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> Griffin iTrip FM Transmitter for iPod Pros and Cons
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the Griffin iTrip FM Transmitter for iPod Pros and Cons page:
Pros of
the Griffin iTrip FM Transmitter for iPod
The iTrip has no batteries and
can work out of the box with no installation, provided your area doesn't have
a station transmitting on the 87.7FM frequency, or that you are transmitting to
a radio without a powerful antenna (for example, a boombox will have no problems
unless you are very close to the station transmitting on that frequency). If there
is a station on the 87.7 frequency, the iTrip has the ability to swith frequencies.
It does not drain my iPod's battery much quicker than when I use headphones, but
you can turn the LED off (once you install the option on the iPod) if you want
to conserve the battery a little more.
I have found this great at work.
I work in a museum and it's a pain to bring a lot of CDs into work because they
take up so much room and because they get ruined quickly with all the dust in
the lab. Our lab has a boombox, so with the iTrip, I just bring in my iPod and
the whole lab can listen to my 500 CDs with minimal effort. I have no problems
transmitting across the lab (about 25 feet), or into the next room where there
is another boombox. This is nice because I can leave my iPod in a dust-free part
of the lab and still enjoy its music. The labs at work all have large windows,
so we can get radio reception there, but the collections are at the center of
the building and are surrounded by concrete, so the radio isn't an option there.
The iTrip means I can work in collections and have a large music library at my
disposal. It's nice to be able to walk around and transmit to a boombox, because
I can hear the phone or someone knocking at the door.
The iTrip also looks
pretty cool, complementing the design of the iPod. I have not noticed the signal
drifting or cutting out, but I haven't had it too long, either. Others have complained
about distortion, but I think this is because they have the volume turned too
high (it must be set to between 50% and 70%). Most people save music to their
iPod in mp4 (128kb/s) format to save room. 128 will never have as good quality
of sound as Apple Lossless or .wav, especially at louder volumes.
Cons
of the Griffin iTrip FM Transmitter for iPod
There is some static interference
if you are driving and your iTrip is close to your cell phone, or if you drive
in areas where there are a lot of power lines. If your car has a very powerful
antenna, it is more likely to pick up the weak signals like those that are more
likely to be found on the low end of the dial. If you're not driving past the
radio station or living next to it, this can usually be solved easier by switching
your car's antenna to local than by switching the iTrip's frequency. It's not
hard to switch iTrip frequencies, but it does take about 20 seconds and is hard
to do on the fly, especially if you are driving. In my truck, it's one button
on the radio to switch to local, and this solves the problem quicker and safer
than fumbling with my iTrip. It would be nicer to be able to scroll through frequencies,
but it would compromise the design of the iTrip, I think.
Another problem
is that the iTrip covers the hold button. This is a problem for some, but not
as much for me. I like the hold button when I am biking or exercising, but when
I'm at work I like to be able to skip songs now and then, or adjust the volume
if someone comes into the lab, so this is not a big problem for me.
The
most annoying thing I have found is that the extra frequencies are stored on your
iPod as "songs", meaning they show up in your playlist and will eventually cycle
through if you use shuffle mode (which I use 95% of the time), and they are dead
silence until you fast forward. I have reduced this problem by deleting a number
of the frequencies, but it still happens occasionally. It's not too big a deal
to delete frequencies (the ones in the middle of the dial are more likely to have
a station transmitting from them), but you never know when some back-of-the-woods
college or Bible station will be broadcasting on the lower end of the dial.
The
last problem I've had with the iTrip is that no iPod case works really well with
it. I have a leather one that velcro's over the top of the iPod, which means that
those straps are undone when the iTrip is in place. If the iPod is clipped to
my belt or pocket, it will quickly spin around and fall out of the case if the
iTrip is attached, because nothing is holding it in place. Plus, more dust gets
in because the case is open. However, if I want to use the iTrip, I can usually
set the iPod next to the radio and walk away - if I really need it to stay in
the case (like on my bike), I'm probably using headphones anyway.
Buy
the Griffin iTrip FM Transmitter for iPod
