Have you been using your iPod or iPhone to its fullest potential? Do you tune out the world when you listen to it? iPods are traditionally very isolating and closed, a singular experience. You put on your headphones and off you go to musical solitude. Of course there are some stand alone speaker systems that you can get to move outside of that bubble, but many times the sound emanating from those are tinny and without base. The next level upgrade would be to get some cables that plug into your headphone jack and then to your stereo, or get an iPod Composite AV cable or an iPod Component AV cable. All those options do work, but I have something better to talk about: the iPort FS-21/22.
I had the pleasure of testing out the recently redesigned FS-22 which is essentially the big brother of the FS-21, the main difference being the FS-22 adds a 2-way RS-232 serial control which allows it to be connected to a variety of controllers/systems. The new Free Standing (FS) series underwent a complete visual design and technical overhaul from the previous version. It looks much more elegant compared to its predecessor.
Note: This is another gadget I’m adding to my Father’s Day gift guide. I’m compiling a list of gadgets that any tech-dad might like to get on that day. To see other reviews on HighTechDad for Father’s Day, click here.
But at an MSRP of $250 for the FS-21 and $500 for the FS-22, the cost to entry is pretty high. Why would I want to purchase a FS-21 or 22 when all I have to do is hook up a couple of cables to my iPod? Then, after a few hours of testing as well as speaking to an iPort tech, it all became a lot clearer.
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