If your having music problems i feel bad for you maam.

Well, your problems may be a thing of the past. Certainly in this day and age you shouldn’t be experiencing any problems when it comes to music storage & integration. You have thousands of different devices to store and play music from. Whether it be your Phone or iPod, other generic MP3 or MP4 players, or even old skool CD players. Its saved and ready to listen to as long as you have it with you.

Integrating into your vehicle is no longer a thing of pain and frustration, especially if your looking to go down the FM Transmitter route. They are perfect if you want something cheep and cheerful but works straight from the box and can be tucked away from prying eyes in your glove box.

Combine this with a iPod / iPhone car holder and you have a perfectly acceptable iPod car kit adapter solution for very little cost. For Example if you wanted a mounted solution combine the Griffin iTrip Auto with the Macally mCup and you have a Music solution for around £60 which charges your iPod and holds securely while your driving.

Griffin have had the griffin app available for download on the iTunes app store for some time now . What we would like to know is, is the app beneficial to its users? Apple kindly allow comments to be made on the app from its users and the general consensus is its OK.

There are some good reviews rating the app highly and some rating it poorly with an average score of 2.5 out of 5.0

The app basically allows you to pre-tune the device to the desired frequency much quicker, and in our opinion much easier too. however its not a life saver and certainly doesn’t make or break the products performance.

If your thinking of purchasing a iPod FM Transmitter the griffin products are certainly the products offering the best performance however not due to the app available (But by all means try it).

We caught up with Griffin at the CU Exposed show in London yesterday to discuss the launch of a few new products into the UK in the coming months.

The new line of products branded “Drive Safe” are updated versions of the iPod / iPhone products currently on the market. The Drive Safe range also offers bluetooth functionality as well as iPod music, Will be landing in the coming months. May to be precise.

Look for the Drive Safe media campaign in the coming weeks as i’m sure the products will be a huge success in the UK, adding to the ever increasing popularity of Griffin.

One of the best features of an FM Transmitter is that its compatible with all vehicles with a stereo (head unit), as all stereos pick up frequencies from the aerial antenna located somewhere within or on the vehicle itself.

An Fm Transmitter simply broadcasts the data as a frequency to a spare frequency channel (Set by the user) which isn’t being used by the stereo, therefore you have a input into the stereo and vehicle speaker system to play your music from which ever MP3 music device you have.

An iPod FM Transmitter work on exactly the same principle just with a iPod connection into the device as opposed to an AUX input. The difference is minimal when it concerns transmission, however the iPod connection does allow for charge of the iPod in such products as the griffin iTrip Auto which a normal AUX transmitter would not offer.

The connection of the iPod into the device via iPod dock also allows for the music to be played in stereo as opposed to mono. However this will be predominately be  unnoticeable as the quality of the music played is analogue not full digital. This is a small price to pay for a cost effective iPod car solution.

You either love them or hate them, or your not too bothered either way. However there is a myth about iPod fm transmitters that isn’t always the case. The reports of poor quality and constant feedback & interference are not always 100% accurate.

If you are comparing them to a fully integrated ipod car system like the Dension gateway 100 CAN then yes FM Transmitters are of a poorer quality and have less features and functionality. However you have to bare in mind the price difference of each product. Your comparing £30-40 with £130-£140. or another way of looking at it, a cheaper MP3 player with an iPod. There are obvious differences but this should be expected.

The problem with Transmitters is inherent of all transmitters to a certain extent, this is due to how they actually work. Transmission of radio frequencies beans the signal being broadcast from one device to another. In this case the ipod fm transmitter to the radio. The problem occurs when the frequency bands are close to other stronger signals. When this happens you get a bleed of one into the other, resulting in interference and / or distortion.

Having said this there are a few ways round the problem but it takes a little experimenting. Firstly try using a frequency which is the furthest away from any strong signal in your area. Secondly select a back up station as far away from the first signal band and pre set to the stereo as well. So if you start to receive interference you can quickly change without much inconvenience.

The quality of products you are using is also a factor in the interference problems reported. Generally speaking if you purchase a more recognised product & brand such as the griffin iTrip FM Transmitter you will receive less disturbance than a cheaper Chinese import.

So if you want a simple and cost effective solution to listening to your iPod in your car. An FM transmitter is not as bad as some people make out. Choose wisely and set up & test the frequencies any you shouldn’t have many problems with them.  

There are a lot of different types of transmitters available for car audio system, each differs in performance and quality.

One is the iPod FM transmitter which uses an empty radio station in your location to play the iPod. Then it transmits the music from the iPod to your car radio in full stereo sound. The actual quality of the audio being played through the transmitter is generally quite good.

Second Most genuine products such as Griffin iTrip FM transmitter offer audio equivalent to a good radio station. Firstly select a signal which is clear of any radio stations, this will reduce the amount of interference heard, secondly if your frequency picks up any in the future simple change frequency. The Griffin iTrip Fm Transmitter for example has 3 pre-set frequencies to change to if you do happen to receive quality issues with the current settings.

A small saying that my granddad used to say to me "you get what you pay for" generally rings true in all walks of life. If you buy a cheap transmitter you should expect the performance to be poorer than other kits, from our experience the griffin tend to offer the best all round performance in the iPod FM Transmitter world.

Technology is continually improving, The design of the iPhone 4 is a perfect example of this. Although it has a few teething problems the improvements in terms of hardware is much greater that the previous iPhone 3GS. It was only a matter of time before manufacturers of iPod car kits & Fm Transmitters developed better ways of offering more from their products.

A prime example of the improvements being made to iPod FM Transmitters is the effort Griffin made creating an Apple App for the sole use with their products. Multiple Griffin products support the new App which allows the frequencies to be changed from the iPhone & iPod Touch. This doesn’t sound too great! However the App means you can took away the connection to the FM transmitter only leaving the iPod wire exposed. Frequencies can be changed at the touch of a button rather than going through the device its self. A much safer way of changing if your driving alone.

Although there are no major hardware improvements that will alter or improve the performance of Griffin products. The software upgrades indicate the products are continually improving and moving with the times, making usability & functionality much easier for all users.

This is another small reason the Griffin brand have the best selling iPod FM transmitters globally.

There are a lot of different types of transmitters available to purchase, each differs in performance and quality. As with everything else in life you get the good and the bad. The problem with transmitters is that the bad are very bad and give the other products a poor reputation on the back of theirs.

FM Transmitters by nature are designed with a slight fault, in that they are prone to interference from other signal frequencies. This can manifest in two ways either the transmitter signal is blocked because the other signal is stronger or interference is received over either audio playback, resulting in echo, buzz or both.

The actual quality of the audio being played through the transmitter is generally quite good. Most genuine products such as Griffin iPod fm transmitters , dexim and or logic3 offer audio equivalent to a good radio station (radio 1 for example) however its generally expected if you use a frequency close to a powerful local or national station you will receive a little interference at some point during connection.

The solution to this problem however is simple. Firstly select a signal which is clear of any radio stations, this will reduce the amount of interference heard, secondly if your frequency picks up any in the future simple change frequency. The Griffin iTrip Fm Transmitter for example has 3 pre-set frequency’s to change to if you do happen to receive quality issues with the current settings.

FM Transmitters are a good solution if you only want a simple iPod input in your car, If for example you don’t need an integrated kit that offers full digital quality, iPod control and text display the Transmitter could be the kit for you.

A small saying that my granddad used to say to me “you get what you pay for” generally rings true in all walks of life. If you buy a cheap transmitter you should expect the performance to be poorer than other kits, from our experience the griffin tend to offer the best all round performance in the iPod Fm Transmitter world.

Its an interesting question considering the general reputation gathered by FM Transmitters over the past few years. The quality of Fm transmitters are undoubtedly poorer than the hard wired equivalent, but too what extend is the quality sacrificed and how does represent to value for money?

The problem with the question is that it is very general, Which FM Transmitters are we talking about and what indicates “good value”. You can get an fm transmitter from £10 to £20 ranging to £60+, Obviously this has an effect on the quality of the product and subsequently the value for money.

How do we define good value for money?

Personally I would define “value” as representing a similar or better standard than you are currently experiencing. Whether that be Radio 1 Broadcast in the UK, Digital Radio in the US or another quality broadcast signal.

With that in mind, which FM transmitters are best value for money and does that represent value for money in general?

Based on quality there several types of iPod FM Transmitters, Griffin have several available which offer good quality one of which is the Griffin iTrip FM, Dexim again offer’s a consistent performance and logic3 offer good performance for the cheaper end of the market. It Is important to remember that you are likely to experience a poorer performance if you live or use the transmitter in an area of high Signal broadcasts E.g Larger cities like London.

Based on our tests the griffin transmitters performed better in built up areas than all the other kits, generally speaking the Griffin option is more a little more expensive. This indicates to me a better value for money when deciding which kit to choose.

Do iPod FM Transmitters offer good value for Car Audio?

In My opinion iPod FM Transmittes do have a place in the market of Car Audio systems. It is correct you can get better quality systems which integrate in to the stereo offering more and performing better. However if you want a simple system providing a decent performance, YES I would seriously look at FM Transmitters as an option for playing music from your iPod in your car

If you don’t want a fully integrated iPod car kit with steering wheel controls and text display, and your not interested in the Dension FM Modulator kit for increased sound quality and charging. Your next best option is the Griffin FM Transmitter range, either the iTrip FM transmitter or the Roadtrip FM Transmitter.

Both are now available with smart-scan mode, which is a device that automatically scans through available frequencies and picks three with the lease interference. This system allows you to pre-set three frequencies in your stereo, so switching between them is easy when or if you hit an area with a high signal in the frequency your using. Push the Next button and select the appropriate button the stereo and you’ll begin on the new channel.

Do People experience Problems with Audio Quality of FM Transmitters?

There is a general consensus that the quality of audio produced by the FM transmitters are poor, this is actually false in most cases. Obviously certain kits do perform worse than others, as the audio played through the stereo depends on the quality being broadcast from the kit and received by the stereo. If the kits broadcasts a poor strength signal or there is another signal with greater strength than the kit, the quality is going to be decreased. The key is to select a frequency with no or minimal other broadcasts and the transmitter will work well.

Previously charging iPod / iPhones from a FM transmitter was very difficult, it required an alternative device to connect in to the Cigarette lighter port which then connected into iPod, meaning the FM transmitter had to work on the AUX (head phones socket). The new griffin products come with the same connection however as its an all in one kit so the iPod / iPhone connects into the griffin via the docking cable.

FM Transmitter with the Dension Unimount.

The advantage of using the Unimount with a transmitter is it holds the device in a usable position when driving. Making selecting albums, artists and tracks much more simple and convenient as you are unable to cycle the tracks from the stereo or steering wheel controls.