When first checking out the naviPlay I had high hopes but dissapointment came again and again. First, the box design is trying very hard to match Apple's elegant package design. Ten falls a bit short of this, as it took me 10 minutes to get the naviPlay out of the box completely. Once out of the box, I charged the base and remote for an hour and then set it up.

The first thing you have to do is attach a clip to the base that holds your iPod in nice and snug. They are all clearly labeled, which made finding one for my 15gig G3 iPod easy, yet the plastic is extremely flimsy and feels cheap. Interesting enough, when putting my girlfriend's iPod mini in, it was so tight I thought it was going to get scratched. Once attached, you put your iPod in and you're done on that end. Next up is the remote.

The remote is small and can fit in any pocket easily. It has a rocker switch that can change the volume and skip tracks back and forward. There is also a play/pause button on the side. While the rocker switch works good, the play button feels out of place and I kept having to look to see where it was. The remote does have a hold switch on it which works great and you can also use a lanyard that is included to make the remote easier to carry. Range on the naviPlay is good, with me moving over 15 feet with no interruption in music.

The real issue with the naviPlay is the practicality of this. The box states the the naviPlay "is designed for active users, freeing you from the cumbersome cable connections between you and your iPod." If your headphones are hooked up to a remote, how are they less cumbersome than hooking them to a remote that's getting a stream from a remote iPod that has to be close to you to begin with? I feel that if you want to listen to your iPod, you're going to hook up right to it and go from there. Adding bluetooth streaming, while nice, isn't necessary for such a portable device. Additionally, the remote is only a third smaller than the iPod itself so there is bairly any space saved.

Perhaps someone with a very outdoors lifestyle can find a real great use for the naviPlay, but I came up with nothing during my time with it. Given that it retails for $199, I couldn't ever see myself buying something that is half the cost of the iPod itself.

Overall the naviPlay does what it does good and the function of it worked flawlessly. Included internal batteries was a plus and the setup was a snap. If you can find a use for the naviPlay in your iPod life, this can be an ideal product for you. To learn more, visit Ten Technologies at www.tentechnology.com

Final grade: (1 to 5 stars)

Ease of use:
Does what it's supposed to do:
Price:
Practicality:
Overall (avg) score: 3.25