Going Wireless

How many times has this happened to you? You trip over a speaker wire and spill your martini on Nicole Kidman. It's happened to me plenty of times, which probably explains her restraining order. Wires have never been the most attractive or convenient part of an entertainment system, which accounts for the plethora of wireless gear that flooded the airwaves at CES.

Klipsch unveiled the CS-700 ($1,300), a DVD-based 2.1-channel system. It uses Dolby Virtual Speaker to compensate for the missing surrounds (and to omit those wires) and sends audio to its subwoofer wirelessly. The receiver also acts as a wireless hub that transmits to one or more KlipschCast products, such as the RoomGroove Music Center ($349, April — above). The CS-700 can play up to two separate sources.

The Panasonic SC-PTX7 jukebox ($800) packs an 80-GB hard disk and all the GUI you need to navigate that capacity. This "3.1" system uses two satellites and a subwoofer, with each left/right satellite also housing drivers dedicated to center-channel audio. Dolby Virtual Speaker provides the surround soundfield. The jukebox itself is wired, but with the addition of an optional wireless module, it can deliver different audio streams to three wireless SH-FX85 amplifier/speaker clients ($200 each).

Soundcast Systems also hit the airwaves. Drop your iPod into the included iCast wireless dock and transmit music to the SpeakerCast ($399) amplifier/speaker system, or send it outside to an all-weather, AC/battery wireless OutCast ($499) system.

Second-gen Philips Streamiums (someday I'll drive a flying car that's named Streamium) show that com- pany's commitment to wireless. For example, the WACS3500 ($399) looks like a traditional three-piece shelf system, with a main chassis and a pair of two-way speakers. But it packs an 80-GB hard drive and handles both Ethernet and wireless downloading from a PC. With five-zone capability, it transmits Internet radio, unprotected AAC and WMA, and MP3 files to clients such as the WAS700 amplifier/speaker ($299).

As final proof of the ascendancy of wireless, Philips will also introduce a wireless HDMI cable. Oxymoron issues aside, the system can send uncompressed 1080p HD signals 25 feet. Available in the fall for $300 to $400, wireless HDMI might not be terribly cost-effective, but think of the trip-and-fall accidents it will prevent. Ms. Kidman, would you care for a martini? — Ken C.Pohlmann

See pictures and descriptions of more than 50 new products from CES, the latest new gear from Sony's 2007 spring line show, and our reviewer's picks for the best products of 2006.

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