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           TDK OutLoud CD Wallet

Product :

 OutLoud CD Wallet

Manufacturer :

TDK

Reviewed by :

Wayne Brooker

Price :

£19.99 (Mono) £29.99 (Stereo)

Date :

August 11th, 2003.

 

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Available in black, red and blue the OutLoud CD Wallet range features both a single speaker mono and a double speaker stereo version. The one I'm looking at is the blue stereo version.

First impressions are that this is a nicely made if unusually large, soft padded CD storage case. The rubber TDK OUT-LOUD logo on the front adds to sense that this isn't just some cheap job that you picked up from the local market.

At about two inches deep in total, the OutLoud CD Wallet is quite chunky though you get the sense that extra semi-hard padding has been used to give extra protection to the speaker panels themselves.

The zip covers three sides of the wallet and with this open you see that inside is room for 24 CD's in twelve double sided pouches and a reasonably large mesh pocket that should just about hold your CD player provided it's not too bulky but which will certainly accommodate an MP3 player, some spare batteries and set of earphones for example.

And on the opposite panel is the combined battery compartment and speaker assembly tucked away behind what feels like a fairly hefty layer of padding. Sprouting from this panel is about 16 inches of cable capped with a 3.5mm stereo mini-plug which should allow attachment to all manner of audio devices from Walkmans to high end notebooks.

 

Power is provided by three AA batteries which aren't provided (come on marketing, surely a pack of your own TDK batteries would be a nice and possibly advantageous move!). Battery life is claimed to be around 24 hours but there doesn't seem to be any kind of power saver so make certain you switch off when you've finished. The battery compartment lid is hinged which means you're not likely to end up losing the cover in the middle of the woods on your next picnic. A simple, sliding power switch is provided alongside a green power on LED.

 

 

You'll have notices a pair of short Velcro straps on each side of the OutLoud CD Wallet. These are so you can use it as a free standing unit which positions the speakers at a better listening angle than just lying it flat.

 

Overall quality is very good and battery life is certainly on the reasonable side of okay. TDK don't exactly tell you not to use rechargeable batteries but the instruction book does say that they recommend alkalines.

I can't pretend I'm wild about the fabric used to cover the OutLoud CD Wallet. It looks good and it feels like it's reasonale quality but it tends to attract dirt and stains like a magnet and probably isn't the kind of thing that reacts well to being mauled every time you need to carry it somewhere. Furthermore it doesn't even pretend to repel water or, not great if you get caught in a shower or if your hands a little hot and sticky. Something a little more wipable might have been a better choice considering there's no carrying handle, which for the record is something else I'd have liked to see added.

 


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