FM radio receiver for iPod dock

[crackhammer]

I have Logitech s715i iPod dock speakers. During hurricane Sandy, I strongly felt, I should have purchased FM Radio receiver for this speaker. Googling did not give me any such product but gave a tons of them that could be hooked on to iPhone or iPods.

Could anyone direct me to such product if it exists?

If there is none for the dock itself, it also has AUX input via 3.5mm audio pin. If there is any hardware that can be hooked up to this port, its fine too. At the end of the day, I just want radio if I have to use it.

Thanks in advance.

 

[kornchild2002]

There used to be an FM radio adapter for iPods but it is no longer supported by any iPod or iPhones. In fact, I think Apple took it off the market 5-6 years ago. So you won't be able to do anything with an iPod or iPhone as the only iPod to have a built-in FM radio is the iPod nano.

Now, what you can do is buy a small portable FM radio to plug into your Logitech units. You would need a male-to-male 3.5mm cord that would plug into the headphone output of the portable FM radio into your Logitech speakers. That being said, you might as well just buy a small FM radio. You can find them for $10-$20 at Walmart, they have a built-in speaker, they should have headphone output (incase you really want to use your Logitechs), and they can run off of batteries or be plugged in. I think it would be better to just buy a radio system (even a simple clock radio) instead of trying to make it work with your Logitech speakers. They even make $20 AM/FM radios (with built-in speakers) that can be recharged by turning a crank or even by setting them out in the Sun. Those would be your best bet instead of spending the same amount of money on a portable unit that you could hear only through headphones or if your Logitechs has power.

 

[Sparkee]

No matter where you live everyone should have a good dedicated emergency radio, solar and/or crank preferable both. The last thing I would look for in a good emergency radio is an iPhone dock, however most come with a USB port to charge most USB devices available today. It doesn't have to sound good or be used regularly, it just has to sit on the shelf just incase.

CCrane is a good US company that provides the CC Solar Observer AM/FM/Weather Emergency Radio w/ LED Flashlight. Radio Shack or The Source in Canada has many good Eton brand radios. Then main features to look for are at least a crank power generator, USB charging ( for your smart phone), AM/FM receiver as well as weather radio bands and a LED light. Many Eton models have an Aux in so you could also listen to other sources.

I get in a habit to use my Eton at least once a month to keep it in shape.

 

[crackhammer]

Thank you guys for a good advice. I should have mentioned that my iPod got stolen so this speaker unit is used with my android phone, which also has FM radio.

@Sparkee,
I really liked the radio you linked to. I also checked REI if they have any othert but this guy rocks. My only complaint is, they need to think more on battery, which apparently they are aware of. The battery is good enough for running radio for 30 hours but in case of real emergency, if cell phone towers are still up and running, folks will charge their phones on this system. Now, the system has charging jack but our current breed of phones need so much of power that charging them on such system will render radio useless and you will have to tell your kid to keep cranking it. And no kid will do it
So my only complaint is, if they could put some really powerful battery, it will be great, or if they could offer such option to the user (at extra charge, of course), I will be happy to go with this product.

I ALWAYS have spare set of batteries but when the emergency strikes, you have no clue how next moment is going to be.

But anyways, good thoughts and suggestions. I will search for a real emergency radio and go for it.

Thank you guys.

 

[kornchild2002]

Even with a larger battery, you will still have to crank. A smaller battery means more periods of cranking that don't last as long whereas a larger battery means you will have to crank less often but, when you do, it will be for a longer period of time (I swear this isn't a description for a late night movie on Cinemax).

Either way, I don't see it as being killer since these radios are recharged with physical labor. I actually went out and purchased a crank AM/FM radio with a few LED lights and a built-in USB 2.0 port for $25 as I lost power 5 hours (not related to the Sandy) and my iPhone 5 was dying. It was either that or sit in my car for a few hours and charge my iPhone that way (and my car had 1/8th a tank of gas). It really is the best option in an emergency situation since it is "always on" and doesn't require an outside power source. I forget what brand I picked up but it was able to fully charge my iPhone 5 in about 3.5 hours and the radio was still going when the power came back on.

On a completely different note: I am disappointed in FM radio stations these days.