VTech IS9181 WiFi Streaming Music Device with Access to Online Content

5 comments

1. 

   Steffan Piper on January 11, 2010 at 11:55 pm

   You may ask yourself, who is VTech and why does that name sound so familiar to me? Well, the answer is quite simple.

   VTech are commonly known for making consumer grade home telephones and children’s toys. Children’s toys, you say? Yes, that VTech. While the worth of a lot of their toys is really arguable, they do a fantastic job making quality home phones. Some of their toys though are good, so don’t get me wrong. In fact, I’ve owned several VTech home phone systems, vowing never again to buy Uniden and have also purchased numerous toys from them as well for my son. I’m also on the verge of buying this particular phone from them as well.

   There are a lot of companies trying to get into the market of Streaming Music Players with Internet Radio capability. Some companies have really perfected this technique like Creative Labs and Logitech, but VTech, in my opinion seems to have come up short here.

   Here’s the problem:

   1. Right out of the box, this thing looks and feels cheap. The buttons on the top surface and the ‘feel’ of the unit in total, appears like a really inexpensive clock radio that’s been overhauled.

   2. The sound quality of the music being played, whether it’s coming from your own files or from internet radio, sounds hollow and flimsy.

   3. The set-up is atrocious and the documentation provided to get the job done is equally abstruse. This causes a huge problem here **.

   4. The reception throughout the house is a bit shoddy and unclear through walls or down different levels. Being the owner of other devices, like the Squeezebox Boom, this is only an issue with this device and not so much with the others.

   5. The remote is chincy and comes across as an afterthought with zero design or real functionality.

   Beyond the whole package and presentation of this product looking cheap, one has to wonder who this was marketed for?

   If it is indeed marketed for the Wal-Maze consumer, then why haven’t I seen this item or sale at Wal-Maze? Why do I bring this up? Because this is obviously meant to be a low-end offering at a reduced price-point from the other players on the market. Perhaps, I’m ahead of myself and this device will be more prolific on shelves come next summer, but for now, it’s like trying to find a Yeti.

   ** If this is being marketed to another price-point oriented crowd, then the set-up here is what really kills this device. If an older person, like a parent or grandparent, stumbles through the setup and has issues with it, it’s unlikely that this thing will take off in any huge number and the manufacturer will face a large number of returns — which is exactly what I see happening with this device.

   Spend a little bit more — to get a whole lot more. That’s my advice.

   …

2. 

   Gary Cubeta on January 12, 2010 at 2:14 am

   They didn’t put a headphone jack on the unit … UNREAL … how can you listen to it in bed while your wife (or husband) is sleeping? The interface is good, the build quality is solid, the sound out of the speakers is decent, but how can you go to all of this work and then not put a headphone jack on it? They have RCA audio outputs on the back, but if you plug it into something else, the sound still plays through the speakers … There is nothing in the menu to correct that, so I couldn’t even dummy wire headphones into it that way

   They really don’t think these wi-fi radios out fully … It’s like they are rushing them to market … It also doesn’t have a sleep timer, so if it did have headphone capability (it doesn’t), you couldn’t even have it shut off as you fell to sleep.

   Great potential … Poor final details … and I am not saying this because I am a competitor or whatever … I wanted this to work so badly and it just doesn’t …. VERY upset …

3. 

   - Kasia S. on January 12, 2010 at 3:21 am

   This radio player is pretty good but I still love my Logitech Sequeeze box better, call me silly but upgrades aren’t always better. The screen display on this one is color and bright enough where it annoys me at night, I often think of places I can use it in that wont be staring me in the face when I’m trying to sleep. Also when not using the remote, the control buttons are on top, which makes it a little cumbersome to use, I prefer the Squeezebox set up of front buttons and dials.

   Easy to use and sounds good, so far it’s not bad , but the search option can be tedious and I do love the weather forecast at front, useful when I don’t have time to turn on the tv or search the net for the weather. I do love these devices, they reach out to so many cool internet radio stations that I would never hear otherwise, and I like setting up my favorites and with one click being able to hear great sounds.

   For the price this is a good pick and it’s not super huge so finding a place for it is a cinch.
   

4. 

   John W. Duncan on January 12, 2010 at 5:20 am

   I have a good wireless signal all over my house – max bars. This thing lasts maybe 5 to 10 minutes before going into buffering mode. After a couple of reconnects, it just quits. To connect to my computer music collection (iTunes) is a nightmare that I have not awakened from yet. I regret I didn’t open the box for a couple of weeks, so now I can’t return it. I paid full price, now I see it for $50 less, ouch.

5. 

   William Wyrostek on January 12, 2010 at 6:24 am

   Another new toy for me, and a great one at that. I picked a winner when I picked the V-Tech. One could spend alot of time going through all of the available stations. A great choice for the money.