What started as a begrudging
trickle of
iPod accessories from Sony has turned a steady flow. Meet the new ICF-C1IP iPod Dock Clock Radio and ZS-S2IP iPod Dock Boombox. The radio (available in black or white) brings a wireless remote for control of the iPod, radio, and volume functions with a dual-alarm function and adjustable brightness control. Oh, and that giant square in the center which apparently serves no purpose? That's an overengineered "adjustable backstop mechanism" meant to ensure a snug fit of the iPod when docked. The Boombox features a retractable dock tray when going iPod-less with a digital AM/FM tuner and CD player supporting CD-R/RW media. Wireless remote and battery power? Yup, that too. Both rigs are priced at $100 beans and ready for retail sometime in August. Read-on for a glimpse of the boombox in repose.
posted Jul 18th 2007 3:48AM
Here lies the walkman. It is survived by it's one son; The Ipod. May the Ipod now spring forth accessories for which it's functionality might increase.
Erm, Sony has a bright side ?
thats nice to see them working together... Apple stores (well in Regent Street, London) use a Sony Bravia LCD in their shop windows.
Looks nicer than much of the iHome and other accessory maker's speaker docks.
When will we see a Sony branded video dock for the new PSP?
Does this mean Sony doesn't make mp3 players anymore, or are they just stupid? Of course, they can probably make a bigger profit off of these iPod accessories than they did with their own line of players...
Typical Sony. No wonder they failed in the iPod era. Could that thing HAVE any more buttons? I still like the Xtremac Luna. Clean, simple, and powerful, just like the iPod.
Oh, buttons! OMG need braincells to use buttons...
you're a proud member of the iPod generation... why have more function and quality when i can have a simple device that can blare out trendy, funky tunes in glorious lo-fi?...
and by the way... Sony's players are better than Apple's... they are just very greedy and are trying to squeeze money out of everything
A plethora of buttons usually highlights design flaws. Considering the Luna has more features with far fewer physical buttons, I'd say that point is proven here.
please, buttons?
everyone knows sony likes to dig it's own grave by using its own proprietary everything.
not being able to load it via mass storage, crappy software, having to CONVERT EVERY FILE TO ATRAC before it was loaded on the player(that could take easily over 2 hours for like 2GB)
sure, everyone likes the ipod because its easy to use, but itunes is the other half of the winning combo, and Sony never actually figured that out and was too busy making CDs with rootkits on them.
Good job Sony!
After a piece-by-piece count, the Luna has MORE buttons than this, and with a serious margin... they're just located on the remote and not on the device itself
Grant @ Jul 18th 2007 9:35AM sez:
not being able to load it via mass storage, crappy software, having to CONVERT EVERY FILE TO ATRAC before it was loaded on the player(that could take easily over 2 hours for like 2GB)
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not being able to load it (MUSIC, i assume) via mass storage:
Apple & Sony. Data can be done fine.
Proprietary software:
Apple & Sony
Crappy software:
I think both are, but it would be safe to say Sony's is crappier on the usability.
Every file to ATRAC:
plain and simply wrong there. Tho software is required to get music on Sony Walkman devices (just like iPod), but nothing is converted to Atrac if the device itself can natively play the format (MP3, AAC, etc). Sony devices released in the last few years can do it no problem. It's just that they are wrapped up in SonicStage much the same way that iTunes does.
sure, everyone likes the ipod because its easy to use...
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I find them hideous to use. I much prefer native drag-n-drop, mass-storage mode for music. Which neither Apple nor Sony do (nor Zune, etc). Cowon, Meizu and many others do, tho.
On topic:
It always amuses me to see competitors cashing in on docks for the iPod. There's no clearer sign of defeat, yet combined with the practical need to make money :) Half sad (for someone with the heritage of Sony, in particular) and half funny.
Oh wow, CD playback. I wonder what those are.
discs invented in the 80s that still give you better sound quality than your AAC and MP3.
;)
I read theses things weekly and can say most of you people are fucking lame.
Blah blah, talk shit. whatever. iPods are fucking lame. A round wheel to scroll down?? Who thought that would be ergonomic.
The only reason iPod sells is because its hyped so much. You CANNOT make the iPod connect via MASS STORAGE so your argument there is flawed.
Sometimes I think you geeks are still living in your moms basement and never see the light of day...Total idiots here.
http://pdb.finkproject.org/pdb/package.php/fusepod
Thanks for the link. Btw, any developer could do this with most hardware, happens the ipod is popular enough to have this third party interest.
Native support for this is not available and not supported by Apple. That was my point.
i believe sony can also make more enhanced products than iPod; but late
It's funny that everyone keeps docking Sony for pushing it's proprietary hardware on us. Meanwhile, Apple is doing the very same thing and nobody cares because they just look so bubbly and cute. I'm sick of M4P's and their damn DRM. Most of all, I can't tell you how sick I am of iPod docks. It's proprietary crap. If Apple would have made the move to bluetooth A2DP, most of the radios (home, car, and otherwise) today could have the ability to receive bluetooth hifi audio without any damn docks, cables, or cradles. Plus, other manufacturers could add bluetooth to their MP3 players and they'd be universally compatible with any car or home stereo. Of course, why would Apple want to do that when they have dozens of companies making their proprietary crap JUST for THEIR players? They've cleverly cornered the market and pulled the wool over everyone's eyes.
But they seem so cute and bubbly.....
Couldn't agree more.