Thought I'd lay out a few little ideas I've had recently. I think we all play the wishing game now and again, so here's a dealer's perspective on the products I'd like to see, both entirely new and modifications to the existing lineup. I'd like to hear comments and see what everyone else is longing for from the B&O of our dreams!
1. BeoSystem 3 "Standard" & "Pro" Sort of like the MacBook / MacBook Pro distinction. Basically (as discussed in a slightly "political" thread recently) much of our portfolio forces us to go after more and more affluent clientele and while some of us are lucky enough to find them here and there, I believe we've left behind an enormous market that's looking for the BMW between the Kia and the Bentley. BeoVision 8s just don't cut it! So I think that the
BeoSystem 3 Standard should essentially strip out the 2nd monitor output, mux outputs, vision-clear engine (including ACM, etc.) and halt the future inclusion of these sorts of video exotica additions. Whatever brings the price point between $3,000 - $3,700 USD will be fine. Additionally, more robust support for other panels should be a requirement.
BeoSystem 3 Pro should retain existing features, but add the MLGW II as an on-board feature and make the cable groupings interchangeable from standard connections (HDMI, Component, SPDIF, etc.) to CAT-V jacks to make runs to the components in remote locations easier. Baluns would attach to the other ends only reducing the need to hide half a dozen little metal boxes behind the TV (this is especially crucial when the BS3 would be built into a BV7 or a BV9). The intended user would be incorporating the BeoSystem 3 into a larger global system and looking for higher performance and greater integration w/ a home automation system. The price-point could certainly move up to around $10,000 for this model.
2. BeoSound 5 MKII I think the attention that the BeoSound 5 has gotten has been generally good in that even much of the negative criticism describes a few small details that would need to be set straight for the customer to take the plunge. Here's what I've seen as crucial to situating the BeoSound 5 for a good long run as flagship audio master.
A. Wireless The elephant in the room. Even my most wild and impassioned defenses of the BeoSound 5 have included this caveat. With Apple about to drive us all into another tizzy w/ a 10" iPhone tablet next year I can't really accept any excuse as to why any cables are necessary for the BeoSound 5. Put a battery in the base. Give it a sexy charger (like the Palm Pre w/ no visible contacts). Just do it already!
B. More Sources Interestingly I haven't heard a lot of complaints about how little the BeoSound 5 takes advantage of its interface, which I think is a pretty good one. While we've heard about the upcoming iPod dock that will allow the BeoSound 5 to tap into the content on a docked iPod, I wonder if there isn't a way that the BeoSound 5 could also simply stream from iTunes. This would require a good internet connection of course, but being able to tap into local content, IP radio, as well as other music libraries as sources would be a welcome improvement and also potentially bypass the issue of format compatibility (though maybe not, I'm just guessing here). For those still longing for a CD player, how about a plug in module (sort of like the one I have for my MacBook Air) that can use available metadata to put track/artist/etc on the BeoSound 5 panel when the disc is loaded. If it's accurate, maybe it can even burn it in as well.
C. BeoMaster 5 Overhaul Putting the BeoMaster 5 in the BeoMedia's case was a damning omen from the start. BeoMedia competes admirably with the BeoSystem 1 for Most Maligned product this decade. It's larger than it needs to be, stingy with memory, and doesn't truly answer the critics who worry that trusting their media collection to its questionable guts is a foolish gamble. If a $99 product like the WD Media can scan and index an attached drive within a few seconds I can't imagine why a $2,500 computer couldn't do the same thing. Yet, remarkably, it does not. Attaching a drive is awkward and generally not worth the hassle. Why not trim some of the fat by making the BeoMaster 5 a $1,000 hub instead of a $2,500 computer? Then it can access the drive of the client's choosing (and for the less savvy client, a HD can easily be supplied by the dealer so as not to involve them in the matter). Smaller, lighter, and more flexible will do.
3. Advanced Menu System The Beo 5 can get cumbersome quickly w/ its tiny screen and the introduction of larger and larger remotes w/ greasy touch-screens seems to be a step backwards. For all of its other faults, the best solution I've seen seems to be the Apple TV. The more we can migrate from the "graphing calculator" remote to the "up-down-left-right-GO" remote the better. Many brands, Sony most notably, has made great strides in developing internal menu systems that are highly engaging graphically and very agile in their response. This seems like the ideal compliment to systems that are getting more complex. A sort of "dashboard" with sources and automation activities that the user could easily edit makes a lot more sense than the half dozen or more layers I have to go into to dim the lights in my bedroom with my Beo 5. Of course I hear that rooms without television still exist so this wouldn't work everywhere, but it's the sort of thing B&O had better get working on.
4. New ALT BeoLab Somewhere between the BeoLab 3 & BeoLab 9. Probably already in development, but worth mentioning the need.
5. Entry Level Audio System Theoretically the BeoSound 5 fills this need, but at $3,000 before you add sound it simply doesn't make sense. Whether or not it takes CDs or what, as a dealer I see a need for something at about $2,500 that has sound and ML capability. That just seems to be the right price.
That's about all I've got. I'm at least reasonably pleased with most everything else as is. What have I missed?
