Group test: iPod docks
June 12, 2009 by Insider Staff
Speaker docks allow you to fill a room with your iPod’s sounds whilst charging its battery, which is great – but the sheer number of different options on offer can be downright daunting. And to be fair many of the cheaper examples are so underpowered that they can’t possibly do your iPod’s contents justice.
So we’ve trawled the listings to find five of the best premium quality iPod speaker docks that, while they might cost a bit more, offer something a little more special than the bargain basement examples. Read on for our opinions in full…
Boston Acoustics Horizon Duo-i
Boston’s solid and sturdy little speaker dock adds some extra value by including an AM/FM radio tuner, and the fact that you can switch out the grey speaker grilles for different colours will appeal to some. But it’s the performance that’s most important, and luckily that’s a strong point for the Duo-i – it delivers a far bigger, bolder sound than its small dimensions suggest.
Click to read the full review >>
Go to the Boston Acoustics Horizon Duo-i product page >>
Fatman iTube
The iTube’s idiosyncratic looks and premium price tag might put some people off, but the trade-off is superbly warm, room-filling audio and – by speaker dock standards – excellent build quality; this is no plasticky dock for the bedside table. It exudes a feeling of quality and, for want of a better word, “seriousness”, and should keep pumping out music for many years. By which time iPods will be out of fashion and you’ll have to buy something new anyway.
Click to read the full review >>
Go to the Apple iPod Shuffle product page >>
LG PC12DAB
The PC12DAB looks eminently impressive on paper, mainly thanks to its reasonably low price tag and the amount of audio functionality it manages to cram into one small, good-looking box. But having CD, DAB, MP3 and iPod functionality doesn’t mean much when the performance is sub-par, and if sound quality is key you’d be better off with a simpler dock with better sound quality.
Click to read the full review >>
KEF Picoforte 3
KEF’s mini-separates approach to iPod speaker docks works fairly well, and the fact that you can place the two speakers fairly far apart means it’s easy to achieve a nicely separated stereo sound with the Picoforte 3 – just be aware that you’ll have more cables to hide than with other docks. Treble and mid-range audio is precise and detailed, and bass is also decent – but you’d expect nothing less from a system this pricey.
Click to read the full review >>
PriceRunner recommended
B&W Zeppelin
The Zeppelin is probably the finest high-end speaker dock around, so while it certainly doesn’t come cheap it does represent decent value for money. Compact and gorgeous, yet still able to fill a large room with lughole-pleasingly textured sound, it’s a fantastic trade-off between styling, usability and performance.
Click to read the full review >>
Go to the Sandisk Sansa Fuze product page >>
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