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Ten Technology naviPod 3G - remote control for your Apple iPod
See it at Amazon.com for $4.98Average Customer Rating
(3.5 out of 5)
Amazon Customer Reviews
Most Helpful First | Newest First | + Share31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
Works like a champ
(5 out of 5) by Bowen Simmons on Aug 10, 2004 (Sunnyvale, CA USA)There is not a lot to this device, but it works just like you'd expect.
It has three pieces:
(1) An IR sensor. This plugs into the top of your iPod into the remote control jack. Because in this position it blocks the iPod's headphone jack, it also plugs into the iPod's headphone jack and has its own headphone jack in the back of the IR sensor. If you use this jack to connect to your stereo, be aware that the iPod volume control does affect the output on this jack, which can be a nuisance if you wanted to use the volume control in your stereo for that purpose (it is pretty easy to accidently overdrive one volume control when trying to use two at the same time). To avoid that problem, get a dock, which has an audio line-level out at the back and connect the iPod to your stereo through that; then only the stereo volume control will affect the playback volume.
(2) A stand. This allows the iPod to stand up without a dock. If you have a dock, you don't need the stand. Apart from a line-level out, a dock also provides a socket for re-charging; you can recharge your iPod without a dock while it is plugged into the stand, but it becomes rather tippy and leans too far backwards.
(3) A remote control. This simple remote has volume up/down buttons, jump back, jump ahead, and pause/play. Note that it does not have a "menu" or "select" button, so it cannot be used for full iPod operation. I only used the NaviPod remote to program a universal learning remote, which worked great. Note: universal remotes that are not "learning" remotes - i.e. remotes that can only operate through factory-installed codes and which cannot learn arbitrary commands from arbitrary remotes will almost certainly not work with so esoteric a device as the NaviPod, so if you have such a remote: you have been warned. The fact that the NaviPod remote does not have a "menu" or "select" button is not a problem when it is used as part of a stero system at the other end of the room (the iPod's display isn't reabable at that distance anyway) but if you for some reason were thinking about using it a few feet away on your desk, you might find that limitation an annoyance: the remote is simply not a complete replacement for the buttons on the front of the iPod.
As a compatibility note, the NaviPod is compatible with the iPod mini's and 3rd and 4th generation iPods. The 1st and 2nd generation iPod's (those with mechanical buttons around the wheel) are not compatible. Those iPod's did not have a remote control jack on top (if you are unsure whether your iPod has one, look at the top - if next to the headphone jack you don't see a small slot with four metal contacts inside it, then you're out of luck).
It has three pieces:
(1) An IR sensor. This plugs into the top of your iPod into the remote control jack. Because in this position it blocks the iPod's headphone jack, it also plugs into the iPod's headphone jack and has its own headphone jack in the back of the IR sensor. If you use this jack to connect to your stereo, be aware that the iPod volume control does affect the output on this jack, which can be a nuisance if you wanted to use the volume control in your stereo for that purpose (it is pretty easy to accidently overdrive one volume control when trying to use two at the same time). To avoid that problem, get a dock, which has an audio line-level out at the back and connect the iPod to your stereo through that; then only the stereo volume control will affect the playback volume.
(2) A stand. This allows the iPod to stand up without a dock. If you have a dock, you don't need the stand. Apart from a line-level out, a dock also provides a socket for re-charging; you can recharge your iPod without a dock while it is plugged into the stand, but it becomes rather tippy and leans too far backwards.
(3) A remote control. This simple remote has volume up/down buttons, jump back, jump ahead, and pause/play. Note that it does not have a "menu" or "select" button, so it cannot be used for full iPod operation. I only used the NaviPod remote to program a universal learning remote, which worked great. Note: universal remotes that are not "learning" remotes - i.e. remotes that can only operate through factory-installed codes and which cannot learn arbitrary commands from arbitrary remotes will almost certainly not work with so esoteric a device as the NaviPod, so if you have such a remote: you have been warned. The fact that the NaviPod remote does not have a "menu" or "select" button is not a problem when it is used as part of a stero system at the other end of the room (the iPod's display isn't reabable at that distance anyway) but if you for some reason were thinking about using it a few feet away on your desk, you might find that limitation an annoyance: the remote is simply not a complete replacement for the buttons on the front of the iPod.
As a compatibility note, the NaviPod is compatible with the iPod mini's and 3rd and 4th generation iPods. The 1st and 2nd generation iPod's (those with mechanical buttons around the wheel) are not compatible. Those iPod's did not have a remote control jack on top (if you are unsure whether your iPod has one, look at the top - if next to the headphone jack you don't see a small slot with four metal contacts inside it, then you're out of luck).
23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
Very useful pal for the iPod - but look at the latest news
(4 out of 5) by H. P. Ramesh on Sep 28, 2004 (Cupertino, CA, USA)*** DO NOT MISS THE LATEST NEWS ON THIS ***
Though iPod is extremely portable, a wireless remote becomes quite useful, especially when the iPod is hooked to an audio player in the house. Navipod does its job quite well. Navipod stands out as a very useful gadget and it doesn't have any competitor so far (save the speaker systems which come with iPod charger and remote).
The best part is that Navipod is small and extremely easy to use.
The worst part is that the remote is circular and not ergonomically designed. It would have been better to have a rectangular remote, probably an iPod look-alike! It takes power from the iPod and could drain the iPod if the buttons are kept pressed accidentally. It is not possible to choose a different playlist/album through the remote. Also, for this price, it could have been more rugged and less fragile.
Though it works with iPod (3G & 4G) as well as iPod Mini, it aligns well with the top of the bigger iPod while stretching beyond the top right portion of the Mini, looking a little weird.
The simple steel support works well to make the iPod stand and be more accessible to the IR remote. But it is a little combersome if the iPod is hooked to the power cord.
THE LATEST NEWS:
Today (03 Mar 2005), I found a new model of NaviPod in the Apple store. The new remote, named NaviPro, seems to be a major improvement over its predecessor. It is oval in shape, much bigger, and it has 13 buttons as follows:
Basic Functions:
- Play/Pause
- Next Track/Fast Forward
- Previous Track/Rewind
- Volume Up
- Volume Down
Extended Functions:
- Next/Previous Playlist
- Next/Previous Album
- Next/Previous Chapter
- Shuffle Songs/Album/Off
- Repeat One/All/Off
You may visit tentechnology.com to take a detailed look.
Though iPod is extremely portable, a wireless remote becomes quite useful, especially when the iPod is hooked to an audio player in the house. Navipod does its job quite well. Navipod stands out as a very useful gadget and it doesn't have any competitor so far (save the speaker systems which come with iPod charger and remote).
The best part is that Navipod is small and extremely easy to use.
The worst part is that the remote is circular and not ergonomically designed. It would have been better to have a rectangular remote, probably an iPod look-alike! It takes power from the iPod and could drain the iPod if the buttons are kept pressed accidentally. It is not possible to choose a different playlist/album through the remote. Also, for this price, it could have been more rugged and less fragile.
Though it works with iPod (3G & 4G) as well as iPod Mini, it aligns well with the top of the bigger iPod while stretching beyond the top right portion of the Mini, looking a little weird.
The simple steel support works well to make the iPod stand and be more accessible to the IR remote. But it is a little combersome if the iPod is hooked to the power cord.
THE LATEST NEWS:
Today (03 Mar 2005), I found a new model of NaviPod in the Apple store. The new remote, named NaviPro, seems to be a major improvement over its predecessor. It is oval in shape, much bigger, and it has 13 buttons as follows:
Basic Functions:
- Play/Pause
- Next Track/Fast Forward
- Previous Track/Rewind
- Volume Up
- Volume Down
Extended Functions:
- Next/Previous Playlist
- Next/Previous Album
- Next/Previous Chapter
- Shuffle Songs/Album/Off
- Repeat One/All/Off
You may visit tentechnology.com to take a detailed look.
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
Works well, nicely done.
(4 out of 5) by moofahoof on Jul 17, 2004 (Pittsburgh, PA)I use my iPod for the living room stereo - it sits in a dock on top of the stereo cabinet. Before buying the NaviPod, I had to get up and walk over to the iPod to change a song - a bit of a pain. But the NaviPod allows me to do this and more without getting up.
Not only does it allow you to skip songs forward and backward, but it also allows you to control the iPod's volume (it has a mini stereo jack on the back to plug your stereo into). This was a nice added bonus which I didn't even realize it would do when I purchased it. You can also pause playback and even turn the iPod on and off from across the room by holding down the pause button (same way the iPod itself works).
Seems fairly well designed - no complaints so far other than the slightly high price.
Navipod Control
(1 out of 5) by David E. Muller on Dec 15, 2007I was pretty disapointed to find out that this product did not work with either of our two iPods. Also that it does not come with a docking station so it requires you to buy more equipment to make it work. I am planning on returning it to Amazon.