I usually prefer buying OEM accessories, but the RIM dock for the PlayBook looks like a charge-only dock.
Are there any that have port replication built in? It would be nice to stick on the PlayBook on the dock connected to my A/V receiver and listen to music through it.
Haven't seen anything of the sort.
Heard of JamBox? That might do it for you. Its avaliable for about 150$ on buy.com.
Bluetooth speaker. I hear they're pretty nice.
Doesn't rim make some device like that BUT it communicates with the device (phones) via bluetooth and so far the pb does not do that type of bluetooth communication.
I'm not sure quite what an A/V receiver may be, but the cradle does NOT allow the HDMI port to be used, or the USB port, when the PlayBook is in it. The headphone jack at the top, however, would work just fine, and of course the screen is nicely propped up for viewing.
I believe there was one third-party cradle charger available that had either the USB or HDMI port passed through in some way, but I believe that one also charged through the USB port, so it wouldn't be a rapid charger. Don't recall where I saw it but it's the only other cradle/dock-style charger available (as far as I know).
A dock with HDMI would be the big thing for me. I use the HDMI a lot.
Looking at the port area, I would think there is a bit too much leeway in the design/placement of the 3 sockets/ports for a docking station to work without possibly placing too much pressure or torque on those ports. Folks already comment on the "wiggle" room they notice plugging in the usb or hdmi. But I could be wrong.