News Archive for 08/04/21

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USBfever adds IR remote, Nano case/photo stand

04/21, 5:55pm

USBfever stand, IR remote

Aside from its PPS2, USBfever has added two other products to its lineup for Apple portables. The first of these is an infrared remote (right), which operates at distances of up to 32.8 feet, and controls basic iPhone/iPod functions such as play/pause, skipping forward and backward, and adjusting volume. To work, users must plug the remote's included dongle into a player's dock connector; supported devices include everything from the third generation iPod onwards, with the exception of Shuffles and the first-generation Nano. The remote package costs $20.

Pioneer intros in-dash GPS units with iPod hooks

04/21, 3:15pm

Pioneer AVIC F900 and F700

Pioneer has started the week today with introductions for three high-end AVIC navigators. The DVD-equipped F900BT and Premier F90BT, as well as the CD-only F700BT, all offer in-dash mapping on a 5.8-inch wide touchscreen and support comparatively advanced GPS features such as Traffic Message Channel and support, an advanced voice command system, and text-to-speech to read out street names. Each, however, is built just as much for media playback: any can read discs with DivX, and MPEG-4 video as well as AAC, MP3, and WMA audio, while 2GB of built-in memory as well as slots for both SD cards and USB that provide both audio and video support from flash storage. Both connect to most iPods and support not just playback but also direct control of the Apple players.

Apple looks to expand iTunes trademarks

04/21, 3:05pm

iTunes trademark expands

Apple is working to greatly expand the reach of its iTunes trademark, a filing at the European Trademark Office reveals. While Apple already owns multiple trademarks related to its combination music and video software, the new application would see the number of applicable categories jump from four to 19, making it extremely difficult for other companies to poach the name. Apple has in the past encountered conflicts with names such as "iPhone" or "iTV," due to other companies laying early claim. Problems with the latter resulted in the Apple TV.

Portable Power Station 2 serves iPhones, Nanos

04/21, 12:35pm

Portable Power Station 2

Generic dealer USBfever has released a second Portable Power Station intended for the iPhone. The device serves as a backup battery, temporarily recharging the internal one when connecting to wall socket is impractical; it attaches directly to an iPhone's dock connector, and starts the recharge process immediately. A second port at the base of the PPS2 lets users charge both the internal and external batteries simultaneously, or alternately sync with a computer as usual.

iStyles ships Crystal Cases for modern Nanos

04/21, 11:50am

iStyles Nano Crystal Cases

iStyles has begun shipping the latest version of its Crystal Case iPod protectors, now tailored for the third-generation iPod nano. The cases conform specifically to the dimensions of Apple's latest Nano, and are made of translucent polycarbonate, with colors tinted to the shade of each different Nano model. Exposed areas of a player include the clickwheel and the headphone jack; the screen, Hold switch and dock connector remain covered most of the time, but a door allows access to the latter two components as needed.