Calypso Crystal Dock for iPhone: review

August 31, 2010 by Bill Palmer

I have to admit, it took me awhile to wrap my head around this product. The question I first posed was whether any iPhone dock could be worth two hundred bucks. But as it turns out, it’s up to each individual reader as to whether they want to sink that kind of money into hand crafted crystal. The relevant question here is how the Calypso CrystalDock functions as a dock for iPhone and iPod. And from that standpoint, after having used this dock on my desk, it’s mostly thumbs up.

A dock this beautiful would be ruined visually if it employed Apple’s standard universal docking system of plastic inserts, so it turns out Calypso’s decision to instead go with a simple lean-back docking system was the correct one, both in the sense that it avoids uglying things up with plastic, and in that it allows your iPhone or iPod to be fully on display instead of partially sunk into a docking well.

My only quibble, and it’s merely a visual one and not a functional one, is that it would have been nice if the rear docking port were recessed or somehow bottom-based instead of flush with the rear surface, as it leaves the fat end of the dock connector cable sticking out the back instead of just the cable itself running out. But that’s just being picky, and only because with a price tag like this, it feels like I should be. Don’t ask me to put a star rating on a $199 piece of crystal. But if that’s your thing, rest assured that it works well as an iPhone+iPod dock.

Learn more at CalypsoCrystal.com