Wise Startup Blog

I’ve gone through about 15 different phones in the past year and about just as many different accessories, and since the year is coming to a close, I figured it would be a good time to do a run-down of the best accessories for my current phone, the iPhone:

iPhone Stereo Headset by Apple $29

What? An original accessory making it into this list? Yup, these headphones are as good as Steve Jobs has led us to believe. I’ve gone through a number of bluetooth headsets, but personally, I can’t beat the reliability and huge convenience that these headphones provide:

1. They don’t cause you to drain the battery like Bluetooth does
2. They are stereo headphones, so you can switch from calls to mp3s in seconds
3. You can easily skip the next song, pause music, accept calls, ignore, and drop calls, all with a single button (1 button mouse, anyone?)
4. They are cheap, replaceable, and look trendy as hell

The good: Look at items 1-4
The bad: The microphone seems to lose its ability to pick up signal over time, so you’ll have to replace em every 3-4 months. You can yank the hell out of your ears if you get stuck on a chord somewhere. Audio quality ain’t Bose, but if that’s your thing, this ain’t it.

Belkin Sports Armband for iPhone $12.99

You bought the iPhone for a reason, you want your iPod and phone to be interconnected, and part of that convenience means you have one library that is always synched to your favorite music. I create my gym mixes on my iPhone and make sure to always have them ready for whenever I work out. The Belkin armband provides a nice front pocket and protective plastic screen to prevent your iPhone from getting scratched. It has a volume up/down button on the side and an opening at the top to stick in your headphones.

The good: The band is comfortable, easy to put on, relatively inexpensive, very durable, and doesn’t seem to get smelly at all.
The bad: I have a difficult time navigating through the protective plastic sheet, the arm band actually goes around my forearm as it doesn’t fit around my biceps. Also, the velcro attachment is at-times, hard to get clipped on the go, and I’ve learned to put the iPhone in the pouch first, then to attach the strap.

All in all, for $20, you can’t go wrong with this handy strap.

Griffin RoadTrip FM Car Dock $39

Now this bad boy is the ultimate road trip essential. Since you always have your library with you, you no longer have to worry about remembering to bring your iPod for long trips in the car. The RoadTrip itself is one of the sturdier designs out there, and I purchased it for that reason. Some other models don’t have a thick shell to them and are more of a snaking design, and personally I didn’t feel comfortable with their longevity, and their ability to take a few smacks from your hand when you inadvertently wallop the thing!

This unit uses FM stations to transmit to your car speakers, and as long as you don’t live under a radar tower, you should easily be able to find some open frequencies. Sound quality is pretty good, definitely not as good as in-car models, but you get what you pay for with this $40 model.

The good: Great price, durable, nice design, portable, full range of FM frequences
The bad: Whenever you get a call, you get this annoying GSM buzzing, which of course you can disable if you turn off your phone signal, but who wants to do that. You get the annoying “this is not made for an iPhone” warning we’ve all come accustomed to. It doesn’t fit in all cars, I know my girlfriend’s Scion had one hell of a time, so be sure to spec it out first.

But for $40, this baby packs quite a punch and it fits great with your iPhone’s black motif.

Macally iPhone Plastic Swivel Holster and Stand $20

Personally, I LOVE the design of the iPhone, and the last thing I want to do is cover it with some crappy, $5 neo-leather case. That is why I opt for the standard Blackberry-style clip-on belt holster. I put the belt holster on my waist, and can easily snap the iPhone into and out of place, and am free to show off the iPhone to any guy that wants to come talk to me about it.

The good: Cheap, replaceable, keeps my iPhone looking fresh
The bad: Doesn’t provide much protection against falls, scratches, and these things can easily snap off. I’ve learned to wear it on my right hip, because when it’s on my left hip, and I get into the car too fast, it’s caught the seat and seat belt and flung way off my waist sending my iPhone screaming to the ground to cover her in horrible scratches, scar tissue still remains.

For $20, this is a little pricey, but it also doubles as a stand for extended watching of movies.