Customer Reviews

Belkin Power Dock for iPod

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This is the same as the Belkin F8Z126, but without the AC adapter. Search for F8Z126 and see my review. The F8Z126 is the better buy.

Ok, I've now bought 3 of these docks. Here's why:
1)they play nice with almost all iPods!(take out the plastic insert & your iPhone fits in quite happily.)
2)They charge your iPod.
3)They hook into your stereo.
and they aren't ugly as sin.

I actually have two of these (one at work and one at home)... and they're both perfect. I can't imagine why there aren't more simple iPod products available like this one. Almost all other iPod docks have some sort of "other" feature that I really didn't want (and am not willing to pay for). If it's not a crappy remote control or an alarm clock or some fancy A/V setup... the accessory manufacturers somehow think they shouldn't create it.

Thanks to Belkin for making a simple, no-frills iPod dock that I don't have to pay $50 or $60 for (from Apple).

What can I say... it just works. If you're the type of person that would rather not have to constantly fiddle with cables (and hates having loose wires sitting around when you aren't using them)... then this dock is for you!

I wanted an iPhone 4 cradle that provided an audio output to connect
to a small powered speaker system in my bedroom.
Even though this cradle was not specifically designed for the task it
functions very well. I simply removed all the provided adapter sleeves
so there was enough room for my iPhone with a Griffin case.

When you first set the phone in the cradle your iPhone will give you a
warning message that it is non-compliant and you may experience some
issues with cellular interference etc. I have used this for about a month
and have experienced no such issues.

When the iPhone is in the cradle with the speakers on (Swan M10) there is
dead silence. There is no hum or interference. It works perfectly. I listen to
Pandora and Internet Radio from ooTunes and it sounds incredible.

One caution is I don't believe this setup will hold up to abuse. iPhone owners know
the device is somewhat delicate. If you treat the cradle as well as your iPhone you
will have no issues. I am very pleased with the purchase and resulting setup.

It took me a while to find this dock, but I am so glad I did. I wanted a dock I would be able to use with my computer and also to connect to my stereo to listen to my iPod. This is exactly what it does.

The dock comes with a USB cable to connect to your computer. It takes care of all the syncing, plus charging.

The A/V out allows it to be connected to the Aux input of my stereo. You'll need to get your own cable for this as it doesn't come with the dock, no big deal. Then, I use my iPod wall charger with the provided USB cable to keep it charged while listening to my music.

In addition, it feels very well built and looks great, matching the color of my iMac and stereo. The silicone rubber bottom makes it very stable too.

The iPod insert that came with it allowed me to dock my iPod Touch OK, but the slot is a little too big (it must be for an iPhone), so I replaced it with the insert that came with my Touch, and now it's nice and snug.

Couldn't be happier. I may have to buy a second one so I don't have to move this one from the stereo to the computer.

You plug this into your stereo receiver, dock the ipod and you have stereo/cd quality sound in my opinion. Better sound than the Monster Cable. I don't believe this can be beat for the price...I would give it 6 stars if I was allowed. It came in 5 days. I'm listening to Patty Griffin's "Nobody's Crying" as I write this...except I'm crying tears of joy!
It also charges the ipod.

You cant beat this for the money. Comes with all cords (charge and A/V) and works fine with Nano 3rd gen.

This is perfect for piping your ipod through your stereo or TV.

As pointed out in another review it does not come with a power adapter, but the specs don't indicate it should ship with one. It does, however, work exactly as advertised. I have an IPOD Touch. It syncs properly and the A/V jack works just like it should. Considering the low price, I am very pleased. I'm kind of a simple person, and I'm happy when things work just as advertised. This does.

This I-Pod dock does a great job of isolating your i-pod's signal from its own poor internal amplifier and sending the signal via standard RCA type plugs (1/8" into dock and RCA left/right plugs plug into your amplifier - not included)to your dedicated stereo receiver amplifier. This effectively bypasses the I-pod volume control and sends what I presume to be a "flat" signal directly to your stereo receiver/amplifier's line in. From there, you can control the volume and EQ (bass/treble)on the stereo amplifier unit. The other I-Pod controls (mainly to play, repeat, forward, backward, etc.) are still controlled by the main I-Pod front circular control. THus, your I-pod is used primarily for it's hard drive storage of music and the basic controls on the unit(play/pause/forward/bacward,etc) Some higher priced units offer a wireless remote, which would be handy if you are listening from across the room. I assume these units have more circuitry and certainly cost more.

The unit contains a USB cord but no power supply. Another similar unit does include a power brick but also costs more. My solution - I had already purchased an USB converter that plugs into the wall on E-bay for about $2.50. I now use this to plug in the unit to a wall outlet to charge the I-Pod. Cheap solution to buying a dedicated power block. Someone posted that they thought these USB-to-AC converters could damage your I-pod via overcharging. That has not been my experience so far. Perhaps the I-pod that they say was damaged had a faulty "fully-charged" detector or there was a power surge that actually damaged the unit. I'm not an electrical engineer.

Overall, the sound that comes out of my I-pod when docked in this unit and played through my stereo sounds MUCH clearer and less distorted that if I connect the 1/8" plug directly into my I-pod to play through my main stereo amplifier. Way better. So if you want to hear how good your music can sound on your home stereo, put high bit rate music on your I-Pod (WAV format = 1440 bits/sec versus the poorer-sounding 128 I-tunes compression) Overall, a good solution to playing your I-Pod through your home stereo.

This is a good little docking station, its heavy so it stay in place, it charges. My only complaint is that once you dock it there's no volume control, so its no good if you want to plug in headphones, I got this to have an upright stand that I could listen through headphones at work, but it doesn't allow volume control, so its not useful for that. It is useful if you want to plug it into a stereo that controls the volume and charge it, effectively making any stereo an Ipod docking station, but no good for head phones.

also no remote, which would be nice especially since this is only useful when plugging into a stereo