Like many control freaks, I'd like to keep my iPhone tucked away in my knapsack and control it remotely. As pathetic as it may sound, it's actually a bit of a pain to dig the unit out of your pack or pocket just to adjust the volume of the current track or to answer a call.
Most iPods can be controlled on a tactile basis via Apple's useful Radio Remote (and the plain remote that came before it) so it's a bummer that a complete set of functions isn't available for the iPhone 3G.
Many cable options exist for the iPhone 3G, but all of them (to my knowledge) are missing at least one critical feature. For instance, there are many cables which allow you to answer a call, but they usually lack a volume adjustment or they only allow you to skip to the next song (one song at a time with a double-click, and no skip back functionality).
For me, the challenge is to find an iPhone 3G headphone remote that meets the following criteria:
1. Controls music functions (play/pause, skip forward, skip backward)
2. Has volume adjustment (analog okay; preferably connected to iPhone's digital volume)
3. Allows user to plug in own set of headphones (stereo minijack pass-through)
4. Has good quality microphone for phone calls
5. Has clip to tether cable to clothing
Nice to have (but not required):
6. LCD screen displaying current track or caller ID info
In a fantasy world, this would all be done wirelessly via Bluetooth, but Apple doesn't seem to regard the A2DP protocol as a high priority for the iPhone 3G and I'm not willing to pay to cram an ugly piece of hardware up my iPhone's butt simply to allow it to gain access to technology it already has and should be able to use.
The closest options I've found so far:
a) Brando remote thingy:
http://shop.brando.com.hk/prod_detail.php?prod_id=02192&dept_id=046&cat_id=0932
http://www.usbfever.com/index_eproduct_view.php?products_id=397
Pros: Has most of the features I'm looking for; price is right
Cons: Can't skip backwards; can only skip forward one track at a time; dubious microphone quality
b) MyBlu thingy:
http://www.myblu.biz
Pros: Has most of the features I'm looking for; looks nice
Cons: I suspect answering calls on the iPhone doesn't work (will a firmware upgrade solve this?)
If you can find a working remote that meets all the requirements above, I'd be very happy. I'm hoping that Apple will eventually release a wired remote for the iPhone but until then, here's hoping someone knows of a product that fills the void.
Most iPods can be controlled on a tactile basis via Apple's useful Radio Remote (and the plain remote that came before it) so it's a bummer that a complete set of functions isn't available for the iPhone 3G.
Many cable options exist for the iPhone 3G, but all of them (to my knowledge) are missing at least one critical feature. For instance, there are many cables which allow you to answer a call, but they usually lack a volume adjustment or they only allow you to skip to the next song (one song at a time with a double-click, and no skip back functionality).
For me, the challenge is to find an iPhone 3G headphone remote that meets the following criteria:
1. Controls music functions (play/pause, skip forward, skip backward)
2. Has volume adjustment (analog okay; preferably connected to iPhone's digital volume)
3. Allows user to plug in own set of headphones (stereo minijack pass-through)
4. Has good quality microphone for phone calls
5. Has clip to tether cable to clothing
Nice to have (but not required):
6. LCD screen displaying current track or caller ID info
In a fantasy world, this would all be done wirelessly via Bluetooth, but Apple doesn't seem to regard the A2DP protocol as a high priority for the iPhone 3G and I'm not willing to pay to cram an ugly piece of hardware up my iPhone's butt simply to allow it to gain access to technology it already has and should be able to use.
The closest options I've found so far:
a) Brando remote thingy:
http://shop.brando.com.hk/prod_detail.php?prod_id=02192&dept_id=046&cat_id=0932
http://www.usbfever.com/index_eproduct_view.php?products_id=397
Pros: Has most of the features I'm looking for; price is right
Cons: Can't skip backwards; can only skip forward one track at a time; dubious microphone quality
b) MyBlu thingy:
http://www.myblu.biz
Pros: Has most of the features I'm looking for; looks nice
Cons: I suspect answering calls on the iPhone doesn't work (will a firmware upgrade solve this?)
If you can find a working remote that meets all the requirements above, I'd be very happy. I'm hoping that Apple will eventually release a wired remote for the iPhone but until then, here's hoping someone knows of a product that fills the void.