Beolink 7000 - Now there's an example of magic. Can anyone really claim that the rising mechanism in the 7000 was necessary for a remote control? No, of course not. But it was magical indeed. Software as magic, hugely important, but not the same.
BTW, I'm all about software. For example, I have a Kindle and an Ipad and actually use them both. So I get the digital age. I just miss the mechanical magic. And as forward looking as I think I am, and as "expert" as I think I am, I never would have suggested the magic of a BC9500 for example. Like Steve Jobs says, "...why would [I ask a focus group], they don't even know what they want..." As much as I want to argue with that, I din't know I wanted an Ipod, Ipad, BL 8000, BS3000, etc. until I saw them and then - I needed them.
Now I need a Macbook Air. And I could have needed the BS8. If only it were the replacement to the BL2000. As a link speaker to replace my perfectly good BL2000s, I definitely could have needed that.