Filed under: Accessories, iPhone
Shure Music Phone Adapter
Macworld head honcho Jason Snell got his hands on a pre-release version of the Shure Music Phone Adapter (MPA) and has an enthusiastic preview over at Macworld. The MPA is basically a microphone that plugs into the iPhone to allow you to use non-Apple headphones to make calls. Most importantly it allows you to use canal-phones (like those from Shure, Etymotics, and Ultimate Ears among others) with your new favorite toy. Having used a pair of Etymotics for the past few years I can't imagine going back to earbuds, so a device like this would be a must for me. Further, since most headphones require an adapter for use with the iPhone anyway (given the strange port design), the Music Phone Adapter looks to be a very useful accessory. It is "coming soon" for $49.95.
[via Macworld iPhone Central]


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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Fred said 11:12AM on 7-24-2007
$50?!?!?! Wow such a deal. Maybe reality will come to visit before they release this thing, and they'll drop the price. This thing is worth $20 maybe?
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Sean Karns said 11:19AM on 7-24-2007
why couldnt they follow apple's lead and at least make the thing look good; does the mic really need to be that big?
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punkassjim said 11:38AM on 7-24-2007
The bigger problem I have is that the cord for my E3c's is already 5 feet long. What, am I gonna wrap it up and let it all hang by my lapel?
I'm pretty sure I can live without answering calls while I'm wearing the Shures. If I'm wearing sound isolation headphones, there's a pretty good reason for it. Fifty bucks my ass.
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candyman said 12:01PM on 7-24-2007
Why are you people using wired headphones to talk on the iphone? Save the $50 and try the Jawbone, Apple's Bluetooth, or any other bluetooth. The Jawbone works great and sounds great.
And for listening to music, my Etymotics fit the headphone jack fine - no need for an ugly adaptor here. Apple made a design decision to recess the jack to provide more support for the jack and reduce failures. Good for them.
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Sean Karns said 12:13PM on 7-24-2007
I want something that does double duty; I can listen to music and receive a call. Plus, BT headsets just make you look like a tool.
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machine said 12:21PM on 7-24-2007
Not $50... not $20... $2.50 is what I'd pay for what's essentially plastic and wiring.
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intelligentmachine said 1:32PM on 7-24-2007
Plus development, marketing, packaging, technical support, labor ...
Should I go on? It's a quality product from a quality company who will stand behind what they make.
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josh said 4:40PM on 7-24-2007
I ♥ my Shure earphones, but this thing looks ugly, unweildy, and overpriced.
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pirate4now said 8:27PM on 7-25-2007
50 is a bit high but it would be worth it if the cord was shorter and it didn't have that huge mic (I know these were brought up already, I just wantted to belong)
I would argue anyone who is going to start arguing about prices ( 40 vs 50) doesn't own an iphone anyway
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David said 5:54PM on 7-24-2007
I read the review, but I have a question. I use a similar cable for my Kyocera 7135 Palm phone (www.pc-mobile.net/ky7135.htm). As you can see, it has the advantage of a retractable cable. I use this with in-ear headphones, and also use it as a nice way to turn the 7135 into a car phone by plugging it into my car stereo's aux input.
My question is about how the button works on the Shure cable. On the 7135, pressing the button activates the voice recognition calling. Also, when a call comes in, pressing it answers the call. What's really useful is that when listening to music, pressing the button pauses the music and if a call comes in while listening to music, pressing it pauses the music and answers the call. Pressing it again after the call ends restarts the music.
Anyone know if the Shure work like this?
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Invader J said 6:03PM on 7-24-2007
V-Moda for the win. At the moment, they don't have the control button. But, those should be on the way in the next few weeks apparently!
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Chet Yeary II said 6:42PM on 7-24-2007
It's available to buy online Apple Store for $39.95 and according to the site it's shipping within 24 hrs:
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?mco=DB861236&nplm=TN544LL/A
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