Date Archive > October 2005

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October 31, 2005

iPoditude Review: Kawali Mineon corduroy pouch for iPod mini

I thought that somehow when I saw the case for myself, held it in my hand, carried it around with me, that I would figure out what the name "Mineon" meant. After a week I still had no clue. I finally broke down and asked Kiwali and they told me that Mineon is a combination of the words "mini" and "neon" and that it's designed to communicate that their case for the iPod mini comes in bright colors like the iPod itself. I say forget about colors - it comes in corduroy, man.

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Category: Reviews, iPod mini | Comments (0)

October 21, 2005

just… can’t… stop… writing about Tunewear: The new leather Prie shuffle

So, we'll just call this the official week of Tunewear cases and be done with it, okay? To make things worse (sarcasm), I've got some Tunewear product reviews in the works. So what better way to end the week than to talk about their new leather case for iPod shuffle. The Prie shuffle features a removable USB cap cover, openings for the iPod's controls, and comes with its own lanyard. I like the way the USB cap is secured to the case with a snap. It's available now and runs $30.

Category: Cases, iPod shuffle | Comments (0)

October 20, 2005

Tunewear AGAIN! This time with the Waterwear shuffle

These guys are going for a record or something. Today's new Tunewear product is a water resistant case for iPod shuffle they call the Waterwear shuffle. It is made from tough, hard plastic, features their patent pending silicone wheel window for access to the iPod's controls, and has a headphone isolator plug that allows you to use your own headphones with it.

According to Tunewear, "The purpose of this case is to protect the iPod from temporary submersion into water or other liquid and/or protection from dust and sand. It also protects the iPod from being stepped on due to it's high impact resistant shell and no protruding or moving parts design." They claim that the case is strong enough to withstand the weight of an adult standing on it. I wonder if they mean a Japanese adult or an American adult, because there would be quite a weight difference there I would suspect. No, I'm not calling you fat, but maybe just lay off the danishes, okay? The Tunewear Waterwear shuffle case will be available in early November 2005 and sell for US$24.95.

Category: Cases, iPod shuffle | Comments (1)

iPoditude Review: WaterField Designs small iPod Gear Pouch

WaterField Designs is amongst the many manufacturers that have updated their product lines to better accommodate the iPod nano. I tested and really enjoyed their large iPod gear pouch late last year, and in fact, I still use it every day. So when I heard that they had revised their small iPod gear pouch I thought this was a good time to take a look it. I'm happy to say that this little pouch has lived up to my high expectations. The beauty in this bag is that you don't have to be a hardcore gadget freak to use it, it would be great for any iPod owner.

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October 19, 2005

Tunewear catches 5G ipod fever

Okay, I figured something out that will save us all a lot of time. From now on, whenever there is a new iPod model or even a revision, just figure that Tunewear is going to release a whole bunch of cases for it. You can also assume the following: That these cases are well made, they look good, their reasonably priced, and they're pretty cool.

Today Tunewear shows the first signs of suffering from 5G iPod fever. The Icewear 5G will be made from their high density silicone and feature those really cool ribs found on other Icewear skins. Look for it in November for $25.

The PRIE Ambassador for 5G iPod is made from high quality nappa leather and features their stylish swiveling hook. It'll come in 3 color combos when it's available in November for $50.

Category: Cases, iPod 5G (video) | Comments (0)

October 18, 2005

Afternoon Links

- Mac OS Rumors pontificates on what the unnaturally-shaped-potato-chip-sounding Vingle trademark is about. I've always thought that a Wi-Fi iPod would be better than a video iPod.

- Kiwali.com is having a 20% off fall sale. Get their corduroy Mineon iPod mini case for just $12 and the ShuffleDeco iPod shuffle stickers for $4 each. Look for an iPoditude product review of the Mineon case soon.

- My friends over at iPod-DJ.com got to play with the Numark iDJ mixer and have posted their review online. Give me an iDJ, a strobe light, and a disco ball, and there is nothing I couldn't do.

- Apple posts Exporting a movie from iMovie HD to iPod. Couldn't be any easier.

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Pacific Design announces iPod Nano Flip Case

Pacific design has just announced a version of their flip case for iPod nano. It features their signature stripe motif using bold colors, along with cut outs for headphone and dock connectors, a clear vinyl window for screen protection, and a low profile rear strap that can clip to a belt. Available colors are carbon black with red and white detail; precious pink with white and dove gray detail; and big sky blue with cobalt blue and white detail (I told you they were bold).

The Pacific Design iPod Nano Flip Case will be available nationwide at Circuit City, Radio Shack, and Ultimate Electronics stores beginning October 22 and will sell for $30.

Category: Cases, iPod nano | Comments (1)

October 14, 2005

Griffin Technology announces SmartDeck with dock connector

Seems that Griffin Technology has revised their nifty little SmartDeck to include a dock connector. The advantage in using the dock connection on the iPod is that you can get higher quality sound output versus the headphone jack. Some people say you can't really hear a difference, but I can, especially when using a good quality sound system and speakers. Anyhoo, this new SmartDeck features really cool patent pending technology that translates commands from the tape deck (play/pause, FF, RW, etc) to control the iPod's playback. Yeah, I told you it was cool. Seems to work with any iPod with a dock connection, including the new nano. You can preorder it now for $30 and it'll ship sometime later this month.

Category: Car Gear | Comments (1)

October 13, 2005

Vaja Classic AP161 & AP171 for iPod nano

I've been eagerly awaiting to see what Vaja would release for the iPod nano so I'm happy to see that they've just announced not one, but two cases, the AP161 and AP171. The AP161 is a flap style case, while the AP171 features an optional dog leash hook that is sewn securely to the case. Both of these bad boys feature built in screen protectors, optional click wheel protectors, and are available in two different types of leather. Like most products from Vaja, you can personalize them by choosing different color combinations for front and back, add a belt clip or their new rivet clip system, and even have your name laser engraved on the back. The AP161 starts at US $40 and the AP171 starts at US $34, which seems pretty reasonable to me since Vaja products rock so hard.

Category: Cases, iPod nano | Comments (0)

Griffin Technology iTrip with dock connector

Man, these guys don't waste any time. I mean, Steve Jobs was practically still on stage yesterday when Griffin Technology sent out their press release talking about the iPod with video and their new product the iTrip with dock connector. This little puppy has selectable LX or DX broadcasting modes, US or International frequency bands, and a frequency tuning switch on the side of the unit. It's made for all full size iPods with a dock connector, you know - 3G, 4G, photo, U2, with video. (I wonder why iPod nano support wasn't specified for this product?) It'll be available in late October, bears the "Made for iPod" endorsement, and you can preorder now for $50.

Category: Car Gear | Comments (1)

October 12, 2005

Roll your own video for the iPod with video

Apple has already introduced a tutorial for getting your own video onto your yet-to-be-available iPod with video. These instructions use QuickTime Pro 7 to create a .m4v file containing H.264 video and AAC audio that you can sync to the iPod. Now you can bore your friends where ever you go with that video of your kids at the pumpkin farm.

Category: Resources, iPod 5G (video) | Comments (1)

New iPod accessories

Here are some of the new iPod accessories added to the Apple.com store today. These include:

- Universal iPod Dock: Sync your music, has variable audio line out and S-video. $39
- Apple Remote: An Apple iPod remote control that works with the Universal Dock. $29
- Apple iPod AV cable: Watch slideshows and videos on your television or listen to music on your stereo. $19

It's really funny that the new iPod remote looks a lot like the iPod shuffle because I was in a Sharper Image store recently where a group of young girls were standing at the iPod display with their mom. The mother asked one of the girls what the iPod shuffle was and the girl said, "oh, that's just a remote control."

Category: News, iPod 5G (video) | Comments (0)

New iPod ad debuts

Along with the amazing new iPods that Apple announced today, they've debuted a new ad featuring their old friends U2. The tagline reads, "Watch your music" and, if you don't mind a wet, sweaty close-up of Bono (I don't know, some people might dig it), the ad is quite good.

Category: News, iPod 5G (video) | Comments (2)

New iTunes 6 is announced, details

"iTunes 6 lets fans purchase and download over 2,000 music videos and six short films from Academy-Award winning Pixar Animation Studios for just $1.99 each." Apple's new iTunes web page says, "Buy it, watch it, bring it" and shows images of iTunes, an iMac, and an iPod.

In a deal with Disney, iTunes will offer for download episodes of "Desperate Housewives," "Lost," "Night Stalker," and the two most popular shows from Disney Channel, "That's So Raven" and "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody." These programs will be available after the day they air on television and will cost $1.99 each.

Steve Jobs is quoted as saying, "We're doing for video what we've done for music -- we're making it easy and affordable to purchase and download, play on your computer, and take with you on your iPod..."

Click through for more info.

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New iPods: the details

"Apple today introduced the new iPod(R), featuring a gorgeous 2.5-inch color screen which can display album artwork and photos, and play stunning video including music videos, video Podcasts, home movies and television shows."

Two new models, available in both black and white, with a 30GB model selling for $299 and a 60GB model selling for $399. Apple boasts that the new iPod can hold up to 150 hours of video, presumably, for the 60GB model. The new model is 30 percent thinner than the model it's replacing. The 30GB model features up to 14 hours of battery life for music playback and the 60GB model features up to 20 hours of battery life for music playback.

Click through for the full info and more photos.

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