Igbloo bluetooth receiver unveiled – link up your phone to your hifi without any wires

Stage One Technology have today announced the Igbloo bluetooth streaming receiver – which looks set to make getting your music to your sound system a whole lot easier.

The Igbloo works fairly simply – you hook this little box up to the aux-input on your speakers or stereo, and then pair it with your phone – then when your phone plays music, it’ll come out of the speakers instead.

It’s a bit like Apple’s Airplay, which has been around for a few years now. That works, assuming you have the right kit, over wifi instead – allowing you to play music from your iPhone or iPad on your hifi system. The trouble is – not a huge range of devices support Airplay, so users must worship at the altar of Apple. The Igbloo, by contrast, uses the more open and widely Bluetooth for sharing audio – which should work with a wider range of devices (even dastardly Android phones).

Similarly – there are other bluetooth receivers on the market (LG make a similar device) – but where the Igbloo stands out, aside from in the looks department is that it uses the APT-X, AAC and (apparently “world class”) Wolfson DAC standards – which should enhance the quality of transmitted audio. Usefully also – the Igbloo can pair via NFC, so there’s no faffing about with passcodes.

The product is expected to hit retailers early next year – though Stage One Technologies are also planning to read a Kickstarter, which will allow backers to get their hands on a device ahead of time.

Hopefully we’ll be able to try it out ourselves soon!