| iPods music to faculty's ears
Like so many students who sport the trademark white earbuds walking to and from class, McHenry County College faculty members will soon be joining the iPod revolution. After receiving a $12,600 AT&T Excelerator Grant, MCC will purchase 90 new 4-gigabyte iPod Nanos for use next semester. The iPods will serve as vehicles for communication in the classroom and will work as portable hard disks for transporting lecture materials to and from school. "The faculty is really psyched about this," said Kathy Plinske, MCC's executive director of institutional effectiveness. "I've been approached by so many of them who want to know, 'How do I sign up?' " With about 100 full-time and 250 adjunct college faculty members, one in four teachers will receive an iPod. The iPods will be distributed to faculty on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Zune a Hot Item This Holiday Season?
Something tells me the Zune will be a popular Christmas gift this holiday season. The player is currently Amazon's top-selling music player, beating out the new iPod Nano and the 80GB iPod on the "Bestsellers in Electronics" list. Could it be that we've been underestimating the Zune for far too long, or are people snapping up the first-generation Zune players due to their heavily discounted prices? I can't blame anyone passing on the $135 4GB iPod Nano when presented with the option to buy the brown 30GB Zune for $134. I mean, you would be crazy to pass up that deal. To prove that color does matter when it comes to electronics, the sleek black 30GB Zune is currently selling for $140, while the red and pink 30GB Zunes are even more expensive at $150. What's even more perplexing is that the white Zune player is the most expensive of all first-generation players, selling for a whopping $160.
iLuv launches new docks, Bluetooth headset
Accessory maker iLuv has released three new products for the iPod and iPhone. Leading these is the i166, a stereo dock with clock functions. Users can listen to their iPods or AM/FM radio, and set two separate alarms for different purposes. The dock has two 2.5W (RMS) speakers, but owners can output both video and sound to a TV, or connect a subwoofer for better bass. In either case separate cables are required. Officially supported iPods include all Video and Photo models, all Minis, plus first- and second-generation Nanos. The dock costs $70 and comes in white or black. The i189 is a speaker dock with the same general power and support of the i166, but with added Classic, Touch and iPhone compatibility, as well as simulated surround-sound. The main constraint is the lack of a subwoofer jack.
Boynq WakeUp docks iPods in unusual form
Sound specialist Boynq has announced a new iPod clock stereo with an unusual design. The speakers of the WakeUp actually rest on a corner, the main anchorage of the clock being a three-panel "wall," with each panel containing an LCD displaying time, input channels or the FM radio station in a white tint. The clock can be adjusted through buttons on the side of each panel, or else through an included remote control; bass and treble equalizers are built in, and the satellites put out 10W of RMS power per speaker. iPods are docked on top of one of the panels, which fits Minis, standard 4G, 5G and Classic iPods, all generations of the Nano, and the iPhone as well as the iPod touch. Devices can be charged and synched at the same time, and other audio sources are supported via line-in.
|
