Make streaming music easier
The Squeezebox Boom is a departure for Logitech. Previous Squeezeboxes needed to be plugged into an amplifier or a set of speakers, but the new Boom contains a pair of speakers on either side of the main unit. Both the name and the design are clear riffs on the all-in-one boomboxes of the 1980s.
Like other media streamers it plays music stored on users' PCs, as well as internet radio stations and, if you have the appropriate subscriptions, music from download services. It was very easy to set up – it recognised our wireless network soon after we plugged it in and switched it on, and prompted us to enter the key. This is a little fiddly, as you have to use the dial on the front of the unit, but it's easy to go back and correct mistakes. It can also connect to a wired network.
We then connected it to our PC, which is where the main annoyance came in. Unlike almost all their competitors, none of the Squeezeboxes support the UPNP standard for sharing music and video. The standard means you don't have to install any extra software and if you store all your music on a compatible network hard disk, they can play the tunes from that without any computers switched on, making for the ultimate home jukebox.
Instead, the Boom requires the user to install the Squeezecenter software. This isn't bad software, but it's still a hassle, and it means you need to always have a computer switched on when using the Boom (it'll receive internet radio without the PC, however).
In Logitech's favour, the software is open, meaning anyone can write their own version of it. We found one that can be loaded on the D-Link DNS-323, the network hard disk we use, but the installation process looked fraught to say the least.
There were a few problems – the software needs to scan your computer to create a library of music, which can take some time if you have a big collection. In our case the Squeezebox then refused to recognise the new tracks in the library until we'd found the appropriate setting in the menus.
