Livio Internet Radio Featuring Pandora

Other products by Livio Radio

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 7 x 9.5 inches ; 6.3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B002DUCQZ2
• Item model number: LV001
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #8,930 in Electronics (See Bestsellers in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 18, 2009

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

The first and only dedicated device to offer Pandora's® signature "thumbs up, thumbs down" controls on both the front panel and a remote, the Livio® Radio puts you in command by allowing you to customize the music and programming you receive across any genre, from anywhere in the world, without a required monthly fee and independently of a computer. The Livio Radio makes Pandora accessible to more people, in more places. The Livio Radio, through Pandora and the Music Genome Project™, gives its users the power to be their own personal DJ, one that actually pays attention to what listeners like and dislike. With its sleek design and unique feature-set, the Livio Radio goes beyond providing access to free, personalized Internet radio available through Pandora. The Livio Radio does not require access to a computer interface or a mobile phone for everyday operation.

What makes this Livio Radio so Fantastic?

The Livio Radio sets up in minutes and searches for your home or office wireless network with its built-in Wi-Fi antenna. It syncs with your existing Pandora account and allows you to create and manage stations independently of a computer. Plus on the back of the Livio Radio is an ethernet jack for plugging directly into your modem with the included ethernet cable. You can also use the Livio as an ALARM CLOCK to wake up to Pandora.Pandora (www.pandora.com) is a free, personalized Internet radio service, available anytime and anywhere on the PC, in the home and on mobile devices. Pandora is based on the Music Genome Project, which began in 2000 and is the most thorough analysis of popular music ever undertaken. By simply entering a favorite song or artist, a listener is instantly launched into a personalized listening experience. Today, Pandora has a growing user base of more than 18 million registered listeners. Reciva Enabled: Access 11,000 Internet Radio Stations Reciva is the global market leader in Internet radio technology. Reciva’s technology delivers Internet radio station lists, allowing listeners to access many thousands of online radio broadcasts, as well as their own music libraries, without needing a PC. With Reciva, the Livio Radio includes a comprehensive list of validated Internet radio stations from around the world. Search for programming by genre, location, or keyword. Looking for your favorite program but can't listen to it live? No problem. The Livio Radio supports podcasts as well. It even provides automatic station updates. No Subscriptions. No Fees Why pay $880 for 3 years of satellite radio or $1 for a single MP3? We don’t get it either. With the Livio Radio there are no fees. In fact right now there aren't even commercials. In the future you can always purchase a premium Pandora subscription for just $36 a year that provides a commercial-free listening experience and a high-quality 192 kbps stream on your computer. Also, currently unlike your PC, listening to Pandora on the Livio Radio does not limit you to the 40hr time cap. Sweet.

In the home, office, or anywhere a power source and a Web connection meet, it's a stand-alone radio that connects quickly and plays Internet radio programming through its own speaker.

Reciva® Enabled
Reciva is a global market leader in Internet radio technology. Reciva delivers thousands of online radio broadcasts, including premium services and content, without needing a PC.

How the Livio Radio works

Why Choose Livio’s Pandora Radio?
The Livio Radio is the only device to have dedicated “thumbs up” and “thumbs down” buttons. Your PC doesn’t have that! Just reach over to give a song “thumbs up” on the Livio next to your desk, while the day’s work goes uninterrupted on the computer. Use a finger to give a song “thumbs down” on Livio’s remote while preparing food in the kitchen.

Pandora at your fingertips

Features

• First device to offer Pandora's signature "thumbs up, thumbs down" controls on both front panel and a remote
• Listen to any one of over 16,000 Internet radio stations worldwide
• No computer interface required for everyday use
• Uses either a wired or wireless Internet connection
• Automatically updates with new stations and features
• No software to load

What’s in the Box
Livio Radio featuring Pandora with built-in Wi-Fi antenna, remote control, power adapter, 6-foot Ethernet Internet cable, user manual

Product Description

The Livio Radio, featuring Pandora, goes beyond making more than 11,000 free Internet radio stations easily accessible anywhere you, a power source and a Wi-Fi connection should meet. As if that isn’t cool enough, the Livio Radio, through Pandora and the Music Genome Project®, gives its users the ear of their own personal DJ, one that actually pays attention to what you like, and what you don’t. The Livio Radio puts you in the driver’s seat, empowered with clean, easy-to-understand controls, allowing you to tap into the power of Pandora, sans the tether to your computer or cell phone. Empower up! What is the Livio Radio? The easiest way to enjoy Pandora Internet Radio at home or at the office, without the need of a computer.The first Internet Radio to feature the Thumb-up and Thumb-down controls right in the front of the unit. What is Pandora? Pandora is your personal DJ. Enter the name of an artist or song and start listening. Discover new music you’ll love and rediscover old favorites. Give songs a Thumb Up or Thumb Down and Pandora will instantly change the music selection to better match your tastes. Enjoy all styles of music rock, pop, urban, country, jazz, classical, latin and more. Listen to your stations on the Livio Radio or on the web at Pandora website.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars So good, wish sound quality were better, October 15, 2009

By	FS Says "F S" (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews

There are a lot of buzz about HD radio being the wave of the future. I tried an HD radio, and let me tell you, this internet radio has HD completely beat! I live in an area with poor reception for local stations, and I was tired of having to listen my favorite station through my laptop. Within minutes of taking the radio out of the box, I was connected to my favorite station but then I started exploring. I couldn't believe what I found! The radio connected to my Pandora account seamlessly. I've added stations to Pandora on my laptop and they appear on the radio within seconds! Controls on the radio link to Pandora for "thumbs up" or "down." Fantastic. But the really amazing thing is the intuitive interface that provides access to countless (there must be tens of thousands) of radio stations from around the globe! The interface is so intuitive that the stations can be selected either by region or by genre. All with no buffering! Incredible! For these features, I am deleriously happy with my purchase.

For all of its exceptional qualities, the sound quality is disappointing. With one speaker, the bass is truly lacking (and I don't like heavy bass). The sound doesn't seem "full." There are jacks in the back to connect stereo speakers but I'm not sure how that would work or whether I want to go through the effort. I bought this radio based on a review in the Boston Globe. They mentioned the Squeezebox Boom as having the highest quality sound. Of course, that radio was significantly more expensive and doesn't have Pandora controls. Neither radio has an iPod connection and they don't have back-up batteries. Neither has iTunes tagging (seriously?!).

All in all, I'm very happy. When they develop a radio with audiophile-quality sound, I'll be in line to buy one. Hopefully, wifi/internet radio will really take off. I'd love to have a receiver for my home stereo (since that sends sound throughout the house).

January 2010 edit: I keep this radio in my home office. I still love, love, love it. Recently, I bought a Squeezebox Radio for my bedroom. This edit is to compare the two. I love both of these radios, but for different reasons. The Livio has quality throughout. The two standout features are the controls and the link to Pandora. The radio is so easy to set up and use! The controls are clean and uncluttered. The Pandora Thumbs-Up/Thumbs-down is easier on the Livio than it is on the computer. I also love the interface to find stations by genre. It just works so intuitively for me. On the negative side, it does not have an alarm clock built in. Otherwise, I would have bought one for the bedroom as well.

Now, the Squeezebox Radio: Also easy to set-up. The interface is a bit more daunting than the Livio. More options = more controls to tweak. As other reviewers have mentioned, the presets disappeared the first time the alarm went off. After resetting it, things have been fine. The alarm clock works well. Although the specs don't mention a back-up, I have found that if the router is out of commission, the alarm will still go off, just to a tone from the radio, rather than from the internet radio station. Other people have mentioned that the clock gets too dim at night. Not for me! I am so grateful that my bedroom is now reasonably dark at night! My old clock lit up the joint to the point that I used to cover the clock. Now, it's just right. Plus, the brightness level can be manually adjusted. Funny, someone elses complaint is one of my favorite features. The interface and controls are also more baffling than the Livio. Still OK, I just prefer the very clean controls on the Livio.

As for the sound, this would be a matter of preference. The sound in the Livio is a bit flatter. It seems to be missing some mid-range and higher range. The Squeezebox sound is bright and bold but is lacking in the low range. All in all though, I really like the sound on the Squeezebox. Especially for a small radio. I hope that these comments are helpful to someone looking at these two radios.

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Create your own Radio Station, August 4, 2009

By	the gray geezer (Grayling, MI, USA) - See all my reviews

if you can connect to the internet, you can use Pandora to create your very own "radio station" which will play the kinds of music you like, (you select it from a huge library of all recorded music, from the earliest days of radio until now). and if you can create a Pandora account, you can not only play your favorite music on your computer, but (and especially if you have a laptop with those tiny, little tinny speakers), you can improve on your computer speakers by buying and using an "internet radio" to listen to the music.

an "internet radio" uses your internet connection (it makes a wireless connection to your main computer or it makes a network connection -- via an ethernet cable connected to your main computer -- to SHARE your internet connection just as another computer might). then, as long as you remain connected to the internet, you can play music (as, for example, from Pandora) as long as you wish. you can use the single (but effective) speaker in the Livio Radio or you can connect the radio to your home music system via a stereo cable.

in addition to Pandora (where you, in effect, create your own radio station -- but may, in the future, have to pay a nominal monthly fee for copyright purposes), there are thousands (yes, thousands) of FREE internet radio stations that you can use this radio to listen to (by connecting you to these stations from all over the world via the internet). the livio comes with a small remote control, an internal "program" for easily setting up the radio to connect to your Pandora account, another for connecting to "Reciva" and all those free internet radio stations, volume controls, mutes, etc.

the radio is well-built and, after a few weeks of using it, i have no complaints whatsoever. it's a delight. one of the best investments i've ever made. oh yes, it also has a headphone jack and when it's powered up but not connected to the internet, it displays the time. all in all, a very well-thought-out device. i listen to it for hours every day while i'm doing my work (and play) on the internet. there are other "internet radios" out there (some cheaper, some more expensive), but i have yet to find a better one.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like Livio a lot!, August 3, 2009

By	Bob Moon (Santa Cruz, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The Livio radio is a gem. Easy to set up, with great customer service if you need assistance. I bought the radio specifically to use with Pandora, but you can listen to many other stations from around the world, and many genres. The sound is satisfying for me, and I have listened to a broad range of musical styles. The controls are simple and quite intuitive. I like the appearance of the radio very much, kind of modern retro, sleek and unobtrusive.