to connect to your accounts and listen to your music. But apps are also included that let you connect to Facebook, sharing with your friends the music that you're listening to.

The device itself is quite simple – it's compact, has a 2.4-inch color screen and a big round button for tuning and navigating through the menus. Six presets are included, which is cool in case you want to set one for a favorite radio station (it can stream local Internet radio stations as well as worldwide ones), and set another one for Pandora, for example. The Squeezebox Radio can connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi or Ethernet, and when it's not being used, the display offers a nice clock and calendar.

This would be great for home use, but I enjoyed the Squeezebox Radio more in my office. I have an extra Ethernet connection, and found myself listening to local radio stations, then switching to Pandora or Slacker. The size reminds me of those old-school intercom boxes, so it's a nice fit on top of the desk – not too bulky but also large enough to give great sound.
My only complaint is the continued use of the Squeezebox Server application in order to play and stream music stored on the home network. There didn't seem to be an easy way to stream music stored on a NAS device, and there's also no internal storage or the ability to play music stored on a memory card. The device does have a line-in jack, so you could connect an iPod or other digital audio player and use this as a speaker system.

Cool Yule Rating: 5 stars
Price: $199
Product Web site.
Reviewed by Keith Shaw