Going into the production of our 2007 iPod Buyers’ Guide, there were several new iPod accessories that we really looked forward to seeing perform up to full expectations, as they would conceivably have been category leaders had they been properly executed. Belkin’s TuneCommand AV for iPod ($80) was near the top of this list - a smart combination of a radio frequency (RF) remote control and audio-video iPod dock, promising to let users control iPod audio and video on a TV located up to 120 feet away. Unlike similar products from companies such as DLO, Belkin’s dock and remote design was simple and mercifully small - the dock’s only a little bigger than one of Apple’s, and besides its additional broadcasting power, the remote is similar to an Apple Remote, only with shuffle and repeat buttons in addition to track backward/forward, volume, and play/pause buttons.
Our enthusiasm wasn’t only based on the unit’s technology and simple design - on paper, it seems like a much better deal than Apple’s iPod AV Connection Kit (B+), which for $100 delivers an iPod Universal Dock, AV cable, Remote, power supply and cable in a single package. Belkin’s new dock is also Universal Dock standard-compliant, and includes five Dock Adapters for various sizes of iPods, a power adapter to keep the iPod charged while docked, and an AV cable - S-Video and composite video out are both supported, with pretty clean audio and video signals relative to some of the iPod video docks we’ve seen. Additionally, Belkin’s includes several add-ons for its RF remote, namely a detachable lanyard necklace and belt clip, along with an adhesive pad that attaches the clip to any flat surface for storage. Oh - have we underscored enough that this whole package sells for only $80?
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