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>> Hi I'm David Carnoy, Executive Editor for CNET.com, and I'm here with the Mix iMT800 iPod stereo system from Altec Lansing. As you can see this harkens back to the old school boom boxes, and it is truly a boom box speaker system, and it does have some kick to it. One of the nice things about it is there are 3 handles, there's 1 a the top and there are 2 side carrying handles. The unit itself is pretty hefty, it weighs around 10 pounds, so you won't want to lug this around too far. But certainly fine to take out to the patio, out to the pool, or out to the beach as long as you have your car with you. This does take 8 D batteries, so actually that 10 pounds is probably closer to 12 pounds once you get the batteries in there. And this will last up to 30 hours using those D batteries. This does have an FM radio. There is no AM radio, however. And there 2 inputs and they are on the top of the system, so you can add another MP3 player. There's also a small remote that comes with this system. And there is a little dock. And so it slides in there so you don't loose the remote. The remote kind of also looks like a bottle opener. It really isn't intended for that. It's really intended just so you can clip it on your belt. But we have seen people use it as a bottle opener. However, it is made of plastic, so you risk breaking your remote if you use it as a bottle opener. In terms of the speaker drivers, there is a 1-inch tweeter on top, and then just below it a 3-inch midrange driver, and then a side-firing subwoofer on the side of the unit. The system does have some kick to it, and is one of the better sounding iPod/iPhone speaker systems we've heard in this price range. Not only is there nice detail to the sound, but there is, as I said, some oomph here. This will fill a larger room with sound. And you do when you, especially when you play bass heavier tracks you will feel that bass in the room. One little design note, on the front of the unit there's a bar that goes across your iPod, it actually looks like it might be difficult to get your iPod or iPhone in and out of the unit. But that bar actually slides up and down and will protect your iPhone or iPod in the event that someone at a party who's drunk and stumbling around doesn't hit the unit and break your iPod. For the FM radio you'll find a telescoping antenna on the top. And to tweak the sound there are some EQ settings, you can adjust the bass and treble. All in all we like this system. Its design may not be to everyone's taste, but it mixes a nice blend of both good performance and good features in a package that can be used at home or on the road. I'm David Carnoy, and that's the Altech Lansing Mix iMT800 iPod iPhone boom box.
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