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EOS wireless speakers work well, however they have a much higher potential

Date published: 11/6/2009

BY BEN GREGSON

The development of the iPod has made music more accessible than ever before--and with the EOS wireless multi-room audio system, it's possible to achieve a full stereo sound almost anywhere, with minimal setup.

The system includes a base, where you dock your iPod to the Universal Dock or any other audio device via the auxiliary audio port on the back. And it can include up to four wireless speakers, although only one comes with the base.

Upon removing the speakers from their packaging, two things are apparent: They are well-built and well-designed. Both the base and speakers look sleek and feel sturdy, and the iPod fits onto the dock well. There is even an included infrared remote to control the iPod.

Setup is, for the most part, very simple. Just plug the base into a power outlet, plug in an audio device, and select the source (auxiliary or iPod).

After your base is set up, plug a wireless speaker in an outlet, turn the volume on and it should work nearly instantaneously.

The only difficulty comes when removing and returning the plug from the cradle on the back of the wireless speakers. To remove the plug, you must push down (hard) on the brick inside its cradle, pull it back until you are past a plastic guard, then pull out.

It sounds simple in theory, but younger people, and those lacking sufficient strength, may have trouble with it. However, it is also possible to plug the speaker directly into an outlet on a wall without worrying about the speaker falling, if the unit is secured correctly.

Wireless audio quality is hit or miss. While sometimes it sounds clear, other times it is easily interfered with or is just flawed. Thankfully, the audio on the EOS system sounds splendid. There is no difference in clarity between wireless speakers two stories below the base and one on the same floor.

While the product does wireless audio very well, it seems to have been unnecessarily inhibited. The sound may be wireless, but the speakers are not.

It is impossible to run the base or the speakers without plugging them into a power outlet. If the speakers could run on some sort of battery, possibilities for this hardware would be endless.

EOS' hardware works very well. If you have have the desire to play your music, radio station, podcast or audio book throughout every room in your house simultaneously, this will work, and work well.

That is, of course, if you are willing to spend the money. The box that comes with the base and one wireless speaker has a suggested retail price of $250. That price seems awfully steep when considering it is just 40 percent of the complete audio system.

It is possible to find the box for less, but after buying three more speakers it would cost, all together, at least $500 ($100-150 per speaker). The EOS Wireless Audio System does everything it promises to do, but it could do more.

Ben Gregson is a junior at James Monroe High School.

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Date published: 11/6/2009