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Logitech Buys Slim Devices

Posted by ryuzaki0 on

Logitech today announced the purchase of Slim Devices, longtime makers of network audio players SliMP3, Squeezebox, and the new Transporter. A couple years back Logitech bought Harmony Remote, becoming the makers of all my wireless control devices for my entertainment center (Bluetooth mouse, remote control, and PS2 controllers). Now they make my Squeezebox, too.

80 comments

  1. Not so sure ... by mrbanzai · · Score: 3, Informative

    My experience with Logitech hasn't exactly been stellar. While my Squeezebox is probably my favorite piece of equipment in my entertainment system, I have a box of cast-away Logitech parts that don't seem to adhere to the same quality standards. Additionally, one thing I cherish about my Squeezebox is its integration with SlimServer running on a Linux machine. SlimServer has its oddities, but in general it's a solid piece of software. I'm uncertain that Logitech would be as supportive of Linux as Slim Devices currently is. Prove me wrong, Logitech, prove me wrong ... please?

    1. Re:Not so sure ... by bartyboy · · Score: 2, Interesting

      My experience with Logitech (or their Harmony Remote) has been stellar. My Harmony Remote 680 is probably my favorite piece of equipment in my entertainment system, and I only bought one because it controls everything I own and doesn't break after I drop it. Additionally, one thing I cherish about my Harmony Remote is its integration with the remote control database and ease of setup. The remote has a few oddities, but it's a solid piece of hardware. I'm certain that Logitech has not screwed up Harmony Remote by buying it.

      Isn't anecdotal evidence great?

      (On a more serious note, I highly recommend the Harmony Remote to anyone with more than two remote controls in their entertainment system. The wife loves it, too.)

    2. Re:Not so sure ... by asdhwesd · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I agree... Slim Devices has done a good job of communicating and working with its customers over the years to make things work better and in adding new features.

      This is a sad day for Squeezebox owners and fans of Slim Devices.

      As said by someone elsewhere in this thread, I just hate it when big companys buy little companies out.

      http://www.slimdevices.com/

    3. Re:Not so sure ... by AmaDaden · · Score: 2, Interesting

      My experience with Logitech hasn't exactly been stellar.

      Really? I have never had any problems with Logitech what so ever in the past few years. To the point where I only buy Logitech stuff. The same is true for my friends. What logitech stuff have you guys had problems with? I've never used anything from Slim Devices but I would think that this would be good for them. Logicitech should have the power and money to make what ever they make even better or at the very lest cheaper and easier to find.

    4. Re:Not so sure ... by dubiousmike · · Score: 2, Informative

      Their remotes is supposed to be the OS X of universal remotes. Its what you are supposed to buy for your relatives who can't set the microwave clock. And yet my 50 something year old mother doesn't use it because its too confusing.

      Can't win...

    5. Re:Not so sure ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I have to order an SB while supply lasts. Don't want a crappy one fron Logitech that only supports Windows. Logitech makes excellent mice and should stick to that...

    6. Re:Not so sure ... by djfake · · Score: 1

      I think most people's concern is that when you take a entreprenurial venture like slim and try to translate it to the corporate mold (in order to justify the US$20 million paid!!!), the passion quickly gets swept away into product, marketing, supply channel and all the other.
      I got into slim when it first came out, and because it had a linux version of the software. my "music box" is exclusively linux and I sure don't want to change that. Corporate shows little regard for open source - just try to find an mp3 player that supports OGG Vorbis.
      DOn't get me wrong, there's a lot of good that Logitech can do for slim. Obviously a less expensive wired-only no-display version of the Squeezebox would be a great start. Then of course, having slim handle video in addition to audio is obviously why the money was spent...

      We hope for the best, but brace for the worst!

      --
      www.itjerk.com
    7. Re:Not so sure ... by futuresheep · · Score: 1

      My 65 year old mother uses hers just fine. She thinks the marco buttons on the top are the best feature.

    8. Re:Not so sure ... by mspohr · · Score: 2, Interesting
      My Harmony remote has been great. It's easy to set up thanks to the online configuration databank.

      Also, big suprise was that they have great technical support. I had a question and talked to a real person who was very helpful. The tech support people can even set up your device for you since they store the configuration in their database.

      --
      I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
    9. Re:Not so sure ... by greed · · Score: 1

      I tried a Harmony. It had no way of controlling by DVD carousel player without going to the per-device soft menu and through 4 screens to get the disc change buttons. Despite the fact that it claimed to know about my model of player; there were no disc change commands under "Play a DVD".

      So I'm still using the Sony RM-AV3000; and I wish I could get a Marantz RC2000 Mk II... my RC2000 Mk I got dropped on the floor just a _few_ too many times....

      (It might become moot; I'm thinking of getting rid of the changer and just having a single-disc progressive scan player....)

    10. Re:Not so sure ... by metamatic · · Score: 1

      You know you can change the commands on the various screens, right? Put disc change buttons on the "Play a DVD" screen?

      --
      GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
    11. Re:Not so sure ... by profplump · · Score: 2, Insightful

      You're aware that you can re-map both the hard and soft buttons arbitrarily, right? If it knows a command to make disks change, you can make any button you like send that command.

    12. Re:Not so sure ... by klausboop · · Score: 1

      Just wanted to add my deepest, strongest seconding of your wish that Logitech keeps the SlimServer OSS project going. I do not own a Squeezebox, can't afford it, but I've used SlimServer for years, streaming music from home to my laptop at work and also to PCs around the house, including one hooked to my stereo. I LOVE this software, especially with the improvements they've made over the years. I'll be heartbroken if it's gone.

      On the other hand, maybe Logitech will finally come out with a cheap, displayless version of squeezebox with a nice friendly $50 price tag. Or a $150 version that does my music the way it does now but also does video...like the upcoming Apple iTV but even cheaper, and using SlimServer instead of iTunes as the backend.

      --
      Some of you already have those cute little shirts on that say disco sucks, right? That's not all that sucks.-Frank Zappa
  2. Was it these guys that... by WasterDave · · Score: 2, Interesting

    ....were on slashdot a few years back hand soldering resistors onto logic boards to get their first batch out the door? If it was, well, way to go back bedroom hardware hackers! There is hope beyond yet another godforsaken web project yet :)

    Dave

    --
    I write a blog now, you should be afraid.
    1. Re:Was it these guys that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      I believe you're thinking of the same crew. I've done a little work with the owner, Sean Adams over email. When I last looked in on slimdevices about a year ago, he had a shippable product, but it did indeed still seem quite home-grown. Seems to have paid off - congrats Sean!

    2. Re:Was it these guys that... by notanatheist · · Score: 2, Informative

      You're very right. The original version was a rather crude product but it worked. The SB3 (same hardware as the SB2) is a much more refined product. Nothing else on the market comes close to it's performance. Sonos is cool but isn't as fast and responsive as the SB. Also, Slimdevices is a much more open community with an extensive set of plugins for obtaining information on the VFD. Personally, I only use the Alarm Clock and Weather plugins. With Logitech's acquisition there is hope of bringing the price down to a $199 point to make it more affordable. If you hit the forums you'll notice the "Logitech buys Slimdevices" thread quite lively with an actual Logitech VIP chiming in with answers to questions.

    3. Re:Was it these guys that... by jacobcaz · · Score: 2, Informative
      ....were on slashdot a few years back hand soldering resistors onto logic boards to get their first batch out the door? If it was, well, way to go back bedroom hardware hackers! There is hope beyond yet another godforsaken web project yet :)

      Yep, and they make a good product. I bought one of the first 100 (which were the hand assembled units) - I believe I have #49 - and it still works like a champ. About two years after I bought it I emailed Sean Adams (the CEO) and inquired about the case upgrade which had long since been discontinued and he not only scrouged one up for me but included one of the new switching power supplies to replace the wall wart that came with the first batch. Excellent company to deal with and excellent support from the original guys.

      I hope Logitec lets them keep their level of service where Sean and the original crew kept it.

    4. Re:Was it these guys that... by Holmwood · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Version 3 of of Slim Devices Squeezebox is quite polished. I agree, V2 looked a bit clunky.

      Moreover, the informal tech support on their boards is amazingly good, IMHO. I posted about a problem in the evening one holiday weekend, and their CTO posted back with a suggested solution later that night. Now a fan of their products, sure, but the CTO? Great.

      In the short term, this is great news for the employees (assuming they have options/stock in the company) and founders. Shareholders can cash out and get a return on the equity (sweat and cash) they've put into the business. I'm very happy for them.

      In the longer term? They'll probably lose some good people, and I doubt that in five years time senior company officers will be answering a new users questions late at night on the boards on a holiday.

      Also, unless I'm really missing something, I don't see where a product like the Transporter (http://www.slimdevices.com/pi_transporter.html) fits in. I mean circa $2000? For something from Logitech!?

      Thinking about it that way, for me, this is a little like a decent, but unexceptional fast-food chain purchasing the local bistro.

      So it's kind of mixed news for consumers, I think. More backing, deeper pockets is good, but I do worry about what will happen to their customer service. I also worry about a junky cost-reduced product killing them.

      -Holmwood

  3. hmm, not sure that's a good thing by TheGratefulNet · · Score: 3, Interesting

    logitech makes CRAPPY drivers. their software side of things is really bad.

    large companies almost ALWAYS ruin smaller ones when they buy them (out).

    I have a slim mp3 hardware box. its reasonably well designed and mostly trouble free.

    but honestly, I am not going to hope for much more now that they're no longer a small company ;(

    --

    --
    "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
    1. Re:hmm, not sure that's a good thing by Jah-Wren+Ryel · · Score: 1

      large companies almost ALWAYS ruin smaller ones when they buy them (out).

      But, sometimes that leads to excellent sales. Like when Rio bought the empegcar player. It had been selling for like $2000, but when Rio cancelled it, they had a firesale and you could pick them up for like $200.

      Oddly enough, slim's new "transporter" is also $2000. Here's to Logitech cancelling it and dumping inventory for 90% off MSRP! I'll buy two if that happens.

      --
      When information is power, privacy is freedom.
    2. Re:hmm, not sure that's a good thing by TheGratefulNet · · Score: 1

      rio car for $200?

      I had one but I think mine was closer to $600 (dual drive 60gig unit, I think.)

      it was a neat design but not really robust. it had some intermittant problems. and being a pull-out, it had security issues and user inconvenience issues, as well. the drives spinning up too much also ruined the experience for me (not enough ram buffering).

      I just don't trust logitech. do they even release linux drivers for their multibutton mice?

      I'm sure this is financially good for the SD people but customers almost never win when some large co. buys a small one.

      this doesn't make my slimplayer any less useful, but I doubt I'll expect anything as visionary from them now that they're part of the 'make money by selling stuff to the masses' mentality. the 'masses' would not buy a slim player. plus, how much you want to bet that some DRM will sneak its way into logitech's 'new' product line?

      a small company could say 'get lost' to the DRM folks but logitech, nah, I don't think so. they care more about money than tech excellence or freedom.

      --

      --
      "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
    3. Re:hmm, not sure that's a good thing by notanatheist · · Score: 1

      Not going to happen. They can't even keep the Transporter in stock. Get yerself a Squeezebox instead.

    4. Re:hmm, not sure that's a good thing by obi · · Score: 1

      Absolutely. And getting any specs out of them is probably easier than getting nvidia to open source their drivers, even for basic things like input devices. Linux is completely _not_ on their minds.

    5. Re:hmm, not sure that's a good thing by weasel99 · · Score: 1

      > logitech makes CRAPPY drivers. their software side of things is really bad. On another hand, SlimServer is not the most stable/fast/modern piece of software I've ever seen.

    6. Re:hmm, not sure that's a good thing by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

      I just don't trust logitech. do they even release linux drivers for their multibutton mice?

      Of course not. Luckily, Linux (actually X.org) does a decent job of supporting 5-button mice on its own thanks to the standardized USB protocol, but that's all that's supported on my MX510 here at work. The extra buttons (forward/back, etc.) aren't supported yet, unless something's changed recently.

      I'm sure this is financially good for the SD people but customers almost never win when some large co. buys a small one.

      This is true. Look at what happened to Rio, after all. Went down the toilet just after it was bought out. Niche markets just aren't good enough for big, publicly-traded companies. If they can't sell millions upon millions of a product, they kill it.

  4. Squeeze Box by dekkerdreyer · · Score: 1

    My mom has a squeeze box, she wears it on her chest. When dad comes home, he never gets no rest.

    --
    Dekker Dreyer
    1. Re:Squeeze Box by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Does she go in and out and in and out?

  5. Very interesting by NaCh0 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    As a squeezebox owner, good and bad thoughts are passing through my head...

    Will the quality remain top notch in future versions?

    Will we see price drops?

    Will logitech be able to pull off a killer device that combines the squeezebox with an equally versitile video component? (mpeg,wmv,mov,avi,etc)

    1. Re:Very interesting by notanatheist · · Score: 1

      Don't plan on it. SlimDevices is in the audio market. They care about what and how you listen to your music. Troll the forums for video and you'll find very little. Video requires a dedicated screen of some sort wether built in or via a TV. The devices themselves don't have the horsepower for decoding video. The Squeezebox is to remain a seperate product for the time being. Prices drops are what many users are hoping for. At least for the Squeezebox. Probably not for the Transporter in the forseeable future.

    2. Re:Very interesting by bsharitt · · Score: 1

      I think that was the point of the parent. They currently have no desire to enter the video market, maybe logitech will change that.

    3. Re:Very interesting by Ilgaz · · Score: 1

      I am using a "iFeel" mouse from Logitech for over 5 or more years. On windows and OS X I have always used their drivers and reading posts on Slashdot and download sites makes me check if I am really using a Logitech.

      If you are thinking Logitech does bad quality products because of Slashdot and download site comments, you are wrong on your concerns about future quality.

      It started to look like a fashion to hate logitech because they are popular and still in business.

    4. Re:Very interesting by Aladrin · · Score: 1

      Or maybe because their newer products and tech support are crap.

      My father, who rarely uses his computer, managed to 'kill' 2 logitech mx1000 mice. When I called tech support, they made me go through the usual stupid BS about new drivers and blah blah, even after explaining that we had 2 of them, 1 on my computer and 1 on his, and I had proven that it was his mouse, not his receiver, that was broken and that mine still worked with his receiver. So I finally get them to say they'll ship another one out.

      2 weeks later it still hasn't arrived, so we call again. No record of my call. We do the same thing again. No record of my call a few days later. Finally it gets shipped. He's using my mouse in the meantime and I've upgraded to a newer G7 one. Mine dies, too!

      My father just doesn't use the computer that much. That's crazy.

      As if that isn't enough, I bought a G15 keyboard with the G7. The G7, after about a month, refused to be recognized by windows each time I rebooted until I unplugged the usb stick and plugged it back in. The G15 would randomly start hitting the left arrow key and you had to unplug it and plug it back in to make it stop.

      I stayed updated on the drivers. Some helped a bit, but the problems always returned. I eventually bought a new keyboard and tossed the G15 in the corner. Installing windows from scratch was needed to fix the mouse issue.

      Prior to the mx1000, I LOVED Logitech. I just can't believe this kind of crap goes on with their most expensive products. I now avoid them like the plague.

      No, it's not cool to hate a company. Sometimes, though, it's the right thing to do. When they start making quality products again, I'll considering buying them again.

      --
      "If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; But if you really make them think, they'll hate you." - DM
    5. Re:Very interesting by Lumpy · · Score: 1

      From what I have seen in the past with things like this?

      Nope not a chance. this is the death knoll for the squeezebox.

      Nothing like a big company to take a fantastic product from a small company and turn it to utter crap, or kills it... happens every single time.

      --
      Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
    6. Re:Very interesting by Grishnakh · · Score: 1

      I use a Logitech MX510 mouse at work, and a cheaper and older optical one at home. They both work great, and I use both in Linux.

      However, there's a difference between making good mice and taking over a small company and not running it into the ground. Logitech makes good-quality mice, and maybe some other things (all being hardware), but these are mass-market items that sell millions of units. Big companies are usually good at that sort of thing: making something that's good enough, and making it in huge quantities at cheap prices.

      What they're NOT good at is making low-volume, niche-market items. Every time a big company buys out a small company that has a popular niche-market item, they try to do with it what they did with their successful mass-market items: make it cheaper, make millions of them, market the hell out of them, and sell millions. Then, when this inevitably falls through, they kill it off, to the horror of the small but loyal customer base. Look at what happened to Rio.

      This isn't about hating Logitech for their status as a big company or their other products (at least for most of us). It's about hating what we know is going to happen to the small company they've gobbled up.

  6. Man I hope they don't screw it up by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Love my squeezebox. Got my BBC and CBC and Classical music from four of five continents, nevermind my hundreds of CD's streamed to my stereo.

    And yeah, Slimserver is a large part of the reason the squeezebox rocks. People hacking plugins and developing new features.

    God, I hope they don't screw it up.

    From the Slim Forums:


    Let me introduce myself. My name is Junien Labrousse, Logitech SVP of the Entertainment and Communication Business Unit.
    The first thing I'll say is that we are very excited about the opportunity that Slim Devices will bring to Logitech. This is
    a great extension of our current business. Let me assure you that one of the main reasons for this acquisition is the development capabilities of the Slim Devices team. The technical level of this group is a key asset that we fully intend to leverage. The Slim Devices entity will function independently, keeping the spirit of advance audio technology and strong product innovation.

    Logitech will bring its global distribution and marketing capabilities, providing a jump start to a large visibility and adoption of Slim Devices products.
    1. Re:Man I hope they don't screw it up by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I hope it's true about the independency being preserved as Slim Devices did seem to be a great little company, especially appealing on the software support side as I've never had a very high opinion of Logitech. I was planning on getting a Squeezebox; hopefully they won't ruin it

  7. oh no.... by djfake · · Score: 1

    logitech is the kmart of peripherals but they do make a decent enough speaker dock for the ipod... the only upswing for linux users is that slimserver is open source, do i see a fork? will logitech release less expensive wired-only squeezebox?

    it's sad news really. nice people @ slim...

    --
    www.itjerk.com
    1. Re:oh no.... by Jussi+K.+Kojootti · · Score: 2, Informative
      I don't understand your point... Why would slimserver be forked? Because it's now owned by Logitech? I fail to see the connection...

      There is a wired-only squeezebox by the way (https://secure.slimdevices.com/order/index.cgi), but for some reason the resellers don't seem to have it in stock.

    2. Re:oh no.... by djfake · · Score: 1

      Will Logitech keep slimserver software open-source? free? under gpl? Who knows . . . A wired-only, no-display device; in other words, one that costs about $100 bucks or less. The display is the most expensive part of the Squeezebox.

      --
      www.itjerk.com
    3. Re:oh no.... by Jussi+K.+Kojootti · · Score: 1

      I'm a little slow at responding... slimserver 6.5 works like charm as far as I'm concerned, and it will stay GPL. There's absolutely nothing Logitech can do about that. Additional features are of course nice, but slimserver is "ready enough" that those can be implemented by third parties if Logitech decided to relicense the code... I don't think that parts are really a major factor in the price in this case... Or are two-bit displays really that expensive?

    4. Re:oh no.... by Jussi+K.+Kojootti · · Score: 1

      Let me try that again with formatting:

      I'm a little slow at responding...

      Slimserver 6.5 works like charm as far as I'm concerned, and it will stay GPL. There's absolutely nothing Logitech can do about that. Additional features are of course nice, but slimserver is "ready enough" that those can be implemented by third parties if Logitech decided to relicense the code...

      I don't think that parts are really a major factor in the price in this case... Or are two-bit displays really that expensive?

    5. Re:oh no.... by djfake · · Score: 1

      At somepoint I remember reading that the display was the most expensive component in the Squeezebox. When the squeeze2 came out, one could upgrade the display on the squeeze1 for around $80. In my case, I use a Nokia 770 as the remote, so I just need "the connection". At any rate, $250-300 isn't a price point where I'm going to have a "many" Squeezes in my home. c

      --
      www.itjerk.com
  8. I Hope by Vskye · · Score: 1

    That Logitech does NOT screw this one up. I've been thinking about purchasing one the these, but it absolutely has to be linux compatable. Logitech's record in the driver department has not been too steller as far as linux goes.

    --
    Life was hell, then I discovered Linux...
    1. Re:I Hope by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

      Their software record hasn't been too stellar in general.

    2. Re:I Hope by notanatheist · · Score: 1

      Slimserver is in PERL. Go download it. You can run the server software and use "Softsqueeze" as a client to get the hang of things. One thing for sure, the software player doesn't come close to the performance and cool factor of the hardware. As for the Squeezebox, it's a network device. No drivers needed.

    3. Re:I Hope by lazy_playboy · · Score: 1

      True, slimserver is written in perl and the source is available at the moment, so if push came to shove it could be installed from source but I'd far rather apt-get it from a slimdevice official resource rather than have to install all the dependancies and set it up manually.

    4. Re:I Hope by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

      Why can't someone make a device like the AudioTron? Something that will work with practically every operating system out there, with zero software install (well, maybe a bit, if you're using Windows 9x, DOS or such)?

      (The AudioTron scans your entire network looking for Windows/SMB/CIFS shares, and then indexes them. Since most operating systems either have SMB sharing natively in the OS, or provided via Samba and also thus compatible with NAS appliances that share via SMB/CIFS without leaving a PC on.)

      This is especially so since the majority of media devices out there use SMB internally to share the files (Xbox360, Linksys, Netgear, DLink, etc). Windows Media Connect is a joke that requires a billion ports to be opened in the XP firewall...

  9. crazy by bunions · · Score: 3, Insightful

    the kings of bloated drivers (30MB to install my keyboard?!?) meet the kings of super-awesome software. WHO WILL WIN?!

    My money is on logitech. Glad I bought a squeezebox a few months ago (they are 10lbs of awesome stuffed into a 5lb sack).

    --
    there is no need to sign your posts. this isn't usenet. your username is right there above your post. stop it.
    1. Re:crazy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Uhh I never needed any software to make my USB wireless keyboard work.....

    2. Re:crazy by Ptur · · Score: 1

      Hahahahahaha Seriously.... Watch how much memory SlimServer uses on your pc, then re-read your won post. SlimServer is the thing I hate about my SqueezeBox. Bloated perl crap. It takes 70MB *RAM* to run and still is slow and buggy. Yes, that's 70 MB!

    3. Re:crazy by jimicus · · Score: 1

      Why are you bothering to install drivers for a keyboard?

    4. Re:crazy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I also especially love how the Windows version runs in your temporary folder and never removes itself. It might have something to do with not have perl pre-installed but regardless, brilliant work guys.

    5. Re:crazy by bunions · · Score: 1

      yeah, but it actually -does- something, as opposed to the 30mb of software for my logitech keyboard that wants to manage the media keys and a few other stupid things.

      As for buggy, I dunno, it's never crashed once for me, nor has it ever done anything unexpected.

      --
      there is no need to sign your posts. this isn't usenet. your username is right there above your post. stop it.
    6. Re:crazy by bunions · · Score: 1

      I'm not. some management of the media keys would be nice, but not at 30MB.

      --
      there is no need to sign your posts. this isn't usenet. your username is right there above your post. stop it.
  10. Sigh by DaveJay · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I love my Squeezebox. I have a box full of Logitech peripherals that I no longer use. I can only hope that they let the Slim Devices folks keep doing what they do best, but with the marketing muscle and distribution that Logitech can leverage (I hate seeing Roku players on the shelves at Fry's, but no Squeezeboxen.)

  11. Use to work for Harmony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Well lets just say after Logitech bought us things kind of went downill. Note the "use" to in my subject. Enough said.

  12. SlimServer is still GPL by tomRakewell · · Score: 3, Insightful

    One of the best things about the Squeezebox is the open source SlimServer app that powers it. Written in Perl, it runs on any operating system. How can Logitech take that away? It's even conceivable that, if Logitech destroys the Squeezebox, somebody else can create a hardware box that will run on Slimserver.

    I think re-engineering Slimerserver would be difficult, expensive and stupid. Logitech will keep it. That's the core of the Linux Squeezebox compatibility right there.

    1. Re:SlimServer is still GPL by BillEGoat · · Score: 1

      I own an SB, and I love it, but I'm not impressed with the quality of SlimServer itself. The basic architecture of SB/SlimServer rocks. The fact that the major functionality lives in the computer with the SB as a thin client is a great way to go. But the software implementation is slow, it has a clumsy web interface, and it has some weird functionality warts. Examples:

          - Internet radio - if I want to listen to the local NPR affiliate, I have to setup a playlist with just that radio station listed. Why not just have an "Internet Radio Stations" top level function?

          - Playlist management - Why do I have to ask the server to rescan the playlist directory? And when I do so, why does it take 5 minutes and cause a 30 sescond outage? This is only with 10 or so small playlists on a 3GHz machine. Playlists are lightweight - they don't need to be indexed for performance like MP3s.

          - Podcasts - what could be simpler than adding a podcast downloader? The PodcastBrowser plugin connects on demand, leaving you susceptible to internet flakiness while listening.

      I love my SqueezeBox, I really do. They'll have to rip it from my cold, dead hands. But SlimServer on its own is no gem. It needs to be as easy to use as (or perhaps *fully* integrated with) iTunes, Windows Media Center, etc before the average home will be able to truely enjoy its awesomeness. I'm a little afraid if what Logitech will do, but I'm also cautiosly optimistic.

    2. Re:SlimServer is still GPL by LazyBoy · · Score: 1
      It's even conceivable that, if Logitech destroys the Squeezebox, somebody else can create a hardware box that will run on Slimserver.
      Someone already has. The Roku Soundbridge supports the slimserver (and other servers).
      --

      If Chaos Theory has taught us anything, it's that we must kill all the butterflies.

  13. Will they kill Slim Devices? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Interesting

    Since Logitech already has (probably a poor equivalent to Squeezebox):
    http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/products/details /US/EN,CRID=2653,CONTENTID=11828

    will they use this acquisition to squash the best kept secret in music streaming?

    I've been listening to my Slimp3 box since they first shipped them sans the snazzy case and Slim Devices remote control! It still rocks and I wouldn't consider any alternatives until it dies.

    I wonder too about Logitech dropping Linux support since I have a Harmony remote control too and they promised Linux drivers several years ago and never delivered. Also they are slow to integrate feature requests.

  14. Squeezebox..... by i_want_you_to_throw_ · · Score: 1

    Now they make my Squeezebox, too. Does your Momma borrow it? Does your Daddy get any sleep at night?

  15. So long Slim Devices... by 10Ghz · · Score: 4, Insightful

    When I read this piece of news, I was immediately reminded of the purchase of Empeg my SONICblue. Empeg was a kick-ass piece of equipment, and SONICblue promptly ran it to the ground. I have a bad feeling that same thing will happen here. The world is full of cases where a big company buys a smaller company with great product, only to kill the product. Besides Empeg, Sun and Cobalt comes to my mind.

    --
    Lesbian Nazi Hookers Abducted by UFOs and Forced Into Weight Loss Programs - -all next week on Town Talk.
    1. Re:So long Slim Devices... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Since Logitech already has (probably a poor equivalent to Squeezebox):
      http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/products/details /US/EN,CRID=2653,CONTENTID=11828

      will they use this acquisition to squash the best kept secret in music streaming?

      I've been listening to my Slimp3 box since they first shipped them sans the snazzy case and Slim Devices remote control! It still rocks and I wouldn't consider any alternatives until it dies.

      I wonder too about Logitech dropping Linux support since I have a Harmony remote control too and they promised Linux drivers several years ago and never delivered. Also they are slow to integrate feature requests.

  16. Congrats Sean Adams & co by Amgine007 · · Score: 1

    Congrats to Sean Adams and the rest of the gang; I've never been a customer but always liked your hardware hacks (and a Mtn. View company to boot!) Glad to see you guys get the recognition (and presumably payday) you deserve!

  17. The brand will deteriorate by KlaymenDK · · Score: 1

    These are exactly my thoughts. Small and agile company with a great vision gets bought by a larger, richer, simply *clunkier*, corporation ... I wonder if the greatness of SlimDevices will survive.

    I know that the *brand* will deteriorate, being now affiliated with a maker of electro-trinkets. They were well on their way to bringing home high fidelity to the masses, but they may just have stepped in a huge puddle of mud.

    Oh, how I hope the 'Slimdevice-ishness' will prevail.

    --
    "Good news, everyone!"
  18. Interesting post from Logitech by Atticka · · Score: 0, Informative

    From the Slim Devices message board, posted by a Logitech rep

    Let me introduce myself. My name is Junien Labrousse, Logitech SVP of the Entertainment and Communication Business Unit.
    The first thing I'll say is that we are very excited about the opportunity that Slim Devices will bring to Logitech. This is
    a great extension of our current business. Let me assure you that one of the main reasons for this acquisition is the development capabilities of the Slim Devices team. The technical level of this group is a key asset that we fully intend to leverage. The Slim Devices entity will function independently, keeping the spirit of advance audio technology and strong product innovation.

    Logitech will bring its global distribution and marketing capabilities, providing a jump start to a large visibility and adoption of Slim Devices products.

    Junien

    If Logitech keeps their promise, this could be a very good thing.

    --
    No sig here...
  19. They've been killing Harmony by Rufosx · · Score: 1

    The original, Harmony designed, remotes are still sought after on eBay, while the Logitech ones are seemingly designed by people that control them with something besides fingers (mine has a left-right-up-down key pad/ring that can only be operated with the tip of the thumbnail).

    The web site for configuring the remote used to be pretty good. Now, it appears I have to use a downloadable application (60 MB) to configure the remote. The application has the worst UI I've seen in a very long time (I'm using the OS X version). It seems to mix out of place cartoon style chat bubbles with buttons with horribly long text that doesn't fit properly. And strangely placed Next and Done buttons.

    You can hold out hope if you like for Squeezebox, but I'm already writing them off as destined for mediocrity at the hands of Logitech.

    1. Re:They've been killing Harmony by einemillioneurohomep · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      A very interesting site, I think. The Idea of Technometry was new for me but worth to be read and thought abot it (although I'm not a native english-speaker and have some difficulties whith this language) mfg http://www.einemillioneurohomepage.de/

  20. Older people and Harmony remotes... by norminator · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I love my Harmony, but I think people need a good introduction to it, otherwise they don't understand it, because they think it's more complicated than it is. My dad came over, picked up the remote and turned off the TV, but not using the big "Off" button at the top... he went through the device menu, selected TV, then hit the soft button for power. Then he proudly proclaimed that it was a man's remote because women wouldn't be able to use it.

    I didn't have the heart to tell him that you can do just about anything you want with one button press. Maybe someday I'll tell him all about the Activities buttons...

    In the meantime, my mom just looks at the remote and shakes her head.

  21. Logitech isn't always bad by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I bought a Harmony 676 remote before Logitech purchased Harmony. If you know Harmony remotes one big hangup people have is the web based interface. I recently had to make some changes to my remote - and a fine remote it is - and I downloaded a rather large update. Upon installing it, Logitech has made a pretty nice, albeit windows only, configuration application, that eliminates the configuration website.

    The newest remotes that Harmony (logitech) is putting out seem innovative and if they are based on the same technology as the previous remotes, are probably pretty good.

    Maybe they'll do what they did with Harmony, and SlimDevices will continue to rock.

  22. Not Windows Only by Big_Al_B · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I haven't bothered to confirm that it's still using HTTP to interact with Logitech servers--as I suspect--but the Harmony OS X Client that I downloaded several weeks ago is a also fully stand-alone package not requiring a separate browser session.

    So far I've been very impressed. Prior to this version, I was having a heap of trouble with both OS X and XP SP2 clients not working properly.

    Now I've got exactly zero problems and zero complaints. I love my 688.

  23. SlimServer needs work by metamatic · · Score: 1

    SlimServer is no longer an all-Perl solution. The latest version requires MySQL, and won't run with other databases. I'd really like to see someone fix it to work with PostgreSQL. However, it's not going to be me, as I've sworn off Perl.

    --
    GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
    1. Re:SlimServer needs work by John+Anonymous · · Score: 1

      But it ships with a bundled MySQL, so you don't have to do anything special unless you want to run it on an already-existing MySQL server.

    2. Re:SlimServer needs work by metamatic · · Score: 1

      The Debian package of SlimServer requires mysql-client-4.1 mysql-server-4.1.

      And I already have an existing SQL server in the form of PostgreSQL. I want to use that. Apart from anything else, it's a better database, from ACID to trivial things like actually having useful time/date fields.

      --
      GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
  24. Well, they've been saying all the right things by scalveg · · Score: 1

    I've certainly been involved in worse meetings in my career than the one earlier this week where the Logitech CEO and several executives came to our offices to announce the acquisition to the employees.

    Certainly time will be the only way to know for sure, but we have a good amount of faith in Sean Adams, our old CEO, to have made sure that Logitech will allow us to do what we need to do to continue making the products we want to make. They seem to have listened well to him and the other people from Slim involved in the negotiations regarding our open-source server software as well, even though Logitech hasn't had any experience with open-source initiatives in the past (that I know of).

    And all the Slim Devices employees are still with us, which is good.

    In some sense, at a simplified level, Slim Devices was "founded" by Sean wanting to build music players for people who wanted them, and would rather let the users build the software so he could worry about the hardware. At least according to what they've said, Logitech really wants us to continue doing that.

    Christopher Owens
    QA Manager
    Slim Devices
    (Now a division of Logitech)
    Mountain View, California

  25. But other pieces aren't by erice · · Score: 1

    I'd like to stream Paradox or LastFM to a Squeezebox. Unfortunately, the Squeezebox needs a Windows or Linux box to run the software, AFAICT. Having the Slimserver be open source Perl doesn't help much of the data source is only available as a binary.

    Why do I care? Because my 24x7 server is a Sparc. I don't want my tunes to go out just because I am fiddling with or haven't yet booted my desktop machine.

    I'm thinking of using a trailing edge notebook instead. Less elegent but it can run everything locally. No server required. I'm a little concerned about continuous power usage. Notebooks generally conserve power but turning things off.

    1. Re:But other pieces aren't by /dev/trash · · Score: 1

      Is this the same Pandora?

      http://www.slimdevices.com/au_press_pandorahours.h tml

    2. Re:But other pieces aren't by erice · · Score: 1

      Yep. That's the one. If you dig in, you will find that that the Squeezebox itself does not do anything at all with Pandora. It depends on the Slimserver to communicate with Pandora and transcode the stream into something the Squeezebox can handle.

  26. Re:Logitech isn't always bad - not *always*. by hczim · · Score: 1

    I'm a not-so-proud owner of a Logitech Harmony remote. It came with some software, the size of which is in sharp contrast to the slow and clumsy functions it provides. Taking a closer look at it revealed that most of its fatness comes from the fact that they ship nothing but an old netscape plus some small additions. To make use of my remote, I've been asked for a lot of personal data, including my e-mail address. Guess what? Now I get a lot of "information" from Logitech about all kinds of things I'm not at all interested in - newsletters, crowded all over with personalized links. I've asked them several times to stop that. Never got any answer, and they keep flooding me from time to time. Using the same Logitech address, but a different sender, I asked for some information about that fabulous laser mice they make. You know what happened. I hadn't to wait for long ... surprise, suprise: the address turned out to be all but dead. And, of course, another address of mine started to get mail from them I've never asked for (that's what I call spam). I'm also a Squeezebox owner. I don't feel comfortable with the idea that the same company which showed they don't care at all about my privacy, Logitech, gets information about my personal habits like listening preferences and times while I'm connected to the Squeezenetwork server. I'm not known to be paranoid (which doesn't mean they aren't after me, of course), but if it weren't for Pandora, I'd probably think about letting my home server run 24/7 and stop using Sqeezenetwork. A word about quality: the Harmony wasn't cheap. One of its knobs already ceased working ...