By Chris Scott Barr

Oh the mighty cassette tape, how do you continue to be relevant in this digital age? Back in the 90′s I had a decent little collection of cassettes, most of which were mixes recorded either from other people’s tapes or off the radio. For those too young to have done it, trying to record songs off the radio was a huge pain, and usually resulted in the first few seconds of the songs getting cut off. Thankfully we don’t have to mess with such things these days thanks to our iPods and such. If you’re still partial to the retro look of an old cassette tape, why not stuff your iPod into one and use it as a protective case?

While that might seem like too much effort than it’s worth, the people at Contexture Design have already done it for you. They’ve taken a bunch of old cassettes and gutted, routered and otherwise rebuilt them to house your 4th generation iPod nano. It looks as though you’ll still be able to access all of the controls, just like any other good case. One of these is going to set you back around $40, so unless you really miss the 80′s/90′s, this is probably more expensive than it’s worth.

[ Contexture ] VIA [ BoingBoing ]

By Chris Scott Barr

I’m pretty confident when I make the generalization that most people probably have a case for their iPhones. I don’t blame them, since if you’re going to drop a couple hundred bucks on something that can be easily damaged, it’s only smart to try and protect it. I never said that I was a genius, so don’t be surprised when I don’t lump myself in with the other iPhone users. I don’t really like dealing with cases, as I prefer my nice slim phone. Those that do have some of the bulkier cases might have found issues when trying to use their phone on certain docks. If you’re one of those people, then you might want to check this out.

The Cable Jive Dock Extender is basically a cord with a male and female iPhone dock connector. One end goes into the phone, the other connects to your dock. Sure, setting your phone next to your speakers (or whatever your particular dock does) isn’t as sleek as setting it in there, but it’s probably easier than removing your case every single time. You can pick one up for about $26. Or you can just find a new case that works with your dock. Personally, I’d go with the latter.

[ CableJive ] VIA [ GearFuse ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Back before the iPhone 3G was released I was content with just an iPod Touch. Sure, the lack of internet access was a bit of a drag when I wasn’t hooked up to a Wi-Fi connection. But what really baffled me was the lack of a camera. It just seems like it would have been so easy to include, since the iPhone has one. Well it’s about time for Apple to refresh the Touch, and it looks like a camera might finally be on the spec list.

Sure, rumors can come from nowhere, but apparently one accessory maker has shown a new iPod Touch case with a hole in the back, exactly where a camera would be. Even more interesting is that another maker has shown an iPod Nano case with a similar camera hole.

[ Uxsight ] VIA [ MacRumors ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I always thought that diving itself was supposed to be an enjoyable activity, so I’m scratching my head as to why anyone would need to bring along some other form of entertainment while down there. But that’s exactly what the iDive300 deep dive waterproof case is for. It’s designed for the iPod, iPod Touch and the iPhone and allows you to watch movies or listen to music (with an included pair of over the ear speakers) at a depth of up to 300 feet underwater. And while down there you’ll still have control over your media thanks to a set of waterproof buttons on the side of the case.

With a price tag of $349.99 the case is kind of hard to justify, even if it does make decompression stops a bit less boring, but it does come with peace of mind thanks to a replacement warranty for your iPod or iPhone should anything ever happen to them as a result of the iDive300 failing.

[ iDive300 ] VIA [ bookofjoe ]

By Andrew Liszewski

My eyes usually glaze over when I come across yet another iPod/iPhone speaker dock, but there’s just something about the iF500 from Edifier that managed to pique my curiosity, and I think it might have something to do with the massive bulbous speaker clearly designed to mock subtlety. The iF500 supports various models of the iPod and iPhone via a built-in dock, but an aux input also allows you to connect anything featuring an audio output like cellphones or other MP3 players that clearly aren’t worth mentioning by name.

A “5 driver speaker system incorporates unique vibration and resonance control technolories coupled with low frequency porting and mid-range tuned cavities for smoother cleaner audio” and it also comes with the company’s patented EIDC or ‘Electrical Intelligent Distortion Control’ system if inane acronyms are an important feature for you. But if looks or sound quality aren’t enough to convince you to drop $249 on the iF500, keep in mind it also comes with a digital FM tuner!

[ Edifier iF500 iPod/iPhone Speaker ] VIA [ Crave ]

By Shane McGlaun

The iPod is the most successful and popular digital music player by a huge margin. With the raging popularity of the iPod a world of accessories are available from speaker systems to car chargers and all sorts of gear in between. iLuv is one of the makers of many accessories for the players.

iLuv has announced its latest iPod alarm clock that is compatible with all dockable iPods and with any other DAP using a 3.5mm headphone jack. The clock is called the iMM153 desktop alarm clock with bed shaker. The clock is offered in black, white, blue, and pink colors.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Andrew Liszewski

So, does someone want to help me figure out how and why this CD clock radio from Sonoro costs a whopping $550? Let’s see, it’s got a slot loading CD player that’s MP3-friendly, nothing special there. A ‘top-quality’ AM/FM radio, not exactly a bleeding edge innovation either. An iPod dock that will also recharge your player? Hmm… Well I guess if you haven’t set foot in an electronics store in the past 10 years this might seem like a technological breakthrough, but other than that, I’m hard-pressed to find a reason why anyone would drop $550 on this thing. Oh wait, I didn’t notice the shiny black finish and glowing accents! Now I get it!

[ Sonora Eklipse CD Clock Radio With iPod Dock ] VIA [ Better Living Through Design ]

By Andrew Liszewski

And speaking of the newest iPod Shuffle, it looks like Scosche Industries will be one of the first accessory makers to sell a headphone adapter for Apple’s tiniest player to date. The IRM35 tapLINE Control Adapter lets you use any pair of headphones with the 3rd generation iPod Shuffle, while still being able to control playback, adjust volume and activate the VoiceOver feature. Unfortunately the adapter also means the inline controls are situated just a few inches from the Shuffle itself, limiting where you can stash it, and at $29.99 it makes the cheapest iPod on the market a bit less so.

[ Scosche Industries' tapLINE Control Adapter ] VIA [ Gear Diary ]

By Andrew Liszewski

According to Akihabara News, LG Korea announced this new Blu-ray home theater combo this morning that includes a pop-out iPod dock on the player that will apparently accept all iPod models (I assume that means the iPhone too) allowing you to listen to music stored on the devices. There’s no word on whether or not it can access video content on the iPods, but details are a bit vague at the moment. What is known though is that the HB954TBW will be sold in Korea for just over $1,000.

[ Akihabara News - LG latest Blu-Ray Home-Theater combo iPod friendly ]