Saturday, October 14, 2006
Stiletto - The Best Sirius Receiver Ever
October 14th, 2006
A week has passed since my day was made better. Thanks to
TSS-Radio's quick mailing of my Stiletto SL100, I finally have the answer to a question that's plagued many Stern and Bubba fans since 1-9-06.
The question is simple. If I have work to do and Stern is on live, how do I work and listen? It used to be solved with the S50, but sometimes you just can't be huddled around the home dock and don't really want to sit in the car like some sort of deranged radio fan. Sure, I could record the shows, but that hurts the LIVE element that I enjoy about talk radio.
In the form of a small device that can fit in a pocket, there is finally an answer. Slightly larger than other popular media devices and cell phones, it can get Sirius content directly without the need of docks, cars, speakers, etc. However, since it's Sirius, this comes with an interesting twist.
Sirius has obviously not forgotten the people who are not served by repeaters or live/work in a satellite radio friendly dwelling. An 802.11B WiFi Radio is included inside the device, capable of receiving the signal indoors using virtually any WiFi network. It supports the new encryption technology (WPA2), the more common technology (WPA) and even the old folks (WEP), so I don't have to make my network more insecure. This WiFi Radio can be used to access SIR, the Sirius Internet Radio service.
Sure, SIR isn't a full feed of the Sirius service. However, it does have Stern's two channels, all of the music channels, and some other talk content. SIR covers my major audio groups for the day, namely Stern, Bubba, Octane, and Faction. It has also probably secured an extra 2.99 a month out of me for SIR Premium, once it's supported by the Stiletto. That will cover Maxim Radio, for those Rich and Covino fans out there. It also includes Sirius Patriot, Left, Playboy, and some other channels not included with the Standard SIR service.
I've spent a lot of time with the WiFi feature, one of the greatest feature additions to the Sirius product line. However, the SL100 is very capable of picking up a Sirius Satellite Radio signal directly from the Satellite and Repeater network and works in the same manner as if in a docking station. This is also a new feature to Sirius and means that while I'm walking or working outside, ATVing or Snowmobiling, I can bring Sirius with me. We'll see how it holds up during that snowmobiling thing later in time.
The SL100 also comes with a respin of the My Sirius Studio software. My Sirius Studio works very similar to the way it did on the S50. It's a simple 'loader/manager' for Recorded Sirius Content, MP3/WMAs, and even lets you manage My Sirius Favorites, which are song Titles/Artists that are tagged while listening to SIR. This means I can save the track name and go find it in mp3 or find the CD later in time. Sirius creates one of my major exposures to new music, it's a welcome addition. The unit also is PlaysforSure compatible, for those who have Napster, Rhapsody or the Sirius-endorsed (and installed) Yahoo! Music.
Lastly, Sirius has learned some VERY valuable lessons compared to the S50. The problem that existed on some S50s becoming bricked after updates? It's reduced or virtually eliminated in the Stiletto platform. The unit can often self-heal itself if there are any inconsistencies in the software without using a computer. It also makes the recovery process simple by automatically offering to run the Device Recovery program if the unit is in Recovery mode and connected to the computer. Device Recovery will automatically download the LATEST SL100 system image and your unit will be as good as new.
Overall, the product is a win for me. I definitely think it's also a win for Sirius. While definitely a not-to-easy to swallow price, it buys a great device that may have more in store in the future via firmware updates.
10/14/2006 07:55:00 AM
SSG Has Merged. You Can Read All Of The Latest SSG Content By Clicking Here
0 Comments:
SSG is not a Financial Advisor. Read Disclosure: HERE
--------------------------------------------------------
