Wikipedia
SoundBridge is a remote hardware device from Roku, Inc. designed to play internet radio or digital audio streamed to it across a home network, either WiFi or Ethernet. SoundBridge devices directly browse the Radio Roku Internet Radio Guide. As of January 2012, the SoundBridge is no longer available from Roku.
The music is made available by a streaming server, usually a PC running a software server. What sets the SoundBridge apart from other network media players are its high resolution vacuum fluorescent display and compatibility with many different media servers, namely servers using Apple Computer's Digital Audio Access Protocol (Only the Roku-branded editions support this, not the Pinnacle-branded ones; popular servers are iTunes or mt-daapd), Windows Media Connect, Rhapsody, SlimServer, and UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) compatible servers like TwonkyVision. Some of these servers can be run not only on PCs, but also on NAS devices like the Linksys NSLU2, so a SoundBridge can be operated without a PC.
There are several SoundBridge models: The M1000, the M500 (an M1000 with a cheaper LCD instead of the VFD), and the discontinued M2000, which had a larger and even higher-resolution display than the M1000. The M1000s sold now are slightly different from older M1000s and can be identified by the fact that they have their connectors at the back, rather than under the end caps. The new revisions are sometimes called M1001 and are mainly an internal redesign to cut manufacturing costs. Most users won't notice any difference, which is reflected in the fact that these units are still sold as M1000s. There is also a tabletop model called the SoundBridge Radio that has built in speakers, an AM/FM radio, and an alarm clock. As of 2008 all Roku SoundBridge products have been discontinued and are now legacy devices; Roku has focused on IPTV.