I listened to the Altec speakers at an Apple store and while they match the iPod nicely in the looks department, they tended to distort at relatively low volumes and are over-priced, IMHO.
I scored these
Sony speakers for $55 plus shipping (I see that they have gone up in price in the past two weeks...) They are smaller, lighter and 1/3 to 1/2 the cost of the Altec speakers depending on where you purchase them. Better sound too. The Sonys use AA batteries or an included AC adaptor.
