Author: simonmackay

On-device or on-premises artificial intelligence–what does it offer

A significant direction for artificial intelligence, especially advanced AI like generative AI, is to have the AI processes performed on the same device or within the same premises as the users who will benefit from it.

This can be considered as part of edge computing because it involves the pre-processing of data before it is sent to a cloud-driven AI platform or post-processing of data coming back from a cloud-driven AI platform.

What is desireable about this is energy efficiency for cloud-based AI, reduced data transfer requirements or assurance of user privacy, corporate confidentiality and data sovereignty due to the minimum amount of data processed in an online environment. Apple even takes this further by running a private cloud specific to each Apple platform user to cater for more intense processing that can’t be performed on the device itself.

On-device and on-premises AI relies primarily on a smaller language model compared to the large language models that cloud-based AI services like ChatGPT rely on. Here they are focused on the data that exists on or is likely to come in to the machine or the logical network. Here, this cam allow for improved data management or permit a custom language model that represents personal or corporate desires.

Why on-device and on-premises AI

Samsung Galaxy AI press image courtesy of Samsung

Samsung Galaxy AI representing on-device artificial intelligence on Android mobile devices

A key desire is data security and end-user privacy. Here the data never leaves the device or premises for artificial-intelligence / machine-learning processing. This satisfies business and industry compliance expectations like privacy, corporate confidentiality and data sovereignty requirements.

Another benefit is improved performance and personalisation when it comes to artificial-intelligence processing and machine learning. Here, the processing takes place on a local machine thus avoiding the use of oversubscribed cloud computing services that can underperform under load. The AI language model ends up being highly personalised thus becoming lean.

Apple iPhone 16 press image courtesy of Apple

Apple iPhone 16 Series – first iOS device with on-device AI processing

There is reduced energy consumption compared to sending the data out to cloud-computing data centres. You also see efficient use of telecommunications links due to smaller amounts of data being sent using them as well as seeing efficient use of cloud-computing services. Another key benefit to see is improved service resilience because you aren’t heavily dependent on online resources – what if the network link fails.

Hybrid (cloud+on-device / on-premises) AI setups can allow for more sophisticated artificial-intelligence / machine-learning processing and working with multiple custom environments. This is due to having a lot of the data handling done locally before it is submitted or after results are received.

On-device AI processing

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7X 2-in-1 laptop with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite silicon press image courtesy of Lenovo

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7X 2-in-1 laptop with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite silicon – implementing on-device AI under Windows 11 for ARM microarchitecture

On-device AI is about having the AI data handled by the same device that is to make use of the data. This is facilitated through either a third processor called a neural processing unit (NPU) or a very powerful general processor that sets aside processor cores for neural processing to answer AI tasks.

A good analogy to think of are some NAS units that have a graphics processor in addition to their primary CPU. Here, these devices use the graphics processor for accelerated datatype translation like converting multimedia files in to other formats. or similar processing tasks.

There will also be an expectation to have a lot of RAM and storage capacity on these devices. This is something that is being answered easily thanks to Moore’s Law where cost of increased storage and RAM is being reduced significantly.

Such setups can be facilitated either on regular computers or mobile computing devices like smartphones and tablets.

On-premises AI processing

New Dell XPS 13 with Intel Lunar Lake Core Ultra processor press image courtesy of Dell

Dell has offered an XPS 13 laptop with Intel Lunar Lake Core Ultra CPU which has on-device AI processing for Windows 11 under IA microarchitecture

The on-premises AI approach would rely on a server or NAS on the same logical network as the end-users to process the AI data. This would come in to its own with on-premises or hybrid cloud computing setups where the desire is to keep the important data on the user’s premises.

This could represent a server or NAS that uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to make sense of a data set stored therein; or a server or NAS could perform AI tasks for client computers that don’t have on-device AI abilities. This can even lead to the creation of local chatbots that supply answers based on locally-held organisational data.

The trends associated with on-device and on-premises AI

Apple Intelligence writing tools on MacOS screenshot courtesy of Apple

Even MacOS is now supporting on-device artificial intelligence on the latest Macs with Apple silicon.

2024 has effectively become the year of general-purpose on-device AI processing with both the mobile-platform devices that run mobile operating systems and the regular computers that run desktop operating systems.

Some of the premium Android smartphones, tablets and smartwatches from the likes of Samsung and Google that are introduced in 2024 are being equipped with AI functionality. These implement Qualcomm Snapdragon mobile ARM64 processors and use this technology for voice-to-text, advanced search, machine translation, photo editing and similar functionality. Apple is introducing this kind of on-device AI to their latest iPhones and iPads powered with their latest silicon as part of Apple Intelligence, their branding of on-device AI. Here, this offers AI-driven inbox management, document and recording summarisation, image editing, AI-driven emojis and similar functions.

As well, during this year, Microsoft built in to Windows 11 on-device AI functionality which comes alive on computers that have neural-processing units. This is marketed as CoPilot+ and is being offered on laptop computers that use Qualcomm Snapdragon X (ARM64) silicon or, shortly, Intel Lunar Lake Core Ultra and AMD Strix Point (IA-64) silicon. These offer video transcription and captioning, image creation and editing, video editing, document summarisation amongst other things. This has been underscored by a  deluge of CoPilot+ AI-capable laptops being launched or given their first outing at the Internationaler Funkaustellung 2024 in Berlin with some of the units equipped with Intel silicon and others with Qualcomm Snapdragon X silicon.

Apple is also offering a similar kind of artificial intelligence for the latest Macintosh computers with the latest Apple M-series silicon. This will offer the same kind of features as their iOS and iPadOS implementations but with a richer interface. For all the Apple operating systems, there is support for hybrid ChatGPT operation with a “private cloud” arrangement to protect users’ data.

QNAP and Synology are working on equipping newer NAS units and newer versions of the NAS operating systems for artificial intelligence with AI being seen as part of a NAS’s feature set. But this will primarily be about managing or indexing data held on these devices themselves but someone even prototyped a NAS-based local ChatGPT setup as a proof of concept about on-premises generative AI setups which would then be about secure AI operations.. There will be the idea of using business or enthusiast grade NAS units as part of edge-computing setups to permit pre-processing of data before submitting to cloud-based AI.

Conclusion

On-device and on-premises artificial intelligence including hybrid setups such as edge-based AI or private cloud AI is expected to be a key turning point for this technology. This will most likely be due to a call for secure private and bespoke data handling requirements coming about and to keep generative AI technology relevant for most users.

Microsoft makes ARM-64 regular computers more legitimate

Through the late 1980s and the 1990s, there were a range of regular personal desktop computers that used various forms of processors that implemented RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computing) technology.

The most common of these were the Apple Mac computers that used Motorola PowerPC silicon and existed before Apple implemented Intel silicon with examples like the original iMac. As well, the Sony PS3, Microsoft XBox 360 and Nintendo Wii games consoles implemented PowerPC RISC silicon at the heart of these devices so you may have played with this technology without knowing it.

But there were some computers with niche appeal like the SGI Indigo or the Sun Microsystems SPARC-based workstations that used limited-appeal high-power RISC chipsets. Acorn even ran a range of computers pitched to the education sector in the form of the Archimedes and RISC PC that were the first to implement today’s ARM RISC technology.

These systems were more about maximum graphics and multimedia power or high-load workstation-class computing that was to be achieved in an efficient manner. But Intel and Microsoft had brought a very similar level of power to computers based on their traditional i86-based CISC (Complex Instruction Set Computing) processors.

Through the 2000s and 2010s, Apple implemented Intel i64-based (64-bit i86 microarchitecture) silicon in their lineup of MacOS-based regular computers and adapted to this new microarchitecture. Now they have licensed ARM-64 (64-bit ARM RISC) microprocessor technology and used that to build their own M-Series system-on-chip processors.

Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite processor press image courtesy of Qualcomm

Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite processor chip – maturing ARM64 RISC computing for the Windows-based regular computer

Now Microsoft is developing their desktop operating system, application software and software-development tools to also work with ARM-64 RISC microarchitecture. They are also partnering with Qualcomm to work on a series of Snapdragon ARM64-based system-on-chip microprocessors for use in laptops that run Windows with this effort coming to maturity this year in the form of the Snapdragon X system-on-chip processor.

This is because ARM-based RISC computing is being used in portable and low-power computing setups like mobile-platform smartphones and tablets. It is also being implemented in set-top boxes, smart TVs, network-attached storage devices and similar devices where a low-profile or flexible design is being preferred. For portable devices, this will be about longer battery life such as many days on a charge or being equipped with smaller batteries. For statioary devices, it will be about compact or flexible power-efficient device designs.

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus CoPilot+ laptop with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite silicon press image courtesy of Dell Technologies

Dell Inspiron 14 Plus CoPilot+ laptop with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite silicon

As well, Apple and Microsoft are moving towards ARM64 microarchitecture for their regular-computer hardware and software to slow down the decline in business and consumer interest in this client-side computer class.

For Microsoft, Windows 11 has made it possible to emulate a 64-bit Intel operating environment on ARM64 computers like those using the Qualcomm Snapdragon X system-on-chip. This would allow most of today’s software and games to run on these computers. As well, Qualcomm and Microsoft are driving the on-device AI abilities associated with Snapdragon X by marking these computers as “CoPilut+ computers”.

These computers will answer most mainstream computing tasks especially on highly-portable or “all-in-one” computers. But to see stronger appeal, there may be market pressure to have a wide range of core games or creative software developed for or ported to ARM64 platforms.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7X 2-in-1 laptop with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite silicon press image courtesy of Lenovo

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7X 2-in-1 laptop with Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite silicon

Creative software that was written for or ported to Apple Macs using M-Series silicon could just as easily be developed for ARM-based Windows computers. This has also increased the validity of regular computers using ARM64-based technology amongst the creator / prosumer community. Similarly games studios that wrote for games consoles that have used PowerPC or ARM technology as well as i86/i64 technology desktop computers will also be able to adapt easily to this new reality.

At the moment, the regular-computer scene will still end up as a “horses for courses” environment with Intel/AMD-based silicon being for high-power computing tasks like core gaming or certified workstations, or where the highest level of hardware and software compatibility is desired. That is while the ARM64-based computers will hold their ground for an increasing amount of mainstream computing tasks.

But I would still consider the ARM64-based computers as being a viable alternative to i64-based Intel or AMD powered regular computers that run Windows or Linux as their operating systems.

Turntables with digital output–are they worth it

Pro-Ject T2W Wi-Fi Turntable press image courtesy of Pro-Ject

Pro-Ject T2W Wi-Fi turntable – an example of a turntable with a digital output

The recent vinyl revival has been driven not just by the hipsters who saw the vinyl record as an ironic statement but also by people who grew up through most of the late 20th century where these records were the main music distribution format.

Some of these people even kept a music system that can play vinyl records along with a sizeable record collection, and kept putting these records on even when there was an expectation in the 90s and 2000s to move away from that format. In some cases, these people kept vinyl records that wouldn’t be reissued on any newer media. This is in addition to DJs who worked with vinyl records and, in some cases, used the turntable as a musical instrument.

As well, the turntable and a collection of classic-rock records by talent like the Beatles, Pink Floyd or Fleetwood Mac recently became an alternative to the motorcycle or sports car as a “mid-life crisis” symbol for men. This is because of these men were teenagers or young adults through the 1960s and 1970s where this kind of music was played on vinyl records using a reasonably-priced but good-sounding hi-fi system.

What are these turntables that have digital outputs

VinylPlay - an integrated-phono-stage turntable that raises the bar for this class of turntable

VinylPlay – an integrated-phono-stage turntable that raises the bar for this class of turntable

As part of the vinyl revival, nearly all turntable or record-player manufacturers are offering at least one turntable or record player with a digital output of some sort like Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or USB or a digital recording subsystem.

Nearly all of this equipment has the customary “from-the-cartridge” analogue output that can be a raw phono-grade signal for use by amplifiers with a PHONO input, or an amplified line-level signal for equipment that only has a line-level input. This would be in addition to the digital sound path mentioned above and would permit, in the case of a Bluetooth turntable that you used with a Bluetooth speaker, you to upgrade towards a better hi-fi setup with an integrated amplifier and pair of speakers.

There are some record players that use digital inputs like Bluetooth or USB as an “external-equipment” programme source for their onboard amplifier which amplifies the sound for integrated or connected speakers. But the turntables are their to work with a separate amplifier or sound system.

Why do these turntables and record players exist

A few reasons these turntables and record players have appeared include people dabbling in vinyl for the first time and using Bluetooth headphones or speakers as their initial audio setup. Or your audio system uses am amplifier that omits a tape loop connection to connect a recording device to but you want to record your vinyl records to your computer for mobile use or to salvage them.

The audio signal path in these turntables

The signal path from the moving-magnet cartridge that follows your record’s grooves is sent via a preamplifier that brings the music signal to a stronger line-level signal, then to the analogue-digital conversion circuitry which converts the analogue signal to a digital signal for the digital use case. This is similar to a regular turntable that is connected to an amplifier that implements digital signal processing or “digital-to-the-speaker” amplification like some new Technics amplifiers do.

The digital use cases that come about for these turntables are:

  • Bluetooth audio source which works wirelessly with Bluetooth speakers or headphones
  • Wi-Fi or Ethernet home network connection to work with a network-based multiroom audio setup or DLNA-compliant audio setup
  • USB Audio Device class source connection so you can plug the turntable in to your computer to record that LP using digital-audio-workstation software
  • Digital recorder subsystem to record that LP to a USB memory stick or similar storage device

These will still play your records properly

All of these turntables are engineered in a similar way to most of the other well-bred turntables that exist out there. Typically this is because these turntables are part of a series of products offered by a manufacturer that share a common design and are offered as an “extra feature” model in the series. The moving-magnet pick-up cartridges used on these turntables are of the same expectation for something that would be on the end of a decent turntable’s tonearm.

As well, they still maintain that traditional record-playing experience with most offering a fully-manual operation approach. Or some units have some form of automatic operation such as for themselves to lift the tonearm off the record at the end of the side or to have you press a button or move a lever to have the tonearm move to the start of the record and commence playing then park itself at the end of the record. Of course, the tonearm on these turntables is equipped with a cueing lever to protect the stylus when you lift the arm on to the record.

Analogue purists will not like the idea of these digital-output turntables because they expect the audio signal to travel from the pickup cartridge to the speakers via amplification that is purely analogue in nature. This is the same group who will not like analogue-digital-analogue amplification approaches that Technics, JBL and a few other names have been dabbling in. It is although these turntables offer the analogue audio output whether as a line-level output or as a “phono-level” output for external phono preamplifiers or amplifiers with their own phono-stage circuitry. As well, some of these turntables have a switch to turn off the power to the digital-audio circuitry which will benefit those who want that pure analogue sound that isn’t tarnished by any digital circuitry.

Some extra compromises may appear with this digital-audio approach. This can be where the analogue-to-digital circuitry may be sub-par or Bluetooth applications may limit the codec to SBC which is not really fit for hi-fi. Units that implement an on-board USB recorder function can be limited by the inability to select high-grade lossless audio filetypes like WAV or FLAC for recording.

You may also find that it may be difficult to set up the digital functionality in some of these turntables. For example, pairing a set of Bluetooth headphones to a Bluetooth turntable may be difficult, or the recording procedure may be difficult for a unit that implements its own USB recorder.

My comments about these digital-output turntables

Personally I would see the purchase of a turntable with digital output as being something that suits your particular needs. This could range from something that can facilitate salvaging cherished or way-out-of-print records using your computer, to use with your network-based multiroom audio system or to use with Bluetooth headphones or speakers.

Here, the purchasing of these turntables is made easier because you can refer to the “baseline” model of the same series to see whether they are something you would like to play your records on. On the other hand, if you are satisfied with your turntable and amplifier, you may not need to buy any of these turntables that have digital outputs.

It is more so where your amplifier has a line-level output independent of the volume control like a “tape output” typically used for cassette decks or other recording devices. In this case, you could connect up a USB sound module, Bluetooth transmit adaptor, network multiroom audio “on-ramp” adaptor or similar device to the amplifier to suit your digital audio needs. Some of you who own a record player or vinyl-capable three-piece music system may find that your equipment may have one of these line-level outputs.

These turntables don’t diminish the analogue character of vinyl records but are able to extend them to particular use cases such as to provide elementary private listening through Bluetooth headsets or salvaging them. Here, it is about choosing the right turntable for your needs but making sure you are getting a good-quality unit that you can trust with your vinyl records,

Freebox Ultra now the technical hallmark for home broadband routers

Article

Freebox Ultra router and extender press image courtesy of Iliad Free

Freebox Ultra Wi-Fi 7 router being defined as the cutting-edge for carrier-supplied customer-premises equipment for home networks

The Freebox Ultra’s First Test: Wi-Fi 7 Surpasses Expectations – GAMINGDEPUTY

French language / Langue française

Freebox Ultra : pourquoi elle est devenue rapidement une référence technique | Freenews.fr

Test de la Freebox Ultra : notre avis complet sur la box Internet de Free (frandroid.com)

My Comments

The competitive telecommunications and Internet market in France has led towards some exciting equipment being offered has led to the local telecommunications providers offering customer premises equipment way above the average for this class of equipment.

One firm I have given space to a lot on this site is Iliad who run their “Free” Internet service in France as something that raised the bar for value there. They ended up offering a highly capable piece of equipment in the form of the Freebox Révolution with a highly-capable router / NAS unit / DECT cordless-telephone base station in one Phillippe-Starck-designed box and a “décodeur” set-top box with Blu-Ray player in another similarly-designed box. It even ended up with features like “box-to-box” or “client-to-box” VPN support, software-defined Wi-Fi 5 support and a gyroscopic remote control and both devices benefited from continual firmware upgrades that offered new functionality.

Freebox Révolution - courtesy Iliad.fr

Previously, the Freebox Révolution was defined as the cutting edge for this class of hardware

Now Iliad have taken things further with the Freebox Ultra which is usurping the role of the Freebox Révolution. This, like the Freebox Révolution uses fibre optic as the WAN connection but can work at 10 Gigabit speed, allowing for a competitive 10G Internet service courtesy of Free.

There is an extraordinary local network offering with a Wi-Fi 7 4-band access point with two streams for all of the bands. This media network is protected using the latest WPA3 security specification and there is the ability to steer client devices to the best band to work with. As for the wired network, this Freebox is about multi-gigabit Ethernet all the way with a 10 Gigabit SFP connection and four 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet sockets as a switch.

The CPU in this Freebox Ultra is an ARM Cortex A73 RISC CPU, something that wouldn’t look out of place in smartphones, tablets or the connected car. Here it is about using less power to handle a lot of data and offer a rich user interface. A user can install a NVM3 2280 SSD stick in to this router to have this work as a NAS the Freebox way with support for UPnP AV / DLNA, Apple Time Machine and other common standards. The other approach for connecting storage to this device is to use a USB-C socket with 60W PowerDelivery power for a USB hard disk or SSD of some sort.

Like the recent Freebox setups since the Révolution, this unit works on the Freebox OS which has a user interface that wouldn’t look out of place on a recent consumer or small-business network-attached storage device  or a desktop operating system’s GUI. Here, I wouldn’t put it past Free to add more functionality with a Freebox OS firmware update, even have it work with newer Wi-Fi or other network standards.

This device even comes with an extender known as the Freebox Répéteur 7 which works on Wi-Fi 7 to cover larger French homes like the “mas en Provence” so you can have continual Wi-Fi coverage through them. There is even an Ethernet connection so you could connect a wired Ethernet device to the extender or, perhaps, run a wired backhaul to the Ereebox 7.

Due to this connectivity and these capabilities, it bas been realised that the Freebox Ultra is about achieving a future-proof home network for your French home. This device is typically offered for EUR€49.99 per month with a fibre-optic broadband service that offers Internet, TV and fixed-line telephony of the kind expected in a French competitive telecommunications market.

Once you have the French telecommunications providers and AVM continually offering cutting-edge consumer-premises network equipment, it wouldn’t take long for these firms to compete with Silicon Valley and become an “Airbus” or “Arianespace” equivalent.

Dell tries “Gentleman’s Express” approach to the gaming laptop

Article

Alienware M16 R2 gaming laptop product image courtesy of Dell

The Alienware M16 R2 gaming laptop that presents itself as a “Gentleman’s Express”, offering a classy boardroom-friendly look but being a high-performance gaming machine

https://www.zdnet.com/article/can-you-use-a-gaming-laptop-at-work-this-clever-feature-by-dell-made-me-a-believer/

My Comments

There is still an interest in combining performance and everyday functionality in to regular laptop computers as these computers are appealing to more user classes than gamers or full-on professionals who use advanced software.

Previously Dell have been taking the “sports sedan” approach to creating laptops that appeal to workday use but also appeal to gaming or similar high-performance computing use cases. The “sports sedan” approach is where a standard family car design is used as the basis for a high-performance variant of that car, typically with the difference between the regular car model and the performance variant being a powertrain that has a lot more grunt.

This was demonstrated with the Dell Inspiron 15 Gaming high-performance laptop that I reviewed but was followed on with the G-Series budget gaming laptops that the same manufacturer offered.

Jensen Interceptor gentleman's express car

.. just like the Jensen Interceptor “gentleman’s express” sports coupe

But Dell have also headed down another path similar to some British and European-built cars like the Jaguar XJ S or the Jensen Interceptor. Here, a significant number of British and European vehicle builders engineered these cars to look subtle but yield a fair bit of performance and some of these cars ended up being described as “gentleman’s express” cars – conveying a mixture of youthful sportiness on the road and a classy look that doesn’t look out of place at that 5-star restaurant or that corporate office.

This is demonstrated by the Alienware M16 R2 gaming laptop which has the look and performance of other Alienware gaming laptops. But this comes across with muted colouring and has the option to turn off the RGB lighting to convey that demure look for the office. This also scales down the performance requirement for the laptop so it can work with most office workloads but not needing to spin up fans to permit high performance so you can convey that sense of professionalism.

But this doesn’t necessarily allow you to save on battery runtime due to a “performance first” design. This would then mean that you have to keep the charger with you all the time. The reviewer even described it as though computer manufacturers are moving away from gaudy looks as a sign of the times.

This computer still has an Intel Cor Ultra 7 155H CPU, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 graphics with 8Gh display memory, 16Gb RAM, a 16”2K (2560×1600) screen with a refresh rate of 240Hz. Storage comes out at 1 Terabyte SSD. But the review sample in that article costed USD$1849. There is the option to use an external graphics module thanks to a Thunderbolt 4 port, which means that you could use a fit-for-purpose graphics card in a “card-cage” external graphics module if you are thinking of different tasks like CAD or engineering.

Like a lot of gaming laptops, this could earn its keep with students who use CAD, engineering, statistics or similar software as part of their studies but are not ready to buy a certified workstation for this software until they are sure that what they are studying for is their vocation. Also this computer could become a viable creator / multimedia / prosumer option for the creative types who value the Windows platform.

The review is also conveying the computer as being suitable for “work+personal” computing setups like BYOD or people who run their own businesses, where the goal is to have one machine for work or studay and play.

Wi-Fi 7 gains more legitimacy as a home network technology

Article

Freebox Ultra router and extender press image courtesy of Iliad Free

Freebox Ultra Wi-Fi 7 router and extender available in France’s highly-competitive market

Best of Wi-Fi @MWC 2024 featuring Vantiva, ZTE, Qualcomm, & Intel – Wi-Fi NOW Global (wifinowglobal.com)

Previous Coverage about Wi-Fi 7

What is Wi-Fi 7 to provide for yoThur Wi-Fi wireless network?

My Comments

This year (2024) is being seen as a year for Wi-Fi 7 to gain legitimacy as a Wi-Fi network technology for the home and small-business network space. It is because the Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) standard was set in stone on January 8 2024.

This will be about leading wireless networks towards multiple-gigabit networking, something that will be facilitated by Gigabit fibre Internet-service networks that can be easily upgraded to this direction. There is expected to be reduced latency which will benefit online-multiplayer video games, videoconferencing and similar time-sensitive activity. There will also be time-sensitive network support at the media level that will benefit multichannel sound, multi-camera video production, robotics and the like.

Wi-Fi 7 feature and benefit list courtesy of Wi-Fi Alliance

But these networks still work on a “best case” approach but in a way that permits Wi-Fi 7 networks to support equipment that works to prior standards.

What is now happening is that more telcos and ISPs are being offered home-network routers that support Wi-Fi 7 and offer these kind of advantages. This is something to be expected of in a competitive market like France where Free is offering the Freebox Ultra (Product Page – French language / Langue française) which is the first “n-box” router to work Wi-Fi 7. along with 4 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports.

ZTE Wi-Fi 7 router lineup for different Internet services - press picture courtesy of ZTE

ZTE’s Wi-Fi 7 router lineup

ZTE is coming forth with a range if Wi-Fi 7 routers and access points – a range of 10 models covering every possible configuration with some routers supporting FTTP setups and DSL-copper setups as well as broadband Internet, Then Vantiva demonstrated their EasyMesh-compatible Wi-Fi 7 extenders alongside their 5G fixed-wireless modem routers at Mobile World Congress 2024. Here, most of this equipment will be made available to telcos and ISPs who are offering Gigabit Fibre Internet services. As well, Netgear and TP-Link are offering a range of Wi-Fi 7 compatible routers, distributed Wi-Fi systems and access points in their home-network product ranges, typically for high-performance users.

There is still a trickle of client-side equipment with Samsung S24 Series smartphones and the Google Pixel 8 Pro smartphone being the first recognised smartphone model to support this technology. But this year, Wi-Fi 7 will become part of product refreshes for smartphones, tablets and laptops at the premium end of the market.

The fact that network equipment manufacturers are offering Wi-Fi 7 routers ‘under contract” to telcos and ISPs for sale or lease to their end-users and that the next generation of smartphones is to have Wi-Fi 7 shows industry confidence in that standard. It would still be a valid upgrade for networks running Wi-Fi 5 or prior-technology equipment especially if the equipment is significantly old. Or as the equipment comes in to affordable mid-range territory, it could be seen as a long-term upgrade for your Wi-Fi network.

As well, it could encourage the sale of multi-Gigabit Ethernet switches due to a need to have at least 2.5 Gigabit as a wired backhaul option for distributed or many-access-point Wi-Fi 7 networks with 2.5 Gigabit unmanaged basic 5-port switches coming in to very affordable territory.

What do I mean by a “small logical network”

Through this Website, I often talk of a “small logical network” when describing the kind of networks that connected devices can use when there is the desire to work with each other.

What is a “Small logical network”

This is a network typical of one set up in your home or small business as a primary network primarily by people who live in your home or work in your business. Here, the network is intended to be used by people who effectively know each other.

Basic DLNA Media Network

Basic DLNA Media Network – an example of what the small logical network is about

It can use Wi-Fi wireless technology; Ethernet new-wire technology; or a “wired no-new-wires” technology like HomePlug / G.Hn HomeGrid powerline, or MoCA / G.Hn HomeGrid TV coaxial cable; or a combination of these physical-connection technologies. But this network is connected to the same router / Internet-gateway device and established as one network.

The router device will use DHCP to allocate the IP addresses to each device from a particular pool of addresses so that they are discoverable across this network. It is also configured without any isolation across this network so that the users’ devices can discover each other across the network. This is important for file transfer across the network, printing (including driver-free printing) to network-connected printers, and AV / multimedia protocols and setups like network-based multiroom setups, AirPlay, Chromecast or UPnP AV / DLNA, with this concept being highlighted in the diagram opposite.

Guest Network Functionality

An increasing number of routers are supporting the creation of “guest networks” which are another logical network that may be used for tenants or guests. These networks have a different set of IP addresses and can’t discover the devices associated with the main network, although they can gain access to the Internet service.

These can either be set up to be another small logical network with device discovery within that network or as a public-access Wi-Fi network of the kind outlined below that doesn’t support device discovery across that network.

Public-access Wi-Fi

A properly configured public-access or community network is set up for device isolation so that the devices which use that network cannot discover each other but can discover the Internet connection. This is because such networks are used by people who don’t really know each other. Such networks wouldn’t fit in to that term of a “small logical network” that I use on this site because of the emphasis on device-to-device discoverability.

Newer hospitality networks

But tech vendors courting the hospitality and allied trades are working on network setups where each room or apartment of the facility has its own logical network. This is provided by a Wi-Fi network name (SSID) and password that is peculiar to the room or apartment and will last for the duration of your tenure. You will either have a docket with that Wi-Fi network name and password when you rent the room or even scan a EasyConnect QR code to enrol your device.

Then, when you enrol each of your devices to that network, they see each other as though they are a member of a home network. Some of these “solutions” vendors are even integrating devices like connected entertainment endpoints (Chromecasts, Apple TVs, smart TVs, Internet radios, etc) that work with these networks and are discoverable using the usual suspects (AirPlay, UPnP AV / DLNA, Chromecast, Spotify Connect, etc).

But this is distinct from a simple property-wide network like the headline Wi-Fi network that is pitched for use by guests that would be properly set up to isolate each device that uses the network. It is also distinct from the premise’s back-of-house network that is used for the hotel’s business IT needs.

Enterprise networks

Larger enterprise networks are typically engineered in a more intricate manner so that data flows within particular segments of that large organisation. This will typically be about the use of multiple virtual networks or multiple logical networks and even authentication routines not associated with the typical small network such as certificates.

Dependent on the use case, each logical network within an enterprise setup would be set up so that devices logged in to that network can find each other or they can be set up with the abovementioned device isolation.

Similarly, they will implement the Enterprise variations of the Wi-Fi WPA2/3 security protocols that use advanced sign-in requirements like usernames and passwords or device-local certificates. Most devices typically used on a home network wouldn’t support networks that use these kind of advanced security protocols.

Mobile networks

Mobile network wiht "Mi-Fi" router

Mobile wireless network for two or more mobile devices and mobile client devices – uses a router-class device like a “Mi-Fi” router

A small logical network can be created in a mobile environment through the use of a travel router or MiFi-type mobile broadband modem router. Some mobile NAS units also provide this kind of facility. Even a regular computer running recent versions of MacOS or Windows can create its own small logical network while connecting to a public-access Wi-Fi network thanks to “mobile hotspot” or “Internet Sharing” functionality.

Here, the Wi-Fi network that these devices create is essentially a small logical network as if it is acting as a home-network Wi-Fi router. This is typically used to connect a Chromecast, Apple TV or similar network-based multimedia device to your hotel’s Wi-Fi guest-access network in order for you to stream multimedia to that device.

Conclusion

The idea behind the small logical network is a network, independent of connection media, that exists behind a single router device and allows each device on that network to discover and connect to each other.

Bluetooth becoming a legitimate in-flight technology

Image from aeroplane over Lake Eildon

Bluetooth is now seen as legitimate for air travel

There is a strong question about how you should be using Bluetooth headsets and the Bluetooth functionality of your smartphones, laptops and tablets when you are flying.

The key drivers for Bluetooth in the airliner cabin are:

  • Bluetooth headsets and earbuds with active noise cancelling functionality being increasingly popular
  • Bluetooth earbuds and an increasing number of mobile devices not supporting wired audio connectivity
  • A significant number of travel-friendly Bluetooth transmit adaptors appearing on the market with a use case being to use Bluetooth ANC earbuds with in-flight entertainment systems
  • An increasing number of avionics (aviation-use electronics) manufacturers like Panasonic are offering in-flight entertainment systems that are designed to work with passenger-supplied Bluetooth headsets. This allows for passengers to enjoy in-flight entertainment content with their favourite headsets, especially as they have a wide choice of good-quality active-noise-cancelling headsets and earbuds at good value for money.

As well, aeroplane and avionics-system manufacturers are designing their aircraft and equipment for Bluetooth / Wi-Fi resilience so this technology doesn’t cause problems with aeronautical navigation or aviation safety.

The questions that will still remain are whether you can use your Bluetooth headphones in flight and whether you can use them through all of the flight or just when the plane is cruising at altitude. But the consensus that seems to have been worked out amongst civil aviation authorities, IATA (who represent airlines) and most airlines is to limit Bluetooth use to when the plane is cruising. Some airlines may permit the use of Bluetooth setups during take-off and landing.

You also may know that the aeroplane mode or flight mode for your smartphone, tablet or laptop may be primarily about disabling the cellular modem functionality for devices so equipped. This is so the cellular modem doesn’t “hunt” for mobile base stations which are on the ground while you are flying, thus interfering with radio-based air-navigation setups.

Here, if your device is in that mode, you may have the option to selectively enable Bluetooth or Wi-Fi depending on the circumstances such as to use Wi-Fi-based in-flight connectivity. These modes are primarily about short-range radio connectivity rather than long-range connectivity.

Sony WH-1000XM4 Bluetooth noise-cancelling headset press image courtesy of Sony

.. especially in the context of ANC-capable Bluetooth headsets like the Sony WH-1000XM4 headset

As well, if your phone and your headset has a wired-audio connection, typically a 3.5mm audio jack or audio via USB-C or MFi Lightning typically facilitated by an adaptor of some sort, this would be your fallback if you aren’t sure. It would apply to the traditional-designed over-ear headsets like the Bose or Sony ones because these would have an audio input jack that works with a cable for wired-audio connections.

If you are unsure about this, it may be worth asking the cabin crew about the policy that is in place for Bluetooth-capable headset setups in the plane. They may advise you on information that may pertain to the aircraft you are flying on.

What to watch out for

A technology to watch out for is Bluetooth LE Audio and Auracast being implemented within the aircraft cabin. This is a “next-generation” Bluetooth audio standard which supports efficient audio streaming which leads to battery efficiency for mobile devices and headsets while yielding high-quality sound; as well as Auracast which is about broadcasting audio content using Bluetooth LE technology.

Bluetooth LE Audio and Auracast will be driven by the use of bearing-assistance devices (hearing aids and cochlear implants), along with true-wireless-stereo earbuds. This is because of the efficiency that is part of the design and the ability to implement true wireless stereo from the source in a heterogenous manner.

Airlines will need to be aware of Bluetooth LE Audio as an upcoming passenger infotainment technology. This is expected to become ubiquitous over the next few years with headsets and audio-capable devices to be equipped with chipsets offering dual-mode (Bluetooth Classic Audio and Bluetooth LE Audio) operation for best-case operation.

A key feature that will benefit this industry is Auracast broadcast audio. Here, this could be about support for multilingual flight-safety briefings where you only hear your language, audio environments where you hear your device’s multimedia entertainment but not miss the announcements as they come through the PA system nor lose out on the active-noise-cancelling your headset would offer.

In the case of flight-safety briefings augmented with audio or video content, there could be the ability to have concurrent multilingual audio where the passenger has the choice of which language they hear. This would avoid that repetition of the same message in different languages which can be a bane for frequent travellers.

As well, Bluetooth LE Audio and Auracast, with its relevance for people who are hard-of-hearing may increase the legitimacy of Bluetooth audio usage during all phases of a flight. Here, this would be about raising the technology to the level of an accessibility measure thus considering its increased use during flights.

Conclusion

What is being realised is that Bluetooth in the context of headsets is being seen as a legitimate in-flight connectivity technology especially when it comes to entertainment whether from your device or the in-flight entertainment setup.

What can be done to support FTTH independent install

What is independent install

Fibre-optic connection pots in ground - press picture courtesy of Gigaclear

As more fibre-to-the-premises connections become ubiquitous, there will be a call towards independent-install as a service provisioning option in order to save costs for subsequent FTTP deployments

Independent installation of fibre-to-the-home / fibre-to-the-premises broadband Internet is where the installation and provisioning of this service doesn’t require a technician employed or contracted by the infrastructure provider or ISP to come to your premises.

Most likely these kind of FTTH / FTTP installations will take place in an environment where the consumer owns the optical network terminal and can replace it with equipment that suits their needs better. As well, such equipment will be typically in the form of desktop equipment that is the size of a typical home-network router.

Independent install approaches have been seen to be successful with ADSL and cable broadband Internet due to the copper infrastructure being ubiquitous in most households. In a lot of cases, this has allowed ISPs and telcos to offer cheaper broadband Internet to the masses.

New connections

A new connection to a premises that hasn’t been previously connected would require a technician employed or contracted by the infrastructure provider or ISP to run a connection from the street to the building or premises. They would be required to install a “demarcation point” on the premises where the infrastructure provider’s legal responsibility ends as far as the infrastructure goes.

Some ISPs or infrastructure providers may supply and install the fibre-optic cabling from the demarcation point to a wall socket close to where you are to have your optical network terminal and home-network router. Here, this would be part of the installation cost for a new connection to an existing premises.

On the other hand, an independent third-party installer with fibre-optic skills would install fibre-optic runs as part of electrical / AV / data cabling during the construction of a new building or full-on renovation. This would be paid for by the building owner as part of the project costs.

As well, there will be pressure on building developers to install the necessary infrastructure for fibre-to-the-premises Internet as a standard offering. This will be exerted by customers, urban planners, regulatory authorities, competing developers and the like to have that project set up for today’s online expectations. In this case, electricians engaged by the developers will be required to be skilled in FTTP fibre-optic installations.

Existing connections

Connections on AVM FritzBox FF30 Fiber router image courtesy of AVM

The AVM Fritz!Box 5530 is one of these home-network routers with a connection for fibre-optic internet in the form of an SFP plug.

As fibre-to-the-premises broadband takes hold, there will be more of the existing connections to this kind of infrastructure. This will be where independent install will earn its keep. It will also include premises that are part of a previously-mentioned building development that have been wired for fibre-to-the-premises.

Self-install, including wires-only / BYO setups

Self-install is where there is cabling to the premises and a wall socket installed therein. The customer picks up the equipment they need and, perhaps, a flylead or adaptor from the ISP’s bricks-and-mortar presence or a retailer. Or this equipment is delivered to the customer’s premises by post or courier.

Then the customer unpacks the equipment and installs it themselves. They may find that the ISP or infrastructure provider has to remotely activate the equipment and set it up for the Internet service.

If the arrangement is described as a BYO or wires-only setup, the equipment isn’t bundled with the service. Rather the customer buys the equipment from the ISP or infrastructure provider or a technology retailer. They can take the equipment between premises rather than leaving it behind when they move.

The BYO or wires-only setup would be pushed for in the name of competition and innovation. This is due to the idea of offering higher-performance ONT modems or ONT/router combo equipment a.k.a. fibre-optic gateways that is equivalent to modem routers. As well, it would be pushed as a lower-cost service-provisioning option due to the ISP or telco not needing to have customer-premises equipment on their books as a rapidly-depreciating asset including the cost to warehouse the equipment, nor needing to have technicians drive to the customer’s premises to deliver or install the equipment.

Should the equipment fail, the customer would have to disconnect the equipment and organise to have it repaired. Here, they would send the equipment to the ISP or infrastructure provider if it is bundled with the service. Or they would send it to a repairer if the equipment isn’t bundled, such as a BYO equipment deal. The same situation also applies where a technical upgrade is taking place and the customer needs to use newer equipment.

Similarly, self-install especially BYO / wires-only setup may permit a customer to take the equipment with them when they move to premises where there is already the FTTP infrastructure therein. This would appeal with people who purchase ONT modems or ONT/router units that are about higher performance.

Independent technician install

An independent-technician install relies on a suitably-trained technician engaged by the customer to install the fibre-optic wiring between the demarcation point and where they want to install their equipment.

Such technicians would be able to move the fibre-optic connection on the customer’s side of the demarcation point if you had to reposition it to a newer location. The technician would also be able to do repairs on the fibre-optic cabling if it failed or was damaged.

If you are renovating your home or working on a new-build premises, having an electrician or AV technician who is skilled with fibre-optic handling will come in to its own. Here, you have the same tradesperson doing the fibre-optic cabling as well as other copper-based cabling runs, whether AC wiring, RF for a TV aerial or master-antenna TV setup, AV for multiroom audio and video or Ethernet cabling for your home network.

What is needed

Demarcation point

The fibre-to-the-premises installation has to have a distinct demarcation point at the user’s premises. This delineates the point of responsibility between the service/infrastructure provider and the premises owner/occupier as far as the fibre-optic infrastructure is concerned.

This would have to designed so that a skilled independent technician can connect a fibre-optic installation to this point when they have installed it. It could be feasible to have this support a “multi-fibre” connection with a “mutual / independent / open” demarcation point for environments that support infrastructure-level competition, something that is already established in France. That is where multiple street-side fibre connections are connected to this point and a technician engaged by the service provider the user is contracting with switches the user to that infrastructure.

Of course a consumer may want wall points for two or more infrastructure-level fibre connections. This would be called upon by businesses, for example, who subscribe to service providers on different infrastructures for increased fault tolerance of their Internet connection. In these cases, there would be two or more of the demarcation points on the premises in addition to two or more wall points or one multi-fibre demarcation point is used to serve two different outlets with connections to different infrastructure providers.

Multiple-premises buildings like apartment blocks or shopping centres may have the demarcation point in the telecommunications equipment room, typically in the basement or on the ground floor. This may be held as the building demarcation point while the cabling is maintained by technicians appointed by the building committee or owner. Some setups may then require a second demarcation point per premises with this being installed in a cupboard therein. In that area, cabling to the wall socket may be serviced by a technician engaged by the premises owner or occupier.

To assure access to infrastructure-level competition, there may be the idea of having multi-fibre connectivity to each premises with the premises-level demarcation point being where a household is switched between competing infrastructure providers.

Wall point

As well, there would be a requirement to have a fibre-optic wall point so that customers can easily connect and disconnect their optical network terminal. This would make self-install or “BYO device” arrangements work properly because the customer would have to be able to easily connect equipment that they supply.

Such wall points would be required to be installed where the customer wants their equipment placed. There will be instances where a customer wants two or more wall points that are connected to different fibre-optic infrastructure providers so as to provide a fault-tolerant setup.

Rugged flylead with rugged plugs

Then there would be the need for a rugged flylead with rugged plugs that the customer uses to connect between an optical network terminal (fibre optic modem) and the wall point.

Such cables and plugs would be about being able to be connected and disconnected easily by anyone and not being at risk of damage. It may also be about having these cables offered at lengths that suit the customer’s needs. These would be supplied through retail outlets, packaged with the ONT equipment or supplied by the installer. Most likely this will be in the form of the Single Form Pluggable connection on the equipment side like with the AVM Fritz!Box 5530 advanced home network router.

Why independent install

Having independent install as part of a fibre-to-the-premises setup for home and small-business users would become an economical measure for infrastructure providers. This makes a lot of sense with existing installations where a premises has FTTH / FTTP cabling to the point where a user wants to set up their network equipment.

Here, a technician doesn’t need to come out, supply and install an ONT modem in the premises; avoiding the need for the customer to book an appointment and make sure a responsible adult is waiting around to welcome and supervise the installer.

It would also permit the customer to choose their own kind of FTTP optical-network-terminal equipment. This is more so where the ONT equipment is part of a router and there is the desire to offer innovative better-performing equipment that has functionality that is desired by the customer. As well, manufacturers are encouraged to design smaller desktop units that fit in with the customer’s premises.

This also applies to installation modifications where a customer engages a trained technician to do the job. For example, the customer could engage an electrician who has been trained for AV, telecommunications and other similar work to do any “customer-side” work like moving their equipment or even to wire up a new building or premises.

The role of the infrastructure-supplier’s technicians would be reduced so as to “pull” the fibre-optic cabling from the street to the network demarcation point on the building and maintain that connection. As well, in an environment where there is competing infrastructure providers, the technicians supplied by the competing provider can know where to connect in their cabling to the building’s cabling infrastructure.

The disadvantage associated with independent install for FTTH setups is that the infrastructure provider would lose quality control over the installation. This may not necessarily apply to a self-install arrangement where the goal is to connect customer-supplied equipment to existing connections. But it would apply where new fibre-optic cabling is installed or an existing fibre-optic cabling installation is modified by a third-party technician.

Conclusion

As more countries take on fibre-to-the-premises broadband Internet, there will be the question about making sure that independent installation options are part of the course. This is more so as more premises become wired up to FTTP and the prospect of self-install where customers install replacement or improved equipment themselves becomes appealing as a way for operators to save money.

Marantz takes the network CD player further with the CD-50n

Article Marantz CD50n network CD player press image courtesy of Marantz

Marantz’s new streaming CD player and stereo amplifier are TV and turntable-friendly | What Hi-Fi? (whathifi.com)

From the horse’s mouth

Marantz

CD-50n Network CD player (Product Page)

My Comments

The last decade has seen the traditional vinyl record gaining a revival as a preferred physical medium to collect recorded music on. But the CD, which has just turned 40 this year, has been simmering along as a collectable music format over this same period and is gaining a similar kind of recognition and acceptability to vinyl.

Some of us still use CD as our preferred physical music medium due to it being cheap on the new or secondhand market or easy to have in a mobile or portable form such as through ripping to hard disk and syncing to our smartphones. As well, the small size of these discs appeals to those of us who want to build or maintain large collections without it taking up much space. Even the record labels have exploited this further by justifying CD as a medium to offer collectable album editions that hold more musical content than the standard album editions, perhaps due to a disc holding extra material or multi-disc compilations stored in a case that is the same size as the standard CD jewel case.

Marantz CD 50n network CD player lifestyle press image courtesy of Marantz

Are we still playing CDs nowadays

This has been more so due to CDs being a cheaper format to replicate and sell than vinyl although able to yield a very-high-quality sound. As well, more of the premium hi-fi brands of respect are giving CD as much developmental and promotional space as vinyl, with this manifesting in component-type CD players that you connect to your hi-fi system appearing in more audio product lineups. Even Yamaha has reintroduced the 5-disc CD changer where all the discs are loaded on to a carousel that is part of a large drawer, in the form of the CD-C603 changer. As well, some consumer-electronics manufacturers are still persisting with CD receivers or stereo systems that play CDs with the former being a component that has radio, CD and, perhaps, network / Internet audio sources which you just connect to a set of speakers of your choice.

I have covered on this site some of the “network CD players” that Yamaha, Marantz and Technics have launched over the years. These combine a CD player and a network-audio streamer in one box, only requiring you to use one input on your amplifier or receiver to play CDs or content held on online sources or your home network.

Marantz have solidified  their position in the network-CD-player space in two ways. Firstly they have released a network SACD player in the form of the SACD-30n with similar features but omitting the HDMI ARC connection. But this time they have released the CD-50n network CD player which follows on from the ND-8006 network CD player that I covered previously.

The Marantz  CD-50n is a CD player with the expectations of a current premium full-width component-type CD player. This includes a mechanism and signal path that is engineered for high-quality CD reproduction and the same kind of advanced CD play functions associated with that format for a long time.

This unit even underscores the “single input on the amplifier” advantage associated with network CD players further by being equipped with an HDMI-ARC connection for TV audio. Here, you would connect the Marantz CD-50n to your TV’s HDMI-ARC connection so you can have the TV’s sound play through your hi-fi system.

Of course, there are the coaxial and optical SP/DIF inputs and outputs that make this unit work as a digital-analogue converter for TVs, MiniDisc decks or other digital-audio equipment; or pass the sound in a digital-audio manner to a digital amplifier or DAC. You can use this network CD player to stream audio content from smartphones and similar Bluetooth-capable devices through it to the connected sound system.

The Marantz CD-50n works as a sound card for computers that are connected to it via USB but some Windows computers will need to run a Marantz-supplied driver to work properly with it. As well, there is a USB Type-A connection for a Mass-Storage device that is full of music held in the common audio file formats.

As mentioned previously, this Marantz network CD player can connect to a digital amplifier or DAC via an SP/DIF optical or coaxial connection. There are two line-level outputs, represented as two sets of RCA sockets on the back. One of these is a fixed-level output typically used with most stereo systems where you have an amplifier that you regulate the sound level with while the other is a variable-level output that can he used with a power amplifier or active speakers. This also comes in to its own in other use cases where you expect the Marantz unit and its remote to be the point of control for the sound level.

There is a built-in headphone amplifier so you can connect a pair of wired headphones to the Marantz CD-50n. But it can serve as a Bluetooth source device where you use a pair of Bluetooth headphones or a Bluetooth speaker as the audio output device. In this case, you have to use the Bluetooth device’s volume control to adjust the sound volume to your tastes. The Bluetooth functionality for both source and target device roles works according to the Bluetooth Classic specification.

As far as your home network is concerned, you can connected to it via Ethernet or Wi-Fi. This leads you to it being part of the DLNA Home Media Network where you can play content held on a media server or NAS. Or through the Denon/Marantz HEOS platform, you can stream a variety of online services like Spotify, Deezer or Tidal, managing them from your smartphone with the HEOS app. For Internet radio, the HEOS platform has support for the TuneIn Internet radio platform so you can listen to a wide range of radio stations including from overseas through the Marantz CD-50n.

Being part of the Denon/Marantz HEOS ecosystem also means that the Marantz CD-50n can work as part of a network multiroom system using other HEOS-capable wireless speakers or hi-fi / AV components made by brands in the Denon-Marantz group. As well, it can be part of the Apple AirPlay 2 or Roon network-audio ecosystems, especially the latter which is seen as the “audiophile network multiroom audio” standard.

If you have a recent Marantz amplifier with the appropriate connections, the CD-50n can be connected using Marantz’s proprietary inter-component control arrangement. This will open up the possibility of single-remote-control operation, one-touch start-up and one-touch shut-down operation.

This player costs AUD$3200 in Australia, but you have a highly-strung CD player and network-audio streamer in one box which may seem to justify the price when you are in to premium hi-fi. Personally, I would like to see more hi-fi companies keep at least one of these network CD players in their product range for those of us who want that single-box solution to a digital audio source in our audio systems.