Levi's Launches iPod-Ready Jeans

Levi Strauss & Co. is looking to make money from the iPod craze with a pair of jeans that features a special joystick in the watch pocket for operating Apple Computer Inc.'s popular digital music player.

The RedWire DLX Jeans, scheduled for release in the fall for men and women, would also feature a side pocket with built-in docking cradle for the iPod, which would not be easily seen from the outside.

Robert Hanson, Levi U.S. brand president, said the new jeans merge fashion and technology to enhance consumers' "digital music lifestyle."

“In designing the jeans we considered both function and fashion -- the result is a uniquely functional, yet stylish, great fitting jean," Hanson said in a statement released this week.

Other features in the Levi jeans include a retractable headphone unit to prevent tangles. In addition, the jeans are machine washable, but don't forget to remove the iPod.

Levi is apparently hoping to ride the popularity of the iPod, which accounts for about three-fourths of the market for digital media players. During the Macworld user conference in San Francisco this week, Apple Chief executive Steve Jobs said the company sold 14 million of the devices in the fourth quarter, exceeding analyst projections.

Levi is not the first manufacturer to offer iPod ready clothing. Los Angeles-based Kenpo last fall released a men's jacket that had built-in iPod button controls in the sleeve.