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PocketDock brings line-out, mini-USB to iPhone

Though no larger than a standard iPod plug, the PocketDock adds a line-out jack for high-fidelity stereo connections and a mini-USB jack for easier syncing and charging.

Rick Broida Senior Editor
Rick Broida is the author of numerous books and thousands of reviews, features and blog posts. He writes CNET's popular Cheapskate blog and co-hosts Protocol 1: A Travelers Podcast (about the TV show Travelers). He lives in Michigan, where he previously owned two escape rooms (chronicled in the ebook "I Was a Middle-Aged Zombie").
Rick Broida
The PocketDock adds line-out and mini-USB connectors to your iPhone or iPod. SendStation

The SendStation PocketDock Line Out Mini USB solves two problems--both of which you can probably guess from the name. First, it adds a line-out jack to your iPhone (or nearly any iPod model).

What's the big deal about line-out? Well, if you're plugging your device into, say, a home or car stereo, the headphone jack just doesn't cut it. It's not sufficiently amplified, and it doesn't deliver quite the same audio fidelity.

Second, the PocketDock supplies a mini-USB port, meaning you can use any industry-standard mini-USB cable to charge and sync your iPhone (and at the same time you're using the line-out jack).

The little gizmo has other perks as well. According to SendStation, the line-out jack consumes a bit less battery power than the headphone jack, so you might get a little extra playtime.

Also, the PocketDock comes with a pair of audio cables: one mini-to-mini (also known as a patch cable) and one mini-to-RCA, the latter for plugging into a stereo's composite-audio jacks.

I'm not sure all that helps justify the PocketDock's $29.95 price tag, which strikes me as steep for such a small piece of hardware (it's no larger than the iPod end of Apple's stock USB cable). But I sure wouldn't mind owning one.

What do you think? Is this something you'd buy? If you agree with me that it's overpriced, what's a fair price? Share your thoughts in the comments.