Wireless DAC

The AirStream is an interesting product.

It's a wireless DAC, nothing more, but in its standard setup the way it goes about it is rather quirky.

Russound’s Collage Powerline Media and Intercom System sets a new standard for retrofit multiroom audio systems.

If Twitter-synched pet collars and Wi-Fi at 30,000 feet aren’t enough to convince you that we’re living in the future, consider this: I just installed two zones of distributed audio at opposite ends of the house in one fairly laid back Saturday afternoon.

The best gear of the year, as picked by the editors of Home Entertainment.

Premium Blend

The NaimUniti combines all your stereo favorites in to one unifying package.

Free your iPod

The W2 is a wireless adapter that clicks into the bottom of your iPod.

The audio is sent wirelessly to the receiver unit, which plugs into an AC outlet and your receiver, or anything with a mini-jack or RCA inputs.

Presto! Wireless iPod audio.

Olive You So Much: A romance in two parts between a girl and the Olive 4, a sexy young multi-room music server.

At the risk of sounding clichéd, I’ve discovered there is such a thing as love at first sight.

Music in eight rooms and looks to match the iPod.

The iPod has had the same transformative effect on multiroom audio that the Mac had on computers: Both changed an unfriendly, daunting entity into something the average person could relate to. While many manufacturers have brought the iPod’s basic functionality to their remotes and keypads, few have captured the look and feel.

Count NuVo Technologies among the few who have escaped the black hole of generic white faceplates.

A Smartphone for Your Living Room

Today’s consumer doesn’t just want it all; he wants it all in one package. No longer can a product just be a cell phone, gaming console or TV. To really sell, CE devices must wear many hats—and wear them all well.

Velocity Micro wears many hats. They offer PCs for business, gaming and digital media. But they also offer a dedicated home theater model that’s more media center than PC: the Fuzebox.

The Crestron Experience Center in Las Vegas is one of the few places in the world delivering hands-on demos of the wonders of home automation.

With its new Las Vegas Experience Center, Crestron—which in home automation is perhaps even more pervasive than Microsoft is in the computer business—seeks to make its creations more accessible to dealers and customers. The Experience Center is one of only a few places in the world where one can witness home automation at work.

Our 10 Best Gear Awards

The best gear of the year.