back to article Ten... bedside iPod docks

When Reg Hardware last looked at iPod docks, we focused on premium offerings intended to take pride of place in your living room. This time we turn our attentions to some of the best speaker docks for more intimate surroundings. All the docks included can sit on your bedside table and many have an alarm clock to wake you from …

COMMENTS

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  1. David Hicks
    Thumb Down

    How can there be ten essential bedside docks?

    Surely you only need one, but if they're essential that implies you need them all.

    i suppose the english language can suffer the pollution and loss of just one more word...

    1. Robert E A Harvey
      Paris Hilton

      Missed point

      I suspect the reviewer has more than one bed next to which he docks his ipod!

      Paris - who else?

  2. GrantB
    IT Angle

    How bright?

    I have an iPod dock / clock / radio that looked & sounded great in the shop... but the LCD display goes from 'light up the room' blue when switched on, to 'dim' at night which is still bright enough to read by.

    Setting alarms and time is also pretty easy, but still largely made more difficult because they use buttons & a limited LCD display. Its stupid to manually have to adjust the dock time after say daylight saving kicks in or when the power has gone out, when the iPod docked to it has already has the correct time; and can offer a far nicer UI for setting stations, alarm times etc.

    In the end, I use the dock (with a book over the display so I can sleep at night) as a charger & to play music at times, but use the cellphone or iPod for an alarm.

    Would like to see reviews that mention this sort of detail.

    Makes me wonder of course, if any of the product designers actually use the things beside the bed as intended?

  3. Thorsten
    WTF?

    Ten Essential... bedside iPod docks???

    Essential? All ten of them?? Good grief... So glad I don't own an iPod!

  4. Whitter
    Stop

    Button layout is relevant too

    "How bright" is spot on - one of these significant but never mentioned aspects of design.

    Also consider the other issue of "complex" alarms: how easy is it to turn off / sleep when reaching half-awake from your bed. Most have extremely poorly laid out buttons under actual use conditions.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Paris Hilton

    Work with iPhone?

    hi, first of all I'm a noob in apple world.

    am thinking to buy an iphone, would it work with the phillips unit?

  6. And Clover
    Jobs Horns

    For non-iPod users

    How about some alternatives for those of us who prefer not to buy in to Apple's closed and expensive MP3 player ecosystem?

    For example, can the Sony device play audio from SD/MS as well as video, and can it do it on a wake-up timer?

    This device works well as an MP3-playing alarm clock for me (from USB memory stick): http://www.amazon.co.uk/Naf-Clock-MP3-Stereo-Radio/dp/B0028YGY1K

    1. JB
      Happy

      Non-ipod docks

      Totally agree. Here in the States there's precious little alternative. I did find a Timex MP3 clock radio that has an articulated USB port so you plug your stick in and swing down into a little recess, as well as an SD card slot. Doesn't look very sexy, but then it is a clock radio. Manufacturers: more non-Ipod stuff please!

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      i'm confused

      I did have a whole diatribe written up about And Clover's post but I've realised that I can't be Arsed so i'll summarise my thoughts as follows; this is a round up of iPod alarm clock things. given that iPod is the dominant force in the mp3 player market companies make accessories for it. if there were some other equally successful device then manufacturers would make a broad range of accessories to suit that as well or instead.

      oh but wait... there is no competitor close.

      good thing I don't have an android phone... try finding me an alarm clock that will dock with any android phone... or a windows phone 7 for that matter....

      You say closed and expensive.... i say standardised, integrated, reliable, dependable.

      say for argument's sake I splurged £300 on one of those alarm clock radio dock things....I could say that there's a fair chance that I might well have it ten years if not longer (given that I've had my current alarm clock twenty years it's highly feasible. At least I can say that i am 90% confident that the next iphone or ipod i buy is going to be able to dock with it... and the one after, and the one after that.

  7. Anonymouslemming
    FAIL

    Missing the main piece of info I care about

    Sadly, this review is missing the main piece of info that I care about - can you completely dim the clock / screen view so that there is no glow in the room ?

    I'm just looking for a decent sounding device for audiobooks, so I'm not asking for much, but I just can't sleep with a glowing clock :(

    1. Ian K
      Go

      Why do replies need titles?

      Yet another problem that can be solved by liberal application of gaffer tape.

  8. Tom 38
    Go

    'ipod' docks

    Can I also plug in my ipad into any of them? Do they all support iphone (lots don't support my iphone 3G)?

    I'm currently using an ipad dock, which has a line out, and plugging that into a semi decent set of amplified speakers, and I can then use that to charge which ever is currently run down.

    Also, WTF is with those prices! They all seem a little expensive for a pair of speakers.

    1. This post has been deleted by its author

  9. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

    What am I going to do with ten bedsde ipod docks?

    Inquiring minds want to know.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Happy

      Here's a thought

      If I recall correctly, the Flaming Lips put out a project back in the late 90's with 4 individual albums, all made to be played in sync - their debut peformance was in a parking lot with 4 cars around the crowd.

      That would get us to 4... but I have no idea what you need the other 6 for. Maybe a DiY 9.1 (or would that be 18.2) surround sound setup?

  10. Mr Floppy

    the sony

    The sony you can dim the display great but after the firmware upgrades, it still has problems with it crashing. 1.05 was the last one. Not good if you expect the alarm to go off in the morning only to find that it has crashed in the middle of the night. Atleast some times when it crashes, the screen is stuck on full brightness so you can wake up to that.

  11. David Shaw
    Coat

    some docks don't work

    I've got many docks around the house, one was the gadget show recommended 2009 iPod bed vibrator alarm clock - all buttons of which have stopped working, but it does still recharge the iPods. The nice pink cheap clock/radio/iPod dock is still a clock/radio but all iPods inform me that this accessory is not compatible with charging the iPod. (it was when I bought it - but that's apple-evolution) The sony (last years model) dock works well- time is off by a few minutes- whatever I set it to, and for Android I have the Nexus One desk-stand from HTC, which switches on the N1 built-in dimmable green clock function & bluetooth's the audio down a 3.5mm to a Sony DAB used as a line-in in case of music need. sometimes/often the N1 falls out of its dock as it's only held-in by a gnats' todger. Whilst on the subject the N1 HTC car-dock is pretty good, phone rarely falls out, and allows reasonable streaming 3G UK & NPR radio stations whilst driving around southern europe.

    I'll probably get another dock for xmas...

  12. Dex
    Megaphone

    Turn out the lights....

    ....of course, you can turn the light off on all the units.......just launch it across the room! screw the snooze!

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Coffee/keyboard

    I misread and panic'd !

    I misread the title and got shocked by the images...i though tit was iPad docking stations... and

    thought , from the pictures, wowser those are HUGE docking systems! ;-)

    fwiw, I hate those that have the iPod sticking right out the top like some flap...the 'afterthought' of the retractable dock is actually a good idea - for when iPod isnt around.... I prefer the iPod-slots-inside

    method - with access to touchscreen through little window.

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