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Kensington's Stereo Dock for iPod exhibits the promise of an essential accessory—classy design, impressive features, reasonable price—yet one key shortcoming keeps it off the elite list. It combines a tabletop dock that charges an iPod, iPod Photo or iPod Mini (it includes an AC adapter) with an IR remote with a 30- foot range. The dock outputs stereo audio from the iPod's dock port, which in theory should provide better sound, and it comes with a gold-plated RCA cable for hooking up a stereo system. The remote works great and glows with an orange backlight that matches the button backlights of a 3G iPod. However, the stereo output was noisy. At a loud enough volume, the noise was not prevalent, but using the iPod's headphone output actually sounded much better.
–MARKKUS ROVITO
www.kensington.com | 800-235-6708 | $90
 We think this should be called the JustinCase, because it's more about convenience and portability than sound, but it has a set of speakers just in case. The MusiCase opens to reveal a pocket for holding any size iPod, a PDA, a smartphone or other portable device on one side and a set of small, battery-powered (2x AA, not included) speakers concealed by fabric on the other side. A short 1/8" cord connects to the speakers, and a strap clips onto the back for convenient carrying. The speakers can actually blare pretty loudly, but become far too distorted and harsh in the high end when higher than about 2/3 volume. When played at modest levels, this is an acceptable way to hear some audio, particularly spoken word, if you're in a pinch.
–MARKKUS ROVITO
www.myirock.com | 847-202-1900 | $25
While the PodFreq's design is a bit unusual (most competing FM transmitters sit atop the Pod), and the telescoping antennae initially turned us off by making us feel like a Poindexter with a transistor radio at a football game, the overwhelmingly rich feature set and ease of use convinced us that this was a great deal. The somewhat bulky cover acts as both a protective case and a cradle; Sonnet provides users two cables, so you can power your iPod Mini via USB or by using your car adapter. If the car charger isn't enough of a bonus, they also provide a car cradle. All in all, this is a nice value with good performance.
–AMY R. WOOD
www.podfreq.com | 949-472-2772 | $100 
 Install the EyeTV software, plug in the AC adapter, connect the USB 2.0 cable and launch the software: that's what it takes to turn your Mac into a TV with the EyeTV Wonder USB 2.0. Upon first launch of the software, EyeTV scans for stations to add to your channel list, and you get a free account with the TitanTV online program guide. As nice bonuses, the hardware gives you S-video and composite video inputs for watching from external devices. Although the software gives you PVR-style recording, the hardware does not including any analog-todigital converters, so you should only attempt to record with a very fast G5. Minimum requirements are a G4 with OS 10.3 or higher.
–MARKKUS ROVITO
www.elgato.com | $150
The last thing any Shuffle owner wants to do is spend more money on their accessories than their stick o' tunes, and that's why the Audio Kit for iPod Shuffle is such a great deal. This budget bundle combines just about everything you'd need to connect your little digital audio player to your home stereo (using a 1/8" to RCA cable), multimedia speakers (using a 1/8" to 1/8" cable) and car cassette deck (using a cassette adapter). There's also a car charger included. All accessories worked well for not being "pro" versions, although we would have liked it if the charger didn't heat up quite so much as we tooled around town.
–AMY R. WOOD
www.xtrememac.com | 866-392-9800 | $50
If you're already into video, motion graphics or both, you may be intrigued by Modul8 v2, a state-of-the-art "VJ," or video jockey, program. VJs use such software to create live motion graphics pastiches of video, stills and other elements, usually for a party or performance. In Modul8, you drag media into a panel and create a composition with up to ten layers. One composition can play while you work on another, and a preview panel lets you view your work in progress separately from the output panel. Modul8 includes many filters and effects for your videos, and it supports MIDI controllers for handson mixing. This whole new world of visual art is complex, but fascinating.
–MARKKUS ROVITO
www.garagecube.com | $375
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If you're already into video, motion graphics or both, you may be intrigued by Modul8 v2, a state-of-the-art "VJ," or video jockey, program. VJs use such software to create live motion graphics pastiches of video, stills and other elements, usually for a party or performance. In Modul8, you drag media into a panel and create a composition with up to ten layers. One composition can play while you work on another, and a preview panel lets you view your work in progress separately from the output panel. Modul8 includes many filters and effects for your videos, and it supports MIDI controllers for handson mixing. This whole new world of visual art is complex, but fascinating.
