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Release Date: August 05, 2009
Genre: Games
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iTunes New Music Releases

Release Date: September 29, 2009
Genre: Rock
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Genre: Rock
Release Date: August 25, 2009

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Discover New Music

  • Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

    • 8 out of 10
    • Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
    • When I first got hooked to Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, the only place I could get their debut album, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, was through the band's Web site. I listened to the two tracks a

  • Supernature

    • 10 out of 10
    • Goldfrapp
    • On their latest CD, Supernature, Goldfrapp has put together a successful mix of 1980-era New Romanticism, German cabaret, and T. Rex glam that leaves you riveted even through the album's lulls. It's a great amalgam that sounds current without sounding at all dated.

  • Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Once More, with Feeling

    • 10 out of 10
    • Various Artists
    • Most musical episodes of TV shows frankly stink. They are usually little more than ill-conceived vehicles intended to let the stars show off what musical talent they have. Once More, With Feeling,

  • Cocked & Loaded

    • 8 out of 10
    • Revolting Cocks
    • It's hard to believe it's been more than a decade since Ministry founder and front man Al Jourgensen's side project Revolting Cocks released any new material. 2006 brings us Cocked and Loaded

  • Never Let Me Down [ECD]

    • 4 out of 10
    • David Bowie
    • It must be a lonely place to be considered David Bowie's worst album by just about everyone, including the artist himself. As the last album before Bowie "rebooted" and formed the band Tin Machine, "N

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In-Depth Review

Boynq Sabre iPod Speaker System

The Boynq Sabre stereo iPod desktop speaker is neither awesome nor awful. It's a decent enough little speaker system with a few unique touches that may make it appealing to some. While its sound quality isn't as good as some other similarly priced iPod speakers (most notably the mStation 2.1 Stereo Orb I reviewed a couple of weeks ago), its size, styling, and features may make it worth considering.

Let's start with styling: The Sabre is an interesting-looking device that comes in two colors, lavender (pour femme; shown below) and black (pour homme; not shown).

It is a relatively compact package that doesn't require much space. That (or perhaps that and its lovely lavender color) may be why wife prefers this system over the larger mStation 2.1 Stereo Orb for our kitchen even though the Orb sounds better and has a wireless remote. (For what it's worth, if it were my call I would choose the better-sounding Orb.)

As for features, it has several desirable ones. It offers recharging and synchronizing via either USB or FireWire, handy if you have an older iPod model. It has bass and treble controls, something not all speaker systems in this price range do. It has S-Video output for use with televisions (iPod video only; not the most recent video-capable iPods), and a 1/8-inch line-in jack for iPod shuffle and other audio devices. And it comes with a full compliment of docking inserts (6) plus line-in, video out, and stereo line-out cables.

The Bottom Line

If you like the design, lack space, or are a fan of lavender (or black) devices, the Sabre may be just the speaker system you need. But if you are looking for the best sound, you'd probably be happier with the mStation 2.1 Stereo Orb or another similarly-priced iPod speaker system. It's not that its sound quality sucks -- it doesn't. But it's somewhat thin, lacking bass response, and distorts a little at higher listening levels.

Just The Facts

Sabre Stereo iPod Speaker from Boynq

MSRP US$129.95

Pros:Attractive design, small footprint, lots of extras.

Cons:Mediocre sound quality.

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