AV design deity Bang & Olufsen has announced the launch of its BeoSound Essence sound system. The system is aimed at providing users with a simple means of listening to their digital music collection and, as ever with B&O, is a thing of beatific beauty.
The BeoSound Essence pairs with any B&O powered speakers and comprises two main components. An aluminium-cast remote, available as a wall-mount or table-top variant, allows users to control their music with one touch whilst a "hide-away box" sits near to the speakers and connects to the user’s music library or streaming services via Ethernet or Wi-Fi.
The system is compatible with AirPlay (certification pending) and DLNA streaming, as well providing access to Spotify Connect, QPlay and internet radio stations. A BeoSound Music app is also available, allowing users to browse and play music from their smartphone, tablet or PC.
B&O says that simplicity is at the heart of the BeoSound Essence and is aimed at encouraging users to listen to more music. The remote, therefore, only allows users to play or pause music, skip between tracks or Internet radio stations and mute or adjust the volume.
"BeoSound Essence is all about giving people easy access to their favorite music in Bang & Olufsen quality," the company's CEO Tue Mantoni said in a press release. "By applying our behavioral and ethnographic studies of how people live and live with music we have developed the simplest user interface available in the market for people who do not accept a compromise in terms of quality and performance. BeoSound Essence builds on Bang & Olufsen’s heritage of understanding user behavior and technology and breaking new ground to make things simple."
BeoSound Essence will be available from Q2 retailing at US$995 for a wall-mounted remote and hide-away box. Additional wall-mounted or table-top remotes will cost $200.
Source: Bang & Olufsen
