iHome iA5 app-enhanced stereo alarm for iPhone: First Look
April 23, 2010 by Beatweek · Leave a Comment
I’ve been waiting to get my hands on this one since January. It’s not that iHome’s new iA5 stereo alarm clock is necessarily anything to write home about as a piece of hardware on its own – the company admitted as much back at CES when the product debuted – it’s the fact that it’s app-enhanced hardware. Actually, the accompanying iHome+Sleep app has been available as a free download in the App Store for awhile, but a compatible accessory is required in order to put the app into any context. And while the real prize here is iHome’s forthcoming $199-priced iA100 alarm clock which will ship sometime later this year and is also compatible with the iHome+Sleep app, the iA5 gets you in the door for $99 and it’s available now. The iA5 is also newly sitting next to my bed, so after putting it through its paces, I’ll report back with a full review. In the mean time, here are my initial hands-on thoughts…
What I heard from the iA5 back at CES was immediately confirmed within the first few seconds of firing up the device here at home: the $99 product doesn’t really measure up audio-wise to iHome’s signature $99 stereo alarm clocks like the iP9; you’ve definitely paying for the app compatibility, as without it, the wedge-shaped iA5 would probably be a $69 product. That having been said, the iHome+Sleep app is extremely detailed product which integrates everything from alarm functionality to weather reports to social networking in a manner that’s much more sophisticated than what apps I’ve seen from other iPhone accessory makers.
So I’ll put the wedge-shaped iHome iA5 and its companion app through their paces and report back to you…
Best of Show CES: AR.Drone
January 18, 2010 by Daynah · Leave a Comment
One of the more unique things to see at CES 2010 was definitely the AR.Drone. If you ever dreamed of being a pilot fighting aliens and monsters, then your dream has become a reality — augmented reality that is.
The Parrot AR.Drone Project is a quadricopter that you can fly using wifi and your iphone or iPod Touch. Imagine being able to see exactly what the pilot see on the quadricopter! And with augmented reality technology, monsters and aliens can be overlayed in reality. You can control your AR.Drone by just tilting your iPhone/iPod Touch.
The AR.Drone platform is open source, which is very exciting to software developers! I’m sure we will be seeing many new augmented reality iPhone/iPod Touch games appearing in the near future.
The release date and price of the AR.Drone is still unknown, but the future of gaming looks very bright.
For more information about the AR.Drone Project, see their official website.
Best of Show CES: Blue Mikey 2
January 9, 2010 by Bill Palmer · 7 Comments
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine has been on-site at CES 2010 in Las Vegas all week reporting on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod. This is just one of our “Best of Show” winners…
iPod voice recorders all fell into the category of “decent” until a microphone company finally got into the game in 2009 and changed everything. A year later, the Mikey from Blue Microphones, which was already far and away the top snap-on recorder in the industry, has moved to version 2.0 which includes a USB pass-through charging port to keep your iPod charged up while recording, along with a line-in port for use with professional mics when desired. And while the original Mikey was unofficially compatible with the iPod touch, the new Mikey sports official compatibility.
In all, the new Mikey feels like the original Mikey but on steroids.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: Etymotic hf3
January 9, 2010 by Bill Palmer · 1 Comment
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine has been on-site at CES 2010 in Las Vegas all week reporting on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod. This is just one of our “Best of Show” winners…
“The best just got better” sounds like a marketing pitch, but in this instance it’s an accurate description. Our top-rated iPhone-enabled earbuds at any price for 2009, the $179 Etymotic hf2, have given way in 2010 to the company’s new hf3. The big difference here is that the single button and mic on the hf2 have been replaced by a tiny triple-button controller and mic which provide not only playback and voice functionality but also volume control which works with the newest iPhone and iPod models.
The hf3 continues to sport a sharp-looking future-tinged styling along with included triple-flanged earbud tips. We’ve said enough about the hf2 in the past, and it still applies to the hf3, so suffice it to say that you really can’t go wrong with the hf3 – unless you can’t afford them.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: motorMOUTH
January 8, 2010 by Bill Palmer · Leave a Comment
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine has been on-site at CES 2010 in Las Vegas all week reporting on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod. This is just one of our “Best of Show” winners…
Working around hands-free laws can involve everything from a bluetooth earpiece to a visor mount speakerphone, but Scosche has taken things in a different direction with the motorMOUTH, a bluetooth microphone that plugs into your car’s line-in port and pairs up wirelessly with your iPhone to allow you to talk normally while driving and hear the other end of the conversation coming out your car’s speakers.
While products such as this one require two-way hands-on testing to determine overall call quality, which we were not able to perform on site, the brilliant simplicity of the product is what places it among the winners. CES 2010 was not a strong showing for iPhone/iPod car integration overall, but the motorMOUTH provided a glimmer of hope.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: JayBird BlueBuds
January 8, 2010 by Bill Palmer · Leave a Comment
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine has been on-site at CES 2010 in Las Vegas all week reporting on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod. This is just one of our “Best of Show” winners…
Bluetooth wireless earbuds have always been nice in theory, but are generally too large to be considered practical for most users. But technology marches on, and miniaturization with it, and the very pleasing result comes in the form of the JayBird BlueBuds, a pair of earbuds that connect to each other on a behind-the-neck rope but connect to your iPhone with no wires at all.
Four things you need to know about this product: 1) As you can see in the above photo, the wireless buds are much smaller than previously seen elsewhere, and just as light. 2) The audio quality is similar to, and almost as strong as, what you’ll find from JayBird’s wired earbud products, which is to say that they sound great overall and have a higher bass to treble ratio than just about any other earbuds on the market (if you hate bass, JayBird’s products are not for you). 3) The $129 price tag means that you’re paying about $30 extra for the wireless functionality, far less than we were expecting. 4) The BlueBuds charge via the increasingly popular micro-USB port, meaning that you can use the included cable to charge them via nearly any computer.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: iHome iP39
January 8, 2010 by Bill Palmer · 2 Comments
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine is at CES 2010 this week to report on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod users. While the majority of the awards have yet to be determined, a few of them have already been finalized…
CES produced an almost non-existent crop of new stereo systems for iPhone and iPod users once you stepped outside of iHome’s suite, making it easier for a not-revolutionary-but-still-impressive product like the company’s kitchen-oriented iP39 to sneak into our Best of Show winners. Small and narrow systems like this one can rarely count audio quality as a plus, and in fact most of them are significantly hampered by their lack thereof, but this system actually sounds good for its size. The winning features, however, are the retractable iPhone/iPod dock (a smart move for a kitchen, both in terms of saving space and in terms of keeping crumbs out) along with an included remote control that sticks to the side of the unit magnetically (helping ensure that it doesn’t get lost under a baking pan or slid into the sink). And it’s not limited solely to the kitchen, as the built in alarm clock and USB port for connecting to a computer suggest. Then again, it does have a kitchen timer built into it.
iHome’s larger and more expensive iP2 was the clear winner in terms of new stereo systems at CES, but the iP39 is a winner in its own right.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: reviveLITE 2
January 8, 2010 by Bill Palmer · Leave a Comment
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine is at CES 2010 this week to report on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod users. While the majority of the awards have yet to be determined, a few of them have already been finalized…
A flip-out wall charger for iPhone and iPod that doubles as a nightlight? Scosche’s reviveLITE was an original idea the first time around, and a useful one (for certain users anyway), but was implemented in such a way that it wasn’t as practical as it should have been. The docking unit flipped out to the side, making the whole thing off-balance and not necessarily stable. However, the new reviveLITE 2 has been redesigned to include a front-flip dock, which keeps the unit centered and balanced.
You’ll have to decide for yourself whether this combination of products (charger and nightlight) is something you’d find of value, but the new implementation is a winner and represents the kind of innovation we’ve come to expect from Scosche.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: Shure SE535 SE425
January 8, 2010 by Bill Palmer · 4 Comments
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine is at CES 2010 this week to report on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod users. While the majority of the awards have yet to be determined, a few of them have already been finalized…
There are high-end earbuds and then there are “most people would have to skip a car payment or two in order to afford them” earbuds, and Shure’s new SE535 ($499) and SE425 ($299) certainly fall into the latter category. However, after spending time with both sets of earbuds in an isolated room, we’re left to conclude that both are worth their respective price tags. But what makes them winners is the fact that the cables can be removed entirely from the earbud apparatus. It’s not something you’d have reason to be doing regularly, but earbud cables often tend to wear out before the audio drivers do, and this nifty innovation allows users to replace the cables (which are cheap) while not having to re-purchase the earbuds themselves.
In our hands-on testing, the cables stayed sufficiently firmly attached to the buds that there appears to be no concern about them coming detached by accident. While the feature won’t have any impact on your usage of the product until something finally wears out down the road, it’s like a free insurance policy that at this price point could end up paying off handsomely. Our only real regret with these two products is that neither is available with iPhone or iPod specific controls like volume or a mic, as some of Shure’s less expensive earbuds have.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: Just Mobile Lounge
January 8, 2010 by Bill Palmer · Leave a Comment
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine has been on-site at CES 2010 in Las Vegas all week reporting on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod. This is just one of our “Best of Show” winners…
While its desirability and even its intended function may not be immediately apparent when you first glance it, Just Mobile’s Lounge is actually a whole new take on the concept of metal iPhone stands. While such stands up to this point (from Just Mobile itself and others) have generally consisted of a metal pedestal that grabs the iPhone by its corners, this design simply grabs it by its sides. It rotates just as easily as previous pedestal-style stands, and even holds your iPhone while it’s in its case – all with a lower profile and arguably svelter design.
Users will have to decide for themselves whether they prefer this new type of metal iPhone stand or the existing corner-clutching options. But the Lounge is done well for those users who want to go this route.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: iHome+Sleep
January 8, 2010 by Bill Palmer · 2 Comments
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine has been on-site at CES 2010 in Las Vegas all week reporting on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod. This is just one of our “Best of Show” winners…
Until now, the promise of iPhone apps designed to interact with companion hardware accessories has been largely been just that – promise and little more. But if the iHome+Sleep app is any indication of where things are headed, the results could be very fruitful. Known for its dockable alarm clocks for iPhone an iPod, iHome’s new iA5 ($99, budget model) and iA100 ($199, premium model) have basic on-board controls but are designed specifically to be operated via the iHome+Sleep app, which is currently awaiting App Store approval by Apple. The app is based around the idea of not only setting an alarm to wake to your music the night before, but also things that you may want to do just before falling asleep (sending yourself a late-night reminder for the morning) as well as the next morning before you get out of bed (checking the weather report). You might ask yourself why such an app would need Twitter and Facebook integration, but it’s there too – the entire app feels like it’s on steroids.
Our award is for the app itself, which will be free and functional even if you don’t buy the accompanying hardware. The iA5, which we tested at CES, sounds merely okay and is nothing to write home about beyond the fact that it works with the iHome+Sleep app. The iA100 appears to hold much more promise as a hardware product, but is further off in development (the preproduction unit wasn’t functional) and isn’t expected to hit the market for awhile.
However, the app is brilliant, and with so many high quality iPhone/iPod alarm clocks in its catalog, we hope that they’re all re-imagined to be compatible with the iHome+Sleep app eventually.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: Scosche flipSYNC
January 8, 2010 by Bill Palmer · Leave a Comment
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine is at CES 2010 this week to report on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod users. While the majority of the awards have yet to be determined, a few of them have already been finalized…
Anyone who travels with a laptop and and iPhone/iPod is likely going to want to connect the two to each other at some point, either for charging or syncing or both, which means keeping a sync cable in tow. And in other cases, you’ll wish you had a sync cable with you so you could pair it up with a wall charging brick, or perhaps bum a battery charge off of someone else’s computer. Most such sync cables are about three feet in length, and we’ve seen some shorter ones that are closer to half a foot, but either way it means packing one more cable in your bag. But not anymore, as Scosche’s flipSYNC is a keychain fob that folds out with a dock connector plug for your iPhone or iPod on one side and a USB plug on the other.
While it initially feels a bit Knight Rider-ish, it’s one of those products that the more you think about it, the more you wish you’d had one all along. Not every iPhone or iPod user is enough of a power user (or a power hog) that they need to keep a hidden sync cable on their person at all times, but for those who fit the description, this product could prove to be indispensable.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
Best of Show CES: iMakeMyCase
January 8, 2010 by Bill Palmer · 1 Comment
Editor’s note: iProng Magazine is at CES 2010 this week to report on newly introduced products for iPhone and iPod users. While the majority of the awards have yet to be determined, a few of them have already been finalized…
There’s nothing new about the idea of designing your own iPhone case, but such schemes are typically limited to a few standard mix-and-match options and often aimed at kids. But Case-Mate’s iMakeMyCase is custom case-making for grown ups, as it allows you to choose the premise work of any of ten different artists and then design your backplate, with sophisticated tools like a spraycan cursor and even an infinite undo option.
What sealed the deal for us was that the resulting case looks and feels like it was professionally produced; this isn’t some kind of CafePress-style iron-on job. In our on-site tests, the hardshell case was sturdy and easy to attach and remove, ensuring that iMakeMyCase is more than just a fun gimmick and is instead a legitimate opportunity to make iPhone cases, which have become largely commoditized, fun again.
Read about all of iProng’s “Best of Show at CES 2010″ winners and finalists in the January 14th issue of iProng Magazine, which will feature a cover story interview with The Flaming Lips and more.
CES 2010 preview
January 4, 2010 by Bill Palmer · Leave a Comment
And we’re off to the races. Barely a week into 2010, and it’s already time for the first major conference that relates to the iPhone and iPod universe. While CES is a massive event spread over several exhibit halls, and the vast majority of it doesn’t have much to do with said iPhone and iPod universe, iProng will be in Las Vegas with bells on once again this week in order to provide you with first hand coverage of all of the iPhone and iPod related products that make their debut at the event.
This year’s CES will likely offer more in that department than in previous years. While the number of worthwhile products for iPhone or iPod that debuted at CES last year could literally be counted on two or maybe three fingers, that total should easily reach double digits this year thanks to the inclusion of a couple dozen new iPhone/iPod related exhibitors. While rumors of Apple’s participation this year turned out to be unfounded, and claims of unifying the iPhone/iPod exhibitors into a single pavilion have turned out to be overblown (I think half of our iPhone and iPod related appointments are scheduled to take place away from that pavilion, with various vendors choosing to park themselves far away from the pavilion for reasons that only they know), the good news is that the “off the record” sneak peeks we’ve been sent suggest that there will indeed be something to write home about. Our CES 2010 coverage, including our “Best of Show” winners, will be included in the January 12th issue of iProng Magazine – and when the event kicks off on January 7th you can follow along with us for up to the minute updates on iProng.com and on our Twitter feed. While Macworld 2010 in February is likely to produce far more new products for iPhone and iPod users, CES in January should at least tide you over in the mean time.
