Philips Fidelio AD7000W has arrived in UK

The fourth member of the Philips Fidelio AirPlay family has arrived in the UK as the Philips Fidelio AD7000W goes on sale at amongst other John Lewis and Amazon UK.

The Philips Fidelio AD7000W is one of the more affordable AirPlay speakers from Philips, taking inspiration from their more traditional Fidelio range, but without the physical docking station, instead relying completely (almost) on AirPlay streaming.

Design wise it looks a bit similar to a Bose SoundDock. The front is in black mesh with the back in a black plastic finish. Making it stand out is the brushed aluminum top cover, giving it that additional edge that we all want when spending hard earned money on an AirPlay speaker. Even the onboard controls are minimalistic, with well integrated power button and volume controls situated at the top of the back, and all other inputs also situated at bottom back of the system. Those include USB for connecting an external dock, power connection, and aux-in.

The output power of the Fidelio AD7000W is at the lower end compared to some of its more expensive Philips AirPlay speaker cousins, but that is also reflected in the price. The sound performance is however reported to be of normal Philips quality, so i guess it is down to how much power you need for your use, and how much to expect for the price. I will be able to give you more detailed sound performance/experience once had a chance to test the system hands-on.

Audyssey representing the Lower East Side with Audio Dock Air

Audyssey might be best known for providing high quality audio components to other manufacturers, but their first ever iPod speaker dock in the Audyssey SOM got great reviews, and now they are representing a new borough with their first ever AirPlay speaker; the Audyssey Lower East Side Audio Dock Air.

The Audyssey LES Audio Dock Air is a square box with a slight retro feel to it, but inside it is packed with the company's expertise to deliver the best possible audio experience from the system that is relying on wireless streaming from iOS device, iTunes and other compatible media players using Apple's Airplay technology.

On the outside the LES Audio Dock Air only has minimal features that include a volume knob, headphone jack, and 3.5mm line-in. On the inside however you will find two 1-inch tweeters, two 3-inch midrange drivers, and two 4-inch passive bass radiators, all taking advantage of the Audyssey Smart Speaker Technology.

The Audyssey Lower East Side Audio Dock is expected to start retailing in November, so there is still a chance to get your hands on it before Christmas, with a price tag around $400, which for the UK market likely will be around £350.

I hope to be back with a full review once the systems becomes available here in the UK.

[source: Audyssey]