Smk-linkPadDock10
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PadDock 10 iPad speaker dock makes beautiful music
Here at TUAW, we get a chance to see a lot of iPad and iPhone docks. In fact, you may have seen our recent iPad dock holiday gift guide. One new iPad dock that we didn't know about at the time the gift guide was being published was the PadDock 10 speaker dock from SMKLink (US$99.99). The PadDock is well-made of black plastic and brushed aluminum, and it's quite solid and sturdy. The mechanism used to hold the iPad in place clicks when you push the iPad in, and you know that it's going to stay in place without moving. The iPad can be rotated 360° or more, and there are detents every 90° to lock the device into place in either portrait or landscape orientation. The base is actually thicker than that on an iMac -- it provides the weight on the smaller base to keep the PadDock from tipping over. With an iPad in place, the PadDock looks like a miniature iMac; so much so, in fact, that I am tempted to get one just to give my iMac a "Mini-Me" companion. The sound quality out of the speakers is very good. While it doesn't have quite the range of high-end speaker docks available for the iPhone and iPod touch, the PadDock does provide decent volume and frequency range that is good enough for listening to most music or watching movies.
SMK-Link PadDock 10 review
It's funny that the most interesting iPad accessories so far have been the ones that try to squeeze Apple's tablet into more traditional shapes -- we've seen a wave of rebranded Bluetooth keyboard cases that ape the netbook form factor, a number of cases that aim for a Moleskine vibe (including some from Moleskine itself), and even an official Etch-a-Sketch case. And now we've got SMK-Link's PadDock 10, an iPad stand that unapologetically turns your tablet into the tiny touchscreen iMac you've maybe always wanted. But is it worth $99 for a rotating stand and some speakers? We just got one to play with -- read on for our full review. %Gallery-105082%
