The Price: $160

The Verdict: The wireless Audex system which controls your iPod works like any other iPod RF remote. There's an RF receiver dock adapter and a wireless remote for controls. The system is advertise to work with 3rd Gen iPods or newer and from our testing we found the iPod touch and iPhone can not properly be controlled.

The iPod is meant to be housed in a padded pouch inside the backpack which features a headphone extension cable that is rerouted through the backpack and down the right shoulder strap where a female headphone jack is provided. For the remote Burton has made a rubber housing located on the left should strap which makes the buttons accessible at all times. The wireless controller is removable and works as it should, providing the basic play/pause, skip forward/back, and volume up/down.

This backpack has some pretty impressive storage for its size and with only two large sections which incorporate many unique storage compartments allow for nice organization of your laptop, gadgets and small gear. When packed to the brim the bag can be a little bulky and stiff but the heavily padded back and shoulder straps allow for a somewhat comfortable fit. This backpack is not intended to be worn while snowboarding and frankly because of the shape and lack of an extra cross strap we wouldn't recommend it. It seems more fitting that the backpack be used around town or on short trips when you want to easily control your iPod's music and need to carry your laptop and other gear.
[Burton]

Snowmodo is our snow sport winter meet up at Lake Tahoe, with prizes, discounts, tons of fun snow activities, a party and GADGETS. If you can make it (and people are coming from TEXAS) please RSVP. I'll let you wear my hat (below).

Price: $419

How it Tastes: The speaker system is loud enough to share music with those in close proximity on the slopes, or a couple of seats over on the lift. The 3AAA powered pack sits in a pocket and sends up wires to the little flatish egg like speakers on both sides of the hood. They seem very weather resistant, from the cloth covering to the small speaker holes. Battery life is 10 hours, but good news— when your battery pack dies, your ipod or whatever you've got plugged into the mini jack, will still be as loud as a set of headphones, without amplification. At this volume, only the people next to you will hear the sound, about the volume you get when you're on the bus and a person's headphones are cranked. This is a far better and simpler solution — things necessary on the mountain — than the old complicated ribbon cable and bluetooth motorola audex jackets which basically unplugged when you moved too much and ran out of batteries and died on you often.

The jacket itself is down filled, and waterproofed on the outside. It's very very warm and better for slow movers on cold blue bird days where you don't have any chance or worry about sweat building up. There are pit zips for cooling, of course, but down is hot, and this jacket is no exception. You'll have to deal with the drafty pits and the heat build up on your core in certain places wearing this jacket, like with any down shell. The waterproofness and breath factors are rated at 10,000mm 5000g, which is mid high on waterproofing, using Burton's 3 layer dryride shell but the breathability, as I said above, is not as great as you'd get on a unlined shell. There's a zip and snap jacket to pant interface to avoid snow wedgies on pow days. I love riding in storms, when the tourists go home and the overpriced waterproof outdoor jackets I have are tested, so this one isn't breathable enough for me. It also makes me look even more like a teddy bear than I do naked. But if you need to stay warm and listen to tunes on the mountain, there are very few jackets that do audio so well.

[Burton]

Snowmodo is our snow sport winter meet up at Lake Tahoe, with prizes, discounts, tons of fun snow activities, a party and GADGETS. If you can make it (and people are coming from TEXAS) please RSVP. I'll let you wear my hat (below).

The binding borrows the chair's breathable webbing and strong Y support core, creating a lightweight and flexible structure that will run interested snowboarders $390. It's incredibly interesting to see the unique design principles of one product make their way into another product, even if it's obvious (in retrospect) that such ideas would easily scale for universal application.

But everyone be nice to Burton and be sure not to mention that the Aeron's successor was already announced...and it uses a completely new "H" back support. I guess that's what Burton's 2010 line is for. [Fast Company via Core77]

Click on through, take a poll, and you're in the running. –Brian Lam

Shiny Toy Guns and Gizmodo Giveaway

Speaking of Burton, don't miss our giveaway. – Travis Hudson

Product Page [Via OhGizmo!]

Jump to see the Liquid Lounger in action.

Burton Liquid Lounger Backpack [Burton]

The two companies have teamed up to produce the Audex Bluetooth stereo system, including an ugly-looking plaid jacket that wirelessly communicates to Bluetooth phones, letting users control music and phone calls with transport and volume controls sewn into the jacket's sleeve.

Also part of the collection is a hoodie with speakers and an integrated headphone jack built in, along with helmets and beanies infused with Bluetooth tech. Let's just hope the rest of that collection looks better than this plaid jacket. Available at Burton retailers starting this month. – Charlie White

Motorola's 2nd-Gen Wearable Electronics [Bios Magazine]

With a name like the Ronin Espionage Jacket, I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Conjuring up thoughts of Japanese warriors and Roger Moore, the jacket actually seems to be made for those of you who trying to find a nice mix of style and stealth. It comes with removable insulated vest, 3-layer laminated shell, handwarmer pockets and even an oversized game pocket on the upper back. And here's where the espionage part comes in, it's got an integrated digital camera for those "secret photos" we know you've been trying to shoot. Watch out bunnies, here I come! All for just $500. What a steal Burton!

Burton Ronin Espionage Jacket [Cool Hunting]