Digital Jukebox

Griffin follows Apple's lead

Griffin's releasing a black version of the i-Trip to match the Special Edition iPod. The company has also re-released its black version of the PowerMate, so you'll be able to goth up your whole Apple collection in no time.

Griffin

Music downloads from a phonebox?

Now that everyone's got a mobile phone, hardly anyone uses phone boxes anymore - except as toilet facilities of course. BT says that 60% of its 70,000 phone boxes lose money and the company hasn't built any new ones since 2001. Now, in an effort to stave off their inevitable demise, BT has taken a leaf out of Madonna's book and is going for a radical reinvention. The company is apparently in talks with "a leading provider of digital music content" to work out a deal that would see its 12,000 internet connected Information Kiosks turned into music download stations. The service would be for anyone with an iPod (so guess the "leading provider of digital music content") and users will be able to pay for downloads via a credit or BT charge card. The service could be in full swing as early as next year.

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Bose SoundDock for the iPod

Bose is having a nice time at the moment. The company has just been awarded "Cool Brand Leader" status by the Super Brands Org, and Metro readers have voted Bose the coolest brand in technology. With all this apparent coolness emanating from the company it's unsurprising that its teamed up with one of the other technology manufacturers renowned for its cool image. The SoundDock speaker system allows you to dock your iPod and play music through the speakers. Like the i-Station you can charge your iPod at the same time, so you don't have to run the system off battery power. There's also a credit-card sized remote control that allows you access to the basic iPod functions such as volume settings. It's available on the Bose website for £249.

Bose

i-Station iPod speakers

Logic3 has rocked the boat a little with its iPod speaker system - it's gone and stuck a hyphen in between the i and the Station. Still, that's the only even slightly controversial aspect of the i-Station speaker set, with the colour and design very much in keeping with the Apple ethic (even if those buttons do look a little clunky next to iPod's lovely smooth touch wheel). The speakers will set you back £59.99 and include a subwoofer and 3D surround sound. The dock will work with both iPod and iPod mini players and will recharge batteries as it goes. If you fancy doing a bit of old-style ghetto blaster shoulder-holding, the unit can be powered by four AA batteries and it weighs 400g so you shouldn't be crippled after a day of carrying (just deaf). The speaker set can be synchronised with your PC or Mac via USB and FireWire and will also work with other music players such as MP3, MiniDisc and CD players.

Available on the high street soon.

Griffin iBeam

Two new plug-ins from Griffin. This time there's a torch and a laser pointer that can be plugged into the top of your iPod or iPod Mini. Although you can only fit one in at a time, they're being sold as a pair. The iBeam package costs $19.99 and will start shipping by the end of October. The kit is available on pre-order now on Griffin's website.

Griffin

Apple iPod gadgets

The Guardian has a quick take on the growing number of accessories available for the Apple iPod digital music player.

Following on from of cases and wireless add-ons, it appears hi-fi manufacturers are starting to take the device seriously offering systems that enable the player to be easily integrated into a system that already includes speakers, an amp and a radio.

Read here for the full story

PodPod for your iPod

Now it’s really starting to look like the bottom of the ibarrel is being merrily scraped over at Griffin Technology. The company has come up with the PodPod, a soft foam cup type thing that’s designed for sticking in a cup holder (in cars etc) to keep your iPod or iPod Mini safe and sound.

The premise is that there’s no iPod holders available in cars, so how will travellers possibly cope? But, there must be a better solution than a chunk of moulded grey foam? At least it’s not too pricey at $9.99 from the Griffin website.

Pre-order yours here.

Home speakers for your iPod

Obviously, the whole point of iPods is that you can carry music with you when you’re out and about. But after giving up valuable hours of your life to fill up the hard drive with your entire music collection, being able to pack away your CDs and get all your music from that little white unit is quite an appealing prospect.

This TD 307 speaker set from Eclipse TD 307 can be connected directly to your iPod (as well as CD players, computers or any stereo source), providing decent sound quality for home use. The system comprises two egg-like speakers and an amplifier, and costs £400. There’s also an option of adding a sub-woofer, too add a bit more oomph. Or you can opt for the full cinema system, which includes 5 speakers, amp and a sub-woofer for £1300.

Eclipse