There is an interesting video(click on pic) over at YouTube that shows how a Treo 680 affects the volume of someone's 5G, 30GB iPod. In the video, the Treo 680 is sitting next to the iPod. User "samfranzen" says,:
Interference from my treo 680 (gsm, cingular) causes my ipod (5G, 30gb) volume to flip out. bluetooth also causes problems.
As can be seen in the video, the volume on the iPod goes up and down erratically as someone presses buttons on the Treo 680. User samfranzen says more in the Comments & Responses section on the YouTube page. Samfranzen says that the problem is worked out and that the iPod is more or less "OK" while the Treo is just in standby mode. But goes on to say:
But once we sync versamail (outlook for treos) or use the bluetooth, the volume goes nuts and shoots up and down. not good for the ears. not good at all.
I'd never heard of this problem before. Apparently it's not exactly something new though according to several comments over at Gizmodo after Gizmodo ran with the story yesterday. There are quite a few explanations for the problem in the Gizmodo Comments section. TreoCentral's Discussion Forum also has a post regarding the Treo's affect on the iPod's volume. If you'll read the Altec Lansing inMotion iMT1 Mobile Audio review by Jay Gross, you'll find that Jay discusses that the device works only on Treos that are connected to CDMA networks. In the review, Jay says that might be because Treo 650s on GSM networks emit a periodic signal, checking in with their towers, and that causes a glitch in the output.(Thanks Harv!)
Well, the problem might not be new, but it sure was news to me. I'm sure that many others out there weren't aware of the problem either. I have a Treo 650 and an iPod with video and I've never had this problem. I've used both devices in very close proximity many times, and my iPod's volume has never changed. I'll be getting a Treo 680 for Christmas, so we'll see if the new Treo messes around with my iPod's volume. If that happens, I'll update this post. ;-)
