Best accessories for your new iPad or iPhone

Best iPad and iPhone accessories
We tested out every piece of kit in this pile so you don't have to

We love the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

The things you can do with them are nothing short of incredible: watch TV; find the nearest fine dining establishment; record and edit HD video… the list goes on.

But these devices can be even better. With the correct accessories, you can push your kit to new limits.

iPhone speaker docks

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iPhone speakers

01. Gear4 Angry Birds Speakers
Price: £50 - £70
URL: gear4.com
Works with: Everything
Aux in: Red Bird only

These aren't going to compete with the others here in the sound stakes, but just look at how cool they are! As well as the Red and Black birds, you can get a green Helmet Pig. The Red Bird has a 3.5mm jack, so you can connect other audio sources too.

02. Logitech S715i
Price: £99
URL: logitech.com Works with: iPhone, iPod touch
Aux in: Yes

As well as pumping out the best sound you're going to get for under £100, Logitech's dock has a built-in battery and comes with a carry pouch, making it the perfect portable sound system whether you use it in the house or outdoors.

03. Philips Fidelio DS3020
Price: £49
URL: philips.com
Works with: iPhone, iPod touch
Aux in: Yes

At its modest price point, this diminutive and stylish dock blows the competition clean out of the water with its audio prowess. A great choice for listening to your music in a small room, such as your study, student halls or bedroom.

04. Klipsch iGroove HG
Price: £100
URL: klipsch.com
Works with: iPhone, iPod touch
Aux in: Yes

If you listen to a lot of music that benefits from powerful, thumping bass, look no further than this speaker, which lets you enjoy dance and R&B at its most immersive. And we love its unassuming, swept-back form.

05. Memorex Mini Alarm Clock Radio
Price: £47
URL: memorex.com
Works with: iPhone, iPod touch
Aux in: Yes

This is the perfect size for a bedside table. Dock your iPod touch or iPhone, and wake up to find it fully charged with your own music playing. The audio is quite good considering it's coming from such a small unit, and the 3.5mm aux-in jack means you can connect your iPad for its tunes too.

iPhone speaker docks £100+

Speaker docks 100+

01. B&W Zeppelin Air
Price: £499
URL: bowers-wilkins.co.uk
Works with: iPhone, iPod touch (docked), iPad (AirPlay)
Aux in: Yes

This king of iPod docks may have a royal price tag to match its stature, but it really is worth every penny. It looks great, sounds awesome and - thanks to AirPlay - works wirelessly with your iPhone, iPod touch and iPad too. Your ears will thank you forever for getting one of these.

02. Altec Lansing Octiv 650
Price: £130
URL: alteclansing.com
Works with: iPhone, iPod touch
Aux in: Yes

Don't be fooled by its minimalist, understated exterior - the Octiv 650 is a great value dock that packs in a brace of video outputs so you can enjoy your favourite flicks and programmes from your iPod or iPhone on a regular TV. The on-board EQ helps you tweak the sound output to match what you like to listen to. It's cleverly packaged too.

03. Creative Ziisound D5x and DSx
Price: £280 (D5x), £140 (DSx)
URL: uk.creative.com
Works with: Everything
Aux in: No

Meaty, beaty, big and beefy, this dock and subwoofer combo is the perfect partner for enjoying music and movies on your iPad, iPod touch or iPhone. Because it's completely wireless, you can listen cable-free. This also gives you the option of adding extra speakers - making it ideal for multi-room or even home cinema set-ups.

04. Arcam rCube
Price: £350
URL: arcam.co.uk
Works with: iPhone, iPod touch
Aux in: Yes

Thanks to a £150 price drop, the cleverly packaged rCube is brilliant value for money, combining portability and flexibility with hi-fi quality sound. The best thing about the rCube is that you can daisy chain additional units together cable-free; all you need to add are the optional rWave USB Music Streaming Dongles (£80 each) with Kleer wireless tech.

05. Revo Axis
Price: £200
URL: revo.co.uk
Works with: iPhone, iPod touch
Aux in: Yes

Armed with DAB, DAB+, FM and internet radio, the Revo Axis is so much more than a regular iPhone or iPod dock. The front panel comes complete with an easy-to-use touchscreen display and menu system, which is matched by a great audio performance that belies its size.

iPad docks

iPad docks

01. Altec Lansing Octiv 450
Price: £82
URL: alteclansing.com
Works with: iPad

The Octiv 450 is a great little charging stand for your iPad, and its built-in speakers are perfectly competent for playing back music or TV programmes, say. Its meagre footprint makes it perfect for small desks or kitchen worktops.

02. iHome iD9
Price: £97
URL: ihomeaudio.com
Works with: iPad

The sound from this smart, compact speaker isn't as full as even the slightly cheaper Octiv 450, but it's by no means bad - and it has great stereo separation. It has a great hidden feature, though: a 10-hour built-in battery for tunes on the go.

03. Philips Fidelio DS9010
Price: £349
URL: philips.co.uk
Works with: iPhone, iPod touch, iPad

Our current favourite speaker system for iPhones, iPads and iPods - bar none. Yes, you can spend more and get even better, more balanced sound, but for our money, the richness and punch of this dock is well worth the significant cash investment.

04. Apple iPad Dock
Price: £25
URL: apple.com/uk
Works with: iPad

Apple's official dock for the iPad doesn't have any speakers in it - it's just a handy place to put your device to charge it and keep it at a useful viewing angle. Yes, it's expensive, but its simple good looks and surprising level of stability means it gets the nod.

05. KitSound iPad Dock
Price: £6
URL: kitsound.co.uk
Works with: iPad

If you don't fancy shelling out 25 quid for the Apple dock, consider this little bargain from KitSound. At only £6, it does pretty much the same thing for a quarter of the price. If you can live with non-Apple accessories, it's a steal.

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