The iPod has certainly seen its share of playback systems hit the market in the past few years; docking stations that will charge the iPod, playback the music, julienne potatoes and bake pies just like your grandma made. Any new entry into the market is to be viewed, therefore, with jaded skepticism unless it adds something new to the mix...and Creative's XMod seems to do just that.

Xmod, you say? Yes - the X is for X-Fi, or "extreme fidelity." Basically, the Xmod is a candy-bar-sized gadget, upgradable through your computer via USB, that goes in the sound chain between your iPod and a set of speakers or a pair of headphones and enhances the sound by resampling the audio at 24 bits (higher than the 16 bits sound stored on any CD) and reverses the damage caused by MP3 compression with a restoration algorithm. The device also includes a surround algorithm that simulates surround sound, turning a pair of stereo speakers or headphones into a home theater.

I haven't heard the Xmod in action so I can't speak to its actual abilities, but I must admit I'm a bit skeptical, if for no other reason that when record companies decide to remaster a recording at 24 bits, they hire a professional engineer to spend months tweaking with things to get the best sound. Having a one-size fits all resampling and correction algorithm do the job won't be the same, just like the one-size fits all faux surround won't be quite as good as having a true surround mix. However, all that said, I'm sure the Xmod will make your music sound better than it does coming out of your iPod by itself - whether or not it's worth the cost and burden of carrying around is a whole other question.

Via Macworld UK