The iPhone and iPad can do a lot of things, from browsing the web to playing great apps and listening to music. As such, it’s not too surprising that many people like to keep their iOS devices near them at all times, even when they’re sleeping!
If you’re determined to keep your iPhone or iPad near your bed anyway, you might as well have a stylish place to put it. And why not bundle all that with a great set of speakers, and a couple of great apps to tie the whole experience together? Enter the iHome iD28 ($139.95, link).
Overview
The iD28 is more than just a nightstand dock or alarm clock – it’s the ideal bedside iPhone and iPad companion, enhanced with a couple of great apps to make it even more useful. It’s also portable enough to take with you on trips, and has a built in battery that lasts for up to 10 hours of music playback.
Design
The iD28’s design is simple enough to give it a nice minimal appearance while still packing in a ton of great features. The iD28 is solidly build, yet is still lightweight and portable enough to toss in a backpack or suitcase.
I particularly appreciated the iD28’s dock design. The iPhone and iPad dock tucks tightly into the face of the unit, and can then be retracted by just pushing on its face. This keeps the dock out of the way when you aren’t using it, and close at hand when you need it.
Usability
Many of the iD28’s features come through companion apps, which do everything from play internet radio to track your sleep. There’s even an app that you can use to program the iD28 and set its alarms, as well as control the built-in FM radio and alarm clock. It even includes a remote control.
And of course, and bedside dock would be incomplete without a full range of wake and sleep settings using the alarm buzzer, radio, and your iPhone or iPad’s music library. Thankfully, the iD28 has all of these.
What’s especially nice is that each of iHome’s companion apps (there are three of them, two of which are free) are as well designed as
the iD28 itself, providing a simple and intuitive interface, and making it easy to navigate their various functions.
Sound
Above all else, the iD28 is a portable speaker, making sound an important point of discussion. I was satisfied, and even rather impressed with the quality of sound I was able to get from the iD28’s built-in speakers. The bass tones were deep and rich, the trebles were clear, crisp, and well-defined, and the speaker is capable of cranking out enough volume to fill a large room without distorting the sound.
Verdict
I’ve only used a few different bedside docks, but I was thoroughly impressed with the iD28. It’s styling, extremely rich feature set, high quality sound output and superb companion apps made it a true pleasure to use, and its portability ensures that I’ll never have to leave home without it.
Rating & Conclusion
Rating: 4.5/5[rating:4.5]
For it’s high quality, usefulness, excellent design, and fantastic integration with custom companion apps, I award the iHome iD28 4.5 out of 5, deducting a half point to leave room for improvement, and due to its lack of wireless connectivity (such as BlueTooth), especially for the $200 price tag.
For more information, including the complete specs, or to purchase the iD28 direct ($199.99), check out iHome’s official product page on the web. The iD28 is also available at Amazon.com for $139.95 with free shipping.
Pros
- Lots of alarm clock features
- Portability
- Excellent companion apps (including internet radio!)
- Excellent, durable design
- Sound quality
Cons
- Lack of wireless connectivity (Bluetooth)
- Price may put it out of reach for many users
- Doesn’t come with a carrying pouch
