Rotate on this: New iPod, iPhone dock from Sharper Image

I admit I’m a digital pack rat, downloading digital files like it’s nobody’s business. And a good number of these are media-based — such as music, audiobooks, TV shows, movies, music videos, and so forth — which are perfect for copying over to my trusty iPhone.

And so I was excited about trying out the curvy new Sharper Image Dock for iPod/iPhone ($99.99). It supports all iPods except the shuffle, but it was really designed for the iPod touch and iPhone. Why is this, you ask? Because not only can you dock your media player or smartphone in the middle of this unit and use the backlit buttons or wireless remote to play music, but then you press a button on top of the unit and your iPod or iPhone rotates slowly in a counterclockwise fashion and stops when it’s horizontal — perfect for video playback.

Clever idea, no? The speakers also sound pretty clear, but they start getting a bit distorted at higher levels. And don’t expect it to blow the roof off your room either, as these 2.25-inch speakers are only about 3 watts apiece (therefore more ideal for a night table in a bedroom rather than a huge basement). Also, it would’ve been cool to rotate the dock using the remote instead of just the button on top of the speaker dock.

Three iPod dock sizes are included, plus an optional auxiliary input jack can be used to plug in other MP3 players (cable included).

This funky-looking Sharper Image product can be found at Future Shop, The Source and The Bay.