Monster iMotion CarPlay 3000 [via ZDnet]

Monster iMotion CarPlay 3000 [via ZDnet]

Let's assume you're a safe driver. You keep your eyes on the road, your hands and 10 and 2, and Big Gulps in the oversized cupholder. You enjoy listening to tunes on your iPod and/or iPhone, but you'd never look down to fiddle with the controls. Still, you wish there were a way to safely fast-forward through songs that have gotten a little stale -- and now there is, with the Monster iMotion CarPlay 3000.

As terrible as that name is, the device seems fairly cool and simple to use. In essence, the CarPlay 300 is a video sensor that attaches to your Apple device, and it's powered via a run-of-the-mill 12-volt charger (which plugs into the outlet formerly known as the cigarette lighter). Fire it up, and it allows you to use hand signals to skim through playlists. Wave your hand to the right, it fast-forwards. Move to the left, and it rewinds. Hold your hand still, and it pauses. Cnet has a (lamentably unembeddable) video demonstration, if you care to click through.

 There are a few reports of the device misinterpreting signals now and then -- for example, when drivers shift gears on manual rides, or in some cases, when the car passes through heavy shadows. But for folks who spend a lot of time in the car, there are probably worse ways to spend $120.

[Cnet]