When it was launched, at the end of last year, Optoma's Neo-i docking station has managed to bring a breath of fresh air into the world of iPhone/iPod docks, and during the 2011 Mobile World Congress, which takes place right now in Barcelona, Spain, we managed to spend some quality time with this device to see if the integrated projector really works as good as advertised.
The
pico projector enclosed in this otherwise standard iPhone/iPod dock uses Texas Instruments' DLP technology and is able to display images as large as 120 inches at a resolution of 854x480 pixels.
These can be either pictures or movies taken straight from your iPhone's memory or images from any other app that offers TV-Out support, one such example being Netflix.
Other input sources can also be used, since the Optoma Neo dock also packs composite, VGA and HDMI 1.3 connectors, and is even compatible with Apple's iPad via an optional adapter which is available from various retailers.
As far as the specifications of the enclosed projector go, this offers a 2,000:1 contrast ratio, provides 50 Lumens of brightness and the bulb life is estimated at about 20,000 hours.
“The Neo-i offers a unique solution to a marketplace that is increasingly dependent on portable devices for both audio and video content,” said
Optoma’s Senior Director of Sales and Marketing Jon Grodem.
“This gives them a simple, all-in-one solution for sharing that content,” concluded the company's rep.
During our short time with the device, we put its projecting capabilities to the test and the image quality managed to surpass our expectations.
Of course, one has to keep in mind that the lamp isn't very bright so the dock must be operated in a rather dark room.
The Neo-i iPhone/iPod dock is already available for purchase and is listed at $449 US.
Note: Fellow editors Cosmin Vasile and Alex Vochin are on the floor at the 2011 Mobile World Congress and are keeping us posted with pictures and live reports on the latest product previews and launches.
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