Customer Reviews

Apple Universal Dock for iPod (White)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The basics work with iPod 5G and the Nano 3G, but this dock doesn't have that "just works" magic we have come to expect from Apple. For starters it comes with nothing meaning you still have to buy a power adapter and in my case an iPod cable which can be as much as the dock if you buy Apple original. You can use the IR remote that comes with your Mac. Don't waste money buying a remote specially for this because it only activates the iPod's play/pause and volume adjustment. The MENU button on the remote doesn't activate the MENU button on my iPods, so I can't scroll songs or albums. Apple, you could have let us do that fairly easily.

Because of the diminutive size of the new Nano, the scroll wheel sits low in this dock making it almost impossible to scroll. (This wouldn't be so bad if I could use the remote instead)

I bought this because I needed something to hold and charge my iPod while connecting to my stereo. There aren't a lot of choices out there so I'm stuck paying a premium price for what is essentially a simple adapter stand that turns the iPod socket 90 degrees, and separates mini headphone and S-Video out. If I'm not mistaken, docks came free with the first iPods. I don't think we will return to those days, but Apple needs to come out with a new dock design that addresses these shortcomings.

...but then I bought one in a Zoom vending machine at an airport. Aside from the idea of being able to use it to hook my iPod up to a TV or stereo, I'm surprised at how much I like it.
I bought this one and sent it to my mom, when she told me her arthritis, made it hard to unhook the iPod from the USB wire. I knew immediately that this dock would make her iPod life easier. She too, loves the dock as much as the iPod. It's great for her to be able to just slip the iPod on and off to be charged. For me, hearing from her, how easy it was, made the price well worth it.

The product works well. Be aware that it does not come with a power adapter or any cords, thus these will need to be purchased as well.

Now, here are the answers you were loooking for - I know I did ;-)
The most common problem for folks who own a 6G iPod (classic) is to display video on your TV. This docking station solves the issue (even though Apple's website tells you to buy a different dock for $50).

I have purchased this dock and a simple composite cable at TJMaxx (for about $7). I have also downloaded the latest patch (from Oct. 07 I believe) that enables TV out on 80GB classic iPod, which should also work for the 160GB version. You must have this patch to enable "TV Out" option that was disabled on the 6th generation ipods (don't you just love Apple?:-( ).

If you do the steps above and plug in your composite cable into your TV input (red and white for sound and yellow for video), you should be able to view your ipod movies.

So, overall, good purchase.

There are several docks available out there. This is the standard one from Apple. Gone are the days of dedicated docks for each model (with the exception of the Shuffle v2 because of its different connector). Each new iPod comes with one insert that snaps into the Universal Dock. The Dock also comes with adapters for all earlier compatible iPods, but no extra adapters for the new ones. You can buy a pack of extras separately, and you might want to if you have two docks and only one iPod. In my case, I have a dock on the TV stand and one for my wife's iPod. To use her iPod with the TV we have to pop out the little insert from her dock, and bring it with the iPod to the TV. Not all that hard, just a bit inconvenient. So don't lose your little insert! I have an iPod mini, so I like not having to have 2 docks plugged into the stereo - just swap an insert and I'm ready to go. The remote you use is a standard Apple remote - not included with the dock, so buy one separately (you may have had one bundled if you have a recent mac). You can program it to only work with the dock, so it won't affect your other Apple equipment, or leave it "untethered" and it will run your MacBook, iMac, or Mini too. The remote controls next track, last track, play, and pause for a docked iPod. With an iPod with video (or Nano, I'm told), it will also control volume. The dock has line out and S-video out, plus a standard 30 pin connector on the back. Perhaps a little pricy at $40. I got mine on an Apple retail store "discount rack" for $30. Basic features but it lets you dock and control multiple iPods in style.

This dock from Apple is less than useless. It is nice to be able to stand your iPod up, and once you have selected what you want to play or see using the iPod itself (because you can't use the remote to navigate through the iPod), you can change the volume.
The menu button on the remote is non-functional. If you press the Play button, it starts playing random music. I bought a better dock that came with cables and was $20 cheeper from Radio Shack.
DON'T BUY this waist of money.

This dock is perfect for my iPod Classic. Forget about buying the new overpriced dock and cable to watch your iPod videos on your T.V. Just use the old USB cable and power adapter along with a S-video cable. Then use this dock with the dock adapter that came with the new iPod Classic. If this is to confusing, do a google search cause that's what I did.

I bought this dock specifically for the S-video connection because I wanted to be able to watch my iPod's mpeg movies on my Sony LCD TV. S-video is, of course, a little better than your standard RCA connection. Hook up was easy and the picture quality totally exceeded my expectations. I have a 26 inch LCD TV and the movies looked about as good as a DVD. I ran a Monster AV cable from the line out connection on the dock to my Onkyo TX-SR604 receiver and then ran the S-video cable from the dock to the receiver as well. Sound and picture were great. The other good thing about this dock is that I was able to keep the skin on my iPod and still have it fit in the dock. If you are wanting on screen menus this is not the dock for you, but if you want good picture and sound quality you can't go wrong with this gadget. Remember to change your TV setting to "on" in the iPod's video settings!

Dont buy it. There's actually some nicer products from companies like Belkin that act as both a fashionable dock and a USB hub... Apple should only charge $9.99 for this piece of plastic, or include it with iPods.

This item is the most usefull one I have, it comes with multiple adapters for different ipod sizes, it charges my ipod while syncing with the computer, it also has an infra red port for the remote control, a super-video port for displaying images on another screen and a headphone line out for listening to music while charging the ipod. Its the best buy Ive made so far for my ipod.