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- Provides: Power, support and FM transmission for Port connected iPods (including the new mini iPods
- Developer: DLO
- Requirements: An iPod, a car with an FM radio, and a car power source
- Retail Price: $99.99
So, you've got an iPod (or an iPod mini) and you want to play it while riding around in your car. For one thing, it's illegal in most states to have plugs, buds, or earphones on while driving, so that shouldn't be an option. There are FM transmitters to broadcast your iPod's music, but then you need that extra cable to get power into your iPod to save on battery power. Lastly, how do you support your iPod when many cup holders don't have solid bottoms. Well the TransPod FM does it all.
Seldom have I been so jazzed about a product that I had to show it to everyone, strangers included. The concept is very straightforward: you plug the power end of the TransPod into your car's power-plug (formally known as the cigarette lighter). The other end is a holster that you slip your iPod into. There are self-stick pads of varying thickness that you place within the holster to accommodate 10, 15 or 20GB iPods, one of the thicker 30 GB iPods, or the small iPod mini. The pad insures that the iPod has no "wiggle" room inside the holster.
The TransPod not only supports your iPod, it provides power to the holster and doubles (or is that triples?) as an FM transmitter. The TransPod can broadcast the full FM frequency. The way it works is you dial around your car's radio until you find a region that doesn't have a radio station playing. For best response, you should find a signal that has at least one blank station on both sides (e.g., if 89.1, 89.3 and 89.5 are all clear, so you set your FM radio and the TransPod to 89.3). On the third image further down, you can clearly see the two buttons used to set the TransPod's frequency. On the image below, you can see the LCD screen where you can easily discern the station the TransPod is set to broadcast.
Included with the holster are a variety of connection devices:
In the middle of the above image is the TransPod holster. To the left is a more typical car's power-outlet plug which is to be used with the squat "dash" support just above and a bit to the left of the holster. To the right of the holster are two reticulated arms for standard use.
On the back of the holster is a hole which all the supports screw into with a quarter turn. On the right in the image below is the "dash" support. Showing the image below, it is easy to see how the holster inserts into, and rotates 90° to lock in place. The dash support is used when the regular support arms cannot be used for whatever reason. The dash support is mounted (screws are provided) directly on your dashboard. The power supply is inserted in the black plug receiver just barely seen above the bottom screw hole.
However, assuming that you do not need the dash support, the arm support comes in two pieces (although you may only need one). As seen below, this is the basic arm support in my car (the basic arm is the one closest to the holster shown in the top image). The basic arm has the power-plug plug at one end.
While this does work well, the problem I found is that the iPod is held straight out. As you can see, the design of my car places the iPod more to the passenger's side than the driver's side. As such, it was not all that easy for me to see the iPod's screen. To drive while straining your neck to see what album or song you are selecting can be dangerous.
Although you may not need it for space reasons, if you attach the second arm support to the first, it has one added advantage over the basic arm. The second arm support has a ball-gymbol as its last component. This means that you can rotate the holster from side to side (and up-and-down). This is different from the rest of the reticulations which only provide up-or-down movement.
As can be seen in the image below, the iPod is held much higher and is rotated toward the driver. This image also clearly shows the two up-and-down buttons on the side of the holster that are used to "tune" the transmitter to the null station you select on your radio. The small LCD screen on the bottom front of the holster is where you can (easily) see what station your TransPod is tuned to.
My wife's car has a completely different power-plug mount. The TransPod had no difficulty providing clearance and good visibility. With all the reticulations and pivots, it should not be too difficult to find some position and angle that works well with your car.
Lastly, if you look closely on the image above, on the right side of the holster, just to the right of the steering wheel, is a small silver dot/hole. This is an earphone jack. Some car stereos have an input option where you can obtain a special cable and attach a phone jack in the TransPod and insert the other end into your stereo and bypass the FM transmitter entirely. Alternatively, if your car has a cassette tape as part of the radio, you can obtain one of the car cassette adaptors to bypass the FM transmitter approach.
While the TransPod can broadcast the entire FM spectrum, I found the best sound was achieved by staying below 90- 92. Above that frequency I found the singer's "s" sounds to be very raspy (similar to the sound of AM stations that are not set properly "on" the station). Above 100, I found a lot of extra noises, buzzes, and occasional hums. These problems, as I'm to understand, are more due to the physics of low power FM transmitters than this unit in specific.
One other problem I found, again due to the physics of radio, is that, when weaving around very hilly regions where all stations are distant (I was on a driving trip when this happened), occasionally a distant station would be bounced into my radio providing competition to the TransPod. On the other hand, I occasionally found that when I turned the iPod and TransPod off, a station was broadcasting on the same frequency that I was just using. This shows the reasonable strength that the TransPod provides.
Keep in mind that I live in Los Angeles, a city that has FM stations up and down the wazoo. I have had no problems finding a sufficient amount of empty space to play my iPod and have had no problems enjoying my music.
So, until car makers start supplying an iPod dock as part of a car's features, using an FM transmitter of some kind is the best way one can use an iPod in one's car. And, if you do use this approach, the TransPod is the best mechanism I've seen to do this with.
I do have one complaint, albeit small; there is no manual or guidance. The closest DLO comes is a card in the back of the bubble pack showing the pieces with absolute minimal descriptive information. While it is possible to work this out without detailed explanations, an 8.5 x 11 paper providing some "use" explanation and suggestions would have been an easy addition.
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___________ Gary Coyne has been a scientific glassblower for over 30 years. He's been using Macs since 1985 (his first was a fat Mac) and has been writing reviews of Mac software and hardware since 1995.
Tags: Reviews ď iPod Reviews ď
I have to disagree. I had one of these for awhile. Clunky, picks up all kinds of engine noise, very delicate hanging out there with all it’s weight on the cigarette lighter. The FM frequency is adjustable by knob and has to be tuned constantly. If you live in a major metro area, you’ll have a hard time finding a free channel. If you are traveling, you’ll have a hard time keeping it tuned, interference free. Much more hassle than it’s worth. I use a Griffin iTrip and it’s much the same without all the crap. Use a cassette adapter instead or a line-in if at all possible.