Do you own SqueezeBox hardware?

[fraserm]

Reading a few of the posts on here, I feel its kind of a shame to see people using SqueezePlay with no actual purchase of a SqueezeBox. Ultimately, if the trend increases, Logitech will eventually look at their books and make a decision that none of us want to see.

Although I have 2 Jogglers, I also have a SqueezeBox Classic and a Duet, and I like to think that other fans of Squeeze are paying their way to some extent too!

It would be ironic if SqueezeBox would go the same way as the Joggler itself! I am a huge fan of their work, and want their development to continue with both their hardware and software.

Long live SqueezeBox!

[dwl99]

I was spurred on to get a Squeezebox Duet after seeing how smoothly SBS worked on my PC.

[gegs]

I would love to get a Squeezebox Touch but can't afford one at present. The Joggler, good though it is, is only a stop-gap measure in my hi-fi set up until I can get the real thing. The audio hardware and output options from the Squeezebox make it the obvious choice for good sound fidelity but there will definitely be a home for my Jogglers somewhere in a future Squeezebox/Squeezeserver setup.

As for Squeezeplay, I wouldn't mind paying a yearly subscription for the service if it meant solvency for Logitech. I already pay £10 a month for Spotify Premium and it is fantastic on the Joggler and on the iPod Touch - my kids iPods, I hasten to add, which they bought with their Christmas and paper round money. Maybe I'll get a paper round for the Squeezebox Touch.

[Justblair]

Reading a few of the posts on here, I feel its kind of a shame to see people using SqueezePlay with no actual purchase of a SqueezeBox. Ultimately, if the trend increases, Logitech will eventually look at their books and make a decision that none of us want to see.

Have you considered that Logitech may actually be benefiting from this situation? I am sure that they would not make their OS opensource if it was hurting their business.... Your assumption is flawed I suspect.

People who develop the OS for other hardware are contributing to the code. Think of this as completely free future product development for logitech! Fancy putting a currency value onto that? So when you see the next 7' Atom based product from Logitech, smile and think I was part of that. It will be using some of the code that people in this community have adapted.

The other big advantage that Logitech get from us using it on our Joggler is that the size of their community grows. Sure that means that some in the community are neither paying customers nor developers, but who cares? If those people show the system to their mates, and their mates don't want to hack together their own squeezebox substitutes, then Logitech are going to sell even more units...

Also think of people who use the SqueezeOS on other systems as market testers for Logitech. The features that we rave about are the ones that are worth developing into new products.

Think also about the benefits Logitech gets from an expanded user base. An audience who are "bought in" already to their message and ethos and ready to listen to what their marketing wants to say. Stick a currency value on that while you are at it...

Not meaning to be argumentative, and if you like the current hardware offerings that Logitech are offering, by all means buy the products. But don't panic about an extended user base damaging Logitech's interests here, that is just part of an opensource business model and this model has many demonstrated benefits to those companies that use it.

Think all those Arduino clones you can buy on e-bay are harming the Arduino development teams interests?

[gegs]

I agree with Justblair about the open source aspect of Logitech's operation. I will buy a Squeezebox Touch one day but without having owned a Joggler I wouldn't have known how good their software is and wouldn't have considered it. Also, even with the official hardware some of the best functionality comes from 3rd party developers (I doff my hat to Triode and other gifted individuals), thereby enhancing and improving Logitech's own products without any development costs on their part. It's the Logitech hardware that makes me want to buy one; if they continue to make good quality hardware with excellent hi-fi connectivity options I'm sure they'll have a long and rosy future.

[fraserm]

All fair comments, and I do hope that Logitech continue to make this profitable and continue their approach that has worked for them so far.

[frosty]

I must admit I love the logitech hardware.
I use 7 jogglers around the house as front panel controllers and 8 logitech receivers around the house and in the garden directly connected to wired ethernet and amps.
It's a great combination, stable and quick.
The receivers work perfectly when connected to a wired network and you do not have to worry about leaving any front end client running. Thus using any client source including iphone or duet controller all work seamlessly.
This is the only real stable,quality,easy to use,wife proof setup I would recommend - don't rely on wireless - with low or troubled bandwidth the client/server connection has trouble and is not resiliant enough for me (it brings on the 'honey its not working again, I want a cd player') but since going all wired it's been great.

[fraserm]

Wow, frosty, that's a hell of an installation!!! Must be a big house

Agree with all your points about wife friendlyness, and wired is definately the most reliable way.