900CR
06-21-2004, 09:19 PM
After playing around with the iTrip FM Transmitter, which was all but a useless waste of $30, we recently went with the Belkin Charger + a Sony Cassette converter.
The sound was 100X better than with the iTrip garbage... someone should really say how lousy the signal is on these things before people like me continue to waste money on them. Sorry, but that's the truth. It was cool to finally actually "hear" the music playing in the RAV!
We also invested in a Pro-Clip mounting unit which installed in about 30 seconds and looks like the factory designed it. Great part. With the proximity of the Pro-Clip to the radio and steering wheel, the iPod looks like it was built of the RAV4. The cord from the Sony cassette converter tucks nicely out of the way within the Pro-Clip unit and without the Belkin Recharger looks totally sano. The big white Belkin cable really ruins an otherwise tidy install.
Since we didn't like the wires hanging all over the place, I did some research on iPod Lounge and found the Dension ICELink. It even comes with a Pro-Clip compatible docking station which acts just like the cradle we have in the house... no hacking the stock unit like I've seen on other posts.
Dension ICELink 1.1 (http://www.densionusa.com/x/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=375&Itemid=79)
I just got off of the phone with Dension and the ICE adapter should be here in 2 days. I'll be posting pictures and a full review of the product in the hope I can help others avoid the mass chaos and poor sound quality that seems to be revolving around mobile iPod installations.
The ICELink cost $239.00 plus shipping and tax. The goal is to have the iPod fully integrated into the factory steering wheel controls... then ICE Link also powers down the iPod should you select AM, FM, tape or in-unit CD and basically acts as a CD Changer emulator.
Please stay tuned for a real world review of this promising product.
The sound was 100X better than with the iTrip garbage... someone should really say how lousy the signal is on these things before people like me continue to waste money on them. Sorry, but that's the truth. It was cool to finally actually "hear" the music playing in the RAV!
We also invested in a Pro-Clip mounting unit which installed in about 30 seconds and looks like the factory designed it. Great part. With the proximity of the Pro-Clip to the radio and steering wheel, the iPod looks like it was built of the RAV4. The cord from the Sony cassette converter tucks nicely out of the way within the Pro-Clip unit and without the Belkin Recharger looks totally sano. The big white Belkin cable really ruins an otherwise tidy install.
Since we didn't like the wires hanging all over the place, I did some research on iPod Lounge and found the Dension ICELink. It even comes with a Pro-Clip compatible docking station which acts just like the cradle we have in the house... no hacking the stock unit like I've seen on other posts.
Dension ICELink 1.1 (http://www.densionusa.com/x/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=375&Itemid=79)
I just got off of the phone with Dension and the ICE adapter should be here in 2 days. I'll be posting pictures and a full review of the product in the hope I can help others avoid the mass chaos and poor sound quality that seems to be revolving around mobile iPod installations.
The ICELink cost $239.00 plus shipping and tax. The goal is to have the iPod fully integrated into the factory steering wheel controls... then ICE Link also powers down the iPod should you select AM, FM, tape or in-unit CD and basically acts as a CD Changer emulator.
Please stay tuned for a real world review of this promising product.