Just as the iPod has proliferated in North American, the dockable speaker set for iPod, iPod Nano, and the ill-fated iPod Shuffle has also become ubiquitous in the living rooms and kitchens of iPod aficionados across the land. Even considering the dubious sound quality of the MP3 generation in general, and the tiny speaker sets often used to play them, there is something to be said for the tiny size of both the players and the speaker sets. The new generation of small speaker sets are designed expressly to complement the iPod’s portability – if one’s MP3 files are desired in the bedroom instead of the family room, a lightweight system is easily transported across the house. Try that with your audiophile quality receiver, CD player, and behemoth floor-standing speakers…

And the new generation of docking speakers from reputable companies such as Tivoli, Kensington, and Altec Lansing are actually sounding pretty good, sharing the same dedication to quality as the iPod itself. Again, it is simply not appropriate to compare the quality of the small systems to full-size outfits, as they are two different breeds serving two entirely separate market sectors. For those who love the elegance and portability of the iPod or the Nano, a compatible set of dedicated speakers is almost a must, and any of the models mentioned will handle their duties very well indeed…

Kensington 33165 SX 2000 Speaker Dock for iPod, iPod Nano, iPod Shuffle

Fill the room with superior stereo sound from an ultra-thin speaker. At home or in the office, the Kensington SX 2000 Speakers with Dock for iPod do something that other similar speakers can't. Thanks to NXT's advanced SurfaceSound® flat panel speaker technology, they deliver clearly superior bass and sound balance from both sides of the unit. And unlike other similar speakers, they have the power to crank up the volume without losing sound quality! Plus, you get a "Made for iPod" design that looks great with your iPod and in your space. And easy-to-access buttons control your iPod´s power on/off and volume up / down. About Universal Dock: The Universal Dock provides a single, elegant way to connect any iPod with dock connector to your iPod accessory. iPod fits into the Universal Dock through the use of interchangeable inserts called Dock Adapters. Made for iPod and iPod mini. Also plays audio from iPod shuffle, as well as any other audio source such as MP3 players or computers through a standard 3.5 mm headphone jack [cable not included].