iTree: iPod Speaker/Dock in Hollow Trunk
The iTree. @KMKG.
This huge hollowed tree trunk serves as an iPod dock and speaker system. Created by Austrian design studio KMKG, it weighs in at 60 kg (about 130 lbs).
They describe it as “just a simple tree (trunk) hollowed out with a special technique to create extraordinary sound.” They worked with speaker company Lenz on the sound engineering, customers can choose the type of wood, length of the trunk and have some input on which techniques are used to influence the type of sound.
The one pictured above was a prototype used for a recent installation, designers are now at work on a product. They’ll be using Swiss pine or pinus cembra for it, noting that “this one is going to smell nicer, too.”
No word on price or availability, yet.
This is kind of the supersize version of all the wood iPod cases and docks we’ve seen recently, though whether the green-minded would feel comfortable knowing a tree had been cut down for it may be another thing.
Nicole Martinelli is a San Francisco native who has lived in Milan and Florence, Italy. She's written for Wired.com, The New York Times and Newsweek. You can find her on 
