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Hercules i-XPS 120 Outdoor iPod Speaker Dock Resists Water, Urine
Posted by Gizmodo US Edition at 11:10 AM on October 29, 2007
I'm not sure why every product made for the iPod has to start with a small "i". Anyway, Hercules has a new outdoor speaker for your iPod coming soon called the i-XPS 120. The cool part is that this particular speaker is designed for the outdoors and is waterproof. So waterproof, in fact, that the test unit Hercules sent me came with a watering can just to test this out.
The system is designed to hold the iPod video 30GB and 60GB, iPod nano and iPod mini. The front of the speaker has a clear door that allows you to see the iPod inside for track information. On the outside are buttons that give you access to the controls of the iPod while it is docked. External controls include play/pause, forward, back, and volume controls. A power button and a button that controls the speaker mode are included as well. The i-XPS 120 ships with an AC adaptor and a car DC adapter, obviously it's not waterproof when using either of these power options. For use outside you power the speaker system with four C-cell batteries. The unit is waterproof to IP53 standards.
Inside the docking area for the iPod is a 3.5mm headphone jack. This and a short included 3.5mm to 3.5mm cable is supposed to allow you to use any MP3 player with the speaker. However, I found that the angled adaptor wouldn't allow the door to close fully with the Sansa e280r I tried with the headphone port. I could have used the i-XPS 120 inside, but without closing the door, the water resistant design is not functional.
Sound quality was good, though lacked bass for my tastes. Peak power is 24 Watts RMS with an effective output of 2 x 6 watts RMS and the system uses a pair of 3-inch drivers. Dimensions for the speaker are 200mm x 320mm x 160mm (H xWxD). If you are the outdoorsy type looking for a decent speaker system that you can use for your iPod while you do, whatever it is people that go outside do the iXPS-120 works well. The i-XPS 120 should go on sale this month for about $200. This would have been just the thing for the "camping" trips in my college days where more beer was involved than anything else and someone always seemed to end up peeing on something.
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
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EQC
Posted 10:26 PM 28/10/07
wait -- have you verified that this is actually urine-proof? Your headline implies it...but the article only talks about how it's waterproof. The only other reference to urine is at the end when you say "This would have been just the thing for the "camping" trips ...where...someone always seemed to end up peeing on something."
I really need gadgets that can stand up to a VERY heavy stream of urine. I wish these "waterproof" manufacturers would actually specify...
EQC
Jamez
Posted 12:08 AM 29/10/07
Looks like you changed their mind cause the headline's been changed. Though realistically, you wouldn't be able to test to see if something is urine proof, for one simple reason: urine's properties depend on how much water someone has in their system, and therefore in their urine.
Without getting technical, lets just say if it's liquid proof, it's urine proof. And apparently this isn't.
Jamez
EQC
Posted 3:21 AM 29/10/07
Dammit!
EQC
gokor
Posted 12:08 PM 29/10/07
Uhh...why are you wondering if it's urine proof? You're all trying too hard. Water proof generally consitutes all water based liquids.
gokor
EQC
Posted 3:48 PM 29/10/07
No way man...thinking like that has caused me to be burned (figuratively) before. The minerals and acids in urine can lead to corrosion of certain waterproof seals.
EQC