iLounge

First Looks

Welcome to our new, continuously-updated First Looks - a collection of previews showing brand new iPod, iPhone and iPad accessories that we’re currently in the process of testing. Here’s what’s hot right now:

« First < 4 5 6 7 8 > Last »

Company: Scosche

Website: www.scosche.com

Model: backStage Pro II

Price: $150

Compatible: iPad 2, iPad (3rd-Gen)

Scosche backStage Pro II Headrest Mount for New iPad + iPad 2

Though it's far from the least expensive method of mounting an iPad 2 or third-generation iPad in the back seat of your car, Scosche's new backStage Pro II ($150) is certainly one of the most thoughtfully designed -- a multi-piece, serious solution for headrest mounting. One piece is an aluminum and plastic bar that mounts near-permanently on the headrest bars, using an allen wrench for initial installation to secure its position; the bar can be tilted to your preferred viewing angle. Next is an iPad 2/iPad (3rd-Gen) case that remains easy enough to remove the iPad from when necessary, but can be attached or detached using the headrest bars as is necessary. The case includes a speaker to make listening easier for your rear-seat passenger, and supports wireless IR headphones if you'd prefer not to hear the audio elsewhere in the car. Last up is the included car charger, which connects directly to the side of the case for power on the go. A USB port is included for alternative access to the iPad, and a headphone port hole is included as well, along with full access to the screen and Home Button through the case, and additional front-mounted controls for the speaker.

Company: Minimal Inc.

Website: www.Mnml.com

Model: Touch Pen

Price: $20-$40

Compatible: All iPads, iPhones, iPod touches

LunaTik Touch Pen

Scott Wilson's design company Minimal helped usher in the first wave of cool sixth-generation iPod nano accessories with the LunaTik family of watch bands, and now his Apple-focused LunaTik label is about to unleash its first iOS add-on: the Touch Pen, soon to be available in Touch Pen Polymer ($20) and Touch Pen Alloy ($40) versions. Both use the same smart design to blend a rubber-tipped stylus with a traditional rollerball: you just press the back of the Touch Pen inwards to make the pen tip pop out or recess inwards. Polymer is made from one of five colors of glossy plastic with a rubber finger rest, while Alloy (shown here) is made from one of three colors of aluminum with a rubber finger rest and metal shirt clip. Extremely handsome in person, the Touch Pen gives you the natural-feeling length of a pen plus the iOS compatibility of a stylus, with all the attractive design you'd expect from Minimal and LunaTik products.

Company: Luxa2

Website: www.Luxa2.com

Model: P1

Price: $TBD

Compatible: Most iPods, All iPhones, All iPads

Luxa2 P1 7000mAh Battery + Charger

Designed to recharge two devices at once -- though clearly before the release of the third-generation iPad -- Luxa2's P1 7000mAh Battery + Charger ($TBD) promises a 78% recharge for original iPads and 3 or 3.5 times charging for an iPhone, requiring eight hours to refill itself once depleted. Despite its iPad billing, P1 only supplies 1 Amp of power to each of its full-sized USB ports, while taking only 1 Amp during recharging, slowing down both its inbound and outbound power capabilities. The battery pack is also made from silver plastic rather than aluminum, though this particular cost-saving measure isn't obvious until you actually touch P1. Luxa2 packages P1 with a carrying pouch, a micro-USB to USB cable, and a Dock Connector to USB cable.

Company: Logiix

Website: www.logiix.net

Model: Styluses

Price: $20-$40

Compatible: All iPads, iPhones, iPod touches

Logiix Stylus Diamond, Stylus Presenter + Stylus Titanium

Well on its way to establishing itself as a stylus iteration machine, Logiix has introduced another three models with different features. Stylus Diamond ($30) is pitched as "the best and most accurate stylus yet," using a transparent plastic tip that bends with a spring to provide "pen-like accuracy." Shipped with two tips, the Stylus Diamond is similar to Adonit's Jot series, except that one of the springs bent to the point of damage the first time we tried to install it. Stylus Presenter ($40) is Logiix's "all in one" model with a pen, laser pointer, and rubber-tipped stylus together in two parts that can be connected and disconnected; three total pen tips and three batteries for the small laser pointer are included. Finally, Stylus Titanium ($20) has a long barrel with a carbon-coated soft tip, plus a silver shirt clip. Unlike the all-black other versions, Titanium comes in seven different colors.