There are tons of external speaker systems for the iPhone and iPod. In my house, I've used the Bose SoundDock Portable for over three years and I love that device. The sound is fantastic, and with the rechargable batteries and handle on the top it is easy to carry around from room to room or to the backyard. But even though "portable" is in the title and you could certainly take it with you in the car, the Bose is too big to take with you when you fly someplace or want to put something in a briefcase. For the last few weeks I've been testing two portable speakers for the iPhone that are small enough to take anywhere. Today, I'm reviewing the iMainGo X. (Thanks to RichardSolo for sending me a free review unit a few weeks ago.) There is a lot to like about this device. Tomorrow I'll discuss the Scosche BoomCAN.
The iMainGo X is an interesting device whose size reminds me of the 1980s version of the Walkman, except instead of putting a casette tape inside of it, you put an iPhone inside of the iMainGo X. It is small enough to be very portable, but certainly isn't tiny. (5.7" x 3.8" x 2.4") And it has some weight to it — the iPhone 4 alone weighs about 4.8 ounces; the iMainGo X without an iPhone inside weighs almost double that at 9 ounces. To use it you unzip the device. The left side contains the speaker and a rechargeable battery. The right side has a plastic lid that you remove to place your iPhone in the unit, along with one or more foam pieces (depending upon what model you are using) to keep it snug in the unit. You attach a plug to the headphone port on the iPhone.
Once the iPhone is inside, you zip the iMainGo X closed. One side of the device has a clear plastic window so that you can still touch the iPhone's screen. Touching the screen through the plastic worked fine, but it is a little difficult to press the iPhone 4's button when it is in the case; I wish the plastic screen was just slightly longer.
Once you start playing your music, podcast, etc., you flip the unit over so that you can hear the speakers. Unfortunately there is no built-in way to prop up the speakers, so I often just left it sitting on a table with the speakers pointed up. Sometimes I would lean the unit against something to prop it up somewhat.
There is no volume control on the unit itself; you control the volume on your iPhone. I don't have any way to measure the loudness, but suffice it to say that this speaker is substantially louder than the iPhone's built-in speaker. I found it way too loud (and distorted) if the volume was all the way up, but at around 50% the speakers were loud enough to fill a relatively quiet room. Obviously, a device of this size is not going to rival a full stereo system or my Bose, but the music sounded very good to my ears, and obviously podcasts sounded fine.
I love that this unit is small enough to be so portable for travel, but I wasn't a big fan of accessing the iPhone through the plastic screen. As a result, often when I used this unit, I would take the cord out of the iMainGo X but otherwise zip it up and keep the iPhone outside of the unit, making it much easier to access the iPhone's controls. Also, there was one time a few weeks ago when I wanted to show off my iPad's GarageBand app to someone, and I found that the iPad's internal speaker was not loud enough to hear in a room with background noise. Thus, I attached my iPad to the iMainGo X and it sounded great and was more than loud enough.
On the other hand, there will be times when having an iPhone inside of the iMainGo X is an advantage. First, it is nice to carry around just one unit containing both your iPhone and the speakers. Second, using the iMainGo X is a case could be useful when you want to protect an iPhone from the elements. The device is not completely waterproof, but it is water resistent. I can see using a device like this at the beach if you don't want sand getting in the iPhone.
Note that if you are just using the iMainGo X to protect your iPhone, you don't have to use the speakers and share your music with everyone in the vicinity. The device has two headphone ports on it, so you can keep your iPhone protected in the case while you listen to your music in privacy or share with one friend. There is also an audio input port that I didn't test but opens up the possibility of using this device to record to your iPhone using a microphone or using this device as an external speaker for an electric guitar (although you may have to use an adapter to work with the standard 3.5 mm headphone plug).
This is the third generation of this product. The original iMainGo was for the iPod. (Here's an iLounge review of that product from 2006.) The iMainGo 2 (which is still on sale for $40) works with the iPhone and is powered by AAA batteries. This third generation iMainGo X uses rechargable batteries (it comes with a charger), which is much more convenient and saves money on batteries. The iMainGo X also adds the headphone and microphone ports. In fact, if you wanted to go louder, you could actually use the headphone port to hook the iMainGo X to an additional external speaker.
So in sum, I love the portability of the iMainGo X. You can easily pack it in a suitcase or briefcase, although it is a little large for a smaller bag like the Tom Bihn Ristretto that I've been using lately. The sound quality is very good. What I'm not completely sold on is putting my iPhone inside of the iMainGo X. There could be circumstances in which this is a big plus, such as protecting your iPhone from the elements, but I'm not sure that I like having my iPhone zipped inside of something that makes it three times heavier, and I find it a little cumbersome to use the iPhone controls through the plastic window, although it does work. Still, if you are in the market for a portable speaker, you should consider this one. It might be the perfect fit for your needs, and I've enjoyed using it.
Note that if you purchase this item between now and the end of this month (Sept. 30, 2011), RichardSolo was nice enough to give iPhone J.D. readers a 15% discount, so you can get it for around $60. Just use the discount code "jeff" in the coupon code field during order entry.
