Remember the joy when you first got your iPod? That indescribable feeling as your walking about with a great tune right in your head. The only thing is the tangle-prone headphones, do we need wires now we have Bluetooth? No we don't. iCombi is a bluetooth transmitter/receiver dongle and a paired bluetooth headphone unit. Plug the dongle in your remote-equipped iPod and you can listen to your favourite tracks with your iPod up to 30 feet away (line of sight).
Remote Control Headphones
The iCombi headphones are of the open type and feature rechargable batteries and a charging unit. Battery life is better than any iPod and I think the sound quality is pretty good. They feature buttons to skip or move back a track, pause/play and the all important volume controls.
The Dongle
This is a small white plastic thing, that plugs into the top of your iPod. It has a flashing blue led indicator and runs off the internal iPod battery, but I haven't noticed any battery loss from using it, so it seems to be pretty energy efficient.
Look Ma, No Wires
I hate wires, hate them but accept them as a necessary evil. The iCombi has at least set my iPod free from these tangles and it really is a lot of fun. No doubt inspired by the iCombi promotional material, which features fit-looking people doing weird and wonderful things with their iCombis. I decided to accompany my elder daughter for a run. I gave Dee the headphones and I held my iPod in case she decided to run off with it. I soon realised that I was no where near as fit as I thought and Dee started pulling away from me. I was too puffed-out to even shout to make her stop, but the iCombi stopped her. As soon as she hit the range of the iPod (20-30 feet) the music stopped and she came back to jog up and down as I coughed my guts up! lol (DON'T SMOKE!)
iCombi and PowerBook
Apparently the iCombi headphones will work with any Bluetooth device as long as the right profiles are set up. I haven't had time to check this out yet, but I am very excited about this possibility - does anybody know how to do this?
iCombi Conclusion
I think it's a great idea, the sound quality is better than I expected and it has even encouraged me to jog and cycle with it. I haven't tried any other devices like this but I am really enjoying this new found freedom
Read my iPresents iCombi iPod Review for more information
You can buy the iCombi from Apcom
