Tivoli Audio has unveiled a global radio system that can wirelessly broadcast thousands of radio stations.
The announcement of Tivoli's latest offering, the NetWorks global radio, was made at The Peech Hotel, in Melrose.
Tom DeVesto, Tivoli Audio CEO and chairman, says Tivoli aspired to design the ideal home entertainment radio: "The greatest challenge in designing the NetWorks global radio was in making it simple to use. It combines function and design with the ability to deliver the world of radio broadcasts to home radio listeners."
NetWorks is connected via a WiFi or Ethernet connection and allows music and radio stations to be stored on PCs.
It has a built-in global portal that can store an unlimited number of Internet stations to its favourites list. It also has an FM tuner to use when the Internet service is unavailable.
Tivoli claims this is one of the first audio products to be user-upgradeable. Users can programme the NetWorks radio to search for stations by location, genre or a station's call letters.
Mark Hecht, CEO of Tivoli Audio Distributors, admitted that while bandwidth is not widely accessible yet in South Africa, he foresees using wireless Internet is the future for radio. "Next year, the government will be encouraging cheaper bandwidth. So while South African bandwidth may be expensive now, we are seeing a trend where it will become more affordable and more people will be encouraged to adopt broadband. Conventional radios are a thing of the past and we are seeing a market emerging for this product."
Tivoli has also rolled out a selection of NetWorks hi-fi systems designed to let users create a home network of audio systems. Each radio unit can be placed in a different room with a different radio station being played in different parts of the house.
NetWorks is compatible with common music formats such as MP3, WMA and Real Audio. It has a USB input to connect an MP3 player or memory stick. Additional features include a virtual analogue clock, dual independent alarms, equaliser and remote control.
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