[somebear]

Just FYI: You are able to play music from your iPhone through iTunes without having any music on your laptop.

Just plug it in, but don't sync it (apart from the initial 1-step sync), open the iPhone in the iTunes sidebar, and you should be able to play your music right away including playlists (some authorisation might be needed). Works very well for me.

[tomkarlo]

Thanks, but when I'm at work I use headphones (as I assume most folks do.) It's easiest to just plug them into my iPhone. (I do keep a power cord around for the phone.)

Has the additional side benefit that my play counts stay more accurate.