gear4

A new series of Angry Birds iPhone/iPod/iPad speaker docks is winging its way over from accessories maker Gear4.

The units feature a red Angry Bird ($79.99), an explosive black Angry Bird ($99.99), or an evil helmet-wearing pig ($99.99). Each includes a 2.1 speaker, power adaptor, 3.5 mm line-in cable, and 3.5 mm port. Though Gear4 is hyping the products' release now, they're not available just yet as "coming soon..." is splashed across the Gear4 Web site.

We've already seen Angry Birds plush toys, T-shirts, bras, Halloween costumes, stickers, and amusement park attractions, to name just a handful of tie-ins to the Rovio game.

These new Gear4 speakers might be excellent products, but the onslaught of Angry Birds gear is starting to give the popular game that Disney/Star Wars/Mario Brothers uber-merchandised feel. Kind of makes you wonder how far away Mighty Eagle Condoms might be.… Read more

You can play Angry Birds on your tablet, phone, or Web browser. You can cover your mobile device with an Angry Birds case. There is a board game. T-Mobile created a life-size version. There may even be an Angry Birds movie on the horizon.

In case you haven't reached Angry Birds saturation, you will soon be able to pick up some officially licensed Angry Birds speakers from Gear4. The speakers come in the shapes of Red Bird ($89.99), Helmet Pig ($119.99), and Black Bird ($129.99) and should hit stores in September.

Red Bird works with a 3.5mm cable and includes a stand for a music player or tablet. Helmet Pigs comes equipped with an iPod/iPhone dock on the top of its head. Black Bird's stand includes a dock that will also charge your iPad.

The obvious use for these speakers is to amplify your Angry Birds gaming experience. Just resist the temptation to pick up your Red Bird speaker and fling it at the Helmet Pig speaker. … Read more

The cubist period for speakers seems to be alive and well, whether we like it or not. As a reflection of its widening influence, the latest example comes from the U.K. with Gear4's "BlackBox Micro."

As the second half of its name implies, it's the little brother of Gear4's larger wireless BlackBox system. As the first half implies, it's a black box.

The smaller sibling isn't wireless, unfortunately, which is one reason the traveling speaker goes for about $40, as quoted by Electronista. Gear4 claims that the USB device has unusual quality … Read more

The last Gear4 StreetParty we got jiggy with was the StreetParty Size 0, and when it was just the two of us we had a pretty good time. Yeah, sorry for another helping of Will Smith references, but we were just told the Big Willie is in London later today and, well, we're pretty excited.

Anyway, the latest StreetParty just arrived in the CNET complex (two turned up, actually--we're not sure why) and we've had a quick play to form some first impressions.

The StreetParty III--or 3, if you're not down with the Roman numerals--is a … Read more

When Gear4 told us it was holding its most exciting product launch to date, we knew we were in for a little treat. It came to show us its swanky new Duo in private, weeks before said launch, so we've had a chance to form a solid opinion already.

It's called the Gear4 Duo and it's pretty unusual. At first glance it looks like a compact 2.1 speaker unit for the iPod, with an integrated sub. But pull off the magnetically connected front panel and you've got yourself a portable, battery-powered system akin to Gear4'… Read more

Gear4 popped by Crave UK yesterday to talk about a super-secret new product (which we're not allowed to talk about--but you will be excited when we can). We were also given the company's brand-new Bluetooth receiver for hi-fi systems. It's called the Blustream RX and although we've not had a chance to test it fully yet, it's looking to be a promising nugget of kit.

It's a very weighty unit, shaped like a hockey puck and roughly the size of a British three-pin plug. We were surprised at how solid this thing is. It … Read more

Wires and wired connections are for old people, the mentally challenged and the Amish--all the cool people are using wireless stuff. Wireless technology is the connectivity of choice in today's prisons since, unlike Ethernet, it's virtually impossible to kill yourself using Wi-Fi.

OK, fine, wires are actually better than wireless for most things until 802.11n and WiMax (or similar) become mainstream. But Bluetooth has a high adoption rate and Gear4 is exploiting this ubiquity to the max. Its most recent Bluetooth speaker system, the Blackbox, is a rectangular, touch-controlled, 24W, glossy black speaker system.

Along with having … Read more

Thin is in. You know it, right? Gear4 knows it, and in response it has released a speaker dock with dimensions that are usually reserved for supermodels--the StreetParty Size 0. It's so thin, in fact, it even gives that Flat Stanley bloke a run for his two-dimensional money. It clocks in at just 17mm (0.7-inches) thick and the iPod docking area cleverly folds away into the body of the system itself.

OK, so our tests prove it's no 300W Marshall valve amp but it'll help you party in the street, with the added bonus that looks … Read more

Wires are the bane of music-lovers' lives. If you're not spending hours untangling your headphones, you're pulling them out of your mobile phone of MP3 player by mistake. Fortunately, something called A2DP--aka stereo Bluetooth--is putting a stop to this madness.

These Gear4 Bluphones, for example, feature A2DP technology that lets you hook them up to any stereo-Bluetooth-enabled device, such as the Nokia 6300, and listen to music in stereo without wires. If the device doesn't have A2DP support but does feature Bluetooth then it will still play the music, but in mono.

The Bluphones have built-in controls … Read more