If you have an MP3 player or iPod without speakers, this little keychain with a speaker will give you the same sound you'd get using an iPhone's internal speaker.
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By Ned Jordan
The RockBoom speakers from Rockbuds are portable speakers for use with your iPod or other
MP3 player. They're a little smaller than a golf ball and attached to a key chain so that they can be
carried with you all of the time, but they're a little big if you carry your keys in your pocket
... and you still need to carry the stereo cable with you to attach your iPod to the speakers. The RockBoom
speakers are powered by an internal battery that will give you between three and
four hours of power, and are recharged using a USB cable. All of the cables that you need are included with the RockBoom speakers.
As you can imagine, the speakers themselves are pretty small to fit within the Rockbuds, so don't expect big or full sound from them even with the boost turned on.
In fact, I should be calling the RockBoom a speaker in the singular, because the
ball only contains a single speaker rather than a stereo pair. When using
the RockBoom for music playback with an iPhone, I found that it wasn't all that
easy to distinguish the quality of sound between the RockBoom and the iPhone's built-in speakers,
and so even with the RockBoom attached you still get music that can only be described as tinny.
The sound is clear, but there's no mistaking that it's coming from a small
speaker and you certainly wouldn't want to use these speakers for the music at
your next party. I wouldn't recommend the RockBoom speakers to most people looking for portable speakers for their iPod or iPhone.
There are larger speakers available that can still be called portable that will
provide a fuller sound, and if you find yourself without any speakers you won't
do much better with the RockBoom than you would just turning up the volume on
your iPhone. They're more of an option for those who have an iPod or MP3
player without a built-in speaker, but you'll just be bringing yourself up to
the same level of sound quality you get from an iPhone or iPod touch.
