iLounge

Company: Tiger Toys / Hasbro

Website: www.Hasbro.com/tigertoys

Model: i-Cat

Price: $30

Compatible: All iPods

Tiger Toys i-Cat Interactive Music Companion

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By Jeremy Horwitz

Editor-in-Chief, iLounge
Published: Thursday, November 9, 2006
Category: iPod Hardware Expanders - General, Speakers - All-in-One/Portable

[Editors' Note: On November 1, 2006, iLounge published The 2007 iPod Buyers' Guide, with more than 30 brand new, capsule-sized product reviews - only for products we considered to be amongst the very best we've seen throughout the year. The short review below is excerpted from the Guide, which you can download here.]

We’ve seen a handful of iPod-ready toys over the past few years, but the ones that best match Apple’s style and philosophies are Tiger’s i-Cat and i-Dog, simple little glossy plastic speakers in the shape of cats and dogs. Released first, i-Dog now comes in a wide array of colors, while the newer i-Cat is available only in black or white. Each one has transparent ears and chrome face accents, a tiny microphone to detect (and respond with purrs or yips) when it’s being touched, and a tail you can pull to trigger more noises. Connected to an iPod via an included audio cable, they become passive listeners and speakers, playing your music and responding with an on-face light show that varies based on what they hear. Cute, inexpensive, and fun, they’re right for animal lovers of all ages - just pick your species. You supply the two AA batteries needed to keep i-Cat meowing.