iHome iW1 AirPlay Wireless Stereo Speaker System with Rechargeable Battery

by iHome

Product Features

• Wirelessly stream music from iTunes, iPad, iPhone and iPod touch via Wi-Fi
• Play and charge your iPhone or iPod via USB port and included cable
• Easy network configuration with free iHome Connect app; Firmware upgradeable
• Bongiovi Acoustics DPS sound processing custom tuned to 4 speaker drivers; also has sleek backlit touch-sensitive Capacitive Touch control panel
• Internal rechargeable Lithium-ion battery; remote control, charging base and recessed handle for convenient portability

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Product Description

Amazon.com

Play your music, in any room, wirelessly. With a slick, minimal design, iHome's iW1 is an elegant implementation of Apple's AirPlay technology. Stream your music from AirPlay sources--iTunes, iPod touch, iPhone, and iPad--anywhere you have a home Wi-Fi network. Enjoy remote control of your streaming playback, and digital processing from Bongiovi for uncompromising sound. You can also charge and playback your Apple device via USB, or connect nearly any audio player via an auxiliary input.

Slick, minimal design and elegant AirPlay implementation. Click here for a larger image

Go Wireless

Works with AirPlay

Stream wireless music directly to the iW1 via iTunes, iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. AirPlay is a built-in feature in Apple devices that lets users stream audio wirelessly, wherever there is a Wi-Fi network.

Note: For AirPlay, the iW1 must be connected to Wi-Fi with networked access to a Mac or PC running iTunes 10.1 or later; or an iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch running iOS 4.2 or later.

Remote Control of Streaming Playback

Device in the other room? No problem, the iW1 supports play/pause, next track, previous track, and volume control of iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, and iTunes music playback from the speaker control panels, as well as the included IR remote.

Easy Setup

The iW1 is a breeze to get working, with a simple network setup and custom device naming. Just grab iHome Connect, a free app available on the App Store for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. Launch the app, connect via USB, and follow simple on-screen menus to configure Wi-Fi. You'll be enjoying AirPlay a few minutes after un-boxing.

Stream wireless music directly to the iW1 via iTunes, iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.

Wi-Fi Certified

The iW1 is certified for 802.11b and 802.11g Wi-Fi Technologies. The "Wi-Fi CERTIFIED" logo assures the Wi-Fi Alliance has tested a product in numerous configurations and with a diverse sampling of other devices, to ensure compatibility with Wi-Fi CERTIFIED equipment that operates in the same frequency band.

Local Music Playback

Charge and Play iPod and iPhone

For iPods that aren't Wi-Fi enabled, or when you want to keep a full charge while enjoying your music, a USB port is provided. Connect your iPod/iPhone using the included USB sync cable (or any iPod USB sync cable) for charging and audio playback. The USB connection also enables music playback from iPad.

Auxiliary Input

You can also connect almost any music device using the analog 3.5mm stereo auxiliary input: CD players, MP3 players, etc.

Rechargeable battery with simple charging base and handle, for portable use.

Uncompromising Audio

Bongiovi Acoustics Digital Power Station

Real-time digital signal processing extends the iW1's audio bandwidth, adding missing harmonics without adding peak output to the signal. It effectively improves brightness, clarity, and presence, delivering deep, resonant bass and crystal-clear highs.

Adjustable Bass and Treble

You can dial in the EQ a little further with basic Bass and Treble controls.

Battery or AC Power

True Wireless Portability

A rechargeable battery with charging base and carrying handle makes the iW1 ideal for use anywhere at home, indoors and out.

Pair the iW1 with iHome's iOS apps (iHome+Radio pictured above) for an even more versatile experience.

Universal 100-240V AC Adaptor

The switching power supply works just about anywhere in the world to power your unit.

iOS App-Enhanced Device

Pair the iW1 with iHome's iOS apps (available from the iTunes App Store) for an even more versatile experience:

• iHome Set, an app for updating your iW1 firmware
• iHome+Sleep, a free music alarm clock app
• iHome+Radio, an Internet radio music app for sleeping and waking
• iHome Connect, a network setup app for iHome AirPlay enabled product

What's in the Box

iW1 Speaker, Charging Base, Power Adaptor, USB Sync Cable, Remote Control, Documentation

Product Description

The iW1 is an AirPlay speaker system for streaming music from iTunes, iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch using your Wi-Fi network for wireless audio anywhere in the home. The internal rechargeable battery makes it a truly wireless and portable audio solution that you can take anywhere you have Wi-Fi. The iW1 also supports USB docking for iPod and iPhone charging and music playback with any iPod USB sync cable and dock. Coveted Bongiovi Digital Power Station circuitry provides real-time digital signal processing that makes your MP3’s shine. Embrace wireless living with impressive technology and an exceptional audio experience.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

73 of 80 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars REALLY wanted this, but I returned it. November 4, 2011

By Big Dutch

I bought this from Best Buy last week. It was hard to find them in stock, but I stopped in and they just happened to have some so I picked one up after waiting for this to come out all year. I was very excited to get this home and play around with it.

First thing, unboxing it gave a good first impression. You can tell they went out of their way to give it that appearance of being an Apple product. Minimalist packaging, and the user manual even had its own hard 'envelope' type packing which gave it a quality feel. Set up was a breeze, you can even download the ihome connect app and set it up right from your iphone, ipod, or ipad.. very slick, very simple.

The speaker unit itself has a nice, heavy weight to which iHome takes full advantage of by adding a rubber (or something like that) surface to the bottom which really causes the unit to sit nicely on whatever surface you put it on - no sliding around, no worrying about my 2 year old being able to push it off its shelf (out of his reach, but he climbs like a monkey), just a great overall quality feel to the product. I'm assuming the weight is because of the battery in the unit - but regardless just a nice feel. They are very attractive and I really like the touch control interface on the top. Very simple so other members of the family can use it as well.

Comes with a charging base that you just sit the unit itself onto. Very easy to pick up and set down the speaker to take with you around the house. Very no fuss, very small, again just another piece of the iW1 that was well thought out and engineered.

As for the sounds - I found it acceptable.... I streamed to it from iTunes on a PC and a Mac, I also use Airfoil to stream to this unit with no problem from either a mac or PC, which works very well - so if you're wondering if Airfoil picks up this unit it does, just like every other Airplay device I've used with it. At any rate - the bass is a little on the light side, which I expected. I'm not an audiophile, but I have some friends who are into it, and I doubt they would have been impressed overall, but my wife and kids and the few people that came over and listened to it during it's one week stay in my house really enjoyed the sound and the ease of use.

Controlling your music source works very well from the iW1 as well (better than I expected). Adjusting the volume will adjust the volume on the device you're streaming from. The pause, forward, and reverse buttons work very well with iTunes, and worked with Pandora when streaming from an iphone which was a nice touch I thought.

So, why did I return it?

Airplay - how you torture me with your potential! I've used Airtunes now Airplay for awhile. I used to just use my airport express hooked up to different stereo systems around the house which works pretty well - but here's my problem, and it's a beef with Airplay, not this unit - the only problem here is the iW1 was built around Airplay and all of its bugs. I can stream from an iphone, ipad, ipod, or PC with no problems from my iTunes library, but anytime I stream from an app, Pandora, I Heart Radio, MLB at Bat, TuneIn Radio, and SiriusXM, I get audio dropouts. Sometimes things will work for 10-15 minutes and I'll think the problem has gone away, or I've adjusted the right setting in my router, but then the audio will just quit. It seems to me like it's an iOS issue (running iOS5) because I can stream Pandora or pretty much anything on my computer and stream via Airplay with no problems at all - it's just from iOS devices. I use an Airport Extreme router - so you'd think being made by Apple I'd have better results. I've checked for interfering signals and network issues, I've changed the router's wireless channel, I've turned off/on IPV6, played with QoS setting, nothing I do fixes the problem. When I want to sit down next summer and listen to a baseball game via the MLB app, the last thing I want to do is turn off my iphone or ipad and turn it back on 10 times during the game. To be fair I get the same issues when streaming to an AppleTV from the apps as well. Can't for the life of me, or the lives of the customer service reps I've spent time on the with, pinpoint the problem..

So anyway, for $300 I want something that 'just works'. I don't really fault iHome for the problems, I see it as an Airplay issue.. The concept of this device is great. I love that it charges, I can pick it up and take it anywhere within my Wifi network - be able to sit out on the deck next summer and just bring it outside with me, listen to baseball or some tunes, and catch up on some work outside.. but with the audio dropouts and constant reboots, it just isn't going to cut it. I'll rate it at 4 stars, I'd give it 5 if it wasn't for airplay bugs.

Guess I am going to get a Sonos system after all.. you can do a lot more with it, hopefully they'll come out with a rechargeable product like this one as well. Read more ›

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Good quality, nice appearance, decent sound, pretty simple... November 5, 2011

By Andrew W. Woods

I have wanted to add speakers to my kitchen but the cost and effort to run additional speaker cable for better speakers made me search for a wireless option. I have been reading about Sonos and Airplay systems and decided to give this one a try.

Impressions:
Appearance/quality: Good looking product with a nice remote. I was impressed with the look and feel as I took it out of the box. It looks and feels like a well made product.

Setup: This was a little trickier than expected. You have to download and run the iHome Connect app first which I didn't understand from the boxed instructions. I thought I could setup the unit up straight from my desktop and wi-fi controls. Maybe there is a way to do that but it proved a little more challenging and my patience wore thin. Once I just downloaded the iHome Connect app to my iPhone it was much easier!

Sound: The sound is alright. My regular home stereo - which is important to me - is a reasonably good component system with a combination of Mission, Mirage, and Bose speakers powered by decent Yamaha and Onkyo components. Does this speaker system sound as good as those speakers? No. Is that OK? Yes! This iHome iW1 AirPlay system accomplishes what I wanted - to bring additional sound to my kitchen without having to do construction. Mission Accomplished!

This is not an audiophile quality system but it sounds alright and provides simple easy to use connectivity and control. It works well with iTunes and the Apple remote app on my iPhone and iPad. It fits my needs and then some. I really like that in the warmer months I can un-dock this from the charging base and take it outside for family dinners and spending time on the back deck with some music. That is a huge bonus for this system....

All in all, I am very happy with it. Read more ›

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing - not 4S compatible - Bad audio dropout! November 23, 2011

By C. Torrillo

Update: I returned this. no firmware update and I picked up a Philip's Fidelio Sound ring from Amazon and it blows away the iW1 in sound quality... I'd reccomend the Philips over this unit... it's a shame because I really really did want the iHome unit.

On paper the is the ultimate AirPlay system but they failed in delivery. First off its not compatible with the iPhone 4S (confirmed on their support site as known issue) and audio constantly breaks up like ever 2 minutes for about 5-8 seconds. It's not my network as my apple tv which works fine, it's like they don't properly buffer or the processor is underpowered. And I agree with the other low-star reviewer, the power supply is a lame joke from the 80's. I haven't seen this old a power brick in 10 years and the ferrite plug
Is ginormous.

I really hope they can deliver a firmware update to fix 4s and studder issues within the next week or so or it's going back! Will be looking at the Philips units next as Bose also failed to deliver an AirPlay unit.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars the kind of product apple would make November 9, 2011

By Scot Bailey

Amazon Verified Purchase

This product is great. I used their iphone app and it took 2 minutes to set up on my WPA-2 PSK network. I have a solid wifi network and it works beautifully. It is also beautifully designed (the kind of product apple would make if they made speakers). The touch interface on top is also really nice. I am not audiophile, but it sounds pretty good. For $300 it seems like a good deal. And when I magically (wirelessly) send music from iphone to it, it makes me feel like I live in the future.