14 DAY TRIAL // Wireless, multi-room audio systems represent the future of home entertainment, and for this reason it should come as no surprise that Japanese consumer electronics giant Sony wants as big a piece of this pie as possible. This is why the company has just announced the S-AIRPLAY, a device that combines its advanced wireless music streaming technology with one of the icons of portable music: Apple's iPod player.
According to the manufacturer, one of the main selling points of the new S-Air technology is its ease of use and versatility. Thus, wireless audio can be transmitted from the system's main docking station in one room to various rooms throughout the home just by plugging a separate S-Air wireless speaker into a power outlet (up to 10 separate speakers are supported).
The broadcast range is quite impressive, namely somewhere around 50 meters. Nevertheless, despite packing a pretty powerful emitter, the S-AIRPLAY is considered to be perfectly safe around the home, as it generates a very low level of interference with other household products.
Besides allowing users to listen to their favorite tracks stored in the memory of the iPod (as well as controlling and charging the portable player from Apple), the device has also been equipped with an AM/FM tuner. Additionally, Sony's wireless audio system also incorporates a dual source feature, which means that listeners in one room can hear their favorite radio station, while people in another room can enjoy music from the iPod at the same time.
Much in the same way as most other similar products on the market, the speakers also feature sleep timers and an alarm clock function, as well as composite A/V outputs, which means that they can be safely connected to a TV so as to watch the movies or video clips stored in the memory of the iPod.
As you've probably guessed already, the S-AIRPLAY is quite an expensive product and it will arrive in Sony Style stores in September for an estimate $400, each additional speaker retailing for another $130 dollars.
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