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This copper-clad cone-shaped speaker learns what music you like and streams it via Wi-Fi

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The Aether Cone speaker aims to be different, and it succeeds at that. Everything from the way it looks to the way it works is unlike anything we’ve evaluated before.

The cone-shaped speaker connects to your Wi-Fi network and streams music from Rdio – in fact, you’ll need an Rdio Unlimited account just to order it. More than that, it learns what your preferences are over time, and changes what it plays for you accordingly. You can stream music from an iOS device via AirPlay if you want, but Aether has designed this speaker to act more like a personalized radio than anything else.

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Check out our video to see how the Aether Cone works, and learn what we think of its sound quality.

Caleb Denison
Caleb Denison is a sought-after writer, speaker, and television correspondent with unmatched expertise in AV and…
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