In one of the most refreshing conversations we had at the Consumer Electronics Show, Sonos CEO, John MacFarlane confirmed his firm's multiroom music server would - for 2008, at least - continue to evolve via a series of free firmware upgrades rather than new hardware releases.
"We want to make sure Sonos systems live happily in your house for at least 5-10 years, just like your old hi-fi did," he said, adding "You're not going to see anything that makes existing Sonos users say 'I wish i'd waited to buy'".
That's not to say the Award-winning Sonos systems are standing still: evolutions in wireless connectivity are on the agenda, though not video support - well, not in 2008, anyway.
The Sonos system can wirelessly stream music (in compressed or uncompressed format) to up to 32 zones around your home, with the £699 BU130 bundle (pictured above) supporting two zones out of the box. MacFarlane revealed that the average number of zones in a Sonos system is currently 3.1, but that figure is higher in the UK - the company's second highest market outside the US.
He said he expects to digital music systems to become even more popular as the sound-quality of content increases - and not just because users have chosen to rip their CDs in uncompressed formats.
"We'll start to see an increase in download quality," MacFarlane predicts. "Digital music is going to turn back into music, and no-one is going to talk about bit-rates or DRM anymore".
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