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3/6/04
by David Engstrom
The NaviPod from Ten Technology of California, is frankly one of the best iPod enhancements to come down the pike ... Depending somewhat on how you use your iPod.
What is the NaviPod? It is a infrared system that brings wireless remote control to your 3rd generation iPod (the ones with the dock connection). It consists of a well integrated receiver unit, (which plugs into the stereo mini-jack & wired remote control port on the top of the iPod), and a stylish round remote control with five input buttons. Also included with the package, is a simple stainless steel stand, for use with the iPod when its not connected to the dock.
Set up is simple. Just plug the receiver unit into the top of the iPod, and set it in your dock or, if you are 'dockless', insert the ends of the steel stand into grooves in the receiver unit. (Note: if your iPod did not come with a dock ... what are you waiting for? Go out and get one ... it is also one of the best investments you can make to enhance your iPod using experience).
Once in the dock, a stereo cable can be attached to either to the dock, or to the stereo pass-through mini plug built into the NaviPod receiver unit. If you use the mini-plug in the infrared receiver unit, you will be able to control volume level using the NaviPod remote. The signal coming out of the dock is line-feed. If you have your stereo lead connected to this plug, you will not be able to adjust the sound level using the iPod, and by extension the NaviPod remote. In this situation sound level will have to be adjusted either through your stereo receiver, or through self-powered speakers ... whichever you have opted to connect your iPod to.
After you have the iPod situated the way you want, grab the remote and head for the couch. When I first saw pictures of the remote I thought that it would be problematic. The remote seemed small, and the round shape, I thought, might be difficult to two work with. Neither of these turned out to be true. The remote's dimension is about half the size, of a medium sized palm. and its round shape and curved underbody fits well in the hand. It is easy to use, and the button placement is well done. In short, I experienced none of the awkwardness I had anticipated. The biggest problem you may have with the remote, may be trying to find it, since its relative small size makes it easily camouflaged on a coffee table, or lost among the pillows on the couch
The remote control runs off a small round 3v battery, and uses infrared signals to control the following functions of the iPod: Play, Pause, Skip (forward and back), Fast Forward & Fast Back, and Volume. It can also turn the iPod off when the play button is held down continuously. In other words it mimics the functions of the Apple branded, wired remote. The range of the remote is excellent. We were able to control the iPod clear across the room without a hitch... some 30 odd feet. You have to have a clear sight of the receiver unit on the iPod, but as long as you have that, Ten Technologies says the remote should work up to 40 feet or so.
The downsides of the NaviPod are few, but there are some. The NaviPod receiver unit draws power continuously from the iPod. This is required because the receiver must be juiced up in anticipation of a signal coming from the remote. The upside of this is that it does not require a battery, the downside is that if you are running the iPod off battery power, the NaviPod will slowly drain the iPod battery ... even if you are not using it. Ten Technology says that the receiver unit only requires a trickle of electricity, and that it would take the NaviPod 48 hours to drain the iPod of all its juice. Also, given the way the NaviPod is to be used, in most cases, the iPod will probably be charging while the receiver unit is connected. Just remember when you go on that long trip, remove the receiver unit from the iPod, and you will be rewarded with more battery time.
One thing that would make the NaviPod even more useful, would be a way to chose playlists and songs from the remote control. This would require some type of readout built into the remote. Ten Technologies is working on a new wireless Bluetooth device that should provide this functionality, but it is not available quite yet.
It would also be nice to have the NaviPod remote, control your stereo receiver (at least the on/off fuction and volume level). This would probably be difficult to do because of compatibility issues, but would help remove one of the remotes from the food chain. According to Ten Technology, the NaviPod's remote is based on standard IRDA codes, so you should be able to train some universal remotes to pick up the functionality of the NaviPod remote.
Lastly, if you have the NaviPod plugged into the iPod, you can not use those connections for other functions, such as FM transmission or voice recording. If one of the ingenious iPod add on developers would make a device that combined all these three features into one unit my guess is that they would sell like hotcakes. Especially useful would be to have FM transmitting capability built into the NaviPod (a kind of NaviPod/iTrip meld). This would remove the need for you to connect the iPod directly to your stereo system.
As I said at the opening of this review, the NaviPod is one of the best add ons you can buy for your iPod .... depending on how you use your iPod. If you mainly use your iPod for portability ... on the go music as it were ... then you probably don't have much need for the type of infrared remote control that the NaviPod affords. In your situation, the tethered remote that Apple provides with their high-end iPods, (and that can be purchased separately for others), will work better for you. But for those of us that bought the iPod as more of a component of our Stereo Systems, the NaviPod is a godsend, giving us one more reason not to leave the couch. (Note to self ... play more dance music).
I should mention here that, though we reviewed the NaviPod for the third generation of iPods, there is a version for the 1st and 2nd generation models. It is bulkier, but provides basically the same functionality as the 3G NaviPod.
The NaviPod is the only shipping remote for the iPod, that we know of. However there is a company called Engineered Audio that should have a remote system out soon. It works on radio frequency (RF), rather than IR technology (RF .. meaning you don't have to have direct sight of the receiver unit in order to control the iPod).
Apple products are designed with a philosophy openness. It is this openness that allows Mac users to grow into their creative potential, and that allows third-party developers to add extensions to enhance an Apple product's functionality.
Ten Technology, with the NaviPod, has plugged into a functional void, and brought to market an attractive and creative solution that has made the iPod even more accessible. It is a rare product that gets 5 out of 5 from us, so you can tell we were pretty impressed with the NaviPod. Can't wait to see what they come up with next ...
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