I have downloaded BeoPlayer several times over recent years but always ended up going back to Windows Media Player or more recently iTunes. I try to 'force' myself to use BeoPlayer because of my passion for the brand and to fit it in with my existing B&O equipment in the home. However, it seems that for one reason or another I just can't get on with it. I don't particularly like the user interface although I acknowledge the clever thought process behind the Beo 4 integration used for the player's controls. It is the left hand side of the screen I don't like and the way the media is presented.

I am curious to know how successful (or not) the BeoPlayer concept has turned out to be. How many people use it? I don't know if the forum has ever had a detailed discussion about BeoPlayer before but I would like to get a healthy debate going to get a good insight into what people really think about it.

To recap, for me, I find the user interface unfriendly, messy to look at, bland and outdated. As a comparison, I like the interface of iTunes, especially the way it shows the CD covers in jukebox style and the 3-D way they rotate left or right. Perhaps I expect too much from B&O. Is it unreasonable to expect a better designed software product? Perhaps it is naive to assume that just because a company has made some great products in the past, they will always continue to do so in the future. It seems a great many of us are unhappy with many B&O products over the last few years. Maybe it is unrealistic to expect every product to be a 'groundbreaker.' What are others opinions on this topic?

Simon.

I was disagreeing until you mentioned iTunes which is admitedly brilliant. When I was a PC user, I did like BeoPlayer, in part because Windows Media Player is a trrully horrid piece of software, in part because of the beautiful way it hides away and doesn't even take up space at the bottom of your screen, other than the icon next to the clock. iTunes wins hands down for me, at least in terms of my exposure to it on the Mac, I've not used the PC version though 

Well, I have it on my PC, but every time I use it I get frustrated!

Maybe I don't use it enough but I can never sort my music properly, the flippin' left and right screens keep closing just when I want to do something and just generally it's hard work.

Because all my equipment is B&O I won't load anything else, but a complete revamp would be a godsend!

Mike

I used Beoplayer to load Beosound 2 but found Windows Media player 10 can do it more easily. The main problem I find is that the text is very small and being on a black background is difficult to see easily. WMP10 I find excellent (I rolled back from WMP11), it loads up quickly and does not sap memory - easy to organise etc. Can't comment on ITunes as I have always gone the WMA 192 rather than MP3 route.

Sorry to say I also don't like BeoPlayer, don't think it even lasted 2 days on my machine.

I really hate the way it also slides in/out, reminds me too much of the old MS Office sidebar thing, the whole interface just looks so, erm, 80s (ie old & dated).

At the moment I think iTunes is just perfect, especially with coverflow, and now that I have an AirPort express hooked upto my BeoSound 9000, I can easily stream music to the other room.

WMP10/11 is actually quite good, apart from the fact it keeps overwriting my album art folders, even when I tell it not to search the sodding net, WinAmp was good, until AOL messed it up.

JoC

Well I have been using BeoPlayer for the last 3-4 years. Recently got round to buying a Beoport/PC2 box. Now all I use WMP for is Ripping and Burning CD's, I know you can Rip them with BeoPlayer. It just seems to take for ever though. My main problem is not so much with Beoplayer, but the lack of display when trying to navigate round 300+ albums. When not sat in front of the PC.

 

Craig

i used to beoplayer when i had only around 1000 songs on my pc. but over time as my collection of mp3's has increased i found beoplayer to be to hard when searching for something.

Hopefully there will be some new software released with the addition of this new mp3 player.

jazz

Agree with Jazz, and expect there will too be update versions.

I use Beoplayer, and Beoport primarily for background music when I work on the computer, or surf the net. I don't need to see album covers and the track lists all the time: I went through that stage years ago with Media Player and Home Media Edition.

But although PHOTOS is available and actually enhances photos better, I find I use MY PICTURES in Mediacenter. Why ?  Simple, I can keep the music going with N. MUSIC or N.RADIO at the same time watching still, video or slideshow. Beoplayer currently will not allow this.

Or bring up REUTERS ( Interactive news ) with the Media Center and READ the news caption scroller as I watch the video clips, all while listening to music from N. RADIO.

I expect that better version changes are in process, or more people will bail out.

I do not use BeoPlayer. I use iTunes 

I installed the BeoPlayer several times to my PC after I found out it was for free, but every time there was another problem. I now use the Windows Media Palyer and I am happy with it.

How old is the BeoPlayer?

As I spend a lot of time at the computer, I use Beoplayer all the time in much the same way as Swiss2. As I have Beoport, I use it to control what's going on in the lounge and, more importantly the dining room as I hear the dining room speakers whilsr on the PC in the kitchen.
I never use it for photo's and have no experience of itunes so cannot compare it.

Andy T.

No as I haven't got into using the computer for music that much. It was rebuild 4 months ago but for playing music I use the main stereo instead and use either cd,radio or vinyl.

I do however have mediaplayer 11 and Nero premium which covers that need for the little music I do have. One benefit is that my computer now has a remote for the Asus motherboard which actually works brilliantly enough and it can control any mediaplayer too.

 

HI,

I find this thread fun to read, as most of you share my views.