iPod Mind Melds with Cassette Deck By Darryl Wilkinson October 1, 2005 — If you're one of the three people in the world - and that includes me - who don't yet have an iPod, here's yet another reason to go out and get one. Griffen Technology, Inc., a company that makes all sorts of very cool computer-related accessories, has announced that they're now shipping the SmartDeck Intelligent Cassette Adapter for iPod.

Before you yawn and say, "Oh, another cassette adapter? How terribly exciting...", hear me out. Sure, the SmartDeck lets you hook up your iPod to your cassette deck. (If you're asking, "What's a cassette deck?" you can pretty much move on to some other titillating story on this web site.) What sets the SmartDeck apart from all the other cassette adapters is that it allows you to use your cassette deck's forward and rewind buttons to skip songs forward or backward on your iPod. Likewise, the pause and stop buttons on the cassette deck do the same for the iPod - and, if you eject the SmartDeck or switch your car stereo from the cassette to the radio, the SmartDeck will automatically pause the iPod.

I don't know about you, but as a guy who learned to drive back when CD meant Certificate of Deposit - hey, dude, at least I'm not old enough to remember when CD stood for Civil Defense - I'm truly fascinated by a gadget that squeezes a little bit more life out of the old in-dash cassette deck most of us had a true love/hate relationship with. How does the SmartDeck do its magic? I don't know. I just know it's really cool.

Griffin says the SmartDeck includes an intelligent level control that sets optimum input levels as well as optimal volume on the iPod for the best audio quality. The company also notes that they use the highest-quality tape head for the best audio transfer.

The SmartDeck works with the iPod mini, iPod Photo, 4th Generation iPod with Click Wheel, and 3rd Generation iPod with touch wheel and buttons - although the play/pause feature is not supported with the 3rd Generation iPods. (That sounds like a good reason to upgrade to me. Want to make me an I'm-literally-giving-it-away deal on your old one?) Griffen's SmartDeck is available now for $29.99. A version of the SmartDeck compatible with the new iPod nano is expected to be available in November.

Apple Macintosh owners can also thank Griffin for the soon-to-be-released FireWave, an external device that will bring Dolby Digital surround sound to Macs "for gaming, DVD players and iTunes." It's small enough to use with a laptop, gets power through its FireWire connection (no extra cables or power adapters!), and includes an extra FireWire port for daisy chaining other peripheral devices through the FireWave. The device's built-in Dolby virtual surround sound processing can be used to create computerized multichannel nirvana from any two-channel signal.

The FireWave is expected to sell for $99.99. Griffin says it will "begin shipping in the third quarter of the year."

Good things come to those who wait. (Mac owners just have to wait longer…)