The tube-shaped Altec Lansing inMotion iM7 is a combination Apple iPod dock and portable speaker system. The iM7 adds a little oomph to the company's inMotion line, providing room-filling sound in a stylish white and gray casing.

The iM7 is part of a growing trend in this product category, in which portable speakers are becoming larger, heavier, and louder. It offers several advantages over Bose's Editors' Choice-winningSoundDock Digital Music System, not least of which is that it can run on either batteries (eight D-size alkalines) or AC power. The iM7 also makes more sense for iPod users than, say, the Virgin Boomtube EX by virtue of its integrated iPod dock connector, though the Altec Lansing system is much larger and heavier. The iM7 impressed us enough to name it our Editors' Choice, though the SoundDock will retain its EC award for non-portable systems because of its slightly superior sound.

The iM7 consists of a white plastic shell and gray speaker grille that wraps nearly all the way around the system, covering two 1-inch tweeters and two 3-inch midrange drivers. But its real power lies in the 4-inch side-firing subwoofer on one side, and the 4-inch passive radiator (essentially a bass resonator) on the other.

You can carry the unit, which measures 6.5 by 16.75 by 6.5 inches (HWD) and weighs 11 pounds (with batteries and full-size iPod), via a rubberized handle on the upper back, though we found this awkward and uncomfortable because of the weight and balance. You can buy aftermarket carrying bags, but the unit does not come with a case or bag.