10. Myvu Shades Made for iPod Edition

Myvu Shades Made for iPod Edition

$99.95

If your dad doesn’t mind looking like he just got his eyes dilated and he’s wired for video-enabled iPod (5G to touch), check out the Myvu Shades Made for iPod Edition. The idea here is that Dad gets to see his video blown up on a big screen floating in mid-air rather than on the tiny screen of his iPod. Of course, there’s not really a big screen floating at arm’s length, and if your dad thinks there is, go get his meds right away. No, the bottom part of the Shades integrate two tiny LCD screens, one on each side of the nose, each displaying at 320x240 resolution, just like regular QVGA iPod output. QVGA does not look like a 60" HD plasma, no matter how big or floaty it is, so adjust expectations accordingly. Maybe someday we’ll get stereoscopic 3D output from these, but for now the two screens combine in the user’s brain to look like a single large screen. Images are bright and crisp.

There are a couple of caveats here. Because the screens are mounted alongside the nose, the user has to look down in order to see the screen. This is fine if you’re sitting by yourself, but it will mean that you’re not looking at or near whatever is in front of you. The other caveat is that there’s a fair bit of cabling with this set. Data cables run down each arm and into a connector that plugs into an inline controller (for volume, contrast, and brightness) that in turn connects to the iPod. RF would be cleaner, but it would cost a lot more and probably wouldn’t look or sound as good. Speaking of which, the in-canal earbuds are made by Ultimate Ears, a very considerate nod to those of us who can’t stand cheap, won’t-stay-in-your-ears buds.

There’s a 10-hour battery in the Shades that recharges via USB, and the set won’t drain the iPod’s battery. One interesting options is the $19.95 splitter cable, which could allow Mom, with her own Shades, to join in on the fun. When would someone use the Shades? Well, think about situations such as riding the bus, air travel, long waits at the doctor’s office—anywhere there’s no TV but long stretches of idle time. If your family is like mine, they’re also good for family reunions. Dad might appreciate that.