The Price: $550

The Verdict: Almost soooo good. While soundbars are ever more popular, in many cases, they fit awkwardly in front of your television. I fit a 40" LCD on the ZVOX box comfortably. The ZVOX feels very stable—probably more solid than my entertainment center. So that part works.

As for the sounds itself—also excellent. I simply don't have the equipment available to compare it to other $550 audio systems (and really, there's no perfect analog product). But I will say that highs, mids and lows were all crisply represented across a variety of genres. The bass, especially, made me more than happy to forgo an extra standalone subwoofer (which the system supports should you need it). And I easily filled my tiny apartment with sound.

The cabinet does vibrate a bit, though it's very quite unless you crank the bass up to max. The only reason I'd be wary is that the shaking might damage a TV over time...but my immediate, visceral response is that things are fine.

Where the cabinet falls short to me is its inputs. It supports two sources of stereo RCA plugs. And while it offers some virtual surround tech along with the option to mix the two sources, it's just not going to work for many (or most) general home theater purposes without an optical input. Even if the ZVOX only technically plays back 2.1 channel sound, it's still a vital connectivity option.
Also, while I appreciate the minimal design, the tiny remote coupled with a single LED light on the system to signal power/remote commands, it's tough to know where your levels are (Is treble maxed? How much louder can I crank this?).

So given the omission of optical inputs and a limited UI, the ZVOX 550 is not quite the universal home theater product that it could be. But if you want an excellent one-cabinet audio system that can hold your giant LCD, then it may be worth the few inconveniences. [ZVOX]

Update: ZVOX has responded with this note:

I hope you don't mind, but I'd like to address the "lack of multiple/digital inputs" issue that many editors comment on regarding the Z-Base 550. I feel the need to share some insight on our design decision-making process at ZVOX:

Our primary aim is to combine great sound with simplicity. The typical TV viewer, in our opinion, is very comfortable using their TV set as a switching/control center. That's what they've done for years — plug everything into the TV, and use the TV remote to switch back and forth. It's intuitive and really simple. And modern TVs have loads of inputs of all kinds. At ZVOX, we say "use 'em!" I can connect my DVD player, Fios box and my kid's Playstation 3 to my Panasonic LCD TV, then run the analog audio out from the TV to the ZVOX. The fact that the digital-to-analog conversion is taking place in the TV, rather than in the ZVOX system six inches away, doesn't seem to make any audible difference. The system sounds great. It has all the switching I need. And it's simple to use.

If we had included 3-4 digital inputs and switching functionality, our costs would go up (Micronas boards, HDMI costs, and last-but-not-least...Dolby royalties — which for smaller manufacturers are quite substantial) and, more importantly, the switching process becomes non-intuitive. A simple example (which presumes I don't have a Harmony or other smart, macro-programmed remote): I'm watching cable and want switch to DVD. If the DVD's video is going to the TV, and it's digital audio signal is going directly to the ZVOX, I need to switch the video with my TV remote and the audio with my ZVOX remote. If I (or my wife) forget, then we end up watching DVD video while listening the cable box audio. (My wife HATES when this happens!!)

We could get around this by adding a bunch of HDMI inputs and outputs — as well as a front panel display (like the Yamaha YSP-4000), but frankly, the ZVOX 425 might then sell for the same $1400 as the Yamaha. I'd rather keep our price point relatively low, while still being able to build cabinets of real wood and use top-notch drivers and amplifiers.

Enjoy the holidays!

Tom Hannaher, ZVOX

SOUTHAMPTON, England, July 22

Garmin the global leader in satellite navigation, today announced its first multi-use nüvi portable navigation device (PND) dedicated to walking, cycling, scootering, driving and boating in one rugged easy-to-use unit. The nüvi 500 series comes equipped with the latest technology from Garmin including NavTeq sophisticated mapping data and the ability to accept different types of mapping including TOPO for outdoor navigation and Blue Chart cartography for marine usage.

Clive Taylor, Garmin's Director of Product, said, "The nüvi 500 series is a true chameleon in the gadget world, it extends the use of GPS across the range, from walking to cycling to driving to boating. It's ideal for individuals or families who want to go and explore the great outdoors in every way they can. With the built-in compass and integrated Wherigo(TM) and Geocaching player the sat-nav's use is extended beyond just navigating: Users can enjoy the fun of the many family treasure hunts and adventures available online."

The new waterproof nüvi 500 series combines the latest Garmin navigation technology including Hotfix(TM), detailed NavTeq mapping, millions of points of interest (POIs) and traffic avoidance compatibility, for the times when sitting in a traffic jam is not an option. In addition, the nüvi 500 series comes standard with Garmin's popular "Where am I?" safety feature. At any time, with a single tap of the car icon, drivers can display their exact latitude and longitude coordinates, the nearest address and intersection, and the closest hospitals, police stations, fuel stations and recovery service telephone number. In addition, with Garmin Connect Photos, users can choose from millions of geo-located images provided by Google's Panoramio to photo-navigate on land or water.

With one touch, the nüvi 500 transitions between walking, biking, driving or boating mode;

Walking and outdoor pursuits

Ready for the great outdoors, the nüvi 500 models display shaded digital elevation mapping on the 3.5" water-proof touchscreen. This series comes standard with a compass page, track log and a removable, rechargeable battery for extended outdoor use. The integrated Wherigo(TM) and Geocaching player means the nüvi 500 series is ideal for getting the family to enjoy the great outdoors with the many downloadable 'adventures and treasure hunts' available online. Optional TOPO mapping will give additional detailed maps.

- Wherigo is a toolset for creating and playing GPS-enabled adventures in the real world. Use GPS technology to guide you to physical locations and interact with virtual objects and characters. http://www.wherigo.com

- Geocaching is an entertaining adventure game where individuals and organizations set up caches all over the world and share the locations of these caches on the internet. GPS users can then use the location coordinates to find the caches. Once found, the visitor may be provided with a wide variety of rewards, all a visitor has to do is ensure that if rewarded, they leave a gift for the next person who finds the cache. http://www.geocaching.com

Cycling/scootering

Where the nüvi 500 series stands out is in its ability to fit comfortably on a scooter or bicycle. Its user interface is easy to control and, with directions via Bluetooth and a scooter mount as standard in select European markets or optional extra everywhere else, it's a great fit for getting around the busy town centres of Europe. The nüvi 500 series has a rugged design with UVA/B & fuel resistant material and bright clear screen that can be seen even in strong sunlight. If the weather turns and the rain comes down, its waterproof body ensures that the turn-by-turn directions get you to your destination using the most direct route and in the quickest time.

Driving

The nüvi 500 series' intuitive interface greets you with two simple questions: "Where To?" and "View Maps." Touch the colour screen to easily look up addresses and services and get voice-prompted turn-by-turn directions to your destination. It comes preloaded with City Navigator(R) NT map data European region or individual country. It's packed with millions of POIs and features digital elevation maps that show you shaded terrain contours at higher zoom levels. With the nüvi 500 series, you can also upload custom POIs such as 'The Good Pub Guide' and 'Falk-Marco Polos Travel Guide' offering thousands of great places to drink, eat and visit.

Boating

When loaded with optional BlueChart(R) g2 Vision marine cartography, the nüvi 500 series is great on the water, providing detailed chart-specific information, spot soundings, inter tidal zones, wrecks, port plans, restricted areas and more. The nüvi 500 is ideal for the occasional boating enthusiast who wants one navigational device for foot, car, bike or boat.

The nüvi 500 and 550 for Europe come preloaded with either country-specific City Navigator NT Map Data (500) or full European City Navigator NT Map Data (550) with detailed street and topographic mapping.

The nüvi 550 will be available in the UK in September at a RRP of GBP299

See the Garmin nüvi 500 series on Stand N118 - British International Motor Show at ExCel, London - 23 July - 3 August 2008: http://www.britishmotorshow.co.uk

[GPStracklog]

The best feature about Harmony remotes has to be the painless setup. Plug the biznatch into your PC via the included USB cable, tell the software what components you have and wham, bam, thank you ma'am. Everything should be ready to go. – Travis Hudson

Product Page [Via Dealhack]