Iriver’s Wave Home: All-in-one communications/multimedia hub gets some buzz
Iriver's Wave Home
A 7-inch 800×480 touch screen is built into the unit along with a detachable wireless handset and speakerphone for VoIP calls (you can make calls from the phone or an onscreen virtual keypad and the device supports video calls as well). You can access the Web, photos, music, and videos, and there’s an FM radio that Iriver says can be “enjoyed through Wave Home’s built-in, high-quality stereo speakers.”
“High quality” might be stretching it a bit, but you get the picture: the thing is basically a digital photo frame on steroids, complete with a 1.3-megapixel CMOS camera. Additional features include an Ethernet jack, SD card slot, USB connectivity, and support for digipen input.
Iriver is also touting the device’s intelligent Widget, which “provides instant weather, stock and traffic updates, as well as Web and multimedia services that users can enjoy without a computer since the device is connected to broadband internet.” Wave Home also supports Flash-based games and you can send and receive SMS and MMS texts.
What’s missing? An iPod dock. My God, what were these people thinking?
I’m kidding. Well, sort of. Anyway, there’s no definitive word on pricing or availability, but Iriver is allegedly trying to keep the cost below $400.
wired had this to say:
Like the Chumby, it’s perforated with the usual SD, Ethernet, and USB ports, but this one comes with a 1.3-megapixel CMOS camera. The picture quality of the cam, however, will probably look dated by the end of the year.
When we reviewed the Chumby, we noted that the best part about it was the quality of the streams from internet radio and when music played from our iPod, and part of that was due to its quality speakers. The iRiver is also touting the Wave Home’s speakers as one its integral parts – if they doesn’t work just as good, expect a lot of disappointed ears in the G-Lab when it comes in for a review.
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