Car Chargers Blow Up Your iPod

[the4starish]

Any ideas on how the non-branded, non-oem, generic car chargers work, particularly the ones seen on eBay? I've been searching for hours, litterally hours, trying to find posts on whether or not they fry the iPod or damage it in any way. I had heard that some chargers do and some dont. I know Belkin ones aren't too expensive but the Belkin ones wouldnt allow me to use the Audio-Out on my Dock. So, heres a poll to see what brand of car charger is used the most and which ones blows up your iPod and which ones dont. (OK, So I know they wont "blow up", but fry the electrical components is what Im talking about)

[GavinD]

Things blow up when they are rigged together with cheap parts... Unless you are the type of person who buys the cheapest junk tires and shocks you should invest in a real adapter that adds charging along with everything else.

[live2sk8]

I just bought an open Belkin Kit on eBay for $12 shipped. I don't see how it would make my iPod "blow up."

[the4starish]

No, I know the Belkin ones are solid, but for the install I want, a Belkin one wont work, as a matter of fact, none of the ones with Audio Out will work. So, thats why I was looking at the generic ones. They seem to be the most basic and fit my needs. The cost is not an issue. I would spend the extra money for a charger that has been tried and true, doesnt have an audio out/ or lets me use the audio out on my dock.

[the4starish]

Actually, a slightly disturbing piece of information has come across my screen. I was at The Apple Store Online (http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/71602/wo/La14VVgcczlM2S8WbHWMU1DQrhY/2.0.0.11.1.0.6.9.5.19.0.1.0.1.1.2.1.0.3) and I was trying to do more research on car chargers because of a lot of reports of fried iPods. Well, I was looking at the Belkin charger and, to answer your question "how it would make my iPod "blow up." Well, read the reviews that several customer have made about the belkin charger.

[NawdaKh]

Sik imp is cheap, and reliable. Works great with my ai-net adapter.

P.S. Ya, didn't you hear? They're filling their chargers with plastic explosives, now every time someone trys to charge their ipod...

BOOM.

[MerkXR4]

The Belkin charger that I have does have a 3.5mm jack for audio. I have been using it for a few weeks now and no problems whatsoever. I believe it is a good reliable charger. The thing is that it wasn't cheap... I think it cost me a good $39 at Best Buy. The thing is that I had a gift certificate so I didn't have to pay as much out of my own pocket.

[boba_rick]

My Belkin (at least a year old) worked fine with the dock. The dock will not send the line-out signal down the cable though, but the charging will be fine. That is how I had my old car set up. I even had a switch to turn the charging on & off.

--rick

[GadgetGuru72]

One that you don't have listed that most certainly isn't "generic" is the dual charger by inCase. There is a link to the product in my sig. It's pretty expensive as far as chargers are concerned (it's $50), but it's a wall charger and a car charger in one. So, it's the only charger I carry and ever need. inCase also sells a carry case that holds this charger, the iPod, headphones, etc. The case costs $70 and INCLUDES the charger, so the case is another $20.

Again, they're pretty expensive, but they're reliable and convenient.

[bdb]

Macally is another one that isn't necessarily "generic". You plug the firewire port into it, so its just another little piece to carry with the charger kit. Great for trips.

[the4starish]

True, neither the inCase nor the Macally are "generic", so I guess they would fall into the "Other" catagory (The last option says "Other/eBay/Generic", meaning its encompasses all Brand Names not listed, cheap ones off of eBay, and generic brands that dont really have a brand name).

[the4starish]

Originally posted by boba_rick
The dock will not send the line-out signal down the cable though, but the charging will be fine.

That is a feature which is a must have since I am going to be hardwiring it to my Headunit (its an Alpine with a 3.5mm input jack built in).

[badlydrawnboy]

... and it was luckily under AppleCare, so Apple replaced it.

I'm going to try the Sik Imp next and see what happens. Still under AppleCare, so I'm gonna take the risk.

[GavinD]

Originally posted by NawdaKh
P.S. Ya, didn't you hear? They're filling their chargers with plastic explosives, now every time someone trys to charge their ipod...

BOOM.

HAHA

with that said this - this site www.ipodcarkits.com has some good reviews...

[the4starish]

haha, all jokes aside though, its a serious thing if you dont have apple care, extended warranty, or service plan, you dont want to do irreversible damage to anything that cost you $300, being 19, thats a huge % of my net worth.