Advisers with iPhones, meet the Cinemin Swivel micro projector

After having seen this week’s column Garrett G. Gatch of the wealth management firm Concord & Lexington, Inc. wrote me to tell me about his choice of presentation setup.
“I believe the iPhone and Cinemin Swivel combination offer a much more robust and workable solution,’ he said, referring to the Blackberry Presenter and BenQ GP1 that I reviewed in this week’s column.
“I understand that iPhone may not be applicable for folks using other carriers but the iPod is just as useful in this situation,” he added.
So for all you advisers that want to use a projector with your iPhone (or several models of iPod) this might just be a good choice (I found the Swivel online for $260 from Amazon.com).
The Cinemin Swivel is from a very interesting company, Wowwee, makers of the popular robotic toy Robosapien, among many others.
Keep in mind though that unlike the BenQ GP1 and other micro projectors that are designed with laptops in mind you’ll need additional cables to make the Swivel work with your laptop or netbook.

For example, laptops or netbooks with S-Video will require an S-Video and stereo audio to RCA Converter; Laptops or netbooks with VGA will need Wowee’s Cinemin Swap accessory an add-on compact powered box which converts VGA to an analog AV signal.
The website describes the Cinemin Swivel as a recreational multimedia pico projector that is designed primarily to connect to iPhones, iPods, and composite video-out devices to project videos and photos.
It is plug and play and uses the simple AV-in jack and connects to a wide variety of personal media players, including the iPod, iPhone, Flip Video, PSP, digital cameras, portable DVD players, netbooks (computer-specific cable required), and smartphones with video-out functionality.
The 90° hinge makes it easy to project on any surface without propping it up or using a tripod.
“In dark or dimly lit environments, Swivel can project a crisp 60-inch (1.5m) image from over eight feet (2m) away, or floor-to-ceiling in a typical room,” according to the website.

For example, laptops or netbooks with S-Video will require an S-Video and stereo audio to RCA Converter; Laptops or netbooks with VGA will need Wowee’s Cinemin Swap accessory an add-on compact powered box which converts VGA to an analog AV signal.
The website describes the Cinemin Swivel as a recreational multimedia pico projector that is designed primarily to connect to iPhones, iPods, and composite video-out devices to project videos and photos.
It is plug and play and uses the simple AV-in jack and connects to a wide variety of personal media players, including the iPod, iPhone, Flip Video, PSP, digital cameras, portable DVD players, netbooks (computer-specific cable required), and smartphones with video-out functionality.
The 90° hinge makes it easy to project on any surface without propping it up or using a tripod.
“In dark or dimly lit environments, Swivel can project a crisp 60-inch (1.5m) image from over eight feet (2m) away, or floor-to-ceiling in a typical room,” according to the website.

It also uses the Texas Instruments’ DLP projection technology shared by many projectors including the BenQ GP1 I wrote about in this week’s column.
The device has a built-in speaker but can be connected to portable speakers through the headphone jack as well and has rechargeable batteries (with a claimed two hours of battery life) so you aren’t required to be plugged in to an outlet.
Related stories:
Presentation gadgets take a load off road warriors
The iPad is here, almost
(slideshow) Great gadgets from CES 2010
New in 2010: Gadgets you’ll love
Smart phones: It’s all in the apps
iPhones may be all the rage, but financial advisers should consider their options before picking their next smart phone