As social scientists keep pointing out to us, the iPod is all about shutting yourself off from society. After all, who needs human interaction when you've got an iPod? Bite me, world! Still, there are situations where you might want to play music for other people, and one of the more convenient ways to do that is by using an FM transmitter. In the car or at home, broadcasting your iPod songs via radio is useful way of playing music. I had the opportunity to evaluate three different FM transmitters for iPod, each of which had its own strengths and weaknesses.

With the purchase of a new 4G iPod 20GB for my wife, I also found myself in need of a new case. Because while the iPod may be many things--elegant, easy-to-use, and quite possible Apple's greatest product ever--one thing it is not is scratch resistant. So without further ado, we present the contenders...

What the inMotion is for, and excels in, is to provide personal sound for your iPod. This is not a unit to fill a room—although the inMotion can get quite loud, but loud is different from filling a room. Physics simply states that something this small cannot move enough air to fill a room. The four neodymium speakers provide excellent crisp tone with a pleasant amount of bass.

When I first heard of the iPod shuffle, I wasn't impressed. It seemed a step backward. While I loved the reasonable price and the tiny size, 120 songs seemed limited and the lack of visual interface a severe limitation. But since I'm a foolish early adopter and technophile, I knew I'd get one the first chance I got. To my surprise, the iPod shuffle turns out to be my favorite iPod!

I get what Apple's doing with the iPod Shuffle, and I won't argue there's not a market for it. But, I'll caution anyone in this market that it would make much more sense to just save up a while longer to get an actual iPod.

Unlike most people, I never hated the standard iPod earbuds. Never, that is, until I got a pair of Sony Fontopias. And you know what? Standard iPod earbuds suck.

Altec Lansing has proven their ability to deliver decent sound from a set of portable speakers. With the YO302WHT headphones, they also had to throw comfort into the mix, and again proved themselves up to the challenge.

One of the best things about the iPod is that cool add-ons can make it even better. For instance, the iPod lacks an important feature that turns it from a toy into a useful business accessory: voice recording. But, here to the rescue is Griffin Technology with their new iTalk voice recorder. It's a tiny white microphone that plugs into the headphone jack at the top of your third-generation (dock connector) iPod. There are no buttons or software or anything to configure: just snap it in place and you're ready to record.

This field has become so crowded that, pretty soon, Mac reviewers and retailers will have to hire station personnel with white gloves just to squeeze everything in. Of course, this is good for consumers; it keeps the price down, it offers variety, and it promotes growth. In fact, one of the products we're reviewing today, the eVo, is so named because it's the evolution of a previous model. It had problems, so it was forced to adapt so as to not become extinct. All the better for us.

Altec Lansing has earned a reputation for having some of the best speakers out there, especially for the computer. However, you can't look at the tiny speakers of the inMotion and expect too much. The speaker housings are no bigger than the iPod itself, and each features two 1", full range neodymium Micro Drivers providing a total of 4 Watts RMS. Doesn't seem like much? Two things to consider. First, the inMotion wasn't built to replace the sound system in the local night club. Second, Altec Lansing is pretty good at squeezing as much sound as possible out of small speakers.

So, you've got an iPod (or an iPod mini) and you want to play it while riding around in your car. There are FM transmitters to broadcast your iPod's music, but then you need that extra cable to get power into your iPod to save on battery power. Lastly, how do you support your iPod when many cup holders don't have solid bottoms. Well the TransPod FM does it all. Seldom have I been so jazzed about a product that I had to show it to everyone, strangers included.

As iPod sales have gone through the roof, the number of iPod cases has grown exponentially. I spent a week at Macworld Expo San Francisco hawking these things, and I've learned what matters when it comes to dolling up your iPod: protection, functionality and aesthetics. Keeping those in mind, here are some thoughts on a few of the more popular cases available for the 3G iPod.