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6 Sound Solutions for the iPhone Home
Listen up: An iPhone and one of these stylish audio systems let your music look as good as it sounds
Houzz Contributor. I'm a Silicon Valley-based writer, columnist and blogger, covering technology and culture. http://elgan.com
Houzz Contributor. I'm a Silicon Valley-based writer, columnist and blogger,... More »
The era of the big, clunky home stereo system is over for most people. Nowadays, our phones serve as the central location for music, podcasts and other audio entertainment. We expect our music to go with us wherever we go.
Unfortunately, phones have tiny speakers. And who wants to wear headphones around the house all the time? One solution is to embrace iPhone music accessories that double as functional or decorative elements of your home’s decor.
Unfortunately, phones have tiny speakers. And who wants to wear headphones around the house all the time? One solution is to embrace iPhone music accessories that double as functional or decorative elements of your home’s decor.
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The Megaphone is a hand-crafted “passive amplifier” for iPhones. It expands the music like old-school phonographs did back in the day: with an elegant, sound-amplifying horn.
The Megaphone not only increases the tone and volume of music without electricity, but it amplifies the sound of a voice on the line as if the person is standing in the room.
Crafted from clay and resting on a wooden stand, the Italian-made Megaphone is available for $500 in white or black and for $800 in hand-painted gold.
The Megaphone not only increases the tone and volume of music without electricity, but it amplifies the sound of a voice on the line as if the person is standing in the room.
Crafted from clay and resting on a wooden stand, the Italian-made Megaphone is available for $500 in white or black and for $800 in hand-painted gold.
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by KMKG Studio
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| An Austrian architecture and design studio called KMKG Studio custom makes each iTree, an iPhone-docking sound system carved from a single tree from a forest in Austria. Each is sound engineered by the Austrian speaker company Lenz. Each iTree is unique, and you can choose from three kinds of wood as well as the length. The iTree costs between $7,800 and $15,000. |
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by iBamboo Speaker
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| The iBamboo speaker is a very low-cost ($25) way to amplify sound, and with an attractive piece of cut bamboo. The design is extremely minimal and elegant. A carved slot for the iPhone straddles the divider between two compartments of bamboo, separating the stereo signal from the iPhone’s two bottom speakers, using the wood to amplify the sound. |
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Furniture designer Stephane Thivend has created a very unusual pyramid-shape Horus Multimedia Coffee Table, which doubles as a dock speaker system for the iPhone.
The table base is made of high-tech, high-performance concrete, and the table surface is safety glass.
Two amplified speakers broadcast whatever the iPhone is playing, and the dock charges the phone. The juncture of the glass and concrete can be illuminated by any of 24 colors.
The table base is made of high-tech, high-performance concrete, and the table surface is safety glass.
Two amplified speakers broadcast whatever the iPhone is playing, and the dock charges the phone. The juncture of the glass and concrete can be illuminated by any of 24 colors.
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The introduction of the iPhone has brought clutter into our bedrooms.
Millions of these devices spend the night sitting on an end table next to a bed, either playing or plugged into some garish charging station. The iPhone itself has replaced the old clock radio as the device that plays music as we drift to sleep and wakes us up with an alarm. Still, many use audio charging stations to amplify the iPhone’s sound.
The $319 Parsons Audio End Table eliminates the need for the charging station, external speakers and audio cables. The table itself has an electrical cable to power the speakers and charge the phone. Made from engineered wood with a white lacquer finish, it conceals speakers and cables inside. The top is broken only by a small place to insert the iPhone. Once plugged in, the phone charges, and any audio coming from the phone is played through the table’s speakers.
Millions of these devices spend the night sitting on an end table next to a bed, either playing or plugged into some garish charging station. The iPhone itself has replaced the old clock radio as the device that plays music as we drift to sleep and wakes us up with an alarm. Still, many use audio charging stations to amplify the iPhone’s sound.
The $319 Parsons Audio End Table eliminates the need for the charging station, external speakers and audio cables. The table itself has an electrical cable to power the speakers and charge the phone. Made from engineered wood with a white lacquer finish, it conceals speakers and cables inside. The top is broken only by a small place to insert the iPhone. Once plugged in, the phone charges, and any audio coming from the phone is played through the table’s speakers.
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by Finite Elemente
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| The Finite Elemente Hohrizontal 51 is a simple wall-mountable shelf but with a difference. It has two speakers and an iPhone cradle built into the front, leaving nearly all the shelf space available for books, knickknacks, framed pictures or even a TV. It can hold up to 55 pounds. The minimalist design masks real flexibility. On the bottom of the shelf, hidden from view, you’ll find inputs for plugging in a laptop (via USB) or audio components. A composite video output means you can play videos from your iPhone on your TV. It’s also a surprisingly powerful sound system. You can see the two small speakers in the front, but you can’t see the big woofer speakers on the bottom — or the 50-watt power output. It comes in red, gray, black, white, cobalt, mallow or natural-wood walnut. More: How Smart TVs Will Change Your Living Room |
Ideabook updated on May 10, 2012.
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I'm still struggling with a semi-attractive (or less unattractive) way to store 4 sets of headphones, 4 phones, and an iPad on a table so they can charge. It seems to be a constant mess of charging wires/headphone wires.
Also, since there is no amplifier in the bamboo, it is only redirecting the sound from the single speaker. You can achieve the same effect by placing the iPhone speaker against a flat surface and bounce your sound into the room.
I would still love a Megaphone :D That is right up my (ridiculous-thing-loving) alley.
Looking forward to new ideas on this topic.
The designs are cool, but really impractical.