What did we do before the invention of the iPod? Its like Mobile phone, how did we communicate before we had these? Back in the dark ages (10 years ago) we had to play music on tape and had to be at home to make a phone call. Just like most things in these times, we want everything on demand. Instant Music, Instant TV, Instantly contactable. Well the good news is Music is now just that, even in your car.

Digital Media Vs Radio, which do you prefer? Your own choice of music, albums and play-lists available for you to browse through at any point or tuning in to a radio broadcast and listening to the DJ. Not always, but usually making an anecdote about a story that really isn’t worth listening to, and playing a predetermined play-list dependant on weekly budgets rather than playing good music. Most people choose playing music from their iPod. Or at least have the choice to do so.

Your Music is available on your iPod when ever you want it, and presumably you like all the music tracks you have on there? Otherwise they wouldn’t be there right! Well combine the music you love and with the iPod car kit and you have the perfect solution for the long and tedious drives when your usually either reduced to tears or subject to road-rage before the end of the journey. I’m not saying that these are a miracle cure for road-rage but they may help reduce stress a little?

When Wanting Music in your vehicle the most convenient and easiest way of doing so is usually an FM Transmitter. Its a simple process to get music playing, which usually entails taking it out the box, setting a frequency and pressing play on your iPod (The process couldn’t be simpler). Music is played through the stereo via an FM frequency, providing the frequency isn’t used often you’ll receive a good quality audio signal through stereo and subsequently the speakers.

So you have weighed up your options, realised you want access to more music when driving and decided you want to listen to your iPod / iPhone in your car as pretty much everybody with an ipod does. All you have to do now is decide how you want to connect it.

There are a variety of ways to connect your iPhone / iPod into your vehicle. From a simple AUX input into a 3.5mm jack to a fully integrated iPod car kit connecting into the CD changer port and numerous kits in between.

However one of the most popular kits available on the market are FM Transmitters, this is mainly down to two reasons. Firstly the price, secondly the ease of use. However there are other advantages of using an FM transmitter over other kits available for your vehicle.

If you want access to music in all the vehicles you use, the FM Transmitter is the kit for you, it isn’t physically attached or integrated into your car, this means you can take out and use in any car you drive or are driven in. It might be your Wife’s, Friends or other family members. What ever car your driving it you can swap and change as suits. This is obviously a benefit over other kits as it increase ‘s the usability.

The other major advantage of the FM Transmitter is the compatibility. Hardwired kits usually have a complex compatibility list of vehicles and stereos. FM Transmitters do not have any compatibility with stereos (as long as has an aerial input). Just select an unused frequency match the stereo frequency and press play. Simplez.

The problem is, which Transmitter to choose from, there are loads of different types and brands offering FM Transmitters. However Griffin and Dexim are the market leaders and offer better quality over other FM kits. The Griffin iTrip FM transmitter is one of our favourites as it combines good value for money ans usability.

There are a lot of different mp3 players on the market today, but Apple are the leaders of the market with the numerous variations of the iPod. Initially the iPod was successful due to its styling and functions, however the current rise of popularity is also down to other factors including additional accessories and add-ons to the ipod to make it more functional and or usable.

The iPod’s primary use is for music play back, Although current iPod and iPhones are capable of so much more. Accessories that increase the functionality of the iPod are now seen as a business in there own right. A perfect example of an iPod accessory is the iPod car adaptor. Its primary function is to allow you to listen to your music while in your car. This has obvious advantages over other forms of entertainment systems in your vehicle, first and foremost you can listen to the music you love rather than what happens to be on the radio at the time, secondly the quality is far superior to the radio as they provide a digital connections into the cars entertainment systems. There are many other advantages depending on which kit you choose to purchase. However these advantages largely depend on your vehicle.

Other iPod car accessories can be found in a lot of local or online stores and include simple charging cables from the cigarette lighter, Ideal for when your iPod loses battery charge, FM transmitters, a more basic version of the Digital iPod car kit. The quality can be poor on Transmitters so its important to choose a good brand and if you live in a built up area its likely you wont receive a good reception. Ipod cases aren’t specific to car accessories however they can and will stop your iPod from being damaged while left in your vehicle.

Ipod car accessories can provide a useful extension to your iPods functions, Its likely that you love to listen to music. Driving is the perfect opportunity to cycle through track’s you haven’t heard for a while. The iPod car adaptor is the perfect means of doing so.

If (like many of our iPod Car Kit customer) there isnt a fully integrated kit for your vehicle then previously your outlook was bleek. You had to settle for a poor transmittion system which sent your iPods audio signal via airwaves to your car stereo. This method is very basic and simply asking for nearby radio stations to use their stronger signals to interfere with your iPod Car Kit. The result of this was very pooe quality audio – if any at all!

The answer came around a year or two ago when Dension decided to make their first HARD-WIRED FM kit. It worked by sending the iPods audio via a wire, insterad of through airwaves. This was a huge success and improved the quality of audio no end.

Since then, a few brands have jumped onboard using the same design but evolving it slightly. Dension made a second version called the Dension Ice Link One which had a clever auto-switch inside the unit which electronically unplugged the cars aerial when the iPod was playing and when the iPod stopped playing it would reconnect the aerial. This would make interference impossible.

Dice Electronics came next with their Dice FM-RDS, promising to revolutionize the universal iPod Car Kit. They had been developing a system which uses the same base model as the Dension but took advantage of the radios ability to display RDS information. Dice Electronics adapter their kit to allow the iPods Track Information (ID3 Tagging) to be sent through to the cars display! What a great idea!

Connects 2 have delved back into the fold now with the Connects2 iPlug-RDS TX MK2. They have evolved the Dice Electronics kit even further by creating a similar kit which has all the great features but also includes a remote control! This allows you to skip tracks from the device instead of from the iPod! Not only have Connects2 managed to create such a cracking peice of kit, they have also managed to roll it out at a cracking price! Coming in at only £110 RRP (iPod Car Kit Direct Price – £79.97) it stands to compete with the Dension Ice Link One and the Dice FM-RDS kits all the way!

We have been hitting stumbling blocks recently with misconceived ideas about FM Modulation when connecting an Apple iPod into your vehicle. Understandably, people get confused between Modulation and Transmission. We are here to set the record straight as these thoughts couldn’t be further from the truth.

Here are a few questions that we get asked and our answers:

Will I receive interference?

Absolutely not, no. There are a number of features that make sure this isn’t possible with Modulation;

·         It doesn’t transmit through airwaves as it is fully hard wired so radio stations signals cannot be received by your iPods signal.

·         As it’s fully hard-wired, the iPods signal is being sent down a wire, just like you would expect from an Auxiliary wire or a CD Changer wire.

·         The Modulator kits have a electrical "on/off" switch which physically block out your cars aerial when the iPod is connected to the kit, meaning that your aerial isn’t even connected.

Does it charge the iPod?

It does indeed. All the iPods will receive a full charge from the iPod car kit.

How hard is it to install?

Installation takes about 30 minutes at the maximum. The kit just needs to plug in to the rear of the stereo, it’s that simple.

How good will the audio quality be?

This will be similar to what you would expect from DAB, very close to CD Quality. On 99.9% of installations, you won’t be able to tell the difference between the iPod and your CDs, especially when you take into account the road noise coming from the car.

Why can’t I have a fully integrated kit like the Dension Gateway devices or the Dice Electronics Car Kits?

There are a few things that might stop you being able to use a fully integrated kit:

·         Your stereo doesn’t have a CD Changer port, therefore not being able to connect into the cars stereo

·         Your stereo simply isn’t good enough, this could be due to the lack of processing speed, the lack of software support or even because it is too advanced!

·         You just might not want to spend the amount of money that a fully integrated car kit costs

Are there any advantages of having a Modulator over an integrated kit?

There are a few, yes. Firstly the price, the Universal Modulator kits from Dension and Dice come in at £69.97 and £79.97 respectively. This can be a saving of around £40 over a fully integrated iPod Car Kit. Secondly, the kits come as standard with the iPod connection, unlike the integrated kits where you have to add the cable or cradle into the kit. Thirdly, the installation can be easier; it could save you an hour of labor!

We hope this might clear a few things up for you guys, if not then you are more than welcome to contact us at anytime.

As Christmas is drawing near, in car network have decided to make it that little bit easier on your wallet when purchasing your iPod equipment. We have decided to create one special offer per month until Christmas.

October’s special offer is free delivery to all UK Mainland customers when ordering Dice RDS FM Modulators.

The Dice are one of the leading brands of iPod car kits. Based in the USA they produce integrated kits for a range on cars and a very competent RDS FM Modulator that is universal providing you have a European ISO Aerial, so basically you can connect it to 99.9% of European stereos both factory and aftermarket…

The iPod Car Kit connects directly into the Aerial on the back of the headunit that provides an excellent signal interface that also reduces the chance of interference from other FM broadcasting stations and devices that FM Transmitters can’t block out. The Dice RDS FM also charges your iPod when it’s playing and provides RDS Track information if the headunit is compatible.

The Dice kit is provided with a dock cable for easy access and can be mounted anywhere in the car with the use of brodit mounting brackets and passive cradles depending on your iPod.

To claim your free delivery on the Dice RDS FM

type OCT_DICE into the coupon section when ordering

iPod Car Kit Direct recently had a stand over at a big car show. We had plans to try and push the idea that FM modulators are “crap” for lack of a better word.

For a long time now FM modulators have been misconceived and people automatically link them to a transmitter, this is the biggest misconception that you are likely to make when trying to find an iPod kit to connect into your factory fitted radio.

We at iPod Car Kit Direct want to redesign the way people think when they see FM Modulators. The effect we had when we changed peoples minds on the matter was astonishing. Most people were seriously amazed with the quality of audio through the Dension and DICE FM Modulator kits.

An FM Modulator doesn’t send FM signals through any airwaves or to any satellites and back down to the stereo. It connects into the stereo hard wired, sending a digital signal down a wire. The quality is comparable to DAB signals and when the iPod is connected the car aerial is disconnected through an automatic switch in the kit.

We were pleased with the reaction of people at the show and will continue to develop and push FM modulation for people who cant get a fully integrated kit for their iPod or just simply don’t have the budget.

Dension are in the process of updating their product range and part numbers making selecting a product for your specific car make and model easier, faster and providing a superior in-car experience. The range will also have some new exciting additions including the:

• Dension ice Link One
• Dension ice Link Gateway 100
• Dension ice Link Gateway 200i
• Dension Bluetooth Adapter for Gateway 100/300/500
• Dension CD Changer Retention Adapter for new Gateway 100 / 300 (the Gateway 100 replaces the ice Link Plus)

The Dension ice Link One is a new addition to the Dension ice Link FM Modulator range.

The Dension ice Link Gateway 100 is a new addition to the Dension ice Link Plus range.

The Dension ice Link Gateway 200i is the new Dension product compatile with Portable Sat Navigation devices enabling mute of your iPod Tunes when the navigation prompts directions through your car speakers. Also providing bluetooth handsfree functionality via portable navigation.

The Dension Bluetooth Adapter connects smartphones and PDA’s for: music / hands free calling / navigation.

The Dension CD Changer Retention Adapter is for use with the new Dension Gateway 100 and Existing Dension Gateway 300 and enables the use of CD Changer when fitting a Dension Adapter

More info soon on available dates and the new Dension product range of iPod Car kits and iPod Accessories.
  

Gadgets which play music held on iPods over FM radios are set to become legal in the UK sometime December 06. Does this mean they are as good a quality and as safe as the Dension iPod Car Kits? Read on…

Devices such as the iTrip plug into MP3 players and connect them wirelessly to radios in cars and homes. Despite being illegal in the UK and Europe the gadgets have become extremely popular because the majority of car stereos do not have the means to connect iPods or other MP3 players.

The problem here is that people simply are not aware of the Dension iPod Car Kit that enables full connectivity of your iPod with your factory fitted or aftermarket car radio ultimately providing you with a 100% compatible, high quality perfoming in-car portable audio product solution. The Dension iPod car kit seamlessly connects to your exisintg audio system, are accessible and discreet and are full controllable via your radio and steering wheel controls where fitted. 

Here is a typical post on a UK forum:

Comment:
“What!? What’s the problem with them!? What are your other options to listen to your MP3 Player in your car? Casette adapter?” 

Answer:
“I have an itrip. I don’t use it………. because.

- It’s a pain to set a frequency
- The audio quality is crap
- It’s difficult to find a clean area of radio spectrum
- You have to change the radio frequency every time you use it, probably because the thing forgets the last frequency you set it as.
- The frequency you set it to NEVER lines up to the one on the radio; so you have to search for it, which takes forever.
- If you move more than 10 miles, some station gets in the way and you get even worse sound.
- When the ipod plays the “tuning track”, and if you have it set to continuous and random play, it moves on to the next “tuning song” immediately, which screws the itrip up as it begins the retuning process again.
- That means you have to have a new playlist so the “tuning track” can sit on it’s own. If you don’t know which frequency you will need that is a VERY big pain.
- It’s pretty much pointless on long journeys as you have to go through the pain of the above problems AGAIN to tune it back in; which is impossible while driving.
- You have to make sure that the itrip songs can’t come up whilst playing random songs or it will reprogram it again. That means you can’t have random on “All tracks”. You have to make a playlist with everything BUT the itrip tracks.

Maybe they have a new model and tuning system by now or something; but the one I had was sooooooo useless I can’t ever recommend the thing for anyone EVER.
You are better off just investing in a new car stereo with some line-in jacks and MP3CD functions (you can get one of those for the price of two itrip type devices). If you just want something for short journeys (it’s useless on long ones remember) then just use your headphones or burn off a CD.”

Read the full post here:

Ofcom, the communications regulator, today outlined plans to legalise the use of iTrips and other “low power FM transmitters” in response to growing consumer demand.

It will consult on the issue until September, after which the devices are expected to become legal by the end of this year.

Simon Muys, a telecoms lawyer at London firm Olswang, said legalising the gadgets was a logical solution to a problem that has been irritating Ofcom since their introduction into the UK around two years ago.

The gadgets use the FM broadcast spectrum which is regulated by Ofcom. Under current rules, all users need a licence or an exemption from the regulator to broadcast on FM but this has proven impossible to enforce.

Mr Muys said Ofcom has recognised that with so many of these products in the market the most practical solution is to introduce an exemption.

Is the FM Transmitter the only option for In-Car iPods? 

But there is a better, higher quality solution to this problem even when the ban is lifted. Dension iPod Car Kits produce high quality sound performance through your cars existing audio system be it an Alfa Romeo or VW. They integrate fully with your factory fitted car radio and provide you with full control via your radio or steering wheel controls (where fitted).

iPod Car Kit for Factory Fitted Car Radios (Alfa Romeo to VW)

iPod Car Kit for Aftermarket Car Radios (Alpine to Sony)

Universal FM Modulator iPod Car Kit (for car radios with no CD Changer or AUX socket)

The FM Modulator Dension iPod Car Kit is NOT an FM Transmitter and works differently by connecting inline with your aerial connection. These are fully legal and produce far superior quality to the FM Transmitters.