Yup. This may not be a well received dose of advice, but it is needed. If you rely on MacOS exclusively, then you are not that serious about computer/digital audio. If you are serious about computer/digital audio, then you should have at least a spare Windows PC on hand.
Too many software programs, such as for CD ripping or making acoustic measurements, are unavailable or limited in functionality on MacOS. I may use MacOS in my personal and professional pursuits, but about four years ago, I bought an inexpensive Windows notebook largely for the purpose of CD ripping. It has proven a wise decision for that purpose and others pertaining to computer/digital audio.
What a JOKE!
Stop trying to start flame war please, This is 2017 for crying out loud!
There is no proprietary need for Windows only not even for CD rippingâŠ
If you knew what ran on most embedded devices including your âAudiophileâ endpoints/dacs/devices/blah/blah/blah⊠You would probably have a heart attack.
Câmom! This is 2017 and KEF require you to connect the speaker to computers to update the firmware? Canât have it done through its pathetic App or automatically through wifi?
This is a fairly standard practice. WiFi signals arenât as reliable as wired connections and a failed firmware update can leave the product bricked. The same reasoning applies to devices that are required to be run from a mains power source rather than their battery.
No itâs not. I canât remember the last time I encountered a wifi network problem at home. AND LS50W does have ethernet connection if itâs only about wifi stability. OTA is the new standard practice as of 2017.
In the English language, bluntly stating âno itâs notâ the way you did is considered very rude.
Please understand, just because your WiFi network is great does not mean that everyoneâs WiFi network is great. Spend 15 minutes in a call center and that becomes abundantly clear. Furthermore, when something goes wrong, regardless of the reason, an awful lot of people freak out and lose all sense of proportion.
Devices that use OTA updates typically have no alternative, like mobile phones. To randomly make a baseless assertion that this has suddenly become a new standard practice, just this year, demonstrates a sizeable lack of familiarity with this subject.
Lastly a manufacturer like KEF, who do not have a long tradition in this type of hardware and firmware development, would be extremely unwise and ill advised to step right out onto the bleeding edge and risk alienating customers for the extremely minor convenience of updating via WiFi.
No it is not. You may consider it rude but there is no convention that states that being blunt about a subject is ruder in one language than another. That doesnât mean he is right, but disagreeing with you isnât rude.
You may be correct where American (or American English) is concerned. Linguistic conventions differ from scientific conventions in that they are not formally documented but rather the result of accepted and acceptable norms.
Hey, I am not trying to pick up a fight here. Sorry if anyone feels offended.
However, OTA isnât rocket science, and it can be easily designed prone to connectivity issues. The firmware can be downloaded and checked before the updated actually happen. Maybe the speaker canât handle this due to hardware limitation(though I seriously doubt that is the case), well, it should. My 5 years old body scale can do that.
I like my LS50W a lot but only because of its sound quality. KEF might not have enough resources/money to implement OTA or update through its APP. Ok, it might be forgivable. But it doesnât make it less frustrating to install VM on my Macbook and sit on the floor in front of the speaker just to update the firmware. I donât like this user experience. Itâs so stone age. Is it really too much to ask for a better user experience? KEF named it Wireless and advertises it being the future of HiFiâŠ
Exactly. It should be the default for any device unless the technology prohibits it - unlikely on a design this new.
For what itâs worth, KEF are already at the forefront of technology releasing an active wireless speaker like this - so why not get the whole package right? A bad user experience is never a good idea.
If itâs any consolation, updating a Devialet Expert requires a computer and an SD card reader, and is a multistage process.
Donât forget these things are still quite outside of the core competence of âHiFi companiesâ â youâd be surprised to know how dependent they are on middle men / third parties for their bits & bytes.
Getting âthe whole package rightâ is not easy from that perspective â theyâll get there in the end, but surely not in one go.
I agree with all and also talked to Kef about it.
Airplay is a hardware thing in most speakers but perhaps they could do Shairplay in software. Not really sure.
Iâm surprised I didnât know about this firmware update.
Yes needs to be Mac too but I can apply it through Parallels on my work Mac.
Iâm sure a high proportion of Kef owners use Macs.
I hope Kef isnât cheaping out with crummy software developers in India or China.
Firmware updates should be able to be applied through the Kef app.
