Altec Lansing inMotion iM500 Ultra-Portable iPod nano Speakers - Articles / Reviews

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Altec Lansing inMotion iM500 Ultra-Portable iPod nano Speakers

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Kurtis Kronk
Brian
Altec Lansing
Apr. 16, 2007

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Conclusion

Ah yes, the conclusion. To recommend, or not to recommend, that is the question. This is where things get tricky! So let's start out by recapping some of my earlier points. I like the design of Altec Lansing's iM500 iPod nano speakers. They look great and the size is quite convenient; they really are a match made in! well, some factory somewhere. Contrast that with the Yeti-sized footprint of the Kensington SX 3000R that I reviewed last week!

Sound quality is pretty much exactly what you would expect from speakers of this size, no more and no less. In a nutshell, bass is weak and overall they sound a bit alarm-clock-radio'ish (a nice alarm clock radio, perhaps).

There were a few things I wasn't thrilled about, which may or may not matter to you. First, considering the price, I was disappointed to not see an integrated FM tuner or wireless remote. I was also a bit confused as to why Altec Lansing didn't include a USB cable since there is a USB connection on the back of the iM500, which I can only assume is meant to allow you to sync your iPod nano to your PC. Then there is the fact that the iM500 is made specifically for the iPod nano, so if or I suppose I should say when you upgrade to a new iPod, it won't be compatible.

So with all that laid out there, should you empty your pockets for Altec Lansing's iM500? Well, my personal opinion is that prices are way too high on all these iPod accessories, particularly when you consider the iPod upgrade cycle. However, since prices are high across the board, it's not like I can really fault Altec Lansing specifically on that point, I just personally wouldn't spend my money on such a thing. But if you are in the market for some fun size iPod speakers which look great and sound pretty good, your nano will be right at home.

As a final note, Altec Lansing now offers an inMotion iM600 which you may want to consider over the iM500. It is compatible with all iPods rather than just the iPod nano, it's a little more powerful, and it adds an FM tuner, wireless remote, and a built-in Li-ion battery with an estimated battery life of 7 hours. While I can't personally give a concrete recommendation since I haven't used it, I believe the iM600 would be a much better value. While it uses different drivers than the iM500, I don't think for a second that the sound quality would be less.

Pros

Looks cool
Solid construction
Ultra-portable, indeed
Optionally powered by batteries

Cons

Impossibly thin feature set (no FM tuner or wireless remote)
Sound quality on par with others, but nothing to rave about

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Page 1: Introduction & First Impressions
Page 2: General Usage & Sound Quality
Page 3: Conclusion

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