Onkyo iPad dock adds AirPlay streaming

Onkyo's £150 DS-A5 iPad/iPhone dock brings AirPlay wireless music streaming to legacy hi-fi and home cinema systems.

With a DS-A5, owners of current-model Onkyo home cinema receivers – as well as older models without a USB port or an ethernet connection – can enjoy all the benefits of AirPlay as well as a secure digital-to-digital docking connection to iOS devices.

The Onkyo dock is wi-fi certified and compatible with the majority of iPad, iPhone and iPod models. It will also work with non-Onkyo hi-fi and AV systems.

When the device s docked, a digital audio output can be used to send sound directly to a receiver's DACs (digital-to-analogue converters) for better sound reporduction. And a composite video output to view photos and videos stored on an Apple device on a big screen or TV. Playback can be controlled using the supplied remote.

There's also a standard set of analogue audio outs and an ethernet connection.

What's more, if the DS-A5 is linked to an Onkyo stereo or multichannel receiver via the supplied RI (Remote Interactive) cable, the user can power up the entire system from cold simply by selecting content on their iPhone/iPad and tapping the AirPlay icon.

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Andy Clough

Andy is Global Brand Director of What Hi-Fi? and has been a technology journalist for 30 years. During that time he has covered everything from VHS and Betamax, MiniDisc and DCC to CDi, Laserdisc and 3D TV, and any number of other formats that have come and gone. He loves nothing better than a good old format war. Andy edited several hi-fi and home cinema magazines before relaunching whathifi.com in 2008 and helping turn it into the global success it is today. When not listening to music or watching TV, he spends far too much of his time reading about cars he can't afford to buy.