Logitech Pure-Fi Anywhere

Offering a rechargeable battery with a convenient battery life indicator, a travelling case and a remote control, Logitech's latest iPod speaker system certainly delivers plenty of features. Genuinely surprising though is its excellent sound quality - especially considering the relatively small size.

The Pure-Fi supports any iPod with a dock connector, including the newly released iPod nano, iPod Classic and iPod Touch units. A regular auxiliary port is included too, so the Pure-Fi Anywhere supports all digital music players with a standard 3.5mm headphone jack.

Audio quality is excellent considering the size. Naturally, it won't impress audiophiles but the rest of you will be extremely satisfied by the smooth sound. The mid range has a great level of detail, the highs are pleasing and bass levels are solid, if not outstanding. Sound is exceptionally clear overall, and despite volume at its highest levels, distortion isn't evident. Logitech's StereoXL technology also works well; a single button on the unit (and also on the remote) widens the stereo image creating an immersive audio experience. In a medium-sized room with the Pure-Fi at 75 per cent volume, the StereoXL setting bounced sound off the surrounding office walls to good effect.

The Pure-Fi is let down a little by both the controls and the included remote. The controls on the unit itself are flat and require a firmer press to activate than usual. The remote control shares the same problem, and its range isn't the best; we felt it was a hit and miss affair and the six-metre range isn't really enough. A great feature though is that it offers access to all iPod menu layers.

The lack of bass or treble adjustment is disappointing, but an excellent feature is the one-touch repeat and shuffle modes, negating the need to browse deep into the iPod to activate them. Also convenient is the rechargeable battery, which boasts a quoted 10-hour life in addition to a four-stage battery life indicator. Alternatively, you can use the Pure-Fi through AC power and the iPod is charged at the same time.