Reviews by The Church of Apple

Tag: music

  • CoolStream Bluetooth Receiver

    The CoolStream Bluetooth Receiver is a small device that you put in your speaker dock and it will make the dock bluetooth. The device goes onto a dock, connect your bluetooth device to it via bluetooth and you’re ready to enjoy wireless music. This small device is available from Exeter Science and Entertainment for $39.99. Let’s see if it is the music solution for you.

    Form

    There isn’t much to say about how this product is aesthetically. There is nothing wrong structurally with the device. It feels cheap, but it actually is strong. It does have a cool, blue design on it that is a nice touch to the device.

    Function

    This little device packs a punch. The ability to no longer be bogged down with expensive wireless speakers or the compromise that comes with docks is incredible. Finally, you can put the audio of the game you are playing on that dock that you have without having to dock the iDevice. This device is also an advantage for people who have a iPhone/iPod touch dock with an iPod touch and iPhone but also have an iPad as well. Now, they don’t need an iPad dock. All you have to do is plug this little device in to wirelessly play music. The pairing of this device and your bluetooth device is as simple as pressing a button, going to settings on your bluetooth device and confirming the pair. Then, you can play music from your device wirelessly. Of course, the device is small so you can take it anywhere and put it on a dock. In addition, the device rarely, if ever, has a pause in the music. It doesn’t randomly disconnect either. The device does have a flaw, however. The device will not work with some docks. The company has a list of known supported docks and known unsupported docks. Fortunately, the number of unsupported is small compared to the number supported. This is something that I hope they can resolve. Despite this flaw, this device is a great tool to use with your music dock.

    Conclusion

    Pros

    -Small and convenient to take with you
    -Consistant with sound
    -Great wireless solution for the dock problem
    -Easy to pair
    -Good price for what you get

    Cons

    -Does not work with all docks (Check to see if your dock is supported before purchase)

    How to improve

    The only thing that this company should do is to improve compatibility with docks. It has great compatibility with docks but it should be 100%.

    This product is a great one. It is small, lightweight and useful. Never will I plug my iOS device into a dock again. If it works for your dock, it is a 5 star device.

    Thanks for reading,

    Joe

    Images Courtesy: Exeter Science and Entertainment
    Copyright: iHome is Copyright of iHome Audio

  • ION JukeBox Dock Review

    The ION Jukebox Dock is a dock that makes your iPad, iPhone or iPod into a retro jukebox. There are several apps that allow you to browse through your music library as you would on a diner jukebox giving you an authentic jukebox experience, or at least as authentic it cam get on an iPad. It is available for $99.99. Allow me to explain why it is my favorite speaker dock so far.

    Form

    The looks of this dock are great. Even without it being on, it looks great! The iPad looks best on it so you can take full advantage of the space available to put a device on. When it is on, it really is bright especially in a dark room. It emits lights that slowly change as it plays and a couple lights on the head of the Jukebox are going too and the dock allows you to transfer back to the 50s with music from now. It is made out of real wood on the back and sides which helps with sound quality. The back is a light brown unpolished wood while the sides are a dark brown, nicely polished wood. The front is decals that make it look like an authentic jukebox and lights that follow the curve from bottom left, up and down to bottom right, like an arch. The lights are really cool and closely resemble that of an old jukebox. Take an old diner jukebox and add an iPad on it and that is what this is. It really is a blast from the past and a cool one at that.

    Function

    There are two things that this Jukebox is supposed to do and supposed to do well. That is A. play music at a high quality and B. charge your device efficiently. I can tell you that it does both extremely well. The music coming from the speakers sounds like the quality you would expect from speakers much more expensive than it. When I first pulled it, I thought it was just a toy and it wouldn’t have good quality. Boy was I wrong. This toyish-like dock packs a punch. It compares similarly or even favorably to some more expensive docks like some Bose and JBL docks and those not only sound really good but they are much more expensive. Another thing is that it charges the iPad at the same time of playing your tunes. It charges the iPad fast and I see an improvement over using other docks to charge it. In speaking of the iPad, there are many apps on the App Store that turn your iPad into a Jukebox control, which of course fit perfectly with the dock. A few I recommend are Diner Jukebox and StereoMatic as they make the experience very authentic, the app Diner Jukebox even has you touch the place where you put a quarter in to simulate you putting a quarter into the jukebox. This happens every time you open the app. The jukebox dock and an app combined make the closest resemblance to an actual jukebox you can get without actually buying one. The function of this dock is superb. The only negative I can say about it is that the lights are so bright, you have to turn it off at night when you want to sleep (should it be stored in your room) and turning it off also turns off the charging capabilities. This is not an issue for me since I can sleep with it on but for some with sensitive eyes, that may not work for you.

    Conclusion

    Pros

    -Strong wood
    -Looks well made and is well made
    -Looks like a mini authentic jukebox
    -Sounds similar or better to/than more expensive docks
    -Charges iPad quickly

    Cons

    -Maybe too bright to sleep with should it be in the same room that you sleep in

    Ways to improve

    The only thing that should be changed is the addition of the ability to turn off the lights but not the charging ability. I think that that would be good to add. On the same token, the brightness is also a good thing for low-lit parties as it adds a lot of color to the party while providing music at the same time and even providing a conversational piece.

    The ION Jukebox Dock is definitely one of the stronger things I have reviewed in terms of it’s abilities and it’s subsequent rating overall and it’s power in speaker capabilities and charging capabilities coupled with it’s authentic jukebox look make it the ideal dock and easily outweigh it’s only negative. The dock easily earns five stars from me. Great job ION, you have a stellar product here.

    Thanks for reading,

    Joe