Gregg’s Gadgets:: Colorful music, a universal card reader and toner cartridges

The iHome colortunes iH15 iPod speaker system

The iHome colortunes iH15 iPod speaker system continues the company’s strong tradition of producing innovative accessories for iPods and other portable media players at an affordable price.

Like most any other iPod speaker system, The iPod just docks on the top with one of the included inserts to fit most any iPod model. It is not compatible with iPods released in 2003 or earlier.

The simple speaker system is built in a translucent cabinet, which is backlit and changes colors with the music. To activate, just press the “color” button on the top while music is played and the unit glows in colors including blue, purple, yellow, red, green, pink and orange.

Users have another choice; by pressing the color button, colors can display in five cycles to speedup or slow down the changes . If you want the music playing without the lights just hit the button to turn them off.
Other controls include on/off and volume, along with a line-in port for non-iPod MP3 players on the back. An A/C power adapter is included to power it up.

The desktop-sized system measures about 5 ½-inches cubed and houses a pair of Reson8 speakers, along with a subwoofer. All this produces a nice sound for a small compact unit.

For just over $50 this seems like a reasonable investment for those wanting to play their music without earphones imbedded into their ears. It doesn’t include a remote control and I would guess this helps keep the cost down.

www.ihomeaudio.com

SanDisk’s ImageMate All-in-One Card Reader

Today’s digital devices take a wide variety of memory cards and SanDisk’s new ImageMate All-in-One Memory Card Reader solve the problem of needing multiple readers. This one reads almost every format. The USB 2.0 device is a portable solution for downloaded data including images, music and video to any Mac or Windows system.

SanDisk designed the device to be efficient and fast, and they have certainly achieved that. It’s capable of reaching speeds up to 34 megabytes per second, depending on the memory card used and computer.

Among the formats it supports are SD, SDHC, miniSDHC, microSDHC, MMC, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro Duo, xD and CompactFlash memory cards. This should cover most any digital camera, cell phone or media player having the option of removable memory.

It measures about 4.5 x 1.5 x .5-inches so it packs easily into any laptop bag. An included metal stand easily attaches to the reader with a magnet attached to the bottom of the reader itself. All this adds up to a space saving and stylish looking device.

When I plugged it into my Mac, with a SanDisk Extreme IV CompactFlash card inserted into the reader, it showed up on my desktop instantly and didn’t require any drivers or downloads. Just like any other card reader images are downloaded with a drag-and-drop method.

www.sandisk.com $29.99

Imation Corp. has announced the availability of Earthwise remanufactured toner cartridges. The cartridges are designed for the environmentally aware and cost-conscious users.

They are said to perform to specifications of the original cartridges produced by the original manufacturer, while also offering up a 50 percent savings of the original cost.

Monochrome HP-Compatible, Color HP-Compatible and Monochrome Canon-Compatible cartridges are available in the Imation Earthwise line of fax toner and laser printer cartridges. Each unit has a recycled plastic shell; a new printer drum and toner along with other reconditioned or replaced parts. Once completed, the cartridge is then packaged in a carton with no less than 80 percent post-consumer recycled materials.

Prices range from 41.99 to U.S. $265.59, depending on the model.

www.imation.com/Imation-Products/Earthwise-Toner