SrsIwow
Latest
SRS iWow 3D really improves the sound of any iPod or iOS device
I've been a fan of the SRS iWow audio adapter for my iPod Classic for a number of years. What this dongle did is make iTunes audio sound dramatically better. It tightened the bass, improved the treble and added a good deal of presence to my music with the largest difference being heard in acoustic or orchestral tracks. It also punched up the audio of videos to an extent. This wasn't done by just increasing the volume, which would be the easy way. Instead, it added proprietary post processing to improve the sound. The downsides were that there were no settings outside of on or off, it was rather big and clunky, and it reduced iPod battery life by 26 percent. At Macworld 2011, I met with Shawn Kamal, an engineer turned product marketing manager, who introduced me to the next generation -- now made smaller, totally redone and retitled the SRS iWow 3D (US $59.95). The product is now shipping in black, and there is also a bundle for $79.95 that adds four snap on color face plates -- the colors used are those of the majority of iPhone cases -- and a pair of ear buds that are nothing special. Comparing the old and the new I was very interested to compare the older iWow with the iWow 3D and hear if it was worth buying again, since there will be no special upgrade price for the new unit. The answer is an unqualified yes. The bass is tighter, the treble clearer, and the soundfield is much wider -- usually sounding like it's a few feet to the left and right of your head. The 3D effect is less than precise, but it is there and does make a big difference, particularly when listening to sound coming from a video -- especially an action movie. I couldn't hear specific sounds behind me, but the holographic effect was dramatic. In fact, I'd go so far as saying that it will make your headphones or speakers plugged into the iWow 3D sound twice as good as they do now. %Gallery-116456%
MacUpdate rolls out a bundle-- $50 for 7 apps
MacUpdate has another one of these bundle promotions going on-- is it just me, or is Mac software the only place (besides, say, pyramid schemes), where increasing bundles like this are sold? I don't show up at the grocery store to buy some oranges only to find that they're cheaper because 10,000 people bought them earlier that day.Anyway, the bundle's not too bad, even without the extra promotional stuff. Right now, for $50, you get copies of: SRS iWOW, an iTunes audio enhancement plugin GarageSale, the eBay client Cocktail, the utility that our own Scott McNulty calls "indispensible" ProfCast, for lecture recording Amadeus Pro, for multitrack sound editing Fetch, an FTP client Graphic Converter X, a useful little image editor And then if the promo pans out, you can get more software out of the deal-- if a certain number of people (up to 10k) buy the bundle, then Little Snitch, Intaglio, and TechTool Pro get added to the bundle. With a week to go, they've only sold about 700 (for Little Snitch) today, so there's no guarantee you'll see any of the extra stuff, but the bundle might be worth it just for the apps above.And MacHeist, always ready to jump on the hype train, is trying to add a little extra bonus onto all of this.[ Thanks to everyone who sent this in! ]
