Skip to main content

Add multiroom streaming to your Bluetooth speakers with the Cassia Hub

cassia hub with bluesteam bluetooth router announced speakers
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Wireless multiroom streaming is becoming increasingly prevalent in the realm of consumer audio and it is generally great, but one of the downsides is that most of the time it relies on a Wi-Fi network. Early this year at CES, Cassia Networks unveiled its Cassia Hub Bluetooth router and now with the debut of its BlueStream technology, wireless multiroom audio is coming to the world of Bluetooth.

The Cassia Hub with BlueStream builds on the capabilities of the existing Cassia Hub, to the point that BlueStream is available as an update for previous models. The feature allows Cassia Hub owners to set up a wireless multiroom system using any speaker they own, new or old — no special BlueStream compatibility is needed in the speaker.

Recommended Videos

“Cassia Network’s technology enables an entirely new category of IoT applications via Bluetooth that were previously not possible,” founder of Everest Capital — an investor in Cassia — Jing Wang said in a statement. “We are confident that Cassia Networks has the best team and collective experience to bring the vision of Bluetooth as a universal wireless protocol to fruition.”

Users simple connect to the Cassia Hub as if it were a normal Bluetooth speaker and it takes care of the rest, broadcasting audio to any other speaker connected to it. Once connected to the Cassia Hub, the user does not need to do anything special and can stream from any app they would normally use like Spotify, Pandora, and Apple Music.

While the sound quality may not compare to a Sonos or HEOS system — much of that depends on the speakers you own — this seems like an easy way to link speakers you already own. Cassia’s plans do not stop here either: the company is looking to continue to push Bluetooth beyond what it is used for today.

“At Cassia, we’re partnering with innovative companies aiming to develop emerging new applications for Bluetooth,” Cassia CEO Felix Zhao said. “We’ve received hundreds of inquiries about implementing our hubs in a variety of enterprise settings and industries and we’re excited about the opportunity Bluetooth has to play in the growth of the Internet of Things.”

The Cassia Hub with BlueStream is available now via the Cassia Networks website for $150. Owners of previous models of the Cassia Hub can easily add Bluetooth to their existing model via a firmware update. For more information, see the Cassia Networks website.

Kris Wouk
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Kris Wouk is a tech writer, gadget reviewer, blogger, and whatever it's called when someone makes videos for the web. In his…
SportsEngine Play adds streaming video for parents and pros
A promo image of SportsEngine Play.

There's a pretty good chance that if you're a parent with a kid in a youth sports program, you've at some point come across SportsEngine, which is software that's used to manage teams and leagues. Today, the NBC Sports Next-owned entity is announcing SportsEngine Play, which brings a new era of streaming video to the service.

SportsEngine Play can be thought of in a couple ways. It can be used to record and share video of any sporting event, whether it's taken with a parent's cell phone or a dedicated system installed at the venue. Those videos can be served up live, or are available later on demand. In addition to games and other live events, Sports Engine Play will be home to all sorts of on-demand developmental and training content from world-class athletes including for starters, Michael Phelps, Larry Fitzgerald, Shaun White, Maria Sharapova, Kerri Walsh Jennings, and Justin Jefferson.

Read more
Disney already knows if you’re sharing your streaming account
The Disney World castle as seen in the Disney+ streaming app.

Along with a number of price increases, the other big news to come out of Disney's (fiscal) third-quarter earnings report was that the company is taking a serious look at account sharing — password sharing, if you will — and will begin to crack down on it in 2024.

In other words, it's going to do what Netflix has done, and it's time to pay up. But we don't yet know exactly what that will look like.

Read more
Formula E adds Roku for streaming and expands on CBS
Formula E is coming to The Roku Channel in 2024.

Formula E is coming to The Roku Channel in 2024. Roku handout photo

The next big event horizon for streaming is, of course, live sports. That's not particularly new, but all of the players are finally realizing just how important live sports are (and have been) for bringing in — and keeping — subscribers. To wit: Roku is now getting into the game with its first live sports deal for Formula E.

Read more