Should You Get a Skin for your iPod?

iPod came into the world of digital audio player in 2001, and since then, for a short span of five years, the standard for digital audio player has never been the same. If it is not an iPod, it is inferior; if it is an iPod, it should be the latest generation.

Third-party manufacturers of iPod accessories were born and are continually growing in number like bunnies. Speakers, FM transmitters, Voice Recorder, BMW Playlist, these are just among the few iPod accessories that keep our mouth agape with delight and expectation. There is, however, a single iPod accessory that created a niche of its own in the "iPod ecosystem": the iPod skin line.


THE LINE OF iPod SKINS

iPod skins are designed, initially, to protect iPods from scratches, dirt, and getting wet from perspiration. iPod skins specifically shelters the screen and click-wheel. But iPod skins manufacturers do not limit themselves to these basic iPod skin feature; for them, iPod skins should be stylish, innovative, and fashionable.

There are iPod skins available for every generation of iPod, including the shuffle, mini and nano lines.

There are wide arrays of iPod skins to choose from. iPod skins may be made from silicone, hard plastic, thin vinyl, or leathers and comes in various colors. There some iPod skins that even glow in the dark!

Known manufactureres of stylish and innovative iPod skins are Kate Spade, iSkin, Incase, Chums, Speck and Xtreme Iconz,.

www.iLounge.com offers the best iPod skins in the market at low prices.

GO SILICON, HARD PLASTIC OR LEATHER WITH MY iPod SKIN?

- Silicon iPod skins

iSkin has the best line of iPod skins. It offers silicone and thin vinyl type of iPod skins. Its eVo2 line of iPod skins offers all-around surface protection, including screen and click wheel protection.

Silicon iPod skins is cool and soft to the touch and keeps the iPod unit insulated from battery heat. Although silicon felt like soft, gummy rubber, it stays in your hand with its anti-slip grip.

Silicon iPod skins comes with a rotating belt clip or a plastic lanyard (if you like) and spaces for ipod, buttons, jacks, click wheel and dock port were cut out for easy access. If you want a glow in the dark iPod skins, buy silicon made iPod skins.

You can dress up your iPod with silicon iPod skins for $20 to $30.

- Hard Plastic iPod Skins

Hard plastic iPod skins are the next best thing to silicon iPod skins. It is offered in various colors, see through and with a plastic lanyard or belt clip. The best hard plastic iPod skin is from NanShield.

Hard plastic iPod skins, unlike silicon iPod skins, does not have the no-slip guarantee when your hand perspires. If you accidentally dropped your iPod, the hard plastic skin could crack and shatter and might do more damage to your iPod than with your iPod unskinned.

Hard plastic iPod skins are the cheapest iPod skins in the market, offered on the internet for just $9.

Some breaking news. This April of 2006, Gizmondo released The Jimi case, a 100-percent recycled plastic iPod skin. Attached at the back of this iPod skin is a mirror which you can use for make up touch ups or any other purposes that you could think of. This environment friendly iPod skin comes in six different colors.

- Leather iPod Skins

This is the most expensive iPod skin in the market. Priced from $20 to as much as $200, those who think they are in vogue and in style prefer the hot and tight leatherette to skin their iPods. Kate Spade has a line of expensive but elagantly crafted leather iPod Skins.

Some leather iPod skins look more like a case rather than a skin because of a flip-flop top cover. The leathery look, subdued hues and a flip-flop cover are the kind of design especially preferred by the older crowd of iPod users.

A leather iPod skin has cut out to make way for dock connector, jack port, and click wheel. It has a detachable rotating belt clip and a leather lanyard if you prefer to wear your iPod on your neck.