Here at Futuremusic, we're big fans of iPod hats. After getting our meaty paws on the first generation iPod Shuffle, we couldn't help but notice that a dedicated iPod Hat would be the ultimate accessory for anyone leading an active lifestyle. A couple of snowboarders on staff here actually designed their own Shuffle hats and took to the slopes, but when the weather warmed up, they're iPod baseball hat designs were not nearly as inspired. Enter iSoundCap.

Closeup of the cord-management pouch and iPod holster on the Tribal Hat

iSoundCap, a concern from Delray Beach, Florida, USA, has designed a baseball hat specifically for holstering both the Shuffle and the Nano. The hats both feature an outside pocket with a clear plastic inset for viewing the iPod's controls on the back of the hat, plus a cord management receptacle. We liked the basic design and layout of the hat, but had two major problems with the iSoundCap hats we received.

First the quality of the hats' iPod holster and cord management pouch was lacking. It looked cheap, felt cheap and didn't look like it would stand up to much wear 'n' tear. A couple of our testers really liked the design concept behind the elastic, cord-management sleeve, but found that the plastic spool for winding the cord was too flimsy, and the sleeve lost its elasticity in short order.

"Wow, you look so hot in that upcoming iSoundCap design!"  (New Runners Cap - Inset)

The second complaint had to do with the actual baseball hat design, not the iPod accessories, and was pretty much across the board. Aesthetically, the hats were weak. iSoundCap attempted a cool Tribal pattern on one of the hats, but none of our testers found it to their liking. The unattractive Tribal design element, coupled with a very high-profile hat, translated into the hat being left at home, despite the innovative iPod accessory implementation.

Not all is lost for iSoundCap. The company has developed a solid concept, but they need to step up the quality quotient and hat designs in future runs. As if they were privy to this review, iSoundCap has recently introduced new baseball hat colors and two new hat designs: a ski beanie and a low-profile runners cap with a more fashion forward design. iPod users have shown a propensity to spend a lot of money on accessories, and headwear still has a lot of room for products. The iSoundCap currently costs $19.95, although their stated MSRP is $29.95. More information on iSoundCap.

The Future: Based on the current incarnation of iSoundCap's website, it appears that the company is addressing the hat design issues. However, for the company to reach the next level in their short history, the level of quality must be raised.

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